Grace for Giving
Updated: Nov 25, 2023
What is Grace for Giving? I heard that phrase some weeks back and could not have told you what that meant, but I knew it was important for me at that moment to learn about it.
In defining Grace:
His kindness
His gracious generosity
His undeserved favor
Spiritual blessing
Luke 6:38 - Give, and it will be given to you, pressed down, shaken together and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.
We do our part and give, God does his part in bringing the increase.
I heard a story recently about a Pastor who had asked Brother Hagin who he looks for when looking for a leader in his church. What are the characteristics he looks for? Brother Hagin gave one word, "generous". Then he went on to say "because someone who is not generous will shut down a move of the Spirit of God".
That statement really hit me. That means our stinginess can actually stop a move of the Spirit of God in our lives, our family, and our church. The very thing we have been declaring God for and believing in could be stopped by our unwillingness to be generous. That also means on the flip side of that, our generosity can initiate a move of God's Spirit.
Dr. Debbie Rich once said that she could tell how the revival meetings were going to go by the offerings. I would assume the first night she could tell if the people were truly hungry for a move of God's Spirit by their generosity.
Your generosity affects more than just your finances. It actually affects the way you receive from God. The more generous you are the more you are expanding yourself to receive from God. You touch God's heart and you get his attention. Our Pastor says you can't buy yourself a miracle, but you certainly can give your way into a miracle.
2 Corinthians 8:7 - In this portion of scripture Paul is talking to the Christians in Macedonia who are generous but poor.
"But as you abound in everything--in faith, speech, in knowledge, in all diligence, and in your love for us--see that you abound in this grace also".
What Grace is Paul talking about? THE GRACE FOR GIVING!
In other words, it is possible to abound in grace in one aspect but not do good in another. These people were struggling financially.
Paul is admonishing them. You have excelled in all these things, your preaching, your teaching, your revelation, and your honor for us but NOW it is time to come up a little higher into this grace for giving.
When you step into this GRACE you step into sowing AND reaping, you step into giving AND receiving. God has something to do with this. It is a grace that comes upon you to give generously.
2 Corinthians 9:6-8 - "But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So, let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver." And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.
There are 2 categories listed here:
sparingly - which means you gave a little bit.
bountifully - you gave more than a little bit and actually stepped out of your comfort zone.
You participate in this GRACE by sowing -- sowing is stretching yourself beyond your comfort zone. Your generosity will access a supernatural harvest.
We sow with a purpose and a promise. We have many opportunities in our lives to sow generously. We sow because we know there is a promise attached to it or we would probably not sow.
We as believers must come up in this area. We have dabbled in it and played around with it but I want to challenge you that there is a GRACE FOR GIVING and we can give our way into a move of the Spirit of God. We can see what our hearts have longed for and what we have prayed for for years through our generosity.
Our Pastor mentioned to us recently that we have turned a corner, we have gone up higher and in order to stay in that place we must consecrate ourselves. I want to challenge you today that your giving also has to come up higher. You can't give at the lower level and expect God to do greater things in and through us at a new level. Our giving must come up because that is what expands our capacity to receive more from him.
Proverbs 11:24 says "The world of the generous gets larger and larger; the world of the stingy gets smaller and smaller".
When you determine in your heart to stretch yourself beyond what you have done the enemy will try to put a limit on you. We must break that limitation in our giving by going beyond our comfort zone and stepping into His grace. Have you ever noticed that you have more problems in the area of finances than in any other? It is because money is part of this world and Satan is the God of this world.
Let me give you 2 points for breaking off the limitations that you feel:
First, you must believe that this GRACE is a part of the gospel. Prosperity is part of the atonement just like healing and is available for every believer to walk in. (Revelation 12:11 - we overcome by the blood of the Lamb)
Talk about your sowing generously. This one is difficult because too often we feel that limitation and think others will think we are boosting. If your heart is right you are giving all the glory to God. Might I add, that if you are operating in this GRACE you are not boosting in your own strength. You have already learned that it is His GRACE and His GRACE only that brought you to this place. So give GOD all the glory and break that limitation of people's opinions. (Revelation 12:11 - "We overcome by the word of our testimony").
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