A Sacrifice of Faith
Theological Proposition/Focus: God invites his people to join with him through the act of giving.
Homiletical Proposition/Application: A key part of living a disciplined life is determining to regularly tithe.
Introduction:
Image:
Need:
Subject: Tithing, giving
Preview:
Text: 2 Cor. 9:7
Setting the Stage:
What is a Spiritual Discipline.
We are in the middle of a series focusing on spiritual disciplines. Spiritual disciplines are the regular practices that when systematically practiced can help an individual nurture their relationship with God and grow in Christ likeness. None of the Spiritual Disciplines are new ideas but the label Spiritual Discipline makes it clear that these practices should be should b a regular and purposeful part of the Christian life. The term Spiritual Discipline also acknowledges that these practices are not necessarily easy or something that comes naturally to every Christian. It takes work energy and effort to live a disciplined life.
There are several examples of Spiritual Disciplines, some we have talked about, and some we still need to talk about.
Prayer
Bible study
Meditation
Fasting
Today we are going to talk about generosity as a Spiritual Discipline.
Generosity, or giving, is an important discipline. Generosity requires faith and selflessness, should be purposeful, and can have amazing benefits.
Body
What does it look like to make giving a spiritual discipline?
Regular, systematic giving, is the standard in Scripture. (1 Cor. 16:2)
In 1 Cor. 16:2 we see that there are some important guidelines for giving.
Paul never used the word “tithe” when he discussed giving but that does not mean he does not have tithing in mind.
According to Paul, giving should be systematic
Giving should be regular (practiced every Sunday in a culture that was paid on a daily basis.)
Giving should be proportionate with one's income.
The tithe (10%) is a good minimum standard.
There is a strong biblical precedent for a tithe consisting of 10%.
