The Doctrine of Giving

Definition:

Giving is an expression of worship which commemorates the grace policy of God. Giving in the Church Age is the function of the believer’s royal priesthood, and since it is, giving must be accomplished in privacy without being pressured. There are four categories of Christian service,

one of them is giving.

The first category of Christian service is the function of your spiritual gift under the filling of the Holy Spirit. The second category of Christian service is related to your royal priesthood and it includes prayer, giving, and the execution of the protocol plan of God through learning, thinking, solving. Christian service is related to your royal ambassadorship and that includes evangelism, personal witnessing, administration in the local church, function in the mission field, working with young people or functioning in the various legitimate Christian service organisations. The fourth category of Christian service is related to the laws of divine establishment and it includes military service, law enforcement, government, but never activism.

Giving is further defined as the presentation of money or other valuable commodities which may be used in the sustaining the ministry of communication in the spiritual gift of either evangelism or pastor-teacher.

Motivation is the major issue in giving. People think in terms of the amount given but that is wrong. In fact, even if you cannot even give you can still give through your mental attitude. Mental attitude is the key to giving, not the amount given — 2 Cor. 9:7. “ … for God loves a grace-oriented believer” — corrected translation. Grace orientation, problem-solving device number 4, is the true basis for giving. 2 Corinthians 9:8 goes on to say that when you find this kind of person God provides the money to give — “for God is able to make all grace abound unto you.” God graciously provides extra finances for the grace giver to give. For the only legitimate system of giving is a grace giver giving to a grace cause.

Verse 9 is a quotation from Psalm 112:9 — “Just as it stands written, He scatters abroad [God gives extra money to certain people], he gave to the poor; His righteousness abides forever” .God provides under grace but God’s grace righteousness also meets at the point of grace giving.

Verse 10 — “Now he who supplies seed to the sower [capital] and bread for food, shall supply and multiply your seed for sowing, and increase the fruits of your righteousness;

Verse 11 — “You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

Verse 12 — “This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.”

There is a passage that starts with a mental attitude, never giving under compulsion, and ends up in many expressions of thanksgiving to God. Giving is a mental attitude based upon a problem-solving device — grace orientation.

The Doctrinal Principles Of Grace

1. Giving is an expression of the royal family honour code, Romans 16:26.

2. Giving is an expression of freewill, 2 Cor. 8:3.

3. Giving is an expression of mental attitude in every circumstance of life, 2 Cor. 8:2.

4. Giving must express an attitude toward the Lord before it can express an attitude toward people, 2 Cor. 8:5.

5. Giving depends on consistent function of post-salvation epistemological rehabilitation - perception, metabolisation and application of Bible doctrine, 2 Cor. 8:7 — “But just as you excel in everything, in faith-rest, and in doctrine, and in knowledge, and in all diligence, and in love [impersonal] from you to us, and also you excel in this grace giving.” They excelled in giving not on the basis of whether they liked someone or not but on the basis of impersonal love, the virtue of the subject rather than the attractiveness of the object.

Precedence for giving is derived from the dispensation of the hypostatic union and is predicated on grace, 2 Cor. 8:9 — “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich [He was eternal God], yet for your sakes he became poor [true humanity in hypostatic union], so that you through his poverty [being judged for our sins on the cross] might become rich.”

Giving is a mental attitude related to an overt act, 2 Cor. 8:12 — “For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable on the basis of what one has [willingness counts for giving], not on the basis of what one does not have.”

Therefore giving is related to motivation from metabolised doctrine in the right lobe of the soul, 2 Cor. 9:7 — “Each one as he has determined in his right lobe, so give; not from distress of mind, or under compulsion: for God loves a gracious giver.” The key to giving is grace orientation.

God in His matchless grace provides both the spiritual motivation and the monetary capital for grace giving, 2 Cor. 9:8.

God in His matchless grace provides both the monetary capital for grace giving and makes it part of your Christian service, 2 Cor. 9:10.

Generosity of mental attitude results in generosity of giving, 2 Cor. 9:11 — “You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.”

Giving is a part of Christian service, 2 Cor. 9:12 — “This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God’s people, but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanksgiving to God.”

The concept of giving is also related to two spiritual gifts: the gift of pastor-teacher and the gift of evangelism. The problem here is that the gift of pastor-teacher must make an issue out of two things as a recipient of support from believers. He must make an issue out of the Gospel and, therefore, while he does not have the gift of evangelism he evangelises. And he must make an issue out of “after salvation what?” — what is the Christian way of life? the mystery doctrine of the Church Age. Therefore the pastor must constantly use his spiritual gift to proclaim the Gospel when it is in a passage. If you make an issue out of money you cannot make an issue out of the Gospel. The pastor must never make an issue out of money — 2 Cor. 11:7, “Because I preach the gospel to you without charge …” 2 Cor. 11:8 — “I robbed other churches [like Philippi], taking wages from them to serve you;” Paul wasn’t supported by the Corinthians. He couldn’t have made an issue out of the Gospel and the mystery doctrine. So the Philippian church supported Paul in Corinth.

The pastor exchanges spiritual blessings to the congregation in exchange for material blessing from the congregation. Hence the fulfilment of the principle: mutual blessing by association. Philippians 1:5 — “Because of your contribution from the first day until now for the purpose of spreading the gospel;”

Giving reflects the mental attitude of the congregation towards their right pastor, Phil. 4:10 — “I rejoice in the Lord greatly, that now at last you have revived your concern for me; indeed you have been concerned but you lacked opportunity to give.”

Giving is the application of Bible doctrine on the part of the congregation, Philippians 4:14 — “And you yourselves also recognised that in the beginning of my ministry with reference to the gospel, when I had departed from Macedonia, not one church contributed to me in the application of doctrine of giving and receiving, except you [Philippians] only.”

Giving is a grace production in Christian service, Phil. 4:17 — “Not because I seek the gift from you; but I seek after the grace production of divine good which accumulates to your account.”

Giving to one’s right pastor is maximum blessing to the pastor and pleasing to God, Philippians 4:18 — “Moreover I have received all of your gifts and I have an abundance: I have been filled with blessing, having received from Epaphroditus the things [money] from you, a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.”

The grace concept of giving is found in both the Old and the New Testament. Proverbs 11:24 - “There is the one who gives generously, yet he becomes more prosperous; and there is also the one who holds back in giving what is fitting, and he becomes impoverished.”

There is a second principle in Proverbs 11:25 — “The generous person will be prosperous: and he who gives water will himself also be caused to have water” — agricultural economy relating, of course, to irrigation.

The grace concept of giving in the New Testament: 1 Cor. 16:2 — “On the first day of the week let each one of you put aside, and save on the basis of his prosperity, that no collections be taken when I come.”