Hope Foundation | Christian Giving

THE BIBLE ON GIVING

Please click on the quicktime movie slides above to view a Hope keynote on Building Christian Stewardship. If you are interested in hosting a Building Christian Stewardship seminiar at your organization, board meeting or Church, please contact Chris Hill.

Developing Your Stewardship Philosophy

Today’s pervasive culture is constantly telling us success is having more and more. However, biblical teaching is quite the contrary. The Scriptures have much to say about God’s ownership of all things and man’s role as manager.

A life of stewardship is far more than Sunday morning’s tithe or the annual support of missionaries and ministries. Stewardship proclaims the truth that God owns everything. Looking at our finances from this perspective and recognizing we are His managers, we can begin to see that every financial decision is, in fact, a spiritual decision. Like the three servants in the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25: 14-30), we will each give an account for the attitudes and practices we have used to manage our earthly wealth. Are our goals and purposes self motivated or are they subject to the Master’s divine purposes?

In the same manner that investment mangers follow an investment policy statement to guide and evaluate future investment decisions, a stewardship philosophy serves a similar purpose. A stewardship philosophy essentially consists of statements concerning your core beliefs, objectives and commitments with respect to money and giving.

A stewardship philosophy represents a first step and generally should result in a general allocation of resources between consumption, savings and giving.

What is stewardship?

Recognition that:

God owns everything
He is responsible for our wealth
He entrusts us with His money
We are accountable to God

Stewardship is the grateful and responsible use of God's gifts in light of God's redemptive purpose as revealed through Jesus Christ. Christian stewards, empowered by the Holy Spirit, commit themselves to conscious, purposeful decisions.

Why do we give?

Our main duty is to glorify God. One way we do that is by good stewardship.
We give out of gratitude for the blessing we have already received because of Christ.
God is generous toward us, exceeding our needs.
Stewardship, as reflected in our attitude toward money, means we are to build His kingdom through support of His mission of reaching the world for Jesus Christ (Great Commission).
Stewardship of the Great Commandment requires us to give our time, talent & treasures to help others in need.
While the Bible specifically tells us we can only be saved by grace through our faith in Jesus Christ and not our works, God promises an inheritance or rewards in heaven to all who obey Him based on our works.
We will give an account of ourselves and be judged according to our works which are what we have done with our time, talent and money.

What are our barriers to giving?

Materialism: we are under intense peer and societal pressure to increase our standard of living…build bigger houses (barns, as in the parable of the rich fool, the only man in scripture who Jesus calls “fool” to his face, Luke 12:13-21)
Selfishness / Disobedience: we are commanded to love others as ourselves and specifically commanded to care for the poor. Do we?
Lack of Knowledge

How do we decide how much to give?

As stewards of God’s resources, every financial decision is, in fact, a spiritual one.
When I spend money, I am acting as God's money manager.
How would God want me to spend or invest his money?
Realizing that we will one day give an account of our stewardship, we should be both sacrificial and strategic in our giving.
When we give sacrificially, we give a little of our selfishness away and thus surrender more to Christ
When we give strategically, we are maximizing the return on His money

How much are we supposed to give?

Tithing is an Old Testament requirement
Even though it is an Old Testament command, would Jesus expect less of us lavished by His grace than of those under the yoke of the Law?
New Testament teaches to give ourselves as a living sacrifice (Romans 12)
Realizing that all resources are God’s and I am a steward of His resources, how much would God expect us to give to:

Worship and glorify Him.
Be obedient to his commands to build His kingdom and love others as ourselves?

What steps can we take to increase our standard of giving?

Start by tithing
If young, minimize increases in your standard of living as your income increases.
If older, consider lowering your standard of living.
Think in terms of how God would want me to spend His money…do I need a bigger barn or nicer car?
Ask yourself, how much is enough?
When planning your estate, ask how much will my children really need?
Give to be a tax minimizer (giving up to 50% of income is tax deductible) and a Kingdom maximizer!

What are steps toward strategic Kingdom stewardship?

Explore ministry opportunities you are most passionate about and give intentionally of your time, talent & treasure.
Teach your family how to sacrificially and strategically steward God’s resources together
Be more strategic stockpiling treasure in heaven than on Earth.
Ask yourself “Where is the greatest investment of my time and resources for maximum Kingdom impact?”
Ask yourself “How can I steward my resources to do maximum damage to the enemy?”

Who should I give to?

Your Church
Ministries pursuing the Great Commission (evangelism)
Ministries pursuing the Great Commandment (love others and especially those less fortunate)
Ministries that are effective
Ask yourself, would the Lord want me to give to this?
Does this mean, we are supposed to give only to Christian ministries?...No, but…(see appendix)

What is a stewardship philosophy?

Considering the above, what are my core beliefs, objectives and commitments with respect to money and giving?

Recognizing that God Owns Everything, what is my allocation of resources between:

Consumption
Savings
Giving

Stages of Spiritual Maturity toward Stewardship:

Where do you fall?

Giving Style->	Percentage	Purposeful	Passionate
Value System	Love the world and things of the world	Dissatisfied, searching for something more satisfying	Love Christ with their whole heart
Source of Significance	Possessions, status, titles	Searching, transitioning	In Christ
Life Orientation	Self	Others	Christ
Stewardship Orientation	Mine	Ours	God owns everything
Attitude for Giving	Defensive and reluctant	Beginning to enjoy sharing	Joyful giver
Motive for Giving	Selfish / guilt driven	Self-interest	Worship
Object of Faith	Self	Transitioning	Christ

Helpful Links

Sermons

Tim Keller on Creation, Fall, Redemption and Your Money

Rick Warren on Purpose Driven Generosity

Common Excuses for Not Giving (courtesy of Generous Giving)

Download Brochure: Developing Your Stewardship Philosophy