Believe?

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. (Luke 6:38 KJV)

How do we measure our giving? Most churches will teach that good stewardship includes tithing, but a lot of their members find it difficult to give ten percent of their income.

Why is it so difficult to believe what Jesus told His disciples? Why not believe it is just as true for us today?

Trust – which really translates into faith – is the answer. We have a tendency to believe He said these things, that His disciples wrote them down, and maybe we believe they are historically valid. Maybe we even believe that what He spoke is a good philosophy to live by, but we lack the faith to believe this is truth, applicable to us today.

Or, maybe we don’t think we can give enough to make a difference:

And he looked up, and saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. And he saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. And he said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: For all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God: but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had. (Luke 21:1-4 KJV)

A simple lesson, with very little information. I could imagine the rich handing theirs over with a little pride, while she was quiet, probably quick to cast hers into the treasury and move on. The Bible doesn’t tell us that. It doesn’t tell us that the rich were wrong in their attitude or their gifts, either. There’s no indication that the rich withheld in their giving, or that they were doing it for show. Jesus did speak against those who acted for people to see:

And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. (Matthew 6:5 KJV)

So if there were a deeper lesson about giving, He could have used it with this example of the rich and the widow. They gave from their abundance, she from penury, but they both gave. Do we?

Can we have faith in the promise that how we give will be used to measure what we get? Does our attitude have an impact? Is it important to remember:

Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. (2 Corinthians 9:7 KJV)