Do you feel sad after you have dropped some money into the offertory box? Do you doubt the necessity of offering your gifts to God in the church since He doesn’t come down to get it Himself? Do you feel it’s important to offer, only when you have more than enough?
If you’ve ever had these thoughts or feelings, then hear me out today. Giving offerings in the church is an important act to uphold by every Christian believer. It should make you happy and make you feel blessed as well.
God is after the heart with which you gave, and not how much you gave. 2 Corinthians 8:12, “For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.”
Therefore, you shouldn’t be doubtful or be angry while giving because there are lots of benefits that accompany giving cheerfully.
Why should we give church offerings?
The great spiritual significance of our giving is that whatever we have today belongs, first of all, to God. We are simply the stewards of all the material gifts that we enjoy in our lives.
Benefits of giving offering to God
The day of Atonement is a time where we reflect on our sins and what God has done to satisfy them. In the Christian faith, the most important offering that we can give is our lives.
In fact, Jesus once said, “He who comes to me I will never drive away” (John 6:37). That means that even though we may sin from time to time, God does not push us away. For Christians, the act of giving in this way is an act of worship.
It’s impossible for us to know how much God values our sin unless we give up something of great value in return for it. So if you are feeling guilty about your sins, think about what you would like for God to do for you in return and make an offering to Him in your prayer.
It attracts God’s blessings
James 1:17, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”
Everything that exists belongs to God. He gave you what you have today. Isn’t it fair enough to bring Him so many gifts in appreciation? When you thank God for what He’s done, He’ll do more for you. Giving opens more doors to blessings and breakthroughs.
When God asked Abraham in Genesis 22 to give his only son Isaac as an offering to him, Abraham obeyed. What followed that act of obedience and cheerful giving? God blessed Abraham with everything. He made him the father of all nations.
Jesus said in Luke 6:38, “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”
Spirtual Benefits of Giving
It relates to God your level of loyalty and gratefulness to Him
Giving to God is the best act of thankfulness to Him. God is happy when you show him your gratitude, and when you do that, He blesses you the more. Giving offering with your whole heart means that you’re grateful for all that He has done for you. The way we give, speaks more for us than mere words.
An old widow in Mark 12:38 gave all that she had to God. Little indeed it was, but God accepted her offering because it was from her heart. It shows how much she is grateful for her life and how loyal she is to God, that even in her lack, she trusts God’s plans for her. Giving expresses gratitude to God in a big way and, the way we give tells what place God occupies in us.
It increases our faith in God
You don’t just give when you have in abundance. You give because everything you have was given to you by God, and you should appreciate him by giving him part of it. The widow Elijah met in 1kings 17:7-16 gave all she had to Elijah and had faith that the act of giving doesn’t call for regrets. God blessed her, and she never lacked again.
You should give until it turns to sacrifice. When you put what you have before God, it builds your faith. The belief is that having given to God all you have, He’ll provide all you’ll ever need.
The Bible does not support us testing or questioning God, but when it concerns the act of giving, God allows us to put Him to test so that our faith and trust in him will grow.
He said in Malachi 3:10, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this says the Lord Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”
A good way of saving up your wealth in heaven
Matthew 6:19-21says, “Do not store up riches for yourselves here on earth where moths and rust destroy, and robbers break in and steal. Instead, store up riches for yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and robbers cannot break in and steal. For your heart will always be where your riches are.”
The only way to do that is by giving. You should build your mansions in heaven by giving your offering and paying your tithe. You’ve already gathered enough luxury on earth. You have luxurious houses and cars.
Your daily activities are filled with spending a huge amount of money on one occasion or the other. When you give wholeheartedly in the church, you’re are not lost out to the world, but building your mansion and storing up your treasures in heaven.
Giving for Kingdom Advance
What you give to the church helps the church grow
In the church of God, there are so many needs that are to be met. God won’t come down Himself to provide them, but through your offerings, the church will prosper.
Through your genuine offerings, money will be raised for projects to be completed. The old, needy, and less privileged members of the church will be helped. Even the spreading of the gospel will be sponsored, and the kingdom of God will continue to prosper.
Giving offering brings a Sense of happiness and fulfillment
Giving makes you fulfilled. You don’t have to leave the church with the guilt of owing God. Instead, you’re free and happy. More because the church has given you a platform where your money, gift, and other contributions will bring happiness to someone you may or may not know. We are advised to give cheerfully. When you do that, you leave his presence with joy in expectations of loads of blessings coming your way.
A sign of total obedience to God
The Bible teaches that giving should be done cheerfully and not reluctantly, but on the other hand, giving is not optional for a Christian. When Jesus talked to his disciples in Matthew 6:2 he said” when you give…” and not ” if you give…
It is part of God’s law that you give. With that, you’re being obedient to God, and you know how God rewards his obedient servants. In the book of Malachi 3:10, God also asked the Christians to bring 10% of what they earn monthly. That is an instruction from God. Not giving is total disobedience to God.
A good step towards salvation, and detachment from money and material things.
Psalm 24:1 The earth is the lord’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him.” Why being greedy. Nothing on earth is yours. Why try to get it all? The only thing that can save a greedy man is giving.
He is saved when he begins giving offerings to the point of having nothing left. Jesus already told his disciples in Matthew 19:24 that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than a rich man entering heaven.
But the act of giving can alter this and save a rich man from damnation. When a young man asked Jesus in Mark 10:17–30, what his salvation will cost him, Jesus replied that being lost in riches and worldly things can keep him out of the kingdom of God.
Giving may seem difficult, but it is a way to detach yourself from being too committed in your pursuit of money and other material things of this world, also understands that the biggest gift you can give to your Creator (God) is your heart, you need to be genuinely saved and free from sin.
You worship God by giving
In church, the time for the offering is not a different moment from the service or holy mass. The offering time is an important moment during the worship of God.
You can’t say you worship God when you don’t appreciate his goodness to you or bring him part of what he has given by in appreciation.
Worshipping God through offering implies walking forth to his altar with gifts he has given you and dropping the gifts before him in praise. Proverbs 3:9 says “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops”. Giving is worship.
Offering is a sure bank of Grace
Charity and giving is the act true which we draw the abundant grace from God. So many successful people know that the secret to the grace which they enjoy is giving an offering in church. When you don’t owe God your offering and tithes, He’ll award you with abundant grace.
Bottom line
Giving is important but while you give, give in a manner that pleases God. Do not be boastful about your offering and give according to what you have. Give cheerfully, and blessings which God had promised to a cheerful giver shall be yours.