Biblical Answers to the Questions of Giving
Excerpted from Master Your Money: A Step-by-Step Plan for Experiencing Financial Contentment by Ron Blue.
There are three very relevant questions to ask yourself as you plan to give:
When should I give?
Where should I give?
How much should I give?
When to Give
Preemptive giving is clearly defined in Proverbs 3: 9: “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase.” To me, this means that giving to God’s work should have the first priority over all other uses of money, and therefore I give, preempting all other uses, until I have met that commitment.
“On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come” (1 Corinthians 16: 2 NKJV). Not only should I give preemptively, but I should also give periodically and regularly. To take this Scripture literally would be to say that, on each Sunday of the week, some amount should be put aside and saved for giving purposes. So the “when” question is answered—giving should be the first priority use of our income, and this giving should be done as income or increase is received, that is, on a periodic and regular basis.
Where to Give
When answering the question, Where should I give?, we should make a purposeful decision to give where Scripture says God’s interest is. “For the administration of this service not only supplies the needs of the saints, but also is abounding through many thanksgivings to God” (2 Corinthians 9:12 NKJV).
God definitely commands us to meet the needs of the saints and to fulfill the Great Commission. Thus, our purposes in giving are to give for the needy, for evangelism, and for discipleship in our Judea, our Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1: 8). Giving must be taken very seriously and decided upon consciously in order to fulfill the commands of Scripture.
To help answer the question, Where should I give?, download a copy of the Giving Plan here. Scroll down to the next to the last page to chart 14A. Down one side are the biblical admonitions to give to evangelism, discipleship, the poor, the widows, the orphans, and the needy. Across the top of the chart are the locations—Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth—or in our contemporary situations, my city, my state, my country, and the rest of the world.
In each column, write in the amount that you are now giving. You will be able to see how well you are fulfilling the biblical admonitions in terms of places and needs. Giving to your local church should be the best place to give to meet the needs of the saints and for evangelism of the lost—assuming your church follows biblical teaching. In other words, you may meet all these needs by giving to your local church. You may also wish to give to other ministries or organizations that address these admonitions. You then need to ask the question, Am I giving all that I should be giving?
How Much to Give
How much to give in quantitative terms is not as important as our attitude toward giving. In 2 Corinthians 9: 7 (NKJV), we read that our giving should be done “not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.” In 2 Corinthians 8: 9, Paul gave us the example of Christ to suggest the right attitude toward giving: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich” (NKJV). So, the attitude of giving must be one of cheerfulness and grace. Freely we have received; freely we must give.
The question, how much should I give? is not a simple matter. “For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people. And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us” (2 Corinthians 8: 3–5).
Therefore, we are not limited in how much we give either by what we can see or according to our abilities, but what God instructs us each to do. That will vary for each Christian family. Through consideration of the three Ps we have mentioned, we can come to a right answer of how much: We should give proportionately, on a planned basis, and on a pre-committed basis. Give an amount that is proportionate to the amount that God has prospered you—as a result, those who make more should be giving more and not just as a number but as a percentage of income. You should, by planning, give more than a proportionate amount, and you should commit in advance to give some of the amount God provides on a totally unexpected basis; for example, a bonus, an inheritance, or a gift. Make your decisions before you receive the money and stick to your convictions.
Faith & Finance Perspective:
These questions and answers are meant to provide a framework for how we, as committed Christ-followers, approach giving to His Kingdom causes. They are not intended to be prescriptive but rather just pondered. As Scripture clearly instructs us, Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7).
As many of the passages referenced in this article suggest, it was the cheerful givers who fueled the establishment of Christ’s Church. They gave so the apostles could fulfill their assignments, making it possible for the gospel to take root in the first century and to extend its reach to the ends of the earth over the next two millennia. And it is the cheerful givers who will continue to fuel the Great Commission until every nation, tongue, and tribe will have had the opportunity to respond to the good news—and our Coming King will return to restore His Kingdom and usher in a new heaven and a new earth (Matthew 24:14, Revelation 21:1).
Do you consider yourself a cheerful giver? Does your heart pump a little faster at the thought of the gospel extending its reach to the last remaining corners of the world? Throughout the book of Romans, God makes it clear that the desire of His heart is the salvation of those who are lost. As recipients of His salvation, He's inviting us to align the desires of our hearts with His. Can you sense that He's fanning the flame of His desire within you? If not, continually ask Him to align your heart to His so that what delights Him will delight you and what grieves Him will grieve you—while giving thanks that He has called and equipped you to join Him in His redemptive work.
You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. —2 Corinthians 9:11-12