- Lord, speak to me that I may speak
In living echoes of Thy tone;
As Thou hast sought, so let me seek
Thy erring children, lost and lone. - Oh, lead me, Lord, that I may lead
The wand’ring and the wav’ring feet;
Oh, feed me, Lord, that I may feed
Thy hungry ones with manna sweet. - Oh, teach me, Lord, that I may teach
The precious truths Thou dost impart,
And wing my words that they may reach
The hidden depths of many a heart. - Oh, fill me with Thy fullness, Lord,
Until my very heart o’erflow
In kindling thought and glowing word,
Thy love to tell, Thy praise to show. - Oh, use me, Lord, use even me,
Just as Thou wilt, and when, and where,
Until Thy blessed face I see,
Thy rest, Thy joy, Thy glory share.
(Author: Frances Ridley Havergal (1872)
Song available on My.Hymnary)
Sometimes, God speaks a word that rebukes and corrects, which we don’t easily receive. We may say or do things in ignorance until He speaks. Then we have a choice to make, to obey or not to obey.
The Lord has been speaking to me about an issue that, done in ignorance or out of a sense of false humility, needs to be addressed to prevent unnecessary offence.
“Freely you have given, freely receive.”
No, I have not misquoted Jesus’ words! I have deliberately reversed them to highlight the issue to which I am referring.
I have noticed how often God’s children, including me, can be generous givers but reluctant receivers. Now this may seem like a humble spirit but, in actual fact, it is quite the opposite to God’s way. You see, Jesus was both a generous giver and a grateful receiver.
Let’s look at a few examples of the ways in which Jesus received the ministry of those to whom He ministered.
Luke 7:37-38, 44-48 NLT
[37] “When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. [38] Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on the feet….
[44] Then he (Jesus) turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. [45] You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. [46] You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume. [47] “I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me MUCH LOVE. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” [48] Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”
Jesus neither rebuked this “sinful” woman for touching Him nor did He push her away for wetting His feet with her tears. Instead, He accepted her action as evidence of her love for Him.
Wealthy women accompanied and supported Jesus and His disciples out of their resources. Did He reject their help and turn them away? After all, His Father would take care of them! No! He received their attention although, according to Jewish culture, they were only women and inferior to men.
Luke 8:1-3 NLT
[1] “Soon afterward Jesus began a tour of the nearby towns and villages, preaching and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom of God. He took his twelve disciples with him, [2] along with some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases. Among them were Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons; [3] Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s business manager; Susanna; and many others who were contributing from their own resources to support Jesus and his disciples.”
Jesus even craved His disciples’ companionship during His most agonising hours.
Mark 14:36-37 NLT
[36] “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” [37] Then he returned and found the disciples asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour?”
Likewise Paul, who was often in prison and depended on the support of his fellow believers, received the money from the the Philippian Church more than once. However, Paul recognised their generosity as something much more than merely meeting his needs. He was comfortable with any circumstance, as he said…
Philippians 4:13-15, 17-19 NLT
[13] “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. [14] Even so, you have done well to share with me in my present difficulty. [15] As you know, you Philippians were the only ones who gave me financial help when I first brought you the Good News and then traveled on from Macedonia. No other church did this…
[17] I don’t say this because I want a gift from you. Rather, I want you to receive a reward for your kindness. [18] At the moment I have all I need—and more! I am generously supplied with the gifts you sent me with Epaphroditus. They are a sweet-smelling sacrifice that is acceptable and pleasing to God. [19] And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus.”
… But Paul saw the Philippian Church’s gift first as an act OF loving worship acceptable to God, and for that he praised God and, after that, what they gave was a way to help him.
Mary of Bethany worshipped Jesus by giving Him her best gift…
John 12:3-8 NLT
[3] “Then Mary took a twelve-ounce jar of expensive perfume made from essence of nard, and she anointed Jesus’ feet with it, wiping his feet with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance. [4] But Judas Iscariot, the disciple who would soon betray him, said, [5] “That perfume was worth a year’s wages. It should have been sold and the money given to the poor.” [6] Not that he cared for the poor—he was a thief, and since he was in charge of the disciples’ money, he often stole some for himself. [7] Jesus replied, “Leave her alone. She did this in preparation for my burial. [8] You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”
… which Jesus received, and He defended what she did against Judas Iscariot’s criticism.
In these examples, we see that those who gave made no show of false humility or sign of rejection of the gift, or obligation to the giver, and Jesus received their gifts without reluctance. They gave out of pure love for Jesus.
Let’s look at some of the implications of the ways we receive gifts of any kind.
First, by giving to His people,we give to God. Our worship to the Lord includes giving.
Deuteronomy 16:16-17 NLT
[16] “Each year every man in Israel must celebrate these three festivals: the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the Festival of Harvest, and the Festival of Shelters. On each of these occasions, all men must appear before the Lord your God at the place he chooses, but they must not appear before the Lord WITHOUT A GIFT for him. [17] All must give as they are able, according to the blessings given to them by the Lord your God.”
Since God needs nothing, what we give to Him we give to His children as to Him because we love Him.
Second, Paul urged the Corinthian Church to give with the right attitude, but according to their means, because God would return their generosity with more to give.
2 Corinthians 8:12 NLT
[12] “Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don’t have.”
2 Corinthians 9:10 NLT
[10]”For God is the one who provides seed for the farmer and then bread to eat. In the same way, he will provide and increase your resources and then produce a great harvest of generosity in you.”
Third, what we do for people, we do for the Lord.
Does this mean that every time we are generous to another person, we are giving to the Lord? I think so!
Matthew 25:34-40 NLT
[34]“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. [35] For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. [36] I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’ [37] “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink? [38] Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? [39] When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ [40] “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were DOING IT TO ME!’ “
Perhaps it would be good for us to remember in whose kingdom we live. We must never forget that, in whatever we do, not matter how small or insignificant it may be, we are worshipping the Lord in our doing.
1 Corinthians 10:31 NLT
[31]”So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”
Fourth, to reject a gift by receiving it reluctantly or remonstrating against it shows ingratitude and robs the giver of the joy of giving and the opportunity to worship the Lord.
2 Corinthians 9:7 NLT
[7] You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.”
Fourth, to receive a gift reluctantly is to rob ourselves of the opportunity to worship the Lord because of another’s generosity.
2 Corinthians 9:13 NLT
[13] “As a result of your ministry, they will give glory to God.”…
Fifth, receiving a gift joyfully, not reluctantly, acknowledges the giver’s obedience to the Lord.
… “For your generosity to them and to all believers will prove that you are obedient to the Good News of Christ.”
Sixth, whatever we give away comes back with interest so that the giver will have more to give. Therefore, we must receive with gratitude so that the giver will be blessed.
2 Corinthians 9:8 NLT
[8] “And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.”
As I have moved on in my understanding of the Christian life, I began to realise that, to learn, I had to unlearn first.
In my growing-up years, I learned that receiving a gift meant that I must give something in return. I could never receive anything without returning the favour. Do you see what this means? Giving becomes a tit-for-tat exercise rather than a happy worship experience.
For me, then, to receive a gift with reluctance was to show my “humility” and my responsibility to give back. I had no clue about “paying it forward”
I had to unlearn that lie. Giving must be a joyful offering of love and worship first to the Lord and then a blessing to the receiver, expecting nothing in return. Receiving a gift must never put the recipient under obligation to the giver. Let it be a free expression of love, nothing more.
Giving to people isn’t just random acts. God wants us to give ourselves first to Him. Then what we give to others becomes a part of who we are and expresses our worship to the Lord. In other words, whatever we do for someone else always has God in the mix. Whether we pay for lunch, do someone a favour, or give a birthday gift, it’s about loving the Lord first.
2 Corinthians 8:1, 5 NLT
[1] “Now I want you to know, dear brothers and sisters, what God in his kindness has done through the churches in Macedonia…
[5] They even did more than we had hoped, for their first action was to give themselves to the Lord and to us, just as God wanted them to do.”
Romans 12:1 NLT
[1]”And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.”
God always gives something back to the giver. Sacrifice of any kind is never a loss. It’s always an exchange. Whatever we give to God by giving to someone else always comes back in some form or another. This may not, should not be our motive but it happens. This is the law of the harvest.
Galatians 6:7-9 NLT
[7] “Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. [8] Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. [9] So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.”
Luke 6:38 NLT
[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.”
So, what should we do? Let’s reverse what we don’t do. If we are generous givers but reluctant recipients, let’s learn to receive with joy, opening ourselves and our givers to all the blessings God intends. If we are happy recipients but stingy givers, let’s open our hearts to the Lord’s generosity to us, giving us the opportunity to give because of His favour and the harvest of His goodness to us.