September 8, 2013
Evening Service

We have been working our way through the “Sermon on the plain” from Luke chapter 22.  It began with the comparison of the two ways of life which included:  being poor, hungry, weeping and reproached compared to being rich, full, laughing, and well liked.  Jesus truly challenged us to live a life that imitates the love of God.  He commands us to love our enemies, bless those who curse us, do good to those who hate us, pray for those who despitefully use us, turn the other cheek, and give more than what we are asked for.  We had a time of testimonies on Wednesday night and saw how God, through the Holy Spirit, gives us the strength to live out these commands.

We are really blessed in that these confrontations are not an everyday occurrence.  We do however; have to always be ready to live this challenge out because we never know when it will happen to us.  The key to living this is our motivation.  Look at the end of verse 22.  It states we endure all things for the “Son of Man’s sake.”

The challenges do not end there.  Let’s see what Jesus has for us tonight.

Luke 6:37 Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you shall be forgiven.

• Again Jesus challenges us to act contrary to the world.
• We are instructed not to judge.  We cannot pass any judgment on why someone does something.  We don’t know someone else’s motives and are not to speculate.  This is the Lord’s job.  Look at what Paul wrote in I Corinthians 4:1-5.

1Co 4:1-5  So let a man think of us as ministers of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.  (2)  And the rest, it is sought among stewards that one be found faithful.  (3)  But to me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you, or by a man's day; but I do not judge my own self,  (4)  for I know nothing by myself. Yet I have not been justified by this, but He who judges me is the Lord.  (5)  Therefore judge nothing before the time, until the Lord comes, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and will make manifest the counsels of the hearts. And then shall each one have praise of God.

 

• We are not show condemnation to others or criticize them.  This is something we all battle.  We must fight against the natural reaction to be critical and always pointing out others faults.   We will see more on this later.
• We are commanded to forgive IF we want to be forgiven.  There is no plan B, there is not another option.  We must forgive because it frees us to be forgiven.

 

Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given to you, good measure pressed down and shaken together and running over, they shall give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you measure, it shall be measured to you again.

• We are commanded to be a generous people.  Let’s look at some instances of God giving to us that display His generosity.

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

 

Romans 8:31-32 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?  (32)  Truly He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

• God withheld nothing when it came to atoning for our sins.  He gave His most prized possession, His own Son, for us.   There is nothing greater He could have given.
• How about us?  Are we imitating God along this avenue?  Is there anything we treasure more than Him?  Do we offer God everything except…?
• Jerrod mentioned Matt. 6:33 this morning and it fits well here also.

Mat 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.

• Giving is one of the greatest evidences of our growth.  How we give of our time, money and efforts show clearly where God is in our heart.

• The scripture in Luke also comes with a promise that we can apply as a principle in our giving.  As we give, so it shall be given back to us even greater.
• What are our NT Biblical commands that involve our giving?

 

   1Co 16:2 On the first day of the week let each of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, so that there may be no collections when I come.

• We can pull 4 points from this scripture Paul wrote to the Corinthian church
1. We are all to give, each of you.
2. The giving is to be regular, every first day of the week.
3. Giving is to be systematic, let each of you lay something aside.  It is to be something we pray about and plan to be given.
4. It is to proportionate to what we make, as he may prosper.  We are not tied to a tithe (10^th).  We must give as the Holy Spirit guides our heart.

 

2Co 9:6-7 But I say this, He who sows sparingly shall also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully shall also reap bountifully.  (7)  Each one, as he purposes in his heart, let him give; not of grief, or of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver.

• Here we again see the same principle; we shall reap as we sow.  The more we sow, the more we grow.
• Notice the importance of the motivation of our giving.  Our giving is not to be in a grudging manner or of a necessity. God loves a cheerful giver. 
• In reality my giving is not about enriching God, but it is about me enriching myself spiritually by acting upon the realization that all that I have belongs to Him anyway.
• Paul told Timothy that “the love of money is the root of all evil.”  This is a natural struggle we all are faced with.  Do we trust these principles of giving enough to put them into action in our giving?
• This struggle increases as we increase our income, not the other way around. Jesus illustrates this in Luke 21.

Luke 21:1-4  And looking up, He saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury.  (2)  And He also saw a certain poor widow casting two mites in.  (3)  And He said, Truly I say to you that this poor widow has cast in more than all of them.  (4)  For all these have cast in to the offerings of God from their abundance, but out of her poverty she has cast in her entire livelihood.

• A rich man finds it far harder to part with his money than the poor.

 

Lord, we surrender all that we have and all that we are to You; may You always be first.