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Today on MoneyLife with Chuck Bentley

Weekend, October 17-18, 2009

John Haggai: Believing it is Better to Give than Receive

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Chuck is off today, so we'll be hearing a message from guest speaker John Haggai. Dr. Haggai is the Founder, chairman, and CEO of the Haggai Institute in Atlanta.

John Haggai Most Christians don’t believe it is better to give than receive. Therefore, they suffer self-inflicted wounds. If you believe God’s Word, act on it, and give, you will stop worrying about money.

Money is the biggest issue in most churches; it dominates the focus and attention of members. When money is preached about, it causes more hostility among people than any other subject.

People often equate their self-worth with their net-worth. Without having visible signs of wealth, sadly, people often have a poor self-image.

The Bible begins with an emphasis on God’s ownership. Jesus spoke more about money than any other subject. You can’t be right with God if you’re wrong on money. People steal from God every Sunday. The Lord challenges us to tithe. He wants us to give not because He needs it but because we need to do it. When you fail to tithe, you commit the same sin as Adam and Eve.

Here are 3 truths about giving:

Giving is a recognition of God’s ownership. We are stewards, we are to enhance what has been entrusted to us. You’ll be surprised at how you’re blessed when you tithe.
Giving is done in appreciation of divine grace. Grace is God giving to you everything the He required of you. Grace is God giving us righteousness and holiness through Jesus Christ. if you haven’t received Jesus as your personal Savior and Lord, you are lost.
Giving is done in surrender of life and talents to the Lord. Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Present your body by giving what represents your body, which is money. Money is a coined expression of energy, time, your value to the world.

Present your body to the Holy Spirit, Who carries out His work in the world through us. His work is to keep alive Jesus’ ministry to seek and save the lost. It blocks the work of the Holy Spirit when we sin such as stealing from God. Tithing was introduced before the law. Abraham tithed to Malchizedek. God says obey me and put me to the test in tithing.

Grace requires more than the law. It goes beyond the act to the thought that comes before it.
We are hopeless except for God’s provision of grace through Jesus. A child of grace should give more. The tithe goes to the local church. That’s what God called the storehouse.

Effectual Giving

It is not the amount of money given that concerns God, because He owns it all; it’s how the money is being used that’s important.

Responding to God's Mandate

Sometimes generous givers are tempted to think that all they have to give is money.

Bottom Line Discipleship

You can’t serve the Savior and all that stuff on an equal footing. One has to take precedence.

Setting Dreams in Motion

When it becomes clear that God is redirecting our efforts, what can we do so our natural determination does not become a liability?