Distinct Love is Willing to Share

Pray – (1/2 minute)

Read – (2 1/2 minutes) – “God so loved the world that He gave . . .” (John 3:16)
  Passage: 2 Corinthians 8:1-9

        How do you spell love? One way is G-I-V-E. The most well-known verse in the Bible that encapsulates the gospel is John 3:16 and it tells us that the love of God compelled Him to give. God is not a beggar. He is giver. Therefore, the Spirit of Christ within you is a giver. You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving. Love gives.
        Everything we have is gift from God. Our flesh, or sin nature, wants us to look at what we have as earned and deserved. The tendency of the flesh is to hold on to it. While God’s Word has principles for saving and investing for the future, the principle of stewardship begins with giving. Deuteronomy 14:23 in The Living Bible say, “The purpose of the tithe is to teach you to put God first.” Then, as you manage the rest, God wants you to learn the joy of giving that flows out of the distinct love of Christ in you. In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul held up the believers in Philippi as examples of people who gave. They didn’t give because they were wealthy. They gave because they loved and they were willing to share with others what they had been given by God. The deeper you grow in Christ, the more willing you will be to give.   

Apply - (2 1/2 minutes)
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Pray - (1 1/2 minutes)