Today we conclude the series The Joy of Discovering Hidden Treasure.

Matthew 13:44 (NKJV) "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” As a point of review, let’s look at some of the keys we have learned in this series. Maybe you have forgotten this but even one of our Distinctives as a church is Generous Giving. Randy Alcorn – “Our approach to money and possessions is central to our spiritual lives. Anything we try to hang on to here will be lost. But anything we put in God’s hands will be ours for eternity. You can’t take it with you—but you can send it on ahead of you.” Psalm 24:1 (NLT2) ¹ The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it. The world and all its people belong to him. This is so powerful…even the poor can be generous. 2 Corinthians 8:2 (NIV) “Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.” 

My heart always goes where I put God’s money. What we do with our money doesn’t simply indicate where our hearts are, according to Jesus, it determines where our hearts go. Our hearts follow our treasure. Where we invest our treasure largely determines where we put our treasure. We have to realize that this earth is not our home, we are only passing through. Philippians 3:20 (NIV) ^“But our citizenship is in heaven…” We need to consider our giving is absolutely worship to God. 2 Corinthians 9:12 (NIV) ^“This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God.” Alcorn – “God prospers me not to raise my standard of living but to raise my standard of giving.” 

Let me challenge with a few things to help you lay up treasure in Heaven and how to live generously.

1. A good place to start is being faithful with the tithe and with something for missions.

2. If you have never made a Faith Promise to missions, do it. You will be so glad.

3. If the amount you give above your tithe to missions is merely a token, double it and watch God.

4. Look for and pray for opportunities to be generous in the church and outside the church.

5. Prayerfully ask God what it really means to lay up treasures in Heaven.

6. Finally, find someone or some ministry to bless this week with a generous love gift.

The Joy of Discovering Hidden Treasure. I hope God is revealing ...

... things to you that you have never considered about being generous and that you are following His leading. Matthew 13:44 (NKJV) "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and hid; and for joy over it he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Maybe (hopefully) you are asking “How much is God asking me to give beyond my ten percent (tithe). Truthfully, only God can answer that question. That means we need to ask Him. Obedience should never be a burden to us. 1 John 5:3 (NIV) ^“This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.”

1. Where Our Giving Should Start. Giving should always start with your local Bible believing Christ centered church, the spiritual community to which you are accountable. Malachi 3:10 (NIV) “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”

2. Your Giving Commitment – A Review

A. I affirm God’s full ownership of me and everything I own. Psalm 24:1 (NIV) ¹ The earth is the LORD's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 

B. I will set aside the first fruits—starting with at least 10 percent of all I receive. I will be treating it as belonging exclusively to the Lord. I do this in obedience to the Him, desiring His blessings. By faith I take God up on His challenge to test Him in in this. 

C. Out of the remaining treasure God entrust to me, I will prayerfully seek to make generous freewill gifts. I recognize and understand God has entrusted wealth to me so that I can be “generous on every occasion.”

D. I ask God to teach me to give sacrificially to His purposes. This includes helping the poor in my community and around the world. This also includes reaching the lost here in America. Missions. It is recognizing God’s greatest gift. 2 Corinthians 9:15 (NIV) ¹⁵ Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

E. Knowing, I cannot take earthly treasures with me, I determine to store up treasure in Heaven. Matthew 6:19-21 (NIV) "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth…But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven…For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Today we continue with the series The Joy of Discovering Hidden Treasures.

 2 Corinthians 8:7 (NIV) “But just as you excel in everything--in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us--see that you also excel in this grace of giving.” Suppose you have something very important you want to get to someone who really needs it. You wrap it up and hand it over to the UPS guy. What would you think if instead of delivering it, he took it home and kept it? You would be upset and rightly so. You would say, “The package doesn’t belong to him! He’s just the middle man. His job is to get the package from me and get it to the person it was intended for!” Think about it, we are the ones in the middle.

1. Money in Our Hands. Just because God puts money in our hands, it doesn’t mean He intends for it to stay there. A good question…Why does God give some of His children more than they need and others less than they need? So that He can use His children to help one another. He does not want us to have too much or too little. When those who have too much give to those with too little, two problems are solved. When they don’t, two problems are perpetuated. 

2. Five Minutes After I Die. We often talk about how sinners will not have the opportunity to go back and make changes in their lives that would change everything, but hear me today, neither will Christians. We have only one lifetime to live. Missionary C.T. Studd – “Only one life, twill soon be past; only what’s done for Christ will last.” Ask yourself, five minutes after I die, what will I wish I would have given away while I still had the chance? When you come up with your answer, why not start giving it away now. 

3. Giving is a Spiritual Gift. Romans 12 tells us we all have different gifts and we usually emphasis all of them but one…giving. Sadly, in our Western culture, probably the gift that is thought about the least is the gift of giving. We are all called to serve, to show mercy, and to give even if we do not think we have those particular gifts. Alcorn – Suppose God wanted to fulfill His plan of world evangelism and help an unprecedented number of suffering people. What gift would you expect Him to distribute widely? Why not the gift of giving? And what might you expect Him to provide for those to whom He’s given that gift? Perhaps unprecedented wealth to meet those needs and further His Kingdom. Look around. Isn’t that exactly what He has done? The question is, what are we doing with the wealth He’s entrusted to us?

We continue the series The Joy of Discovering Hidden Treasure.

Today we are looking at how to start this journey of a generous lifestyle. Matthew 6:19-20 (NIV) "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Paul tells us to excel in many things and he adds to that list, see that you also excel in this grace of giving. We can learn to give better, we can learn to give more, we can learn to give more often. As we study God’s Word about giving we can excel in this grace of giving. Example of the Macedonian believers: 2 Corinthians 8:3 (NIV) ^“For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability.” How is that possible?

1. Giving Now or Giving Later. People ask, “Should I give now, or should I hang on to it, hoping my investments will do well and I’ll have more to give in a year?” We respond with two questions: “How soon do you want to experience God’s blessing?” Do you want to make sure the money goes to God’s Kingdom, or are you willing to risk it won’t?” John Wesley – “Money never stays with me. It would burn me if it did. I throw it out of my hands as soon as possible, lest it should find its way into my heart.” 

2. Our Kid’s Inheritance. Alcorn – “What about our children?” you may ask. “Aren’t we supposed to leave them all our money?” The answer is no. We will leave to our daughters and their families enough to be of modest help, but not enough to change their lifestyles or undercut their need to pray with and depend upon their husbands. If we really want to leave our children a great inheritance, why don’t we work on leaving them a spiritual legacy of serving God and being generous with the poor and the Great Commission?

3. We Have Been Entrusted with so Much. R.G. LeTourneau invented earth moving machines. He gave 90% of his money back to God but money came in faster than he could give it. LeTourneau – “I shovel it out and God shovels it back---but God has a bigger shovel.” So why does God entrust so much to us? 2 Corinthians 9:11 (NIV) You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God. Alcorn – “God prospers me not to raise my standard of living but to raise my standard of giving.” 

Today we continue the series The Joy of Discovering Hidden Treasure.

Today we will look at how we can start this journey of finding hidden treasure and the joy of generous giving. Matthew 6:20-21 (NIV) “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’ Pastor Rick, I want to start this journey of generous giving but I am not sure how to get started. As always, let’s go to God’s Word and see what He says. Leviticus 27:30 (NIV) “A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD.” The meaning of the word “tithe” is “a tenth part.” Ten percent was to be given (brought to) the Lord. There were to be freewill offerings but the tithe belonged to God and was mandatory. 

1. Giving in the Church. Maybe you are one of those people who believe that each of us should only give what we feel in our hearts we should give. You may feel the early church fathers were wrong when they said the tithe was the minimal. Alcorn’s Prayer – “God, do you really expect less of me---who has your Holy Spirit within and lives in the wealthiest society in human history---than you expected of the poorest Israelite?” What is troubling to me is that in such a wealthy society like ours, that our giving amounts only to a fraction of the First Covenant Standard (a tenth) and the Word of God. Tithing is God’s biblical and historical means of getting His people on the path of generous giving. It is only the gateway. It’s unhealthy to think tithing is a place to stop but instead, a place to start.

2. Don’t Throw Out Tithing. Malachi 3:10 (NIV) “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” It is ironic, many people say and suppose they can’t afford to give precisely because they are not giving and experiencing God’s blessings. What did God say to people when they failed to give.

3. Obedient Faith Can Bring Breakthrough. When we put God first (bringing the firstfruits – tithes and missions first), we invite the blessings of God to help us with our own finances and debts we owe. How much of our harvest (our money) is blown away because we don’t make giving to God, to missions, and to others a priority? No wonder we don’t have enough. Tithing is like a toddler’s first steps: they aren’t his last or best steps, but they are a good start. To start your journey to generous giving, start with obedience to giving 10%.

Today we welcome Doug Reed to Life Church...

... and we anticipate great teaching and the presence of Holy Spirit. Today is Pentecost Sunday and Doug will be preaching for the rally here at our church so be here and be praying for a Holy Spirit outpouring! Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:4-5 (NKJV) “And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.” We see the ‘what’ and the ‘why’. The ‘what’ that is needed is a demonstration of Holy Spirit and power and the ‘why’ is so men’s faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. If we will see a great sweeping revival with lives being totally transformed it will happen because we have sought God to the point that He begins to demonstrate Holy Spirit and power. We must hunger for such a move of Holy Spirit that we see the sick healed, the bound set free, and the lost being saved in mass. Amen! Right now there are people we love and people we call brothers and sisters in the Lord who need a miracle. They need a demonstration of God’s power not more empty words.

1. Unusual Miracles. Acts 19:11-12 (NKJV) “Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and the evil spirits went out of them.” Handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched Paul’s body brought healing. That’s unusual. People brought out sick people so that Peter’s shadow might fall on them. The implication was they were healed. Unusual. Are we ready for God to do some unusual things in His Church?

2. Evil spirits know. Acts 19:15 (NKJV) “And the evil spirit answered and said, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" Does hell know our name? You can say you want revival and you want unusual miracles to happen but are you going after God with all your heart, are you living in a constant state of repentance, and are you truly filled with Holy Spirit?

3. True repentance. We love what we consider revival. We love to be in exciting services where the worship has us dancing and people laying around like cord-wood. Modern day revivals seem to leave out what is, according to the Word of God, is a key ingredient. Unless there is a turning from our wicked ways, no lasting change will come. Psalm 85:6 (NKJV) ^“Will You not revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You?”

Again today we continue with the series The Joy of Discovering Hidden Treasure.

 Matthew 6:19-20 (NIV) "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.” Why is it that so many people have roadblocks to giving? We know Christ commands us to give and we know He promises great rewards for giving. So why is it so hard to give? The roadblocks can be unbelief, insecurity, pride, idolatry, and a lack of trust in God. It appears that the greatest deterrent to giving is the illusion that this earth is our home. We must understand that Heaven and the future New Earth, not this earth, is our home. Think about it…the Bibles says we are pilgrims, strangers, aliens on Earth. We are just ambassadors here.

1. We Should not Live for the Dot but for the Line. Think about this…everything that we put so much emphasis on will all be burned with fire. They disappear. 2 Peter 3:10 (NKJV) “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.” Think about your lives in terms of the dot (0) and the line. Our lives have two phases: one a dot, the other a line. Our present life on earth is the dot. It begins. It ends. It’s brief. 0------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ETERNITY. Right now we are living in the dot but what are we living for? The shortsighted person lives only for the dot. The person with the right perspective lives for the line…eternity. 

2. Giving is Living for the Line. Matthew 6:20 (NIV) ²⁰ But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven… Missionary Jim Elliot – “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose.” But money is not evil. A.W. Tozer – As base a thing as money is, it yet can be transmuted into everlasting treasure. It can be converted into food for the hungry and clothing for the poor; it can keep a missionary actively winning lost men to the gospel and thus transmute itself into heavenly values. Any temporal possession can be turned into everlasting wealth. Whatever is given to Christ is immediately touched with immortality. 

3. Giving is the Cure for Materialism. The very act of giving is a vivid reminder that life is all about God, not about us. It’s declaring that I am not the point, He is the point. He does not exist for me. I exist for Him. 1 Timothy 6:18-19 (NKJV) “Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share,
storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.”