Freely, Freely // Wisdom That Works, Part 14

A Different Perspective Official Podcast

Here’s one of the biggest deceptions going around at the moment. If I hang onto all my money, then I’ll be safe, secure and happy. Hmm. If only that were true. But it isn’t. By and large, it’s a lie. Safety, security and happiness - I mean real fulfilment - only tend to come our way, when we let go of the money.

Not so long ago we spent several weeks on this program talking about money. And the reason for that is that God has an awful amount to say about money. I heard a man say something that really struck home with me recently on this subject. And what he said was this, "that smack bang in the middle of every human heart lies desire for safety and security."

It's one of the most natural of all human desires and there's actually nothing wrong with that. The bit where we get it wrong though is when we go looking for that safety and security in the wrong places. Some people look for it in a relationship and it's good and it's right for us to trust in people, that's good, we're social creatures.

But even relationships fail. Ultimately a man and a woman who've been married, who've been soul mates for a life time, well that's going to end when death them do part. And in an increasingly materialistic world many, many people go looking for their security and their safety in money, in wealth.

And so we spent several weeks chatting about that because so many people have become slaves to wealth. Chained to this desire for money that they've wandered away from their faith and pierced themselves with many pains.

Well as you'll know if you've been able to join me in the last couple of weeks, at the moment we're taking a walk through the Old Testament Book of Proverbs. It's a book of wisdom and the bit of wisdom we're up to today; the bit we're going to talk about is about giving our wealth away.

God’s wisdom is invariably counter intuitive but it's powerful and we're going to listen to Him on this very subject today.

So, what does God have to say about this? Well have a listen; we're going to read just a few short verses from Proverbs chapter 11 beginning at verse 23:

The desire of the righteous ends only in good, the expectation of the wicked in wrath. Some give freely yet grow all the richer, others withhold what is due and only suffer want. A generous person will be enriched and one who gives will get water. The people curse those who hold back grain but a blessing is on the head of those who sell it.

Isn't it interesting how God here, in His words, links good, righteousness versus wickedness, with giving freely versus withholding. Verse 24 flows directly from 23, almost and example of what He's saying. Lets look at them again, the 2 verses:

The desire of the righteous ends only in good, the expectation of the wicked in wrath. Some give freely yet grow all the richer, others withhold what is due and only suffer want.

See that's a Hebrew literary construct, it's called a couplet. We're meant to read verse 24 as a practical illustration, a parallel of verse 23. Righteousness versus wickedness is reflected by giving freely versus withholding. That's not something we always necessarily want to hear but as is always the way with God, God makes it clear that with righteousness comes God’s blessing.

Listen carefully. God is a God who wants to bless us. Yes we all have storms that rage through our lives from time to time and no He doesn't always take those storms away. But in the eye of the storm there is a peace and a calm. God wants us to live in His peace and His calm and His blessing no matter what's raging at the moment.

And when it comes to the way in which we spend our resources, not just our money but our gifts and our talents, everything at our disposal, there is a God who wants to bless us through how we do that. So let's read verse 24 and understand the blessing:

Some give freely yet they grow all the richer. Others withhold what is due and only suffer want.

Giving freely means we grow richer and withholding means we suffer want. I used to be a withholder. I was mean with my money. I never, ever gave to people at a time when I was earning a bucket of money in the commercial world. Why? Well I worked hard for that, I earned it.

And whilst I might have thrown a little bit of loose change into the tin next to the Salvation Army guy in the shopping centre, the bulk of my wealth stayed in my hands. It was mine, all mine. And so fooled was I by this whole thing of wealth that somehow I never had enough.

As much as I earned, as much as I clung to it I never felt that I had enough. And when calamity and financial storms hit me and friend, I don't care who we are, how rich we are, they do and they will. And the question is, where is our safety and security? We've withheld it all and all we do is suffer want.

In other words it doesn't matter how much we want to believe that it's true, money doesn't give you security. It's nice but it's not safe. Not absolutely. So Gods word, He literally says, "the one who hangs onto their wealth is going to suffer need and poverty and lack and want". Emotional, spiritual and physical.

Alternatively the one who gives freely, who literally scatters their wealth out there like seed in a field. The one who disperses their wealth, that one will have gain and increase. That one will grow richer, emotionally, spiritually and sometimes physically too.

This is one of the most profoundly counter intuitive truths that I've ever come across in the Bible. But what I've discovered in my life is it is actually true. When I hung onto it all I never seemed to have enough, then little by little God got a hold of my heart and I was able to let some of it go a couple of things happened.

I've always had enough ever since. Even if some months I didn't receive a salary. Even if some months things looked incredibly tight and we didn't know where the money to live on was going to come from. God has never failed me. But the other thing that happened is that money lost its control over my heart.

It wasn't the main thing anymore. God became my main thing and I truly believe that letting go and giving was an essential part of that. I'm just being honest here and sharing my experiences with you. Some give freely and grow all the richer, others withhold what is due and only suffer want.

You want to know something? From my life I can honestly say that is the absolute truth, absolutely. That's a bit of wisdom that I only wish I'd managed to wrap my heart around much sooner than I ever did. And you know when a faith is in Gods provision, in His faithfulness we get a real sense of security happening in our hearts but look at what else happens when the miser becomes a generous giver. Verse 25:

A generous person will be enriched and one who gives will get water but the people curse those who withhold their grain but a blessing is on the head of those who sell it.

All of a sudden it makes a huge difference to our relationships and to the influence that we have in the hearts and the lives of the people around us. So let me say this again. How we give, where we give, how much we give, that's totally between each one of us and God. You should give wherever Gods leading you to give and you should give where there is fruit for the Kingdom of God.

That is your business with God. We should never, ever, ever allow ourselves to be manipulated into giving to this particular cause or that, to be guilted into giving. The Holy Spirit knows us, let Him lead, let Him guide but give we should.

The God I serve owns the cattle on a thousand hills. He's not sweating on my giving plan or yours, He aches to see our hearts set free from wickedness. The sort that comes when wealth is our tyrannical master rather than a faithful servant. That's why God blesses us when we give and that's why we suffer when we withhold.

I know it appears upside down but friend it is absolutely true.