GIVING
On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come. (1 Corinthians 16:2)
The older I get, the more that I realize, you can't beat God giving. God's greatest gift to us was His Son Jesus Christ. And daily God gives us blessing after blessing. Accordingly, we should be grateful when we are given the opportunity to give in return. In the passage above, Paul instructs those believers to give money to the church to be used to help others who were suffering in Jerusalem. The passage gives us a model for what we should give and how we should give. The following 3 points are there to remind us of our responsibility to give:
1. Every Sunday we are to give our offering in Church. The passage states "ON THE FIRST DAY OF THE WEEK." Sunday is our day to attend church and we are to bring our offering on that day to be used as God has commanded us.
2. Giving is not optional, but is required of every Christian. The passage further states "LET EACH ONE OF YOU LAY SOMETHING ASIDE." We have a responsibility to give. Of course, it should not be a task when we take into consideration how much God has given to us. Just as we lay something aside to pay our car notes, we should lay something aside to give to the church.
3. Giving is proportionate to each person's income. We are to give "AS WE MAY PROSPER." God's way of giving is always a fair way of giving. We give in proportion to the way He has given to us. This means that everyone may not give the same amount, but our giving is commensurate with what we have.
In conclusion, each Sunday when we are given the opportunity, we should gladly carry out our responsibility to "GIVE" to the church as God has commanded us to do.
