SERMON TITLE: Gifts of the Spirit: Generosity
SCRIPTURE: Romans 12:4-8 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 4-6-25
Watch the sermon here
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As always it’s a joy to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And there’s one thing I want you to know — and this is true if you’re worshiping with us for the first time — if you’re joining us at our North Main Campus or are with our friends in Bucyrus — I want you to know that God loves you and that I love you too.
We’re continuing our series in Romans this weekend — taking a look at the spiritual gifts that Paul mentions in his letter so we all understand what these gifts are and how they’re to be used in our faith family. Now the purpose of the spiritual gifts is something I have and will continue to remind us of: Spiritual gifts are abilities given to individual believers by the Holy Spirit in order to equip God’s people for ministry, both for the edification of the church and for God’s salvific mission to the world. - Lexham Survey of Theology
Here’s what Paul says about the gifts — in Romans chapter twelve — beginning in verse four. There we read…
Romans 12:4–8 ESV
4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
We started off by taking two weeks to explore the gift of prophecy. Next, we looked at the gift of service — then the gift of teaching. And — last week — we looked at the gift of exhortation or encouragement. Which means that — today — we’re going to look at the gift of generosity or giving, which Paul mentions in verse eight when he writes…
Romans 12:8b ESV
8b the one who contributes, in generosity;
So let’s begin by answering the question, “What is the gift of generosity or giving?” The definition that I shared with you a few weeks ago is…
Giving - The gift of giving is the divine strength or ability to produce wealth and to give by tithes and offerings for the purpose of advancing the Kingdom of God on earth.
You may remember that this is one of my top five spiritual gifts — along with teaching and prophecy — two other gifts we’ve looked at in this series on spiritual gifts.
Now — giving — like many of the other spiritual gifts — is not only a spiritual gift — but is also something God expects of all his people. Like you’ve heard me say about other gifts — just because you don’t have the spiritual gift of giving doesn’t mean you’re off the hook when it comes to the commands about money, wealth, and giving that we find in the Bible.
In fact our vision is that every follower of Jesus — who’s part of this faith family — would be generous. In many ways — collectively as a church — giving or generosity is a spiritual gift that we’re known for. This was long part of Gateway’s DNA before I arrived — but is something I’m happy to continue promoting. Whether it be our Christmas Eve offering — which we give entirely away — or how much of our church budget goes to missions — and specifically to people groups around the world who have little or no access to the gospel — being generous — especially with our resources — is a characteristic of the kind of disciples of Jesus that Gateway is known for.
In fact — I’m reminded of Paul’s words about the Christians in Macedonia — when he writes…
2 Corinthians 8:1–9 ESV
1 We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has been given among the churches of Macedonia, 2 for in a severe test of affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. 3 For they gave according to their means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own accord, 4 begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the saints— 5 and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then by the will of God to us. 6 Accordingly, we urged Titus that as he had started, so he should complete among you this act of grace. 7 But as you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in all earnestness, and in our love for you—see that you excel in this act of grace also. 8 I say this not as a command, but to prove by the earnestness of others that your love also is genuine. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.
Though experiencing a severe test of affliction and extreme poverty — because of their abundant joy in their Savior — the Christians in Macedonia overflowed in their generosity. Collectively — as a church — each person gave according to their means — because giving is something God expects of all of his people. Yet — many went beyond their means in their giving. And the way Paul applies this to the Christians in Corinth — whom he’s writing to — is by reminding them that — just as they were striving to excel in their faith, speech, knowledge, and so on — to excel in their giving too. Why? Because our generosity proves that our love for God and one another is genuine. What does your generosity say about your love for God and others?
And — if that wasn’t motivating enough — Paul goes on to remind them — and us — of what Jesus gave up for our sake. He left the infinite riches of Heaven and became poor on our behalf. Born — not to a king and queen — but to a poor couple. He lived most of his life dependent on the generosity of others — as we’ll see in a moment. And — when he died — he was buried in a borrowed grave. Jesus did all of this so that — through faith in him — we are made co-heirs with him — those who are promised the infinite riches of Heaven.
But — this isn’t a general sermon on giving — this is a sermon on the spiritual gift of giving. So — let’s look at some possible examples of this spiritual gift in the New Testament.
There are a few examples — from the life and ministry of Jesus — where we see something like this gift at work. You may have noticed how I keep saying that these may be examples of the gift of giving — and that’s because — in none of these do we find a statement such as “And this was the spiritual gift of giving on display.” But this doesn’t mean there isn’t something we can learn from these examples.
Here’s one from Luke’s gospel. In Luke chapter eight we read…
Luke 8:1–3 ESV
1 Soon afterward he (Jesus) went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, 3 and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.
These women — Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Susanna — and some others who are unnamed — financially supported Jesus’ ministry of proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. Given that the church today is funded by the generosity of others — it’s interesting to notice how infrequently we hear of how Jesus’ ministry was financially funded. Which is why — when we do come across these passages — we should pay attention.
Jesus — and his twelve disciples — are able to do full time ministry because of the generosity of these women. I’m sure others supported them — gave them food to eat, a place to stay for the night and so on — but these women are highlighted by Luke. In the church today — we prefer to keep the giving of individuals private. Know that this hasn’t always been the case even though it feels “right” or “the only way” to us today.
Pastor Ben — Gateway’s founding pastor — once told me that the church he grew up in as a boy listed all of the financial givers in the church publicly. And — the list was based on how much an individual gave — with the biggest giver at the top of the list. Obviously, there might be all kinds of bad reasons to put the biggest giver at the top of the list — but think of how our view of giving in the church has changed in pastor Ben’s lifetime?
Yet Luke — inspired by the Holy Spirit — has no qualms mentioning these women by name because of their financial contributions to the ministry of Jesus. Maybe this is to highlight how the Spirit of God worked in and through these women in a special way — through the spiritual gift of generosity — as they supported Jesus and his disciples.
Here’s another possible example — this time we’re in Mark’s gospel. After warning his listener’s about the hypocrisy of the religious leaders of the day…
Mark 12:41–44 ESV
41 He (Jesus) sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
For many of us — just the idea of clearing out our savings account and giving it all away — is beyond comprehension. It’s not that you’re any less of a Christian — you can’t help but think of biblical passages about financial prudence and planning — rightly so. Yet — for some Christians — especially those with the spiritual gift of generosity — it’s not that they aren’t financially prudent or that they fail to plan — the call to give all of their financial resources away is a matter of obedience.
This too — unfortunately — can become a point of division among Christians. Where — those with this gift can view other Christians — who are being faithful in their giving as commanded in Scripture — as if they’re being greedy for not giving more — or all — of their resources away. And — at the same time — those without this spiritual gift can view those with it as being financially irresponsible — which may be the case — but isn’t always the case.
As I mentioned — this is a spiritual gift that makes my top five. My wife also has this gift. At one point in our marriage we were led by God to give away everything in our bank account. Our kids were all in elementary school and younger at the time and — in the eyes of most people — this wasn’t a good time to give everything away. But this was a matter of obedience for us. Was it scary? Absolutely! But we’re never told that following Jesus won’t lead to unusual — or even scary — circumstances in life.
So — we did it. We gave everything in our bank account away. And — within two months — without being solicited or knowing about our decision — other Christians started sending us money. Like thousands of dollars. Now — listen to me very carefully — because I’m no health, wealth, and prosperity preacher — but I am one who preaches about the faithfulness of our God. And he took care of us — I believe — because we were obedient. “Well, Josh, would God have taken care of you if it wasn’t really him telling you to give everything away?” I don’t know — that’s not what happened! But — for us — it was the one time in our marriage where we felt called to do something that — in the eyes of nearly everyone else — seemed crazy. And God showed up in ways we didn’t expect or anticipate.
Like the widow — we didn’t give out of our abundance — though we have done that for most of our marriage — this was an instance of giving everything we had to live on so we could experience — not only dependence upon God to meet our needs — but his faithfulness in supplying all that we needed and more.
Here’s another possible example of the spiritual gift of giving — we’re in Acts chapter four. At this point in church history, the church had grown quickly and the Christians have started to experience persecution. Things haven’t gotten that bad for them yet — but it’s becoming evident that not everyone is going to be open to this new religion. Yet the poor, widows, orphans, and outcasts of society are finding hope in the news about Jesus. And here’s how Luke describes the church in Acts chapter four.
Acts 4:32–37 NLT
32 All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had. 33 The apostles testified powerfully to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and God’s great blessing was upon them all. 34 There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them 35 and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need. 36 For instance, there was Joseph, the one the apostles nicknamed Barnabas (which means “Son of Encouragement”). He was from the tribe of Levi and came from the island of Cyprus. 37 He sold a field he owned and brought the money to the apostles.
Our focus will be on Barnabas again — we looked at him last week — he’ll later become one of Paul’s companions in ministry. Now Barnabas is obviously not the only Christian being generous — but he’s highlighted in this story which is why we’re focusing on him. He sells some land he owns and gives all of the money to the apostles — the leaders in the church. We’re not told that he sold all of his land — or that he gave all of his wealth away — but he did give all of the money from the sale of this particular plot of land to the church. An act of generosity above and beyond the giving expected of followers of Jesus.
And — if you don’t know — the very next story in Acts is an account of counterfeit generosity. We’ve looked at the story in previous sermons — so we won’t read it now — but it’s the story of a husband and wife — Ananias and Sapphira — who sell a piece of land they owned. And — in wanting to appear to be generous like Barnabas — and the other unnamed individuals — they claim to give all of the proceeds to the church — when — in reality — they kept back some of the money for themselves.
Now — to be clear — they had every right to keep some of the money from the sale of their land — that’s not sinful — which tells us that’s not why they die — spoiler alert — if you don’t know their story. They die because they lie about their generosity. They wanted the accolades for doing what Barnabas did without the sacrifice. Which tells us that the spiritual gift of giving — just like prophecy and teaching and other gifts — has a counterfeit. Meaning — just like we’re warned about false prophets — in the Old Testament — and false teachers — in the New Testament — we’d be foolishly unbiblical to not be aware of people faking generosity in the church for ill intent.
You see — God’s church isn’t to be bought. And people will use wealth and giving as a way to try and buy the direction of a church — or threaten to hold back their giving if they don’t get their way. And God will have none of it — and neither will the elders of Gateway. Thankfully — this isn’t something we deal with often. But giving to God — and his church — isn’t done to get something in return. It’s done because it’s a commandment to obey. And — for those who recognize the beauty in Christ — which we looked at earlier — the desire to control anyone or anything with their giving will be put to death and not an option.
Now something I find conflicting — in regards to the spiritual gift of giving — is that — because giving is something that’s such a private affair among us American Christians — we’re unable to be grateful for those who the Holy Spirit displays himself through this spiritual gift for our good. Think about it. A few weeks ago I named a bunch of different people who the Holy Spirit displays himself through the spiritual gift of serving. The next week I named individuals when I preached on the spiritual gift of teaching. But if I was to start naming folks who display evidence of the spiritual gift of giving in our church — well — things would get weird, wouldn’t it?
And I think that weirdness is less biblical than we realize. Think about the passages we’ve already read. We know the names of the women who financially supported Jesus’ ministry just like we know Barnabas’s name. But I recognize the culture in which we live — so I’ll just suggest that there’s some room for us all to grow in recognizing how to be grateful to specific people among us who the Holy Spirit uses in this way. Not so we show favoritism, but so that we show honor. For all spiritual gifts are needed and all parts of the body are to be honored — and maybe the spiritual gift of giving is one of the parts of the body that Paul called “unpresentable” (See 1 Corinthians 12:23) — but we still need to honor and show thankfulness to those whom the Spirit uses in this way.
Nevertheless, thank you to those among us whom the Spirit of God has empowered with the gift of giving. We’re a more generous church because of the Spirit using you in this way.
I’d like to conclude with some reminders about giving. Though these are some general reminders — for those with the spiritual gift of giving — these are the verses that make your heart sing. And for those who have yet to develop or discover if they’ve been given this spiritual gift — may these verses stir in you a desire to pursue being used by God in this unique way.
On his way to Jerusalem — Paul called for the elders of the church in Ephesus to come and meet with him. He reminds them of what he taught them while he was with them. He warns them about people who will try to lead the church astray. And then he says these final words to the church leaders.
Acts 20:32–35 ESV
32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. 34 You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities and to those who were with me. 35 In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
Final words matter. We don’t just save our best words for last — we save the most important matters for last. And — in his final words to these church leaders in Ephesus — Paul quotes Jesus in saying, “It’s more blessed to give than to receive.” Paul used some of his last words to remind these church leaders about giving.
Similarly — years later when Timothy was pastoring this same church in Ephesus — Paul would write to him…
1 Timothy 6:6–19 ESV
6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs. 11 But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. 12 Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. 13 I charge you in the presence of God, who gives life to all things, and of Christ Jesus, who in his testimony before Pontius Pilate made the good confession, 14 to keep the commandment unstained and free from reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 which he will display at the proper time—he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords, 16 who alone has immortality, who dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see. To him be honor and eternal dominion. Amen. 17 As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. 18 They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.
Be watchful of what you desire — for those who desire to be rich will find themselves in eternal ruin and destruction. The love of money leads many away from following Jesus. And those who follow Jesus are to flee from such things. And instead are to pursue righteousness — being right with God — godliness — becoming more like Christ — faith, love, steadfastness, and gentleness as we hold firmly to the eternal life we’ve been given.
And — in the age in which we live — we are the “rich in the world.” The least wealthy among us are still rich compared to the vast majority of the world. Thus we’re to take to heart Paul’s command to not set our hope on riches, but on our God who’s so generous that he richly provides us with everything to enjoy.
So do good. Be rich in your good works. Be generous and ready to share with anyone in need. For — in doing so — you will be storing up treasures in Heaven where you will experience God’s presence — and his glorious riches — for all eternity. Let’s pray together.
Father, thank you for being rich in kindness and mercy towards us. For being generous to us by providing us with all we need and infinitely more in Christ.
Spirit, what a unique way you’ve called your people to live. You call all of us to be generous — and yet you empower some of us to display your power through the spiritual gift of giving. This is a gift we need in order to grow into our full maturity in Christ as a congregation. Thank you for those you’ve called and gifted in this way.
And — Jesus — you left the riches of Heaven to come to earth for our sake. And — because of your love for us — as displayed on the cross — we’ve been made co-heirs with you. Eternal riches will be ours for you have guaranteed this in your blood.
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — generously pour out your favor, grace, mercy, and kindness on those who don’t yet believe in Jesus by drawing them near to you and giving them the gift of eternal life. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
May you go with grateful hearts for the Spirit’s work in making us a generous people. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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