Tzedakah

  Last Sunday night at FPB my Pastor spoke on the story in the Gospels about the woman who "did what she could." Read about this in Mark 14. As he spoke, I began to think about this woman and how she didn't have much but because she did what she could she ended up being mentioned throughout time. Even Jesus said, "Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.” Simply because she did what she could with what she had.


Apparently God wasn't finished with me on this topic because Monday when going through my daily reading routine of various news sources, websites and blogs, I came across a blog by Scott Ginsberg and in his post he made a point about choreographed giving.

Choreographed giving is when there is no passion, no heart behind our giving. It's a methodical, lifeless motion. We find ourselves going through a giving routine that leaves us feeling hollow and unblessed. We resentfully give our time when asked. We give our finances because as a Christian that what we're supposed to do. We bury talents and abilities in the dirt of our daily routines. We become  automatic givers of our time, our finances, and our abilities. There is no heart, no passion, and no purpose behind our giving. We give because it's socially expected of us, because our Pastor gave a convicting sermon, or because our pew neighbor pulled out their pocketbook and we don't want to be outdone.

When reading about the early church, we read Paul's letters to the various churches and in these letters he is thanking them for their giving spirit. He encourages them to step up and give more. He even laid out Giving plans for some of the churches. We even read of the consequences for selfish giving in Acts 5:1-10. Giving was an essential part of the early church. I firmly believe that giving spirit is one of the reasons the early church grew so quickly.

In Judaism there is a word: tzedakah. It's a commandment to give. You see it in Matthew 6:2-4.
"So, when you do tzedakah, don't announce it with trumpets to win people's praise, like the hypocrites in the synagogues and on the streets. Yes! I tell you, they have their reward already! 3 But you, when you do tzedakah, don't even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. 4 Then your tzedakah will be in secret; and your Father, who sees what you do in secret, will reward you."

Tzedakah comes from the root word tzedek, meaning righteous. It becomes tzedakah when you add the letter, "hey" which symbolizes the name of the Divine One. So when you put it all together you get tzedakah, righteous acts of giving which permeate God in the world. Jews believe that when you tzedakah or give, you are actually spreading the light of God.

Through the giving of your time, finances and abilities are you spreading the light of God?

Do you have a life of tzedakah?

When you have to heart of a giver you recognize that it's not about you. Your time, finances, and abilities were all GIVEN to you by God. He does not bless us in these three areas so that we can selfishly hoard them for our own personal gain.  

Giving is more than our bi-weekly 10%. Giving is more than building funds. It's more than offerings. Yes, those things are apart of financial giving but there has to be more. Giving is not about being seen or about how it makes you feel. It's not about giving to receive. It's not about giving because of peer pressure. Giving is not an initiative. It's about a life style, a mindset.

Melanie Shock tells a story of a little boy named Mark who lives in the Philippines.Mark is around 11 years old and sells newspapers to support his mother and sister. She speaks about how she & the local missionary's wife, Brenda Mallory went and bought Mark groceries for his family. Upon arriving at his home she was shocked by his living conditions but she was more amazed at his giving spirit. After showing his family the groceries, he brought an unopened bottle of soda to Brenda Mallory and offered it to her, "Ma'am are you thirsty?"

He was willing to give a gift he had yet to experience or enjoy. He was committing tzedekah.

We must let go of the 21st Century American cultural mindset and be the givers that God designed us to be.
As the speaker & writer, Randy Alcorn said, "Someday I'm going to stand before God and give an account of my life (Romans 14:12). On that day I do not want to have to explain why, being indwelt with the Holy Spirit and having lived in the most affluent nation in human history, I failed to give at the very minimal level of those who did not have the indwelling Spirit and owned far less than I".

Giving is not what we do, it's who we are. As a spirit-filled, Apostolic American I should be one of the most giving people I know. I should be willing to open my pocketbook, day-timer and heart for others who are in need. There should be no reason why I should be stingy with my time, finances and abilities. We have got to get rid of this selfish mentality, or spirit. We have got to let go of our faithless concerns for our personal agendas. Ask yourself, "Percentages aside, Am I a generous giver with my time, finances and abilities?" What is the answer?

We have to learn to give before being asked.

We have to learn to give after being asked.

We have to learn to give everything that is asked.

We have to learn to give beyond what is asked.

 

Luke Chapter 12:

16 And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ 18 “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. 19 And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ 21 “This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.”

What are you preparing for yourself? Are you rich in the things of God?
Or are you selfishly hoarding your time, finances and abilities?

God does not give so that I or you may take. God gives so that we may give back.