Joyful Generosity
What does it look like to surrender our finances to the Lord? Of all...
Waiting for anything is hard, and waiting on God can be especially difficult. In our impatience, we often take matters into our own hands, putting our hope and trust in our own strength instead of patiently waiting on God to move. The Christmas story reminds us of the patient, eternal perspective God wants us to have. 2,000 years after His promise to Abraham, the Savior arrived - the perfect fulfillment of God’s plan to redeem His people, and our eternal hope in the here and now.
The life of John the Baptist is a perfect picture of the Advent season. Even before he was born, God had chosen John to be the voice of his generation to announce the arrival of the promised Messiah - the Savior of the world. The story of John’s birth is an encouraging look at God’s sovereign plan, and the humble servants who received God’s call on their lives with reverence and awe.
For the Christian, baptism represents a public identification with Christ. Through the waters of baptism, we reenact the death and resurrection of Jesus, symbolizing the new life we've been given.
Pride comes all too easily for most of us. We want others to see us as strong, self-sufficient and in control. But the Christian life is an exercise in recognizing our weakness, and in humility, relying on God for all things. When we put our faith in an all-powerful God who loves and cares for us, we can put our pride aside and boast in our weakness, giving thanks to the Lord who makes all things possible.
What does it look like to surrender our finances to the Lord? Of all the areas of life we allow God to be in control of, our money is often the very last. But the generosity God calls us to isn’t one of begrudging obligations. On the contrary, 2 Corinthians 9 tells us that being generous with the gifts God entrusts to us will result in joy and thanksgiving as we see lives transformed and the God’s Kingdom expand here on earth.
Because of the gospel, we look forward with certainty to an eternity in perfect relationship with Jesus. This promise of things to come is meant to give us an inextinguishable hope, no matter what challenges we might face in this life. But this promise is also meant to motivate us to share the hope of the gospel with others as ambassadors for Christ in the midst of a lost and broken world.
The Bible says the Gospel of Jesus Christ is a light that illuminates the darkness of our world of sin and brokenness. Even though we will struggle against the darkness we encounter each day, the hope we have is in the eternity with God to come - an eternity purchased for us by the sacrifice of Jesus himself. Knowing we have this treasure that can never be lost, we can live boldly within a broken world, bringing the light of the gospel with us everywhere we go, sharing it at every opportunity.
Paul’s second letter to the Corinthian church opens with a reminder of how God works through times of suffering. God’s design for the church is that we would comfort one another in challenging times, giving others the same comfort we’ve received when we’ve walked through similar challenges. It’s a beautiful picture of how we can love one another.
Genuine faith in Jesus Christ is transformative. Where once was sin and selfishness, a life transformed by Christ will lead to a desire to serve others, a desire to grow in understanding God’s Word, and a love for people. As the Apostle Paul brings his letter to the Corinthians to a close, he once again reminds them that a life lived for Christ is the greatest possible purpose we could ever have.
The promise of being resurrected to eternal life with Christ gives us a hope like no other. This promised life to come should motivate us to live a life dedicated to serving the Lord in all we do. As hardships and challenges rise up, we can endure them with joy knowing that the best is yet to come.
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Sermons by: Genesis 6 9
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