Because He Has Given
God has been good to us.
He’s been good to us as individuals. He’s been good to us as families. He’s been good to our church.
On Sunday, we talked about the ways this church has become our thing together. We told stories of how we’ve seen God work, how He’s brought us together, and how we’ve experienced His care through one another.
And now we ask the question: How do we respond to the goodness of God in our lives?
When I get together with some of my buddies from high school, we love telling stories. We talk about that interception I dropped, how close we got to the state championship, or that one late night at a bonfire. We’ve probably told some of those stories a hundred times, and we’ll probably tell them a hundred more.
And sometimes I think we treat our experiences with God a little like that. We remember something He did, tell the story, and then go back to whatever is in front of us.
It’s not that we don’t value what He’s done or appreciate His goodness. There’s just so much going on in life that we operate like, “Oh, cool, that problem’s fixed. Now let’s move to the next thing.”
But part of why we spent Monday looking up and looking back is that remembering what God has done should shape how we live today. Those stories give us reasons to trust Him. They remind us of His faithfulness. And they invite us to consider what we’re going to do with the goodness we’ve received.
God is at work in our lives, growing our faith and dependence on Him. And through the work of His Spirit, He’s changing how we live with the people around us.
We’ve received grace, so we’re learning to give grace.
We’ve been forgiven, so we’re learning to forgive.
We’ve received mercy, so we’re learning to show mercy.
We know what it means to need those things. We know what it means to be forgiven when we’ve messed up or cared for when we’re struggling. And as we follow Jesus, those experiences begin to shape how we respond when someone else needs grace, forgiveness, or care.
The same is true of generosity.
God has been generous toward us. We’ve experienced His generosity in the life He’s given us through Jesus and in the ways He’s cared for us through other people. And that generosity is meant to shape our generosity toward one another and the world around us.
So today, let’s think about our response. What does it look like for the goodness we’ve received to become something we willingly share?
Take a few minutes to read 2 Corinthians 8:9–15.
Paul is writing to the church at Corinth about a collection to help other believers who were struggling. They had already shown a willingness to give and begun participating. Now Paul is encouraging them to finish what they started.
But look where Paul begins.
He begins with Jesus.
In verse 9, Paul reminds them of the grace that they have received through Christ. Jesus gave Himself for us. He entered into our lives, took on our humanity, and willingly went to the cross for our sake. Through Him, we’ve received forgiveness, life with God, and a place in His family.
We’ve received so much.
And that’s where generosity begins. We don’t just give or tithe out of obligation—we give because God has given so much to us. We’re learning to care because He’s cared for us. We’re learning to be generous because He’s been generous to us.
That’s been the movement of the whole week. We began by looking up and looking back. We remembered God’s goodness. We talked about the life we’re sharing, the different things each of us can bring into it, and how this church has become our thing. We’re bringing our needs before our Father, trusting that He knows and cares.
And now we’re asking how to respond.
The Corinthians knew of believers who needed help, and they had an opportunity to do something about it. Paul wants them to do it.
That’s why, in verse 11, he tells them to finish what they started.
I think we can all understand that. We can care about something deeply. We can hear about a need and want to help. We can even decide we’re going to help. But, at some point, we have to take good intentions and let them become actions.
It’s one thing to hear about a need—it’s another to step in and help.
We make the call. We bring the meal. We set aside the money. We follow through.
And, for us, one of the places generosity takes shape is right here in the life of our church.
We’ve spent a lot of time this week talking about what church means to us. Our kids are learning about Jesus. We’re opening the Bible together. We’re praying for one another, caring for one another, and building relationships that reach into the rest of our lives.
True community is developing amongst a group of people centered on Jesus.
We’ve experienced God’s goodness through this community.
And caring for this community financially is part of caring for the life we share.
There are practical needs attached to all of it. We need to keep the building heated and the lights on. We need supplies for our kids’ ministry. We need to support the work of teaching, shepherding, and caring for people. Those things are part of making this life together possible.
Scripture speaks to that responsibility too.
In 1 Corinthians 9, Paul connects the work of sharing the gospel with the practical responsibility of supporting that work. We participate in the ministry of our church by helping provide what it needs to continue.
And now we get to participate in that here.
For a long time, other churches and the generosity of Christians across generations helped make Green Mountain Church possible. People gave because they loved Jesus and believed a church should be here. They wanted people in Chester to know and see Jesus. And their generosity helped give us the opportunity to become this community.
We’ve been blessed by what they gave.
Now we’re at a point where we have to consider what we can give to help carry this church forward together. For our kids. For the people we haven’t even met yet who might one day find themselves sitting beside us, learning what it means to follow Jesus.
And our contributions are all going to look different.
Paul recognizes that in verses 12–15. He talks about giving willingly from what we have and sharing so that needs are met. He’s aware that people have different circumstances. There are times when we have something to share, and times when we need someone to share with us.
We’ve talked about that this week too. Some of us can give more. Some of us can give less. All of us can consider what faithfulness looks like with what we’ve been given. Some of us are carrying financial pressures that the people around us may know nothing about.
God knows those things. And we can be honest with Him about them.
God sees more than the amount we can write on a check. He knows what we have and the willingness of our hearts. Are we choosing to be generous as God has been generous to us?
We can also ask Him to help us move from wanting to practice generosity to practicing generosity. We can look at what we have, pray about what we can contribute, and make a plan to follow through.
The amounts are going to look different. The circumstances are all different. But we’re all learning to respond to the same generous God.
He’s been so good to us.
And as we follow Him, His goodness begins to shape what we do with what we’ve been given.
So here’s three things I’m praying through today. Maybe you can join me in that.
God, help us remember Your generosity toward us. Thank You for giving us life through Jesus and for the people whose generosity has helped us follow Him. Help what we’ve received shape what we’re willing to give.
God, grow generous hearts in us. You know our circumstances and what we’re carrying. Help us recognize what we can share and where we might need to make room.
God, help us follow through. As we consider the needs of our church and the people around us, help us turn our willingness into something practical. Show us the next faithful step, and help us take it.
We’ve been given so much through this life together. Let’s ask God how we can help carry it together too.
