SERMON FOR THE CHURCH CONGREGATION

THE CHURCH OF PENTECOST

GRACE ASSEMBLY - NSUKWAO DISTRICT / KOFORIDUA
25TH OCTOBER, 2019

 THEME: “ GIVE GENEROUS TO THE LORD’’

KEY SCRIPTURE: Genesis 22:1-2

INTRODUCTION

 As Christians, the Bible is clear throughout its pages that we’re called to give generously.
 Regardless of your financial situation, God wants you to look for ways to bless others.
 Even in the book of Exodus chapter 35, we see the Israelites all generously giving the
materials and time to build the tabernacle. If any of those people decided to withhold
the materials they owned or the skills they had, the tabernacle wouldn’t have come
together.

Giving Generous:-

 Willing to give and share unstintingly (benevolent)

 Not petty in Character and mind
 Gives or donate more than adequate
 Giving to the work of the Lord and helping people in need

6 Na yei deɛ, deɛ ɔdua no kyenkyenee mu no bɛtwa no kyenkyenee mu, na deɛ ɔdua no bafuu
no bɛtwa no bafuu. 7 Sɛdeɛ obiara asusu n'akoma mu no, ɔmma, ɛnyɛ amemenemfe anaa ɔhyɛ
mu, ɛfiri sɛ deɛ ɔte n'anim ma no na Onyankopɔn dɔ no. 8 Na Onyankopɔn bɛtumi sɛ ɔma
adom nyinaa boro so ma mo, na nnoɔma nyinaa mu ne daa nyinaa moanya deɛ ɛdɔɔso ma mo
nyinaa, na moaboro so adwuma pa nyinaa mu,
2 Korintofo 9:6-7
“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under
compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
2 Corinthians 9:7
42 Na ɔbaa kunafoɔ hiani bi nso bae, na ɔde kaprɛba mmienu a ɛbɛyɛ kaprɛ bɛguu mu.
43 Na ɔfrɛɛ n'asuafoɔ no bae, na ɔka kyerɛɛ wɔn sɛ: Nokorɛ mese mo sɛ: Okunafoɔ hiani yi
de deɛ ɛdɔɔso abɛgu mu sene wɔn a wɔde bi abɛgu ɛtoɔ adaka no mu nyinaa. 44 Na wɔn
nyinaa firi deɛ wɔwɔ, na abu wɔn soɔ no mu, na wɔde bi abɛgu mu; na oyi deɛ, ɔfiri ne hia mu
de deɛ ɔwɔ nyinaa, n'adeɛ nyinaa, na ɔde abɛgu mu.
Marko 12:42-44
“But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. Calling
his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury
than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in
everything–all she had to live on.”
Mark 12:42-44

Examples:
Let the following examples from the Bible encourage you to use your resources—your money
and your home—to further the kingdom of God.

 Philemon opened his home for church meetings Philemon 2

 The Corinthians gave money to help impoverished Christians in Jerusalem
2 Corinthians 8 and 9
 Mary Magdalene and other women helped support Jesus and the apostles
Luke 8:1-3

BODY

Wɔsɔ Abraham hwɛ

Na nsɛm yi akyiri no, Onyankopɔn sɔɔ Abraham hwɛe, na ɔka kyerɛɛ no sɛ: Abraham! Na ɔse:
Menie. 2 Na ɔkaa sɛ: Fa wo ba, wo ba korɔ a wodɔ no, Isak, kɔ Moria asase so, na fa no kɔbɔ
ɔhyeɛ afɔdeɛ wɔ hɔ, wɔ mmepɔ no mu baako a mɛkyerɛ woɔ so.
Genesis 22:1-2
And it came to pass after these things that God did tempt Abraham, and said unto him,
Abraham: and he said, Behold, here I am. 2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac,
whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt
offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.
 Genesis 22:1-2
Moral Lesson:

1. Be obedient to God
 Obedience is the practical acceptance of the authority and will of God.
 It includes both submitting to Him and then expressing that submission in actions, words
and thoughts.
 To be obedient is to be in agreement with God. To be in agreement with God is to be in
a position of power in Christ.

"If you love me, you will obey what I command....Whoever has my commands, and obeys them
he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him
and show myself to him" (John 14:15, John 14:21).

2. Acknowledge that God owns everything

The most important principle to keep firmly in mind is to understand whose money we are
talking about. It’s not yours

 God’s ownership of everything is a foreign concept to most of us. We like to think of our
money and our possessions.

16 ɛfiri sɛ ne mu na wɔbɔɔ nnoɔma nyinaa, deɛ ɛwɔ soro nedeɛ ɛwɔ asase soɔ, deɛ wɔhunu
ne deɛ wɔnhunu, nhennwa oo, wuradie oo, mpaninnie oo, tumidie oo, nnoɔma no nyinaa,
wɔnam ne so na ɛbɔeɛ, na wɔbɔ maa no.
kolosefo 1:16
 Yet the Bible makes it clear that God owns everything. All things were created by him and
for him
Colossians 1:16

2 Sɛ ɛkɔm de me a, anka merense wo, na wiase ne ne mayɛ wɔ me.

Nnwom 50:12
 The world is mine, and all that is in it. (Psalm 50:12)

Me na sika ne dwetɛ wɔ me, asafo AWURADE asɛm nie. Haggai 2:8

 “The silver is mine and the gold is mine,” declares the LORD Almighty. (Haggai 2:8)
  To the LORD your God belong the heavens, even the highest heavens, the earth and
everything in it. (Deuteronomy 10:14)
 For every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. (Psalm 50:10)
 For everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are
exalted as head over all. (1 Chronicles 29:11)

3. See yourself as a Steward or manager to God’s resource

You are a steward, or manager, to whom God has entrusted a portion of his riches. You have
the privilege—and responsibility—of taking care of his property and spending his money in ways
that please him.
 Recognizing that you are a steward can change your outlook in many ways. Instead of
asking, “What do I want to buy?” ask, “Lord, how do you want me to use your resources?”
 God created you and loves you so much that he entrusted some of his riches to your
care.
 God provides for your enjoyment. The fact that you are a steward doesn’t mean that it’s
wrong to enjoy yourself. Our main goal in life should be to love God and others, not to
satisfy our own desires. Yet God loves us and as a father gives us gifts to enjoy.
 You will give an account to the Lord

In Matthew 25:14-30, Jesus taught the parable of the talents. In this story, a man gave each of
his three servants varying amounts of money to take care of while he was on a trip.
When he returned, two of the servants reported that they used the money wisely and earned
more money. The master rewarded them for their faithful service.
The third servant, however, said he buried his money. He did not make a profit or earn any
interest. He was severely punished.

4. Have faith
Hebrews 11:1 tells us that
 Faith is “being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Perhaps no
other component of the Christian life is more important than faith. We cannot purchase
it, sell it or give it to our friends.
  The dictionary defines faith as “belief in, devotion to, or trust in somebody or something,
especially without logical proof.” It also defines faith as “belief in and devotion to God.”
 In fact, it is so important that, without faith, we have no place with God, and it is
impossible to please Him (Hebrews 11:6). According to the Bible, faith is belief in the one,
true God without actually seeing Him.

Examples of faith. Hebrews chapter 11 is known as the “faith chapter” because in it great deeds
of faith are described.
 By faith Abel offered a pleasing sacrifice to the Lord (v. 4);
 By faith Noah prepared the ark in a time when rain was unknown (v. 7);
 By faith Abraham left his home and obeyed God’s command to go he knew not where,
then willingly offered up his only son (vv. 8-10, 17);
 By faith Moses led the children of Israel out of Egypt (vv. 23-29);
 By faith Rahab received the spies of Israel and saved her life (v. 31).
According to the Bible, faith is essential to Christianity.
Faith is what sustains us to the end, knowing that by faith we will be in heaven with God for all
eternity

CONCLUSION:

 I remind you that give generously to the Lord, God.

 When you give, you store up treasures in heaven. We are refreshed physically, spiritually,
or both while here on earth. But much more importantly, we store up treasures in heaven.

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where
thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust
do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
Matthew 6:19-20

May the Almighty God assist you, guide you and strengthen you. Amen