Tag: brought

45.j. “Wilderness” – 9.p. “Whose heart moved them to bring willingly”

 

Exodus 35:4-5  Moses said to all the congregation of the people of Israel, “This is the thing that the LORD has commanded. Take from among you a contribution to the LORD. Whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the LORD’s contribution:

Exo 35:20-21  Then all the congregation of the people of Israel departed from the presence of Moses. And they came, everyone whose heart stirred him, and everyone whose spirit moved him, and brought the LORD’s contribution to be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy garments.

Exo 35:29  All the men and women, the people of Israel, whose heart moved them to bring anything for the work that the LORD had commanded by Moses to be done brought it as a freewill offering to the LORD.

After Moses asked them to give, he sent them home to decide what they would give. This shows that Moses did not use manipulative techniques, such as asking people to make quick, public decisions about their giving. There was no manipulation at in Moses’ request. Moses didn’t have a contest setting one tribe against another, to see which tribe could raise the most money, or any other such nonsense. God did the work in the hearts of the people.

 This offering came from God’s command, not from Moses’ clever fund-raising techniques. This shows God’s normal way of channeling resources to His work – by the gifts given from His people with a willing heart.  God could cause the money and materials to appear by a miracle. Yet He chose to fund His work through the willing gifts of His people. This idea is echoed in 2 Corinthians 9:7: So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.  God commanded that the labor to make the tabernacle and its furnishings come from the gifted artisans among the Israelites.  Though their hearts were willing, they didn’t know what to give, when to give, or how to give until Moses led them. Willing hearts still need to be told when there is a need and how they can meet that need. (Guzik)

How many times do we hear Christian pastors with outreach radio programs asking for money through varied marketing techniques and worldly ways? I am not opposed to stating a need to fulfill a God-inspired outreach. I do find it troubling to see and hear the techniques used to solicit money for the outreach. I find the methods used do not vary from that which is employed to sell new and used cars.  I don’t find an issue with these outreach ministries selling bible study aides and materials. Obviously, there is a cost in printing and sending them out. It is the technique used to solicit the sale that gives me pause. These are a few worldly guides on “How to” increase your business sales.

Certainly, godly men and women will use these very techniques to further their private businesses. There is no issue in using these techniques and methods to grow your business.

You don’t need to be a trained detective to understand that worldly ways find their way into godly intentions. I am frequently saddened by the techniques and methods used by gifted godly pastors to “sell”, “grow”, “promote”, and incite emotional buying of their teaching of God’s Word. 

It is good for us to be generous and give with a willing heart and we need to be aware of a need so that we can choose for ourselves how and when to give. Manipulative marketing and emotionally charged techniques work, but I question whether they are of God’s or man’s design for more. 

139. For there is no one who does not sin

1 Kings 8:46   “If they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin—and you are angry with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to the land of the enemy, far off or near, yet if they turn their heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors, saying, We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,’ if they repent with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray to you toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name, then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions that they have committed against you, and grant them compassion in the sight of those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them (for they are your people, and your heritage, which you brought out of Egypt, from the midst of the iron furnace). Let your eyes be open to the plea of your servant and to the plea of your people Israel, giving ear to them whenever they call to you. For you separated them from among all the peoples of the earth to be your heritage, as you declared through Moses your servant, when you brought our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord God.”

How do we know if there is sin in our life?  How do we know if we are active in our walk with God?  How do we know if our walk is worthy of honoring God? 

“If they sin against you—for there is no one who does not sin.”  “ Psalms 19:12    Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults.”  “Proverbs 20:9 Who can say, “I have made my heart pure; I am clean from my sin”? “Ecclesiastes 7:20  Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.”  “Isaiah 64:6   We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.”  “1 John 1:8-10 If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

I fear that we are thinking we are active in our walk with God and that our life is honoring Him but His word is far from our heart, mind, and soul.  This is an intentional choice being made every single day to neglect His word, live for self, and give no thought about serving, honoring, glorifying, following, and obeying God on a deeper level each day. How can we say we are committed Christians and we spend little to no time in His word with the single thought of to know and understand Jesus Christ more and more so that we would honor and serve and become very aware of sin in our life.

Turning a blind eye or deaf ear to God’s word does not give us a pass on the sin in our life.   

8. Whoever is of a generous heart

Exodus 25:1   The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me

Exodus 35:5-29    Take from among you a contribution to the LORD. Whoever is of a generous heart, let him bring the LORD’s contribution: gold, silver, and bronze;

Deuteronomy 16:16 They shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed.  Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God that he has given you.

1 Chronicles 29:1-30  Moreover, in addition to all that I have provided for the holy house, I have a treasure of my own of gold and silver, and because of my devotion to the house of my God I give it to the house of my God:

Exodus 35:21    And they came, everyone whose heart stirred him, and everyone whose spirit moved him, and brought the LORD’s contribution

1 Chronicles 29:9    Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly, for with a whole heart they had offered freely to the LORD.

2 Corinthians 8:12    For if the readiness is there, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.

2 Corinthians 9:7    Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

Mark 10:19  And Jesus, looking at him, loved him, and said to him, “You lack one thing: go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Disheartened by the saying, he went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions.

A generous heart is a choice to give of what has been given to you by God.  Do we sometimes think we have worked for what we have and it is ours, all ours, with no thought of it being a gift from God?  Our brains, our job, our physical ability, our place in life is all from God, apart from those consequences of choices we have made outside of honoring, serving, following and obeying God. What we have are blessings and gifts from God.

I was thinking about Job and how he was blessed and then it was all taken away.  Some may look at this and say that it is not fair.  But if we were able to speak to Job I think he would tell us even when it was taken away he was blessed by a deeper understanding and knowledge of God.  In the end all and more was given back to Job.

We look at what we have and think it is not enough.  We strive to get more and more to buy more, travel more, experience more and more stuff that will never satisfy our soul.  We keep, we hoard, we want.

What would happen if we chose to be generous with what we have been blessed with?  What would our lives be like free from want and filled with giving?  A heart choice to be generous with our time, talent, and money are never bad.  However, a choice to not be generous leads us down paths that could end up not honoring or serving God.

Who am I

Exodus 3:11   But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”

2 Samuel 7:18    Then King David went in and sat before the LORD and said, “Who am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far?

1 Kings 3:7    And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in.   Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?”

Isaiah 6:5-8    And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”

2 Corinthians 3:5     Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God,

Who am I is a very good question to ask ourselves.  Who am I? Casting Crowns song captures some thoughts to “Who am I?”

Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth. Would care to know my name. Would care to feel my hurt?. Who am I, that the bright and morning star. Would choose to light the way .For my ever wondering heart? Not because of who I am. But because of what You’ve done. Not because of what I’ve done. But because of who You are. I am a flower quickly fading. Here today and gone tomorrow. A wave tossed in the ocean. A vapor in the wind. Still You hear me when I’m calling. Lord You catch me when I’m falling. And You told me who I am. I am Yours, I am YoursWho am I, that the eyes that see our sin. Would look on me with love. And watch me rise again? Who am I, that the voice that calmed the sea. Would call out through the rain. And calm the storm in me?. Not because of who I am. But because of what You’ve done. Not because of what I’ve done. But because of who You are. I am a flower quickly fading. Here today and gone tomorrow. A wave tossed in the ocean. A vapor in the wind. Still You hear me when I’m calling. Lord You catch me when I’m falling. And You told me who I am!

We are nothing in of ourselves but in Christ we are a child of the King.  Satan would have us wallow in self doubt, self worth, and try to overwhelm us with fear.  In Christ we are born again, not of perishable flesh but born in Spirit. I am a new creation, child of the King, forever His child, forever in His grace, love and mercy.  Forever forgiven.  Looking forward to eternity with my heavenly Father.  I belong to a new family – the family of God. This is who I am.