MULTIPLICATION IN GIVING?

Friday 18 April

Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. Luke 6:38 (KJV)

But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Matthew 13:8 (NKJV)

Giving. It’s a subject that has not been taught correctly by many in the Body of Christ. Now I am not negating the principle of giving in the New Testament. There are specific instructions on how to give in the epistles. The reason I say giving and not tithing or firstfruits is because these are not for the Christian to practice. If you want to understand this statement, I encourage you to look at ‘The refreshing’ on YouTube on ‘giving’ to find out more.

You may notice that both of these verses are from the gospels. Despite what your index in your Bible may tell you, the gospels are not New Testament. They are historical accounts of Jesus set in the Old Testament where they were still under the law until the resurrection. Gentiles were not under the law but the very presence of the law condemned us.

The reason I picked out these verses is because many believe that there is a multiplication effect when we give money. Let’s start with Luke 6:38. Jesus wasn’t talking about multiplying money here. The pretext will help us understand the context.

In Luke 6:37 Jesus says ‘“Judge not, and you shall not be judged. Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.”

This is not about giving to get more. Jesus is showing us how man should relate and interact with man.

Jesus already said in Matthew 7:1-2, ‘Judge not, that you be not judged. For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.’

The context here was don’t be judgmental. It had nothing to do with giving to get more. We can see that this is Jesus giving an example again of how man interacts with man.

It’s also important to note that ‘good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over’ are not four levels of material blessings. What this scripture is about when it says give, is in the context of giving of your time, talents and resources in the realm of industry. In other words, if you create a business that provides goods or services which people see value in they will give you money for said goods and services. Simple right?

The confirmation is where it says ‘shall MEN give into your bosom. Notice what it does not say. It does not say God will do it. No, men (and women) will do it as they see the value in your ventures and industrious concepts.

The second scripture is another one used out of context for multiplying money. Some call it ‘money seeds’. There are some major problems with this theology. Firstly, ‘the seed is the Word’ according to Jesus and He was speaking to the agrarian mindset of the Jews who knew how much was on a head of grain not giving a formula for a thirty, sixty and a hundred fold money formula.

Also, there is no scripture that says you are to plant a money seed or give a money seed offering. The truth is you can twist any verse to say what you want it to say out of its original context.

God didn’t create the system of money for that matter, man did. Truth be told, the Bible is not designed to give financial advice. Furthermore, there are no special privileges or material blessings when it comes to financial wealth for the Christian. Christians and non Christians both have the power or ‘ability to make wealth.’

James 1:5 says, ‘If any of you is deficient in wisdom, let him ask of the giving God [Who gives] to everyone liberally and ungrudgingly, without reproaching or faultfinding, and it will be given him.’

There is more enough resources in the world for us all to be wealthy in this world. Don’t bank on giving to God to multiple your money.

‘You must each decide in your heart how much to give and don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure.’

For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.’ 2 Corinthians 9:7

When we give with generosity with our interactions with man or into the Kingdom expecting nothing in return, we are giving generously and acting like Him. God so loved that He gave.

APPLICATION

Take stock of your beliefs in the subject of giving and don’t take anyone’s word for it. Always search the scriptures and find out what the New Testament epistles have to say on the matter.