Pastor Tony Ashmore continues the series "The Blessed Life" with part 3 in this Sunday service.
The Blessed Life Part 3
Pastor Tony Ashmore
Sunday, October 24, 2010
www.mylifegatechurch.com
Sermon Notes:
The Blessed Life…
Catching the Vision of Giving
Galatians 3:13-15 “But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.”
Deuteronomy 30:19 “Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. Now I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, so that you and your descendants might live!”
Generosity: extravagant giving with no strings attached and no return expected
Abraham gave Isaac with nothing but a promise of more sons. His generosity opened the door for God to do something extraordinary…
God gave Jesus with no promise of a return.
Those focused on getting will give up during seasons of “not getting.” (example of reading the Word simply to experience Him instead of “getting something”)
2 Corinthians 9:6-8 (AMP) 7Let each one [give] as he has made up his own mind and purposed in his heart, not reluctantly or sorrowfully or under compulsion, for God loves (He takes pleasure in, prizes above other things, and is unwilling to abandon or to do without) a cheerful (joyous, "prompt to do it") giver [whose heart is in his giving].” Practically everyone is a cheerful getter. God is looking for cheerful givers.
Acts 20:35 “You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” How many ‘words in red’ are in the book of Acts (the acts of the 1st church) after the ascension of Jesus?
Luke 6:30-35 “…But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High…”
2 heart responses to an act of giving portrayed in Luke 6—Mary and Judas. Generosity and selfishness. Giver and Getter. In the Kingdom for the Kingdom, in the Kingdom for what he could get out of the Kingdom (note the result when he realized the getting was about to be over—betrayal)
Generosity starts with a grateful heart.
Mary gave out of a grateful heart—this same Jesus had raised her brother from the dead. This same Jesus has raised each of us from the dead. Colossians 2:13 “You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins.”
How we handle our time, talent and resources reveals our heart.
The tithe is a test—one of the meanings of the number 10 is “test”: Laban changed Jacob’s wages 10 times, 10 plagues in Egypt, 10 commandments, 10 victories in the promised land, Daniel tested 10 times in the 1st chapter of Daniel, 10 virgins in the parable of the wedding in Matthew 25, 10 days of testing in Revelation 2:10…
3 Tests reveal whether I am a Giver or a Getter:
1. Need Test: trusting God to take care of us
2. Greed Test: using abundance wisely and in obedience to God’s promptings
3. See Test: sowing bountifully
The Reward of a Lifestyle of Giving:
- The Blessed Life: Acts 20:35 (more blessed).
- A life filled with His presence, consumed with His passion, driven by His presence (Givers are presence driven first, then purpose driven as a result. Their reward is His presence not the purpose. David—One thing will I seek…Psalm 119: 14, 72, 111, 127, 162—His presence is the treasure. Getters are purpose driven first, then presence driven as a result)
- A satisfied life: Psalm 63:1-4
- An abundant life: Luke 6:38
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