“Give a man a fish – feed him for a day; teach a man to fish – feed him for a lifetime.” Famous words of wisdom. There’s power in knowledge, but sometimes the knowledge-pill is hard to swallow. When Jesus showed up on the scene, He showed people how to be sincere, something the Jews (and all humanity) struggle with. Reality is that we can be quite selfish in our life, and sometimes embarrassingly so. Unfortunately, “the season of giving” can expose a lot of greedy, selfish people.
The solution is easier than we think. Be humble! But how do you genuinely become humble? Jesus started out what is often referred to as His greatest sermon with these words: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:3)
In our culture, there’s nothing positive about poverty! Yet Jesus saw the value of giving up His divine privileges; he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. He took the lower seat in humanity and didn’t think of equality with God as something to cling to.” (Philippians 2:6-7).
Before Jesus showed up to earth, God had sent several prophets to remind us of the need to take care of other people’s needs before our own. In Haggai’s prophecy for the Israelites, God has him tell the people that their greed will actually cause more economic disaster and hardships than if they would humble themselves and be generous. It seems His plan was to get them to focus on the temple that they had completely neglected and not on their own homes (like they were doing). The temple, after all, was a hotspot of benevolence for the community. People were blessed by the temple being in full working order. The poor were taken care of, the widows and orphans cared for; the diseased and disabled people found help. When the temple was thriving, everyone in the community did better.
Nothing’s different today. When the church is functioning in a genuinely benevolent fashion, the community is blessed. Paul said in Philippians 2:1-5, “Is there any encouragement from belonging to Christ? Any comfort from His love? Any fellowship together in the Spirit? Are your hearts tender and compassionate? Then make me truly happy by agreeing wholeheartedly with each other, loving one another, and working together with one mind and purpose. Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had…” (NLT)
This Christmas, check your heart as you dive into giving gifts and spreading holiday cheer. This was what Jesus helped us understand by living on earth – He taught us how to give in a Godly way!
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