What does the New Testament say about how much of my income I should give to the Lord?

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What does the New Testament say about

how much of my income I should give to the Lord?

Monday, November 17, 2014
Jeff Lampl

“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.  And God will generously provide all you need.  Then you will always have everything
you need and plenty left over to share with others.”
2 Corinthians 9:7-8  

“You must each decide in your heart how much to give”    vs. 7  

I take this to mean that God wants each of us to take very seriously the decision of how much of our income we give to Him.   It’s a heart decision.   We need to ask God what he want us to give and when we do, he will give us a sense of what amount would require us to trust God to make up what we’ve given beyond what we can afford.   In making the decision personally, I have discovered that it is hard but also satisfying.  When I have the feeling that my giving is more than I feel I can afford, yet sense that God is in this decision then I sense that it is a “heart decision”  

“And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a person who gives cheerfully”     vs 7  

I’m not the type to jump up and down and cheer when I give a portion of my income to the Lord.   Yet, Kathy and I decided from day one of our marriage that our giving would be a tenth of our income based on the teaching found in the Old Testament.  Over time I came to believe that this amount is not a law to be obeyed legalistically, rather it is a step toward being the kind of person who wants to give, the kind of person who is a giver, as God is a Giver, rather than the kind of person who is a keeper.   Based on the passage above I think the apostle Paul would have each of us give in a way that grows our trust in the in Lord’s trustworthiness and grows our relationship with the Lord.   After all, givers are much happier people than takers and keepers.   

“And God will generously provide all you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share with others.”     Vs 8  

A third guideline for us is that we should seek to give a percentage of our income to the Lord which puts us into a position where we discover concretely and practically that it really is God who provides for us. We learn to credit God not our own earning power, work ethic, or other kind of self-reliance.  In other words God want us to experience in real time the difference between living our lives relying on ourselves and living our lives relying on Him. 

The dedication of your “Blessed to be a Blessing” card on November 23 can be an important step for your growth in faith and in your trust in God’s trustworthiness.

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