Giving

Why does God ask us to be faithful in giving?

  • Because God is generous and asks us to become similarly generous in our nature
  • Because God asks us to share in his mission
  • Because Jesus says "Follow me" in a life of sacrificial love
  • Because an ability to give frees us from the slavery of self-centredness.
  • Because we receive when we give.   We can't out-give God (Lk 6:38; 2 Cor 9:6).
  • Because we can grow our church and a mission we are proud of
  • Because we are blessed to be a blessing

We encourage people to tithe at Rivergate.   The practice of tithing (giving a tenth of your income to the church) began with Abram, later known as Abraham, (Gen 14:17-20).   Tithing was God's instruction to his people during much of the Old Testament period (Lev 27:30).   The practice of tithing was not discouraged by Jesus (Mat 23:23) but the New Testament goes beyond the Old Testament legal obligation to give with an invitation for us to give because of our love for God and our concern for other people (2 Cor 9:7).   Giving therefore needs to be both a matter of faithfulness and a matter of the heart.

Tithing is a principle God asks us to honour today.   God promises to bless those who tithe faithfully:
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house.   Test me in this”, says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”   (Malachi.3:10)
However, we need to be convinced in our heart that tithing is a good thing to do.   Only when we can give wholeheartedly with cheerfulness are we truly giving.

Think of the possibilities for our church if we all gave faithfully in proportion to our income (1 Cor 16:1-2; Deut 16:17).

At Rivergate, we have decided that three things will characterise our giving :

  • Our giving will be faithful (2 Cor 9:6)
  • Our giving will be cheerful (2 Cor 9:7)
  • We will consider our ability to give to be a privilege
    (2 Cor 8:4)

We invite you to join us.
 
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