Bible Verses - Our Giving; God's Agenda

 

Our Giving Must Reflect God’s Agenda*

 

• Proverbs 19:17 — “He who is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward him for what he has done.”
• Luke 19:8 — “But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, ‘Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.’ ”
• Acts 10:2-4 — “[Cornelius] and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly. One day at about three in the afternoon he had a vision. He distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to him and said, ‘Cornelius!’ Cornelius stared at him in fear. ‘What is it, Lord?’ he asked. The angel answered, ‘Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God ...’ ”
• Galatians 2:9-10 — “James, Peter and John, those reputed to be pillars, gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me. They agreed that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the Jews. All they asked was that we should continue to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do.”
• James 1:27 — “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”
• Matthew 25:34-40 — “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ ”
• Luke 8:1-3 — “After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, and also some women who ... were helping to support them out of their own means.”
• 1 Corinthians 9:14 — “In the same way, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should receive their living from the gospel.”
• Philippians 4:15-17 — “Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid again and again when I was in need. Not that I am looking for a gift, but I am looking for what may be credited to your account.”
• Romans 12:13 — “Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.”

* The above was originally listed on GenerousGiving.org. (I think this list follows the outline traced through my favorite little book on giving.) All verse are NIV, copyrighted by IBS, used by permission of Zondervan.