Feb 122014
 

DONATIONS and OFFERINGS

What is God’s View On Vow, Donations and Offering

VOW or PLEDGE TO GOD

What is a Vow?
A vow is a solemn promise, pledge, or personal commitment: to God, marriage vows; a vow of secrecy. A solemn promise made to a God or saint committing oneself to an act, service, or condition.

“In case you vow a vow to Jehovah your God, you must not be slow about paying it, because Jehovah your God will without fail require it of you, and it would indeed become a sin on your part.
23 The utterance of your lips you should keep, and you must do just as you have vowed to Jehovah your God as a voluntary offering that you spoke of with your mouth”Deuteronomy 23:21, 23).

“When you vow a vow to God, do not delay paying it, for he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you vow. It is better that you should not vow than that you should vow and not pay”. (Ecclesiastes 5:4, 5 ESV)

“In the case of the vow of a widow or a divorced woman, everything that she has bound upon her soul will stand against her.
10 “However, if it is in the house of her husband that she has vowed or has bound an abstinence vow upon her soul by an oath, 11 and her husband has heard it and has kept silent toward her, he has not forbidden her; and all her vows must stand or any abstinence vow that she has bound upon her soul will stand. 12 But if her husband has totally annulled them on the day of his hearing any expression of her lips as her vows or as an abstinence vow of her soul, they will not stand. Her husband has annulled them, and Jehovah will forgive her. 13 Any vow or any oath of an abstinence vow to afflict the soul, her husband should establish it or her husband should annul it. 14 But if her husband absolutely keeps silent toward her from day to day, he has also established all her vows or all her abstinence vows that are upon her. He has established them because he kept silent toward her on the day of his hearing them. 15 And if he totally annuls them after his hearing them, he also actually bears her error.(Number 30:9-15).

What is a vow?

How does view vow?

What happens to a married woman’s vow if her husband disapprove?

What happens if the husband keep quiet?

What is donation?
Donation is an act or instance of presenting something as a gift, grant, or contribution.

What is offering?
An offering is a contribution given to or through the church for a particular purpose, as at a religious service.

What is a restitution?
A restitution is a reparation made by giving an equivalent or compensation for loss, damage, or injury caused; indemnification.

“And when Moses had called them and every man of learning, to whom the Lord had given wisdom, and who, of their own accord, had offered themselves in order to accomplish this work, he handed over to them all the donations of the sons of Israel. And while they were pursuing this work, the people offered what they had vowed each day, in the morning. The artisans were compelled by this to go to Moses and to say, “The people offer more than is needed.” (Exodus 36:2-5 CPDV)

And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel, When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the Lord, and that person realizes his guilt, he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. But if the man has no next of kin to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for wrong shall go to the Lord for the priest, in addition to the ram of atonement with which atonement is made for him. And every contribution, all the holy donations of the people of Israel, which they bring to the priest, shall be his. Each one shall keep his holy donations: whatever anyone gives to the priest shall be his.” (Numbers 5:5-10 ESV)

What is an offering?

What is restitution?

What is holy donation?

How Does the Temple Expense Paid?

We won’t buy goods or grain on the Sabbath or on any other sacred day, not even from foreigners. Every seven years we will let our fields rest, and we will cancel all debts. Once a year we will each donate a small amount of silver to the temple of our God. This is to pay for the sacred bread, as well as for the daily sacrifices and special sacrifices such as those offered on the Sabbath and during the New Moon Festival and the other festivals. It will also pay for the sacrifices to forgive our sins and for all expenses connected with the worship of God in the temple. (Nehemiah 10:31-33 CEVUK00)

“And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,10Accept donations and offerings from these [as representatives of the] exiles, from Heldai, from Tobijah, and from Jedaiah, who have come from Babylon; and come the same day and go to the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah”.(Zechariah 6:9-10, AMP)

He reported, “We have done everything that you commanded. We have taken the money that was kept in the Temple and handed it over to the workmen and their supervisors.” (2 Chronicles 34:16, 17 GNB)

How does the church expense paid for in the first century?

Name some expenses associated with our service to God?

Donation For the Passover/ Holy Communion

On behalf of the laypeople, Josiah donated from his personal holdings thirty thousand lambs and young goats, and three thousand bulls, all for the Passover offerings. His officials also provided spontaneous gift offerings for the people, the priests, and the Levites. Hilkiah, Zechariah, and Jehiel, the ones in charge of God’s temple, gave two thousand six hundred Passover lambs and three hundred bulls for the priests. Conaniah and his brothers Shemaiah and Nethanel, along with Hashabiah, Jeiel, and Jozabad, the leaders of the Levites, provided the Levites with five thousand lambs and five hundred bulls as Passover sacrifices. (2 Chronicles 35:7-9 CEB)

Beside money what else can people donate to the church?

Donations to the Poor Jesus advice.

“Sell what you possess and give donations to the poor; provide yourselves with purses and handbags that do not grow old, an unfailing and inexhaustible treasure in the heavens, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys.34For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.(Luke 12:33-34 ,AMP)

And Cornelius said, This is now the fourth day since about this time I was observing the ninth hour (three o’clock in the afternoon) of prayer in my lodging place; [suddenly] a man stood before me in dazzling apparel, And he said, Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and harkened to, and your donations to the poor have been known and preserved before God [so that He heeds and is about to help you]. (Acts 10:30, 31 AMP)

How do we know that God show interest in our donation?

What does Jesus says we should do to assist the poor?

THE TITHE

What is a tithe?
A tithe is a the tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to God or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obligation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like.

“Will a man rob or defraud God? Yet you rob and defraud Me. But you say, In what way do we rob or defraud You? [You have withheld your] tithes and offerings.9You are cursed with the curse, for you are robbing Me, even this whole nation. 10Bring all the tithes (the whole tenth of your income) into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and prove Me now by it, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.(Malachi 3:8-10, AMP)

“BEHOLD, then, how great this man was to whom Abraham, the family head, gave a tenth out of the chief spoils. 5 True, the men from the sons of Le´vi who receive their priestly office have a commandment to collect tithes from the people according to the Law, that is, from their brothers, even if these have issued from the loins of Abraham; 6 but the man who did not trace his genealogy from them took tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. 7 Now without any dispute, the less is blessed by the greater. 8 And in the one case it is men who are dying that receive tithes, but in the other case it is someone of whom it is witnessed that he lives. 9 And, if I may use the expression, through Abraham even Le´vi who receives tithes has paid tithes, 10 for he was still in the loins of his forefather when Mel·chiz´e·dek met him”(Hebrew 7:4-9)

“And we shall bring the first and best of our coarse meal, our contributions, the fruit of all kinds of trees, of new wine, and of oil to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God. And we shall bring the tithes from our ground to the Levites, for they, the Levites, collect the tithes in all our rural towns.38And the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when [they] receive tithes, and [they] shall bring one-tenth of the tithes to the house of our God, to the chambers, into the storehouse”(8Nehemiah 10:37-38 (AMP)

What is a tithe?

How does God feel if we fail to pay our Tithe?

What does God promise us if we faithfully pay our tithes?

What should we do if our tithe is been misuse by our Pastors?

Comment:
Tithes is like taxes we pay to the Government. How the government use our taxes is up to them. Similarly, tithe is a flat tax rate of 10% paid to expand the Lord’s work.
It is the responsibility of our religious leader to utilize the tithe wisely but if not, they will render account to God and Jesus. We should not be their judge.

The Widow’s Offering:

“As Jesus sat near the temple treasury, he watched the people as they dropped in their money. Many rich men dropped in a lot of money; then a poor widow came along and dropped in two little copper coins, worth about a penny. He called his disciples together and said to them, “I tell you that this poor widow put more in the offering box than all the others. For the others put in what they had to spare of their riches; but she, poor as she is, put in all she had — she gave all she had to live on.” (Mark 12:41-44 GNB)(Luke 21:1-4 GNB)

Why did Jesus say about the widow’s contribution?

[Remember] this: he who sows sparingly and grudgingly will also reap sparingly and grudgingly, and he who sows generously [that blessings may come to someone] will also reap generously and with blessings.
Let 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]. [Prov. 22:9.]

What is the difference between giving grudgingly and giving generously?

What kind of giving will God bless?

“And God is able to make all grace (every favor and earthly blessing) come to you in abundance, so that you may always and under all circumstances and whatever the need be self-sufficient [possessing enough to require no aid or support and furnished in abundance for every good work and charitable donation].
As it is written, He [the benevolent person] scatters abroad; He gives to the poor; His deeds of justice and goodness and kindness and benevolence will go on and endure forever”.(Ps. 112:9)

Who will God bless forever?

How long will God bless every generous giver?

God Blesses those who Give Generously.
(2 Corinthians 6:6-15)

“But as to this, he that sows sparingly will also reap sparingly; and he that sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Let each one do just as he has resolved in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
God, moreover, is able to make all his undeserved kindness abound toward YOU, that, while YOU always have full self-sufficiency in everything, YOU may have plenty for every good work.

9 (Just as it is written: “He has distributed widely, he has given to the poor ones, his righteousness continues forever.” 10 Now he that abundantly supplies seed to the sower and bread for eating will supply and multiply the seed for YOU to sow and will increase the products of YOUR righteousness.)

11 In everything YOU are being enriched for every sort of generosity, which produces through us an expression of thanks to God; 12 because the ministry of this public service is not only to supply abundantly the wants of the holy ones but also to be rich with many expressions of thanks to God.

13 Through the proof that this ministry gives, they glorify God because YOU are submissive to the good news about the Christ, as YOU publicly declare YOU are, and because YOU are generous in YOUR contribution to them and to all; 14 and with supplication for YOU they long for YOU because of the surpassing undeserved kindness of God upon YOU. Thanks be to God for his indescribable free gift.
(2 Corinthians 9:6-15)

How does those who give generously feel about giving their resources for God?

How does GOD reward them?

The Poor, the Widow and the Orphans

“The form of worship that is clean and undefiled from the standpoint of our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their tribulation, and to keep oneself without spot from the world”(James 1:27)

What is the definition of Widows?
A woman who has lost her husband by death and has not remarried.

“Show respect for widows who really are all alone. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, they should learn first to carry out their religious duties towards their own family and in this way repay their parents and grandparents, because that is what pleases God. A widow who is all alone, with no one to take care of her, has placed her hope in God and continues to pray and ask him for his help night and day. But a widow who gives herself to pleasure has already died, even though she lives. Give them these instructions, so that no one will find fault with them. But if anyone does not take care of his relatives, especially the members of his own family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. Do not add any widow to the list of widows unless she is over sixty years of age. In addition, she must have been married only once and have a reputation for good deeds: a woman who brought up her children well, received strangers in her home, performed humble duties for fellow-Christians, helped people in trouble, and devoted herself to doing good. But do not include younger widows in the list; because when their desires make them want to marry, they turn away from Christ, and so become guilty of breaking their earlier promise to him. They also learn to waste their time in going round from house to house; but even worse, they learn to be gossips and busybodies, talking of things they should not. So I would prefer that the younger widows get married, have children, and take care of their homes, so as to give our enemies no chance of speaking evil of us. But if any Christian woman has widows in her family, she must take care of them and not put the burden on the church, so that it may take care of the widows who are all alone.
The elders who do good work as leaders should be considered worthy of receiving double pay, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching”.
(1 Timothy 5:3-14, 16, 17 GNB)

How many kinds of widow do we have?

Who are the actual widows and what is their age?

“Now in those days when the disciples were increasing, the Greek-speaking Jews began complaining against the Hebrew-speaking Jews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution.

So the Twelve called the multitude of the disciples together and said: “It is not right for us to leave the word of God to distribute food to tables. 3 So, brothers, select for yourselves seven reputable men from among you, full of spirit and wisdom, that we may appoint them over this necessary matter; 4 but we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

5 What they said was pleasing to the whole multitude, and they selected Stephen, a man full of faith and holy spirit, as well as Philip, Proch′o·rus, Ni·ca′nor, Ti′mon, Par′me·nas, and Nic·o·la′us, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 They brought them to the apostles, and after praying, they laid their hands on them”(Acts 6:1-6)

What problem arose in the first century congregation?

How was the problems solved?

“For there will always be poor people in the land. That is why I am commanding you, ‘You should generously open up your hand to your afflicted and poor brother in your land”(Deuteronomy 15:11)

“Some people spend their money freely and still grow richer. Others are cautious, and yet grow poorer. Be generous, and you will be prosperous. Help others, and you will be helped”(Proverbs 11:24, 25 GNB).

When you give to the poor, it is like lending to the Lord, and the Lord will pay you back” (Proverbs 19:17 GNB).

If you give your resources to the Church and to the poor who are you lending to?

Have you seen anyone who is generous and become poor because of that?

Have you see a true servant of God and yet poor?

” I have exhibited to YOU in all things that by thus laboring YOU must assist those who are weak, and must bear in mind the words of the Lord Jesus, when he himself said, ‘There is more happiness in giving than there is in receiving”(Act 20:35)

May all us experience the happiness that result as we give generously..