ACT OF GIVING 7 Chapter Six: The Heart That Gives

"The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." - Gen.6:5

He thinks only about himself, he is always after what he has to gain for himself in everything, sometimes he goes to the extent of displeasing others to please himself. He doesn't care about others as long as he is satisfied. He put himself first above all things, he satisfies himself first before thinking about others, not to talk of going outside his comfort to satisfy others.

The natural heart seeks for its interest and not the interest of others. The natural heart is proud and is not willing to submit or even subject itself to people equal to or lower than him. A man with the natural heart cannot give willingly and freely, even when he gives, he gives for a selfish motive, either to receive recognition, fame, acceptance, or something in return and such giving cannot be accepted and rewarded by G.o.d.

It takes a heart that has completely submitted to Christ to give willingly, freely and cheerfully. You need to conform to the image of Christ. If you do not have the life of Christ, it will be difficult for you to give. You need to emulate the lifestyle of Christ about giving. Being a Christian is living for others and not yourself.

Christ lived his life for men; he came to serve and not to be served.
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"For the Son of man also came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." - Mark 10:45

He loved men and has compa.s.sion on them; Christ showed his love for us by laying down his life so that we can have life, and we are also to do the same for our fellow brethren by laying our lives for them, which is living for them.

"By this we know love that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." - I John 3:16

But you cannot do this if you don't have love. Love is the foundation of every true and faithful giving. Christ did not come to the world to preach religion but to show us the true and perfect life we ought to live. He did this by living the life to show us an example. The Disciples of Christ were first called Christians in Antioch (Act 11:26) because people saw them that they were behaving and living a life like Christ, though in today's world people have ascribed the name Christians to those who worship in Church even if they are not living the life of Christ.

To have the heart that gives, you need to conform to the ordinance of Christ because when you do that, your natural selfish, greedy and wicked heart will be taken away and you will have a new heart with the life that gives freely, willingly and cheerfully. You will have a heart like Christ. You don't need to put all the rules of giving in your head; you will just find yourself living the right life that gives with a loving heart.

If you find yourself not giving rightly or freely as expected even though you want to give, it is because you have not caught that life of Christ and you can only do that if you submit your life to him and ask him to give you his life. You may ask me "where can I find him?" or "how can I talk to him?" It is very simple, he is alive and can hear you anywhere you are, and he can hear your words, even the deepest thought in your heart. If you doubt his existence, why not try him and ask him if he truly exists, he should reveal himself to you and I'm sure he will.

A life that have the life of Christ will have a loving heart that is genuine, full of compa.s.sion and humility that will always put others first, and seek the interest of others and not himself.

"So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any incentive of love, any partic.i.p.ation in the spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfishness or conceit, but in humility counts others better than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests but also to the interests of others." - Phil 2:1-4

The qualities or attributes of the heart that gives are love, compa.s.sion, selflessness, humility, kindness, mercy, goodness, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, gentleness, tolerance and self-control. A true Christian living should have all these attributes. You are admonished in Rom.12:9–21 on how to live a genuine Christian life that can give freely, willingly and cheerfully.

"Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honour. Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but a.s.sociate with the lowly; never be conceited. Repay no one evil for evil, but take thought for what is n.o.ble in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends upon you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of G.o.d; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." No, "if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals upon his head." Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."