Kenneth Copeland Devotional 7 May 2024 – The Grace of Giving
Topic: The Grace of Giving
Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also. – 2 Corinthians 8:7
Scripture Reading: Malachi 1:1-14
1 A prophecy: The word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.[a]
2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord.
“But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’
“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob, 3 but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.”
4 Edom may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild the ruins.”
But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord. 5 You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’
6 “A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the Lord Almighty.
“It is you priests who show contempt for my name.
“But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’
7 “By offering defiled food on my altar.
“But you ask, ‘How have we defiled you?’
“By saying that the Lord’s table is contemptible. 8 When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.
9 “Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will he accept you?”—says the Lord Almighty.
10 “Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors, so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord Almighty, “and I will accept no offering from your hands. 11 My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord Almighty.
12 “But you profane it by saying, ‘The Lord’s table is defiled,’ and, ‘Its food is contemptible.’ 13 And you say, ‘What a burden!’ and you sniff at it contemptuously,” says the Lord Almighty.
“When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices, should I accept them from your hands?” says the Lord. 14 “Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord. For I am a great king,” says the Lord Almighty, “and my name is to be feared among the nations.
How do you give to the Lord?
Do you just drop some money in the plate at church without much thought? Or do you just write a check to God at the first of every month and pay Him like you pay all your other bills?
You need to think about that because how you give is a matter of deep concern to God. He’s particular about how offerings are given. He won’t receive just any old thing however you feel like giving it.
In Malachi, for example, God refused to receive Israel’s offerings. They were bringing Him their defective animals, their blind calves and the injured ones they couldn’t do anything else with—and God said it offended Him. He told them, “You don’t have any reverence or honor for Me, and I’m not going to accept your offering.”
That kind of thing didn’t die out after the book of Malachi. Many today don’t have any reverence for God at offering time. People wait for the preacher to beat them over the head until they feel so guilty they have to reach down in their pocketbooks and get some money out.
But I want you to know, that’s offensive to God. In fact, He spoke directly to a friend of mine about it. The statement He made to her so impressed me, I wrote it down word for word.
It grieves Me when the Church takes offerings, He told her. I said to worship Me. Don’t take from the people, but let them bring their gifts and worship Me. Then they will see the fruits of their giving.
If you and I want God to be pleased with our offerings, we’re going to have to do what the Apostle Paul wrote about in 2 Corinthians 8:7. We’re going to have to learn to “excel in this grace of giving” (New International Version). We’re going to have to quit being casual about it and to learn to give with faith and reverence in worship.
Next time the offering plate is passed, don’t just drop your gift carelessly in the plate. Get serious. Determine to obey God. Worship Him with your money and be thankful. He’ll do more than simply receive it, He’ll open the windows of blessing for you.
This message was written by Kenneth and Gloria Copeland, the leader of the Kenneth Copeland Ministries that specializes in teaching principles of bible faith – prayer, healing, salvation and other biblical topics.
