“Take from among you an offering to the LORD. Whoever is of a willing heart, let him bring it as an offering to the LORD” (Ex. 35:5a).
Moses repeated the commands concerning the offerings that were to be brought to the Lord. He emphasized that those who brought offerings were to come with a willing heart. God did not impose taxes for the purpose of building the tabernacle. The offerings were to be given freely and with a “cheerful heart.” This is a point that is often lost to us today. Sometimes we give to the church with a reluctant spirit, as if we were being ask to pay a heavy tax. Too often, we look at giving tithes and offerings as a duty instead of a privilege, and our attitude reflects that perspective. This brings dishonor to the Lord, and it brings shame upon the church because it is treated like a worldly institution that needs finances to keep it going.
The offerings that are most acceptable to the Lord are the ones that come from a generous heart. The psalmist says the Lord’s people will be “volunteers in the day of Your power,” willing soldiers in God’s war. Each person should give in proportion “to the way the Lord your God has blessed you” (Deut. 16:17). God does not ask any more of you than you are able to give. Paul, when writing about the “freewill” offerings of his day, wrote, “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7 NIV). Again he wrote of this same situation, “For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have” (2 Cor. 8:12 NIV).
This principle can be applied not only to the giving of financial gifts, but in the service we render to the church. We are not all given the same abilities, but we are called to use them for God’s glory and for the edification of His people. We should exercise our gifts with joy in our hearts and with a willingness to give back to the Lord some small portion of what He has given to us. In doing this, we should not envy the abilities of others, but we should be satisfied with what we can do, using our own gifts freely and with an eye to excellence. We should never look down on those with “lesser” gifts, but we should honor everyone, whether poor or wealthy. Our ability to give does not matter. What does matter is that we give with a willing and cheerful heart in service to the Lord.
Are you a cheerful giver? Do you give to the Lord with a willing heart, not just financially, but in the exercising of your gifts among the body of believers? Meditate on the verses below. Ask God to give you a willing heart, full of generosity and free from covetousness and pride. Make plans to give back a portion of what God has given you.
