Not Coveting, But Giving

[0:00] Take your Bibles and turn to the Gospel of Luke, Luke chapter 12. We're going to read from two different passages of the New Testament this morning, and we'll begin with Luke chapter 12 and verse 13.

[0:14] Someone in the crowd said to him, Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me. Jesus replied, Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?

[0:25] Then he said to them, Watch out, be on your guard against all kinds of greed. A man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions. And he told them this parable.

[0:38] The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops. Then he said, This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.

[0:55] And I'll say to myself, You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy. Eat, drink, and be merry. But God said to him, You fool. This very night your life will be demanded from you.

[1:09] Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself? This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself, but is not rich toward God.

[1:21] Then turn over to the book of Acts. Acts chapter 20. We're going to read verses 25 through 35.

[1:33] Acts chapter 20. Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men, for I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God.

[1:53] Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood.

[2:04] I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number, men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them.

[2:18] So be on your guard. Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

[2:37] I have not coveted anyone's silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions.

[2:50] In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work, we must help the weak. Remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

[3:07] Well, if you're visiting with us, we've been studying the Ten Commandments for nearly a half a year now, and we're on the last of the Ten Commandments.

[3:18] You shall not covet. It's not the first message on coveting, but rather the fourth. It may seem to you who have been here like we're in an airplane and we just keep circling the airport and it's time to put this plane down and move on to another study.

[3:34] So let me explain a bit my lingering a little bit longer on the Ten Commandment than we have on any other of the commands. The Ten Commandment, more than any other command, reminds us that true religion is heart religion.

[3:52] It's heart religion. That God not only makes demands of our outward words and behavior, but he even makes demands of our inner desires. Whether or not they ever find expression in the outward life, he is concerned with what's going on in the inside.

[4:12] And that means that it's sinful even to want for ourselves what God has forbidden in his law or withheld from us in his providence.

[4:24] You shall not covet. And we saw that covetousness is a mother sin, and it gives birth to many other sins. Indeed, I think the case can be made that every commandment that we break includes the Tenth Commandment against coveting.

[4:41] Try that with your own sins. Trace them back far enough and see if they don't lead to this heart sin of at bottom we wanted something for ourselves that God had forbidden to us in his law or had withheld from us in his providence.

[5:01] Coveting is not just one of many sins, but is found at the root of all our sins. And so that's why I believe when Paul gave his own testimony, he said it was this commandment, this Tenth Commandment that convinced him, Paul, the self-righteous Pharisee, that he was not as he thought he was, the faultless law keeper, but that he was really a sinner and lawbreaker because though by strict discipline and self-control he could keep himself from outwardly breaking many of the commandments for the life of him, he could not keep himself from inwardly wanting that which was forbidden or withheld from him.

[5:51] The Tenth Commandment is what convinced and condemned Paul of his sin and of his need for a savior. And even so I believe this commandment convinces us all of our continual need for Jesus Christ to save us, to save us from ourselves, to save us from all inward covetous desiring.

[6:16] So we are spending more time on this last commandment against coveting because to find help against this sin is to find help against all of our sins.

[6:28] So we saw that coveting what we don't have is something we do when we're not content with what we do have. And so the battle against coveting is a battle to be content, isn't it, with what we have.

[6:42] And what we have, dear believers, is God himself. We have him, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and there is more than enough in him to keep us content every day, all day long in our lives.

[6:58] He says in Hebrews 13, 5, Be content with what you have because God has said, Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you. Be content with what you have because you have me.

[7:10] Never to forsake you, never to leave you. So how do we stay content with God? Well, we keep praising him. We saw that last week because praise and worship are God-focused exercises.

[7:23] They focus our mind on what we have in God himself and how we need to be praising him. And that's where Asaph got in trouble. We saw that in Psalm 73 last time, I believe it was, by setting his eyes on things below and seeing the wicked prospering.

[7:42] He was forgetting what was his in God. And so he quit praising and he started coveting. He went into the sanctuary complaining about his lot in life and coveting his neighbor's lot in life.

[7:59] But he came out of the sanctuary praising God and contented just to be near him, to just have him as his portion for time and eternity.

[8:10] So a heart filled with overflowing praise to God is the soil. It's the spiritual pH factor that doesn't let covetousness grow.

[8:23] Not where the soul is singing because of what God is to it. So keep praising. Keep praising. Treasuring God for all that he is for you.

[8:33] That's key to learning the secret of contentment that will keep you from coveting. So keep praising. And now today, keep giving. Our next help against this sin of coveting.

[8:47] Keep giving. To keep from coveting what you don't have, keep giving what you do have. Now that sounds like nonsense to the carnal mind, but it is the law of God's kingdom that contented joy comes from giving.

[9:08] Contented joy comes from giving. So give it away. Now I want to begin with the words of Jesus, but they're not found in any of the four gospel accounts where we usually find the words of Jesus recorded.

[9:23] Rather, they're found in Acts chapter 20 and verse 35. And the apostle Paul assures us that these are the very words of the Lord Jesus himself, even though we don't read of them anywhere in Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John.

[9:36] It must have been a well-known saying of Jesus that was circulating among the brethren. And Paul knew it and quotes it here. It is more blessed to give than to receive.

[9:52] That's what Jesus said. It is more happy to give than to receive. There is more joy to be had in giving than in receiving.

[10:04] Now the world's estimation is quite different as can be seen in the way that they live and is also expressed in the poet's words. Silly the giver, lucky the receiver.

[10:19] The giver? Well, he's that silly sucker and loser. The receiver? Ah, he's the lucky gainer. Well, there was a better poet named John Bunyan who got it right when he wrote, there was a man and they called him mad.

[10:37] The more he gave, the more he had. Of course, he's reflecting upon the very wisdom that's found in Scripture. This giving madman had learned the divine secret of true joy.

[10:50] The more he gave, the more he had. Proverbs 22 and verse 9, a generous man will himself be blessed because he shares his food with the poor.

[11:03] In blessing others, we are blessed. That's the divine wisdom. He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. This is the divine wisdom that we have behind Jesus' words.

[11:18] It is more blessed to give than to receive. You know the joy, the blessedness of receiving.

[11:31] Jesus says there's a greater joy and blessedness in giving. And everyone who has tasted this blessedness and joy of giving knows that Jesus never spoke more truer words than these.

[11:43] there are just two kinds of people in the world, someone said. There's the givers and the takers. And we meet them in this life and we meet them in the Bible.

[11:56] We read it in Luke chapter 12. It was on one of those days when thousands of people were in the crowds listening to Jesus. And someone cried out, Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.

[12:11] The man's concerned about a perceived injustice that he was suffering from his brother of not getting his share of his father's inheritance.

[12:22] And Jesus doesn't even address this concern, does he? He sets it aside because he perceives a far greater danger in this man's heart and in the hearts of the crowd.

[12:36] And he addresses that concern when he says, Watch out! Be on guard against all kinds of greed. The word there is the same word for covetousness.

[12:47] Be on guard against all kinds of covetousness and greed because a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.

[13:00] And yet, that's how the most of men live. As if it is all about getting more and more possessions. As if life is a race and the man with the most toys at the end wins.

[13:16] And so what does Jesus do? He tells a parable to reinforce this warning. And the parable is all about a man whose life did consist in the abundance of his possessions. His life was all wrapped up in getting more and more stuff for himself.

[13:30] In fact, that policy led to a great problem in his life. He had so much land and such a bumper crop that he had a problem. His barns weren't big enough to hold all that he now possesses.

[13:44] So he asks himself, what shall I do? And he answers himself, well, I know what I'll do. I have far more than what I need. I'm going to share what I have with others.

[13:55] I'm going to give it away. No, he didn't say that. Not at all. He rather said, I'm going to tear down my barns and build bigger ones and there I will store all my grain and all my goods.

[14:13] Mine, mine, mine, mine. This stuff is mine and it's going to stay mine for many years to come because I'm going to take life easy, eat, drink, and be merry. I've worked hard for this retirement and I'm keeping it for myself.

[14:28] And God said to him, you fool, this very night your life will be required of you. Then whose will be all these things that you have kept for yourself? And then Jesus turns to the crowd with a lesson from his parable.

[14:44] He gives a lesson to the short-changed brother who asked the question and made the request and to the crowd and to us who come along 2000 years later and read Jesus words.

[14:54] And the lesson is this. So it will be with anyone who stores up for himself. stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.

[15:07] So that's the lesson Jesus wants us to walk away with. There's this foolishness, this foolishness, having God call us a fool if we've just been storing up for ourselves and we're not rich toward God.

[15:26] we've been takers, keepers, receivers, but not givers. And as such were the foolish losers forever. You see, by giving it away here, we can lay up treasures in heaven there.

[15:41] But not this man. He didn't do that. He didn't give it away and lay up treasures in heaven. And so Jim Elliott would say he's no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.

[15:57] And that's true of our lives as it is with our money. The whole lesson is given to reinforce Jesus' warning. Beware of all kinds of covetousness.

[16:09] And Jesus is pointing us to part of the remedy right here. Rather than grasping what you have for yourself, learn to give it away. Put feet to your faith in Jesus' words that it is more blessed to give than it is to receive.

[16:25] contented joy is what you'll find because contented joy comes with giving. Giving. So give it away. Now if as Jesus says a man's life does not consist in the abundance of things that we possess, then what is man's life supposed to consist in?

[16:48] If not that, then what? Well, what if we could learn from the perfect man what a man's life is to consist in? What if we could follow him around and observe him?

[17:00] Well, that's what we have in the gospels, isn't it? We have the Lord Jesus, the perfect man walking among us and people taking notes and we have four gospel accounts and other writings to tell us what his life consisted of.

[17:18] And there is this wonderful summary statement on his life given to us in Acts chapter 10 and verse 38. It's what Peter said to the Gentile Cornelius and all of his relatives and friends who were gathered in his house as Peter wanted to tell them the good news about Jesus of Nazareth who is Lord of all.

[17:39] And he summarizes the life of Jesus in this way. He went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil. Now, doesn't that capture his life just in a few words?

[17:52] He went around doing good. He went around doing good. Wherever he went then, he left behind a trail of good.

[18:06] The good that he did to men. How he enriched others. He was a giver. And that's the summary statement of his life. The Lord Jesus didn't live a secluded life, did he?

[18:19] away in some monastery, living unto himself, unbothered by people in need. He was a man among men. Never more at home than when he was right in the thick of human need.

[18:37] Doing them good in a thousand different ways, so we find him taking up little children in his arms and blessing them. We find him giving health to the sick and suffering, giving food to the hungry, giving freedom to Satan's captives, forgiving sin, restoring the dead to life, warning the deceived, speaking wonderful words of life to the likes of a self-righteous Pharisee like Nicodemus or by an immoral Samaritan woman by a well in Sychar.

[19:14] He's got good news for both. He's befriending sinners. He's giving hope to the hopeless, eternal life to all who believe. Now he's comforting the grieving, those weeping.

[19:25] Now he's loving the unlovely and the disenfranchised. Now he's washing his disciples' feet. Now he's teaching them his father's will. His whole life.

[19:36] What was it? What could be said of him? Those three years of ministry, what was he doing? Well, it consisted in doing good to others, giving of himself to them.

[19:47] And that lifestyle eventually brought him to the cross, didn't it? Where he continued to give himself on behalf of others. Where he prays for his enemies.

[19:59] Where he takes care of his mother. Where he promises heaven to a repentant thief. Where he suffers God's wrath that we might not have to.

[20:09] And at last gives his very life. Dying that we might be saved from the second death. Behold his body and blood given for you.

[20:25] For even the son of man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give, to give his life as a ransom for many. But he still wasn't done giving, was he?

[20:36] He rose again. Triumphant over sin and death and hell so that everyone who believes in him might receive the forgiveness of sins through his name. And he ascended into heaven from which he gave the Holy Spirit.

[20:50] Still giving from his throne on high. Pouring out his spirit upon his people. And he's still giving. And he's still doing good.

[21:02] And enriching millions. And many of you here could testify that. To that. It's true. You could fill up the hour just telling us of all the good things that Jesus has done for you.

[21:13] He's been giving to you. That was his life. He went around doing good. That's what his life consisted of. Not the abundance of things he possessed.

[21:24] He was a poor man. But rather. In the abundance of good. That he did to others. And you know this. Because you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

[21:36] That though he was rich yet for your sakes. He became poor. So that you through his poverty might become rich. Yes. He enriched you by impoverishing himself.

[21:49] And the more he gave. Of himself. love. And the deeper in debt that he went. The deeper his joy in giving to us.

[22:02] Because as he says it is more blessed to give than it is to receive. believe. And that's not only a law in his kingdom. That was the very experience of his heart that explains such a life.

[22:19] Because Jesus found more joy in giving than he did in receiving. Believer, this is your savior. The one who delights to give good gifts. To those who ask.

[22:31] So read his heart in these words of his. He was never more happy than when he was giving of himself. To others.

[22:42] This is the Jesus we're told to fix our eyes upon. Who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross and scorned its shame and sat down at the right hand of God.

[22:54] That's what. Kept him enduring the cross. It was the joy. The joy of bringing many sons and daughters to glory. The joy of seeing you and I entering everlasting glory.

[23:08] And even then as he gave himself up on the cross. He finds more. It more blessed to give. Than to receive. And so it's this great joy at the bottom of Jesus heart.

[23:23] That explains his life of going about doing good and giving of himself to others. It brought great joy to him. More joy than than in receiving. And it's that same joy and giving that is at the bottom of his covenant.

[23:40] With his people that covenant promise that he made in Jeremiah 32. I will never stop doing good to them. And I will rejoice in doing them good with all my heart and soul.

[23:53] He won't stop doing good to us and he'll rejoice in doing good to us. With all his heart. He's all in.

[24:03] He enjoys it. He loves to do good to his people. There's not the slightest reluctance in his heart to do us good. He does it joyfully. Parents when when you parents give a gift to your child and you see their whole face light up with joy is not your joy in giving multiplied ten times by their joy in receiving.

[24:32] And perhaps that's just a dim reflection into the Lord's heart and his joy. In giving to us. We read in scriptures that there's joy in heaven over one sinner that repents.

[24:48] Have you thought about that? What is that joy in heaven over one sinner that repents? What is this joy within God that spills over to all around him so that the whole of heaven is filled with celebration and joy when just one sinner repents?

[25:11] Well, no doubt some of it is this this very joy that Jesus is talking about. The joy he has seen a sinner tasting for the very first time the forgiveness of sins.

[25:24] What joy is that when we came to see that our sins were forgiven and remembered no more? My sin not in part but but in the whole was nailed to his cross and I bear it no more.

[25:39] What joy that brought us. The Calvary covers it all. My past with its sin and my shame. It's all covered under the blood of Jesus never to be brought up again.

[25:52] It brought great joy to our hearts. It still brings great joy to our hearts. But when Jesus and heaven sees all this joy in the heart of a sinner that repents they rejoice to see the sinner rejoicing in the forgiveness of sin because it is more blessed.

[26:10] For me to give God would say to give than for her to receive the forgiveness of sins. There was never a man who gave more than Jesus did and there was never a man who had greater joy in giving when he did give.

[26:31] So generously and this joy is what drove Jesus as he went around doing good. Think about his welcome of believers into heaven.

[26:42] He tells us what it's going to be like. He can tell us that because he's going to be the one welcoming saints home. If you're a believer in Jesus this is this is what's going to happen to you.

[26:55] He'll welcome you into heaven where he will never stop doing you good and and that welcome is punctuated with these words well done good and faithful servant enter into the joy of your Lord.

[27:12] Enter into the joy of your Lord. Come and share your your master's happiness. So to step into heaven is to is to enter the atmosphere of Jesus own joy a joy and seeing us joyful a happiness and making us happy forever.

[27:33] We saying it giver of immortal gladness. What is he giving us? He's giving us gladness and as he sees our face light up with joy his heart is made glad he has this immortal gladness in himself and he says come and share with me joy in each other.

[27:51] Enter into the joy of your Lord. He speaks from experience then when he says it's more blessed to give and to receive and he wants us to experience the same joy and blessedness of giving.

[28:13] Now now you might be asking what does all this have to do with coveting. Well I'm glad you asked I didn't think you'd ever ask but there is a connection. There is a connection and and look again at Acts chapter 20 where Jesus words are found these words it's more blessed to give and to receive Acts 20 Paul is here at Ephesus he's gathered at Miletus that the the elders of Ephesus to say goodbye to them.

[28:43] He spent more time in Ephesus than any other city on his missionary journey his previous missionary journey and now on this next missionary journey he's he's gathering the elders together and he's about to say goodbye for the last time.

[28:58] And he's rehearsing for them his own manner of life when he was with them. How did I live among you for those three plus years? Notice what he says in verse 33 and this will bring it home to you.

[29:12] I have not coveted anyone's silver or gold or clothing. You see this is all about the 10th commandment isn't it? I have not coveted anyone silver or gold or clothing.

[29:27] And he goes on you yourselves know this that that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions and everything I did I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak.

[29:39] remembering the words of the Lord Jesus himself it is more blessed to give than to receive. In other words according to the Apostle Paul there is a direct connection between not coveting.

[29:55] And remembering these words of Jesus that it is more blessed to give and to receive. There's a connection between verse 33 and 35 Paul is telling us how he the Apostle kept from coveting.

[30:13] Did you hear him? It was by the greater joy of giving. That he dealt with his covetous flesh. And.

[30:24] Did not covet. That he found a greater joy in giving than any joy in getting even as Jesus said. And so he left behind in Ephesus an example of this of working hard in order to help the weak not not working hard in order to get more for himself to raise his own standard of living but working hard in order to help others.

[30:48] Which he says we must do. It's interesting that he wrote a letter to these of these very Ephesians later in chapter 4 and verse 28 that goes by that name Ephesians. And he said he who has been stealing must steal no more.

[31:02] Now nobody ever stole without first coveting. So he's dealing with our issue about coveting and stealing. If you've been stealing he said there to the Ephesians.

[31:13] You must steal no more. But rather. He must work. Doing something useful with his own hands that he might have something to share with those in need.

[31:25] And you see that's exactly what Paul did. He left behind an example of that very command. He worked hard with his hands. What was Paul doing with them? Preaching and teaching all day long and at night so intense with his hands and then getting up the next day and doing it all.

[31:44] All over again for three years pouring himself out upon the sacrifice and service of their faith. Why? That he might leave behind an important example.

[31:56] Of working not only to care for your own needs but to have something to give to the needs of others. Paul didn't have much. He was poor. And he had to work hard just to provide for himself and his companions and being poor it would have been he could have easily been ensnared by covetousness.

[32:18] By coveting. The silver and gold and clothing and houses and lands. Of the Ephesian believers.

[32:31] In whose homes he stayed. And where he ministered. But he says I didn't covet. Didn't covet anyone's gold or silver or clothing.

[32:43] Why not? Because when his flesh cried covet what you don't have. Paul gave what he did have. Didn't have much but he gave it.

[32:55] How does that happen? I want that for myself. When my flesh is crying covet. I want to learn this principle of of of not grasping for myself and holding to myself.

[33:06] But but rather giving to counter that very desire of covetousness. What drives a man to give instead of covet? Well he tells us remembering something.

[33:19] It's the words of Jesus. We need to consciously call them to mind to remember what Jesus said. That it is.

[33:31] More blessed to give than to receive. So remembering the Lord Jesus.

[33:42] What he did and what he said. Paul simply took Jesus at his word. And he tasted the reality of it himself. That that that very Christ like joy of enriching others gives you a greater.

[33:59] High a greater thrill a greater joy a greater blessedness than that of receiving. There's nothing like it. And you don't have to have a lot.

[34:10] But can be like Paul who writes of himself in 2nd Corinthians 610. As poor yet making many rich. Wasn't that Paul?

[34:20] Wasn't that Jesus? Just like his master. Poor yet making many rich. So what has God put into your hands?

[34:32] To be given away and enriching others. I want you to consider four T's. First one. Treasure. Treasure.

[34:44] Your money. Remember Zacchaeus? He was a taker wasn't he? A rich tax collector. And he was taking. Taking from others what wasn't his.

[34:57] And keeping for himself what was his. But in one day he went from being a taker. To a giver. What did it? Well he just. He met the ultimate giver.

[35:09] And received salvation from him. And he was never the same thereafter. At once he became. A giver like Jesus. Didn't he? Here and now Lord.

[35:20] I give half of my goods. To the poor. I'm sure that was whiplash. For Mrs. Zacchaeus. Who woke up. That morning.

[35:31] With a. A grasping. Greedy Zacchaeus. And went to bed that night. With a giver. Same skin on the outside.

[35:42] But a different man on the inside. He met Jesus. You see that's the power. Of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It's still changing. Lives. Because by sin. We're all turned in on ourselves.

[35:54] And we. We want to get for ourselves. We have this covetous desire. We want for ourselves. We want to get it. And then we want to keep it. And hold it. And spend it. For ourselves. And.

[36:05] And the gospel comes along. And we. We come to know Jesus Christ. And the grace. And we receive from him. This forgiveness of sins. And we become givers. Like him. And our hearts.

[36:17] Instead of. Just being all about ourselves. Are turned outward. And we start to see other people. With. With needs. And our hearts are hurting. Because of their needs. And. And we. We start giving.

[36:28] What we have. To meet those needs. That's. Our treasure. And you don't have to have a lot of money. To share in this greater joy of giving. Remember the widow's two pennies.

[36:39] That she put into the offering. Jesus counted them as more valuable. Than the large gifts. That the wealthy made. Because. That's all she had. But she gave it.

[36:50] She gave it. Even a cup of cold water. Given in Jesus name. Will not lose its reward. I'm sure heaven. Or the day of judgment.

[37:01] Is going to be full of surprises. And one of the things. That will surprise people. Are the things for which. Jesus gives out rewards. To his righteous people. That have been saved by his blood.

[37:14] Because there you have them. The lost on his left. And the righteous on his right. And he tells us. What he's going to say. In that day. Jesus will say to the righteous.

[37:26] In the day of judgment. I was hungry. And you gave me something to eat. Oh. Jesus saw that. He didn't forget. He will reward that.

[37:37] What? What was just a casserole? Didn't take much. To throw it together. And take it over. But when I was hungry. You gave me something to eat.

[37:48] Or even when I was thirsty. You gave me a cup of cold water. When I was a stranger. You opened your door.

[38:00] And invited me in. When I was needing clothes. You clothed me. In other words. You shared what you had. And even if it was just.

[38:11] Some food. And water. Something to drink. A bed. Clothes. And the righteous will say. Lord. When did we see you. Needing these things.

[38:23] And give to you. And he will say. In as much as you've done it. To the least of these. My brethren. You have done it. As unto me. You see. You'll not only receive.

[38:35] The commendation of Jesus then. But even now. You will. You will begin here and now. To taste that joy. That comes. In refreshing others. You yourself. Are refreshed.

[38:45] More blessed to give. Than to. To receive. But you can share. Not only your treasure. You can share your time. Time. And we all have the same amount of it.

[38:56] We have. 24 hours. Every day. And this is a valuable commodity. To give. We say time is money. Don't we? Yes. It's very valuable. And we can be.

[39:08] Equally as greedy. Or generous. With our time. As we are with. Our money. And some people. In this world. Are not. So much in need of money.

[39:20] As they are. In need. Of some of your time. Some of your time. There's a lot of shut in people. There's a lot of lonely people. There's a lot of discouraged people.

[39:33] Who would profit. By a visit from us. Just. Just. Some time. Spent with them. In a hospital room. In an elderly home. A nursing home. Even in their own homes.

[39:44] There's hurting people. In funeral parlors. In homeless shelters. In prisons. In prisons. And their greatest need. Is not our money. But something perhaps. Even more valuable.

[39:55] Than money. Our time. Our time. And. And Jesus is going to mention. The value of that. In the final judgment. As he's rewarding.

[40:06] The righteous. He will say. I was in prison. And you came. To visit me. No money. No money. No money. No money. Involved in that.

[40:17] You just came. And visited me. You spent some time. With me. I was sick.

[40:27] And you took care of me. It's more blessed. To give. Than to receive. Even our time. And then there's our talents. The things.

[40:38] That we can do. The abilities. We have. These two. Can be shared. With others. Singing. Some people. Need to hear a song.

[40:50] Cooking. Some people. Need. A meal. Sewing. Working. With your hands. Acts 9. Tells us. There was this disciple. Of Jesus. And Joppa. Whose name was Dorcas.

[41:01] Who was always. Was always. Doing good. And helping the poor. I like that. Description. There's the summary. Of her life. When you think. Of Dorcas.

[41:11] What do you think. What should we put. On her gravestone. She died. But she was raised. Back to life. Wasn't she. But what should we put. On there. When she dies. The second time. She was always.

[41:22] Doing good. Say that. Sounds a lot. Like. Her master. Who went around. Doing good. Well. That's exactly. Right.

[41:33] She came. To know Jesus. And so. What. Was hers. Became. Something. That she didn't. Just think. Of using. For herself. But. To meet. The needs. Of the poor.

[41:43] Remember. When she died. All these widows. Came. Showing. The clothing. That she had. Sewn for them. And made. For them. This is the way. Christian women. Are to beautify.

[41:53] Themselves. With good deeds. Appropriate. For women. Who profess. Godliness. You profess. To be a follower. Of this Jesus. Who went around. Doing good. Then. Then let something. Of that.

[42:04] Attractiveness. Beautify. Your lives. Ladies. To go. To always. Be doing good. In your home. In your church.

[42:15] In your neighborhood. In your town. In your world. We. We can share. Our treasure. Our time. Our talents. And lastly. The truth.

[42:26] Our truth. The truth. Of the gospel. And is this. Not our greatest. Treasure. The message. Of eternal life. In Jesus Christ. I think. The.

[42:37] One of the most. Irrefutable. Arguments. That I've ever heard. As to why. We all need. To be. Sharing the truth. Of the gospel. Is. Is just this. That if you know.

[42:48] Enough of. The gospel. To be saved yourself. You know. Enough to tell. Someone else. So. So you have truth. Will you just. Keep it for yourself. Like the man.

[42:59] Who tears down. His barn. And builds a bigger one. Just to keep it. For yourself. Or will you be. Sharing this truth. By giving them. The gospel.

[43:10] You can enrich. People. Not for an hour. Not for a lifetime. But for an eternity. Forever. And ever. And that's what. Jesus was doing. And Zacchaeus.

[43:20] Was the recipient. Of that. And Nicodemus. And that woman. At the well. And the thief. On the cross. The truth. Of the gospel. Coming. It's what Paul was doing.

[43:30] Being poor. Yet enriching many. With the truth. Of the gospel. As well as his financial gifts. And it's what we can do. With our mouths. What we can do. With our money. That we put into the offering box.

[43:41] To do what? To spread this truth. About Jesus Christ. At home. And abroad. God. So who is being. Enriched by you.

[43:52] By your treasure. By your time. By your talents. By your truth. Of the gospel. Who will you. Enrich this week. I'm going to challenge you. To. Plan for that.

[44:04] You got a schedule. A day timer. Something. On your phone. Will you plan. To enrich someone. By giving treasure. Time.

[44:14] Talent. Or the truth. This week. Will you pray about it. Will you sacrifice. To do it. Because. Every penny. Not spent on me. Or every penny.

[44:25] I give to another. Is something. Not given to me. I must learn. What it is. To sacrifice. Every hour. That I give. To someone else. Is an hour. Not spent. With something. That's just. Focused on me.

[44:36] Every moment. Of that talent. Being used for another. You see. Will you sacrifice. Will you plan. Will you pray. Will you sacrifice. To do. As Jesus. Go about. Doing good.

[44:47] And. Enriching. Other people. Would anyone. Following you around.

[44:57] For a month. Conclude. That you really do believe. Jesus words. That it is. More blessed. That there is more joy. In giving. Than in receiving. Those are.

[45:07] The words. That Paul kept remembering. Brothers and sisters. Let's not forget them. Let's not forget them. Let's take them. And. Instead of falling into coveting.

[45:21] Be giving. And. And. Cutting the feet out. From under coveting. Because we. We have a greater joy. Than giving. Than getting. It's. It's that greater. Deeper. Sweeter.

[45:31] Joy. Of giving. Keep giving. And. With our savior. Keep finding joy. In enriching. Others. And I know. That many of you. Are tasting.

[45:42] That sweet joy. Of enriching others. With what you have. And you know. It yourself. That when you forget. About yourself. For an hour. And. And give yourself. To serve someone else.

[45:53] You come away. With a joy. That. That serving yourself. Doesn't have. That's what Jesus. Is talking about. And in those moments. Don't we feel like. It's almost like.

[46:04] We were made for this. Well in fact. We were. Weren't we? We were made. In the image. Of the ultimate giver. Who's every day.

[46:16] Giving us life. And breath. And everything else. And when we needed. A savior. Gave his one. And only son. That we could be saved. And when we were made. In his image.

[46:27] So. So. Yes. We're coming home. To who we are. When we. Find joy. In giving. Like God does. Like Jesus does. Because when.

[46:38] When we had. Fallen into sin. And turned our back. On God. And started living. My way. And all about me. We. We needed a savior.

[46:49] And Jesus came. And gave himself. For us. Down from his glory. He came. Without any reluctance. But with joy. To see us.

[47:01] Lifted. Back up. To salvation. Eternal life. Which is to know him. To know his father. Freely. You have received.

[47:12] Freely. Give. We're going to sing a song. That. That focuses on. The one who said. These words. It is. There. It is more blessed. To give. Than to receive. And it is.

[47:23] From the overhead. Down from his glory. It is in. Fixing our eyes. On Jesus. And hearing his words. That we will. Risk giving ourselves.

[47:34] And we find. It is greater joy. Than in getting. Let's stand. And sing with me. Down from his glory. Down from his glory. Let's pray.

[47:52] God. It's such a. A God. That we meet. In the gospel. Who. When we found. Greater joy.

[48:02] In the creature. Than the creator. Instead of damning us. And giving us. Everlasting hell. That we deserved. You. You sent your one.

[48:13] And only son. To save us. While we were still sinners. And you. You didn't do that. Reluctantly. You didn't do it. Halfheartedly. But you did it. With all your heart.

[48:23] And you. Did it with joy. We. We do marvel. We bow. We worship. To think that you. The creator. Should find. Overflowing joy.

[48:35] In saving sinners. Like us. And we. We thank you. Then Lord. For the forgiveness. Of sins. That we have. And for this new. Relationship.

[48:46] Indeed. A whole new life. All things. Have become new. In knowing you. And we thank you. That. That we have tasted. That greater joy.

[48:56] In giving. Than receiving. Would you help us. To increase. And to abound. In that. Grace. That. That we might. Put to death. Covetous.

[49:07] Desires. Within. In. By finding. A greater joy. In giving. And sharing. In that joy. That our savior. Has. Bring others. Into that joy.

[49:19] We pray. That even this day. They might. Know the joy. Of sins forgiven. And we'll praise you. And rejoice with you. In your saving works. In Jesus name. We pray. Amen.