The Currency of our Sacrificial Giving

Genesis 22:1-2

“Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, ‘Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ Then He said, ‘Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.’” NKJV

This passage talks about God commissioning Abraham to give to Him a burnt offering. A burnt offering is an offering of great sacrifice. With this, God demonstrates one of the two most common ways He will ask us to give sacrificially to Him. The first way is when we sacrifice to Him our “only.” This refers to when we offer unto Him the one thing God is wanting to multiply in our life and at the moment it is our only. This could be our only car, our only house, our only investment account, our family, and in essence, anything He claims ownership of and requires of us. 

As verse one reveals, God does this to test our willingness to part with what He’s asking of us to make sure we have not turned it into an idol. Especially if it’s something that costs us a long wait, energy, effort, many sleepless nights, and the sweat of our brow to obtain it. This is raising the bar and stretching us in our trust in Him. In Abraham’s case, he and his wife Sarah waited 25 long years to finally have their promised child. They even made some costly mistakes while trying to conjure up this son out of their own determination to bring a child into the world. But little did they know that later on in life, God was going to require that very promise from them. 

This should hopefully help us look to the God who makes the promise to us and is able to fulfill it. But He also reserves the right to require the promise fulfilled from us no matter how much it cost us. In the end, the promise still belongs to Him. You may be sweating and swallowing thick by now, but don’t fear. This is only a test. Our obedience like Abraham’s, will give us access to a higher dimension in proportion to the sacrifice we gave to God. The level of the multiplication of revelations, wisdom, knowledge, understanding, anointing, mantles, and more from God will then be exponential. Genesis 22:15-17 says, 

“Then the Angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said: “By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son — blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply your descendants as the stars of the heaven and as the sand which is on the seashore; and your descendants shall possess the gate of their enemies.” NKJV

For this, like Abraham, we should place our faith in God alone no matter what. This steadfast trust is what made Abraham righteous in God’s eyes. Romans 4:16,22 tells us, 16 “That’s why the inheritance comes through faith, so that it will be on the basis of God’s grace. In that way, the promise is secure for all of Abraham’s descendants, not just for those who are related by Law but also for those who are related by the faith of Abraham, who is the father of all of us. 22 “Therefore, it was credited to him as righteousness.” CEB

Every promise is a gift from God and our sacrificial offerings to Him make a huge deposit in our heavenly account that makes us known in the spirit realm because those sacrifices cause great damage in the camp of the enemy more than when we give from our surplus of whatever it is we’re giving to God. 

This doesn’t mean that our times on the mountain top are unfruitful for us. 

But there is something about the sacrifices we give to God in our everyday life that create a sweet aroma that reaches heaven and leave a powerful and permanent imprint in the spirit realm. This helps us have a voice and be recognized as children of God. The Father Himself proved that to us when He gave us His one and only Son to die for us. His great sacrifice was a seed for Him to have many more sons of righteousness in the earth and also gave us a great example of this principle of what our sacrifices produce not only in the natural, but also in the spiritual realm. 

The other type of sacrifice that speaks with a loud voice on our behalf is when we give to God our “last.” The widow who gave her last two copper coins is an example of this. Mark 12:41-44 shows, 

“And He sat down opposite the [temple] treasury, and began watching how the people were putting money into the treasury. And many rich people were putting in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amount to a mite. Calling His disciples to Him, He said to them, ‘I assure you and most solemnly say to you, this poor widow put in [proportionally] more than all the contributors to the treasury. 44 For they all contributed from their surplus, but she, from her poverty, put in all she had, all she had to live on.’’” AMP

This is another example of the law of exchange we have learned which, even though the Bible doesn’t mention the results in this particular passage, we know it creates multiplication in our life. Likewise, we learned of the exchange between the widow of Zarephath and the prophet Elijah during a time of famine. The widow sacrificed the last of her flour and oil to feed first the prophet, and then she and her son ate. The result was a multiplication of her last until the rain came that ended the famine. God’s intervention through the prophet kept them fed and secured in His promise of provision until the end of the famine. We find this in 1 Kings 17:8-16.

This principle not only applies to our finances, but it works with everything we’re believing God to bring His supernatural increase which multiplies the last of whatever we’re giving to Him sacrificially. The last of our strength and hope, the last step we can take when we don’t know what else  to do, the last morsel of wisdom we have in a given moment, or our last prayer or cry for help to God to intervene in our situation. 

Our giving has greater impact when it is attached to sacrifice. But why is this? Bringing the opposite of what the world offers gives us a voice in the spirit realm that is recognized and heaven even applauds. This is because when the world says to find the easiest way out of our circumstances, God is asking us to endure the test and go through the valleys of our life instead of trying to climb our way out without considering the effect of our obedience when it has cost us something. 

Jesus’s death on the Cross had greater impact than had he been crowned King of the Jews while sitting on a throne wearing a golden crown and a linen cape. His death on the Cross gave Him the level of authority necessary to overcome he enemy and take the keys of hell and Hades that set many captives free. This would have never happened with Him sitting on an earthly throne. In the same way, when we carry our personal cross during our time of process, we’re growing in our authority and power to deploy the weapons of our warfare that make irreparable damage in the camp of the enemy. 

In 2 Samuel 24:21-25 King David shows his understanding of a sacrificial offering. He had made a costly mistake of counting the amount of citizens in his kingdom that had fighting power, instead of trusting God to give him the victory in his battles. This aroused the anger of God. But King David was filled with grieve in his heart for what he had done and the consequences this brought to the people under his care. For this, He followed the wisdom of the prophet Gad in order to stop the plague that was released in the land. The Scripture says,

“‘Why have you come, my lord the king?’ Araunah asked. David replied, ‘I have come to buy your threshing floor and to build an altar to the Lord there, so that he will stop the plague.’ ‘Take it, my lord the king, and use it as you wish,’ Araunah said to David. ‘Here are oxen for the burnt offering, and you can use the threshing boards and ox yokes for wood to build a fire on the altar. I will give it all to you, Your Majesty, and may the Lord your God accept your sacrifice.’ But the king replied to Araunah, ‘No, I insist on buying it, for I will not present burnt offerings to the Lord my God that have cost me nothing.’ So David paid him fifty pieces of silver for the threshing floor and the oxen. David built an altar there to the Lord and sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings. And the Lord answered his prayer for the land, and the plague on Israel was stopped.” NLT

We can see that through David’s sacrificial giving and his prayer for the land, he was able to see the plague stop. Therefore, as we have learned here, our sacrificial giving to God is a currency that gives us multiplication of that which He required of us and also gives us access to His overcoming power over our circumstances and the costly consequences of our mistakes can be reversed according to God’s will. In the same way, we can reach higher dimensions where we will discover greater things about God and His Kingdom that were hidden to us before as well as give us the authority to set many captives free.

To God alone be all the glory.**

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Understanding the Relationship Between Generosity and Revelation

Matthew 6:22-23

“‘The eye is the lamp of the body.’ So if you have a ‘good eye’ [that is, if you are generous] your whole body will be full of light; but if you have an ‘evil eye’ [if you are stingy] your whole body will be full of darkness. If, then, the light in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!” CJB

There is a difference between those who receive higher levels of revelations from the Lord and those who remain in the dark about things, especially spiritual things. That difference lies in our level of generosity—our giving. Those who constantly give according to God’s will and direction know by revelation when and how God is moving and partake of these moves. But, those who do not understand the importance of giving or “investing” according to God’s will, tend to remain in the dark, stagnant, and operating according to the last moves because of lack of revelation of God and what He’s doing. 

We can see an example of this in Matthew 25:14-30 with the parable of the two faithful servants who doubled their talents or investments and the one who hid his talent in the sand instead of investing it. Verses 21 and 23 reveal to us what the “true” Master of those faithful servants said to them, “His master said to him, ‘Excellent! you are a good and trustworthy servant. You have been faithful with a small amount, so I will put you in charge of a large amount. Come and join in your master’s happiness!’” CJB

But the servant who dug a hole in the sand which means that he chose to hoard the talent or money he received because of fear of losing it had another master—the spirit of mammon. Matthew 6:24 gives us a very important discovery about who we may be serving. “No one can serve two masters. If you try, you will wind up loving the first master and hating the second, or vice versa. People try to serve both God and money—but you can’t. You must choose one or the other.” VOICE

It is important for us to understand how we truly view money and the resources God makes available to us for life and for His service. When we recognize our true master, we can then learn to advance the Kingdom in the way God prescribes to us without fear. Our giving without. understanding important principles of His Kingdom can many times produce unfruitfulness or not receiving to the level God wanted to give us access to. 

Obviously, we can see that the servant called wicked and lazy lacked knowledge and understanding of these principles and acted accordingly. So instead of a commendation, he received a scalding for wasting the resources of the Kingdom in his fearful state which led him to become self-centered instead of God-centered even though he thought he was doing the right thing. Matthew 25:25-27 shows this,

“I was afraid, so I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here! Take what belongs to you!’ ‘You wicked, lazy servant!’ said his master, ‘So you knew, did you, that I harvest where I haven’t planted? and that I gather where I didn’t sow seed? Then you should have deposited my money with the bankers, so that when I returned, I would at least have gotten back interest with my capital!” CJB

Why was this the case for this servant? Because the Scripture describes to us how the Kingdom moves—First, the Scripture tells us that this servant acknowledged that those resources belonged to his master. Then, it presents to us the method by which the Kingdom moves—it moves when some have planted and others harvest what was planted, and when some sow seed and others harvest it. This may look simple enough, but where many people miss it is when they give for the sake of giving and don’t seek to know the specific way God prescribes for their giving. In other words, our giving has a method and a purpose we must learn and understand how to apply.

In the Kingdom of God, those who get this principle and move with it, know that this by no means entails that we will lose out on what we sowed or planted if others get to harvest or gather it. But it means that we serve the God who multiplies our resources and by His supernatural ability, leverages our natural efforts to create greater impact that will bless not only us, but those we’re asked to hand over the resources we once stewarded, and now they’re assigned stewardship over them. 

As we give to God what is in our hand with this understanding, we will begin to access greater levels of revelations that will bring us to higher dimensions which will produce more of those resources in order for us to do greater things to advance His Kingdom into more territory. Isaiah 55:8-9 reveals to us that God’s thoughts and ways of operating are above ours. Therefore, we must search out these higher ways and thoughts of God that we can access when we prayerfully hear and follow His prescription for our giving.

Giving according to God’s prescription also help us do greater exploits with less effort. The efforts of the world involve toiling to add but they mostly subtract. But the things we do following the instructions of the Lord with wisdom and understanding will guarantee that we will receive a multiplication of our talents and resources because, as I reiterate, we have learned to leverage our efforts with the revelations of the Kingdom that cause us to see great multiplication. Isaiah 60:1-5 also explains,

“Arise, shine, for your light has broken through! The Eternal One’s brilliance has dawned upon you. See truly; look carefully —darkness blankets the earth; people all over are cloaked in darkness. But God will rise and shine on you; the Eternal’s bright glory will shine on you, a light for all to see. Nations north and south, peoples east and west, will be drawn to your light, will find purpose and direction by your light. In the radiance of your rising, you will enlighten the leaders of nations. Don’t be shy; don’t be doubtful; lift up your eyes and look around. They have gathered all around you, eager to come and be close to you. And your children will come back to this land: your sons from the farthest places of wandering, and your daughters gently carried home. And when you see it, your face will glow; your heart will race and be filled with joy; For great ships will arrive with gifts from across the sea, and the wealth of nations will make their way to you.” VOICE

According to this Scripture, some people walk in great light and illumination that comes from the revelations they receive about God and His Kingdom. This causes them to attract the riches and influence that come from the glory of God as they steward those revelations and learn to apply them in their life. But others walk in deep darkness because the world has taught them to only use what they have for their own consumption now or in the future. Their poverty mindset tells them that there may not be enough of what they have to share with others. The thought of handing over a resource to others petrifies them. 

They don’t understand who the true owner is and when He directs to give the whole of a resource, He has greater things He wants to reveal and allow them access to. They don’t know that according to Proverbs 25:2, “God’s glory is shown when He conceals things; a king’s glory is shown in his ability to explore the facts of the matter.” VOICE

Why is this? Because it takes intimacy with our Creator and Lord, and an inquiring heart to seek out what is in His heart and move in partnership with Him to manifest in the earth exactly what we discovered is in His heart for us and those we are called to touch and influence on behalf of the Kingdom. Having great talents and gifts that help us maneuver ourselves with ease in our industry, is not the same as having the necessary spiritual understanding to see God move supernaturally in and through our lives.

There are many well-meaning Christians that love the Lord but are still walking in great darkness because they lack the revelations that will help them come out of oppression and despair. Unfortunately, these people have accepted the status quo and for lack of understanding, they live as if trading the judgments of the Lord their God for the fear-based ways of the world. Hosea 4:6 says, “You’ve forgotten the law of your God: you’ve rejected My judgments. I’ll reject you because of your lack of knowledge—reject you as My priests; I’ll even forget your children!” VOICE

This does not mean that God does not love His people. But it means that ignorance of the principles of His Kingdom produces a lack of awareness of when we may be violating them which gives way to shakings in our life. So, here is one of the most important principles people violate and it’s found in Luke 6:38 which tells us, “Don’t hold back—give freely, and you’ll have plenty poured back into your lap—a good measure, pressed down, shaken together, brimming over. You’ll receive in the same measure you give.” VOICE

This signifies that when we give to God He pours out on us too. This is called the law of exchange. Our God is a good and very generous God and always wants us to partner with Him. And when we let go of what is in our hand, we receive what is in His hand. This includes the levels of revelation that will help us advance His Kingdom with wisdom and understanding. This law says that first, we give according to God’s instructions, and then we will receive the revelations that will help us see the riches of His glory manifested in our life in their many facets and for whatever area of our life we need them. 

More in the next posts.

To God alone be all the glory.**

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