Dr. Steven Johnson | July 5, 2026
Giving is so much more than just throwing some money in an offering plate or handing a homeless person a dollar. First off, how does God expect us to give? The simple answer is to give God everything because everything is God’s anyway. God wants and expects us to give as part of our worship, faith, and love of Him. When it comes to our finances, God wants us to want to give of our first fruits, or another way of saying it, is the first of everything we have.
Old Testament
In the Old Testament, the very first mention of giving an offering or gift to God was in Genesis 4:1-7 when Cain and Abel gave offerings to God. Abel’s heart and offering were honoring God. He gave the first fruits of his flock and his best. Cain, on the other hand, brought an offering of fruit from the ground, and when God rejected Cain’s offering because it wasn’t a worthy gift, he got mad and killed Abel. In Genesis 8, after the flood that wiped out every living thing, besides what God saved in the ark, because of the horrible sins the people were committing, Noah made an altar and sacrificed clean animals and birds to God for bringing him and his family through the flood. This pleased God, and God sent the rainbow as a symbol that there would never be a worldwide flood again.
The first mention of giving 10% of everything was in Genesis 14:20. Here Abram gave Melchizedek, the high priest, 10% of everything he got in battle. In Genesis 22, God asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. Abraham was willing to give his son as a sacrifice (gift) to God, and God was testing Abraham’s heart. Because Abraham was willing to do it, and God saw his heart. He spared Isaac and provided a sacrifice (gift) in the form of a ram. In Exodus 25, God asked the people of Israel to give to the tabernacle project whatever their hearts desired, and the people brought, as a freewill offering to the Lord, all the supplies that were needed (Exodus 35:29).
The book of Leviticus talks about all the offerings to the Lord. Here it talks about giving the best to the Lord; whether it was grain or animals, it was always to be the first and the best of everything. In the book of Ruth, Boaz had his harvesters leave behind crops for the poor to harvest. One of whom was Ruth, who eventually would become his wife, and through Boaz’s line, Jesus would come. Proverbs 25:14 says, “ Like clouds and wind without rain is a man who boasts of a gift he does not give.” If we say we are going to give a gift, we need to do it. The Old Testament talks about the need to give to the Lord our first and best, having the right attitude in giving, the first time about giving 10%, and that God is the ultimate owner of all things.
New Testament
The New Testament also talks about giving. Giving can take many forms. The one that comes to mind first is our money. God looks at these two ways: gifts to Him and gifts to others. When we talk about giving our finances to God, we need to remember that everything we have already belongs to Him, and we are only giving part of it back to Him.
Jesus talked about giving generously and with a willing heart. He criticized the Pharisees for being legalistic in their giving. He didn’t criticize that they were giving, but the way they were giving. They prioritized legalism over what the real reasons to give should be. He talked about various people from the widow who gave 2 copper coins, which were all she had (Luke 21:1-4), to Mary, who poured expensive perfume on Jesus' feet as an offering to prepare for Jesus death on the cross (John 12: 3-8).
The church in Macedonia gave generously to help the church of Jerusalem, which Paul praised for how others should be (2 Corinthians 8:1-15). Paul also wrote in 2 Corinthians 9:6-9 “…..Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver… “ We need to be careful what we promise God. Ananias and Sapphira, who said they sold a piece of property and gave it all to God, but didn’t give it all, lost their lives not for what they gave, but for lying about what they promised to give.
Jesus also talked about giving to others, whether it is to the poor or other people in need. Matthew 6:1-4 says “…. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret, And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” The Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25-37 talks about a man being robbed, beaten up, and left on the side of the road. A Levite and a Priest didn’t stop to help, but a Samaritan man did and took care of him both physically and financially. When a rich man asked Jesus, " What must I do to inherit eternal life?", Jesus told him to give all his possessions to the poor and follow Him, and he would have treasures in heaven, but he decided he didn’t want to give up his possessions. Whether you have money or not doesn’t save you, but” for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matt 6:21).
Zacchaeus gave ½ of all he owned to the poor (Luke 19:1-10). In Hebrews 13, Paul talks about showing hospitality to strangers. Matt 10:42 talks about giving a cup of water, so it doesn’t have to be money; it can be other things too. God wants us to give Him our lives and bodies, too. The disciples were told to leave everything and follow Him.
The Great Commission says we are to go and make disciples of all nations in the name of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Matt 28:16-20. In other words, we are to go, give our time, andour
lives to spread the Gospel. We are to give encouragement to others (1 Thes 5:11). We are to give Praise (worship) Him, as it says in Luke 19:37-40, and if we don’t give praise, then the rocks will
praise Him.
Giving to God may cost us a lot, but what God gave us in His son is so much more than we can ever give. The Bible talks about what it may cost us. Stephen was stoned to death (Acts 6-8), Paul
first persecuted Christians, then, when he followed Christ, he was persecuted and ultimately died, he said in Phil 1:21,” for to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain., James was killed (Acts 12:2),
Peter was imprisoned (Acts 12:3); 1 Peter 4:12-19 talks about how Christians may suffer. Even today, there are Christians in many countries around the world who are persecuted for giving
their lives to Christ.
God’s Ultimate Gift
God gave us the ultimate gift in His son, Jesus. The most quoted verse in the Bible talks about that gift. John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that He gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” Verse 17 also talks about the gift “ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.” Ultimately, the gift God gave us was perfect in every way, and the only way we can get to heaven to be with God. Jesus was that perfect sacrifice once and for all (Hebrews 10 and 11).
Conclusion
We are to give our resources, whether it is our money, time, talents, acts of kindness, etc, needless to say, everything. We are to give generously, lovingly, and cheerfully. However, no
matter what we give, God’s gift of salvation through His son is the ultimate gift and the only way to get to heaven and be with God. To be a gift of salvation, you must have Jesus come down to
earth, living a perfect life, dying on the cross for our sins, and rising again to be in heaven interceding for us. We have to accept what He did for us; if we don’t, we won’t
be with Him in heaven; instead, we will choose HELL. Are you willing to give your life to God and accept that GIFT?
