Living The Blessed Life

Living The Blessed Life• 2 Week Series• Taught by David Thompson• Week 1 – Lordship & Generosity• Week 2 – Practical Stewardship & Generosity

Generous Life – Gateway

Route 7

Financial Hope Workshop

Topical Classes FPU

What Is

The Blessed Life?

John 3:16

We are most like Christ when we give

Deuteronomy 28:1-14

• You will find favor wherever you go• Your children will be blessed• You will have abundant prosperity• Your finances, job, and influence will grow• You will never need to borrow / use debt• You will be able to bless others

Gateway Blessed Life• The days of a blessed person are filled with

divine coincidence and heavenly meaning

Matthew 10:29

You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes! Haggai 1:6 9

Lordship / Stewardship Ownership

The world says:

I own it

Many Christians say:

God owns 10%, I own 90%

The Bible says:

The earth is the Lord’s and all it contains 1 Corinthians 10:26Other references: Deuteronomy 10:14, Job 41:11, Psalm 24:1

10

Faithful Stewardship

If God is the owner, then we are His stewards

Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful 1 Corinthians 4:2

11

Have you been approaching your finances as an owner or a steward?

God Must Be First• Exodus 13:12-13

Exodus 23:19

Proverbs 3:9-10

Genesis 4:3-5 – Cain & Able 3 In the course of time Cain brought some of the

fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. 4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, 5 but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.

Joshua 7:1-26• Tower of Jericho, God commands them not to take the

plunder, it is the first of their victories and is consecrated to him. If they give the first the rest is blessed, if they keep it, even what they have will be taken away.

• 7 But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things; Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.

Oh no, which one of us came first?

Tithing

Not Law

Life

10%

• 2 Corinthians 8: 8-9 8 I am not commanding you, but I want to test

the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. 9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.

Malachi 3:7-12 • 8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me.

-How are we robbing you?

• “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me.”

Malachi 3:7-12• 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse,

that there may be food in my house. • Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and

see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.

The Principle of MultiplicationLuke 9:12-17

The Spirit of Mammon

What are your money fears?-Not having enough money at retirement-Not enough saved for emergencies-What if I lose my job-Worried I can’t cover the credit card bills this month-Will I be able to provide for my family

The Spirit of MammonMatthew 6:24 Deuteronomy 8:18

The Gift of Generosity• “He who was rich chose to become poor so

that you might become spiritually rich.” -Patrick Johnson• Jesus was the chief of generous givers.

2 Corinthians 8:8-9 (Jesus gave us the ability to store for ourselves treasures in heaven)

“Aspiring generous giver, take note. What qualifies as an act as truly generous has relatively little to do with the amount of money one gives. Generous giving begins with the posture of total humility. Here we find the Incarnate Prince of Heaven, of whom the angels sing, who sits at the right hand of Almighty God as Lord of all Creation: on His knees before ordinary men, washing the dirt and grime of Jerusalem’s pathways off their dust-encrusted feet. This picture must be riveted into our hearts. It shows us what we must become.”-Gordon McDonald

Grace & Generosity

2 Corinthians 8:1-8

2 Corinthians 9:6-15

Definition of GRACE

• a: unmerited divine assistance given humans for their regeneration or sanctification

2 Corinthians 8:1-8• 1 And now, brothers and sisters, we want you

to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. 2 In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. 3 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, 4 they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people.

• 5 And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us. 6 So we urged Titus, just as he had earlier made a beginning, to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part. 7 But since you excel in everything—in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in the love we have kindled in you—see that you also excel in this grace of giving.

2 Corinthians 8:1-8

2 Corinthians 9:10-15

• 10 Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.

2 Corinthians 9:10-15

• 12 This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. 13 Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. 14 And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. 15 Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!

God Rewards Good Stewardship

Hebrews 11:66 And without faith it is impossible to please

God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

God Rewards Good Stewardship

1 Corinthians 3:88 The one who plants and the one who waters

have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor.

Miracle in Franklin

Wrap Up Points• Blessed Life = Divine Appointments in your life• God owns it all• You manage God’s resources• God must be first• Tithing is key starting place• Multiplication• Generosity

Next Week• Practical Application

• How to physically steward what God has given you

• Miracle in Franklin: The other side of the story

David Thompson

David.Thompson624@yahoo.com

stewardship@gatewaypeople.com