The Grace of Giving

Written by: Dr. Alan Avera

The Apostle Paul, perhaps the greatest church planter of all time, urges the Corinthian Church to excel in the grace of giving (2 Corinthians 8 & 9). Giving is important to the healthy growth of a church.

Many of us find that counterintuitive. We are afraid that asking people to give might drive some people away. But that’s not what Ed Stetzer found in a 2007 study of church plant survivability. He found that having a proactive stewardship development plan increases the likelihood of a church plant surviving by over 178 percent.

Before you discount that as being only about having the money to keep on going, consider two other things Stetzer found in that same study.

·      Being intentional about financial stewardship is one of the ten factors correlated with higher church plant attendance. In other words, while a proactive stewardship development plan risks potentially driving someone away, the positive impact is greater than the potential risk.

·      A proactive stewardship development plan is also correlated with more baptisms. Stetzer argues that this is a basic aspect of the Christian life that needs to be nurtured rather than neglected. When it is nurtured, it tends to produce a higher expectation church that sees more professions of faith.

Given that having a proactive stewardship development plan is important both Biblically and practically, what is the best way to teach stewardship?   Ruben Swint, ministry partner of The Columbia Partnership (http://www.thecolumbiapartnership.org/) suggests that younger generations respond better when you emphasize the concept of generosity, “generosity is a companion word to stewardship.”

Swint writes, “If you are planting a new congregation or your congregation is less that 20 years old, then begin to emphasize generosity. Generosity is a term that you do not need to hide from your visitors either. They are used to the term from popular culture. In fact, your church may be more appealing if it is seen as being a generous group of believers.”

Swint notes what II Corinthians 8:7 – 9:15 tells us about generosity:

• Generosity is excelling in the grace of giving.
• Generosity is not an obligation, command or duty.
• Generosity measures the sincerity of a person’s love.
• Christ was rich, yet He became poor for our sakes.
• Christ is the example of God’s generosity to us.
• Be generous with an attitude of enthusiasm, not reluctance.
• Generosity is good for us.

“If generosity is a word or action that has value for the Christian life, how can one grow generosity in their congregation?” Swint gives the following suggestions:

• Engage in a Bible study on generosity.
• Receive an offering and give it all away.
• Preach on God’s generosity and that we are made in God’s image.
• Train and empower a generosity team or task force.
• Plan an act or event of generosity for your community.
• Make generosity the guiding principle of budget planning.
• Remind, remind, and remind members of what they still have.

How does generosity relate to a proactive stewardship development plan?  What do you think, or what has been your experience?