Who said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive?" Well, Jesus said it, of course. Interestingly, the only record of that is ... in Acts. It's a quote from Paul quoting Jesus (
Acts 20:35). Apparently Luke filled Paul in on some things Jesus said that weren't recorded in the Gospels. And, of course, we've all heard it. But ... is it true?
I think, in some ways, this principle is most easily seen, at least on the surface, at Christmas time. We all know instinctively, I think, how much fun it is to give to people we love at Christmas. My wife loves baking up special treats for friends and family. She knows that this one likes her fudge best and that one really enjoys her snickerdoodles and ... well, you get it. When I was working she'd even bake up a plate of all kinds of goodies for my coworkers just because she wanted to. That's the idea. Giving gives the giver joy. Giving, in fact, provides lots of benefits to the giver. We get to practice obedience. We get to lean more heavily on the Lord to supply. We get to imitate God (John 3:16; James 1:17). Jesus came to give Himself (Matt 20:28); we imitate Him in giving to others. We know that the Lord loves a cheerful giver (1 Cor 9:7); that's not limited to a church offering. We get to give glory to God (Matt 5:16). There are lots of good things for the one who gives.
So, why is it so hard for us to live that way? Why is it that Christmas seems the exception, and the rest of the time we're primarily scrabbling for what's ours? Solomon warned that those who love abundance will never be satisfied (Ecc 5:10), but we're not paying attention. Jesus called us to a cross, and through that death to self, to Himself (Mark 8:34), and we cling to ... stuff ... to our own detriment. Paul told the Philippians to share the heart of Christ (Php 2:5-8). Perhaps we can use this time as a catalyst for change, a jumping off point, if you will. We have songs singing about Christmas year round. Perhaps we should be aiming to sacrifice self and give to others ... year round. Imagine a life, predicated on Christ's sacrifice of self, dependent on His provision for all of our existence, lived outwardly toward those around us, giving to them, sharing Christ in a real way with them, glorifying God in a very real way with them. It's really a magnificent image. Is it possible?
7 comments:
I completely concur that if the Holy Spirit leads us to adopt a particular attitude or behavior, we should strive to comply all year-round. I am certain that a “be nice to others as Christmas approaches but go back to your usual self after the holidays” mindset--typical of the world--should not describe me as a believer. After all, Jesus didn’t say, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another…during December.”
Regarding baking (with no disparage intended towards your wife’s generous heart): I have heard that many bakers love to bake but feel compelled to give much of their treats away, so as not to eat it all themselves. Personally, I can’t understand their issue. ;)
With regard to baking, she loves to give it away ... but certainly loves for us to share some of it together, too. With her love for giving, December is always a bad month for dieting.
Dieting in December? That is virtually impossible. I suppose one can try to diet in January, but then February will end those good intentions, due to Valentine’s Day candy; then March-April brings Easter basket treats. Mem. Day through Labor Day is completely out due to summer vacation indulgences; the whole month of October is given over to pre-Halloween chocolate cravings; November is both finishing up Halloween candy and Thanksgiving feasting, and we’re back to December again. The calendar is really not our friend! “Dieting? Not this year!”
Being a lover of words, I've argued for some time that "diet" means "whatever you eat," so I'm always on a "diet." And, while I'm at it, I'm in shape ... because "round" is a shape, isn't it?
Yes, “round” is a perfectly good shape. :) Here’s more fun food for thought I found online:
“D.I.E.T. stands for Did I eat that?”
“Diet Day 1: As instructed, I have removed all the bad food from the house. It was delicious.”
“I would like to start a new diet, but there are a lot of old diets I haven’t finished yet.”
“I’ve been on a diet for two weeks, and all I’ve lost is 14 days.”
“I hate when I think I’m buying organic vegetables, but when I get home, I discover they’re just regular donuts.”
“I don’t mean to brag, but I finished my 14-day diet in 3 hours and 20 minutes.”
“My favorite exercise is a cross between a lunge and a crunch…I call it “lunch.”
“My exercise routine consists of doing diddly squats.”
I liked Garfield's "Diet is just 'die' with a 't' at the end."
Garfield would definitely complete those "diddly squats" and then break for lunch!
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