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THE K I N G ’ S B U S I N E S S his request, knowing that he would spend it for drink. There are two sides to truth, “Give to him that asketh thee.” But the other side is “If a man will not work neither shall he eat.” We are facing two Scrip tures. If you give to a lazy man, you nullify God’s commandment that he must work'if he is able to work. If you give carelessly you may aid a man in the violation of the law. But you must give willingly, cheer fully. God loves a cheerful giver. Your gift is to God. You make it to some needy one as the channel through which you minister to God. There is great joy in giving; there is real happiness if the habit is formed and developed. " You must give, worthily. “Especially to the household of faith” is a Scrip tural injunction. There is a great deal of foolish, unworthy giving . We must exercise wisdom in giving. All that we have belongs to the Lord, so that we must be careful and prayer ful in using the means entrusted to us by Him-. The Measure in Giving: If we are giving to God, giving to glorify Him, we must give our best and our most. What should be the measure of our gifts to God? Give without stint. We can find some splendid suggestions in the Old Testament. In 2 Chron. 29th chapter, we find that David gave abun dantly for the temple. He says “The palace (temple) is not for man, but for the Lord God” and then enumerates the gifts he has prepared, and the peo ple to whom he appealed rejoiced, for “with a perfect heart they offered will ingly.” . . And David in his -rejoicing for the largeness of the 'gifts said, “O, Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee a house for thy holy name, cometh of thine own hand, and is all thine own.” First, give our own selves. Then lay all that we have and are at His
feet, and as stewards use all for His glory. -We must exercise wisdom; we must give willingly; we must give worthily, and we must also give wholly. Tithing is good; better than the average Christian giving, but it is only paying what we owe. Giving does not come under the head of tithing. “Give and it shall be given unto you.” PRACTICAL POINTS (1) “The gift of God is eternal life.” (2 ) .. God loveth a hilarious giver. (3) “Give and it shall be given unto you; .pressed down and running over.” (4) Many people do not get because they do not give.. (5) Giving is a gracious habit; get it. (6) The best giver is not always the biggest. , (7) The widow’s mite was with all her might. x (8) The great giver is a gracious giver. Giving Is A Privilege During the Chapman meetings in Australia a man went out to preach in the country and when he was crossing a railroad bridge, a train surprised him, and while try- PERTINENT ing to escape with ILLUSTRATIONS his life, he h a d both hands cut off. Dr. Chapman persuaded a wealthy man to go to the hospital and visit this afflicted worker. While there the man of means wrote out a check for $500 and laid it on the handless arms. The fellow looked up and said, “Mr.------ I was praying in the night for God to send me $500 to meet expenses.” When outside the hospital the wealthy man threw his arms around Dr. Chapman and said, “Is this the blessing you get for doing Christian work.” . Giving is a Duty The Jew in the Old Testament gave a tenth. Then when you counted up,
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