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Faith Promise Living and Giving What does God want to deliver through you?
How can God use you? How big is your faith in God?
Next Sunday is Faith Promise Sunday. For some of you this will be the first time that you have heard of Faith Promise giving. By the end of this service you should understand exactly what faith promise is all about.

Every week on the back of the bulletin we list how much money is given to Faith Promise. We do that because people just like you have given God a chance to give through them.

The Faith Promise plan for giving to missions was used first in the late 1800’s by Dr. A.B. Simpson, founder of the Christian and Missionary Alliance. Simpson said that he received the plan from the Apostle Paul by reading his correspondence to the early Christian church at Corinth. Later the plan was further developed and widely publicized by the late Dr. Oswald J. Smith, pastor of the Peoples Church in Toronto. After more than 60 years of Faith Promise giving, the members of the Peoples Church now give more than 60 percent of their annual church income to missions.

Simpson based this plan on verses of scripture found in 2 Corinthians 8:3-5.

“For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints. And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us in keeping God’s will.”

Let me try this morning to lead us in understanding what this concept of faith is all about.

In First Samuel there is an incredible story of God delivering something through someone who was willing to trust God by faith to use her in a dynamic way.

I Samuel 1:25-28 (The Message)“They first butchered the bull, then brought the child to Eli. Hannah said, “Excuse me sir. Would you believe that I’m the very woman who was standing before you at this very spot, praying to God? I prayed for this child, and God gave me what I asked for. And now I have dedicated him to God. He’s dedicated to God for life. Then and there, they worshipped God.”

Hannah was her name and she was miserable. As was often customary in the Old Testament days she was one of two wives married to the same man. Elkanah was faithful to God and to go every year to worship God and to sacrifice to Him. There was something going on at home that wasn’t pleasant! Elkanah’s other wife had children and Hannah did not. You can use your imagination a little bit. It wouldn’t take a genius to understand the dynamics that were going on. This scripture tells us in verse six that “ because the Lord had closed her womb, her rival kept provoking her in order to irritate her. This went on for year after year.”Hannah’s husband tried to be faithful to her, in fact the Bible says he gave her a double portion of food on the day of sacrifice because he loved her and the Lord had closed her womb. Every year the Bible says Hannah would weep and not eat during the time of sacrifice.

In verse 8, “Elkanah her husband would say to her, Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?”

The story that I want to tell you today is about the year that things changed. Hannah connected with God and things changed in a dramatic way. It reads just like a good novel. The Bible says she stood up from where the family was gathered and eating. An old priest by the name of Eli was sitting by the entrance to the temple and watched as this woman wept much, in bitterness of soul, and prayed to the Lord.

I. Faith Promise Is Requesting Something From God.

A. It means that we ask particularly

“Oh God of the Angel Armies, if you’ll take a good, hard look at my pain. If you’ll quit neglecting me and go into action for me be giving me a son.” I. Samuel 1:11a

When we desire a particular answer we must ask in a particular way.

God delights in giving us what we ask for if it is in His will for our lives.

Hannah didn’t just ask for a child she asks for a boy.

B. It means that we ask purposefully

“I’ll give him completely, unreservedly to you. I’ll set him apart for a life of holy discipline.” I Samuel 1:11b

Hannah’s purpose was to give her son back to God.

Her desire was to have a son who would serve God all the days of his life.

Our purpose in asking God what He wants to give through us is so that we can be a channel to deliver the gospel of Jesus Christ around the world.

There is a great Biblical principle concerning giving found in Luke 6:38, “Give and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”

Faith Promise is a promise to allow God to give a specific amount of money through us. Not money that we have. Not money that we know where it is. Money that God will bring into our life to be given to His cause. We are just the delivery service.

C. It means that we ask persistently

“It so happened that as she continued in prayer before God, Eli was watching her closely.”

Sometimes we ask God things and then we forget about it. Hannah prayed year after year.

This week we are asking you to ask God how much He wants to give through you. After you put that amount down next Sunday on the card found in your bulletin this morning you and I will need to continue to pray and remind God of His promise to give you the money to pass on to this cause.

II. Faith Promise Is Relying on God to Answer

The faith-promise is an opportunity for an individual or a family to increase their faith in God. Such a promise leads us to personally face the question, “How much faith do I have in God?”

A. There is but One God.

Hannah’s husband tried to meet her need. It was a well-meant gesture, but only God can answer our request.

B. Only God can supply what we need.

Phil. 4:19, “But my God will supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

We trust Him for the money.

We trust Him for the means to give it.

We trust Him for the measure or specific amount.

C. It is not a matter of us figuring out how to accomplish it…there is no faith involved in that kind of thinking.

You and I must let God deliver or give through us.

III. Faith Promise Is Receiving the Answer

God moved on Hannah’s behalf in a dramatic fashion. We read in this chapter of 1 Samuel that:

“It happened that as she continued in prayer before God, Eli was watching her closely. Hannah was praying in her heart, silently. Her lips moved, but no sound was heard. Eli jumped to the conclusion that she was drunk. He approached her and said, “You’re drunk! How long do you plan to keep this up? Sober up woman!”

Hannah said, “Oh no sir—please! I am a woman hard used. I haven’t been drinking. Not a drop or wine or beer. The only thing, I’ve been pouring out is my heart, pouring it out to God.”

A. God answers prayer and will supply our needs.

B. When we pray, we must pray believing that God answers our prayers.

We must believe that God will answer our prayer and provide the means necessary to give the money we are promising by faith.

C. It is 'Faith' Promise.

Heb. 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

IV. Faith Promise Is Returning It To God

A. We should return it with grace.

“Before the year was out, Hannah had conceived and given birth to a son. . .”

Hannah had one desire and that was to deliver her son to God. Her son was the answer to her faith promise.

B. We should return it with gladness.

“Elkanah said to his wife, “Do what you think is best. Stay home until you have weaned him. Yes! Let God complete what he has begun!

So she did. She stayed home and nursed her son until she had weaned him. Then she took him up to Shiloh, brining also the makings of a generous sacrificial meal—a prize bull, flour, and wine. The child was so young to be sent off”

Do you remember the text of this sermon?

“They first butchered the bull, then brought the child to Eli. Hannah said, “Excuse me sir. Would you believe that I’m the very woman who was standing before you at this very spot, praying to God? I prayed for this child, and God gave me what I asked for. And now I have dedicated him to God. He’s dedicated to God for life. Then and there, they worshipped God.”

What a great story of how God wants to give through us.

Sometimes Christians act like it is their money when they give back to God. With faith promise there will be no doubt, this is money God is using you to deliver. It is not my money.

Hannah didn’t try to re-negotiate with God.

A grateful and obedient heart led her to give her son to serve God.

C. We should return it with generosity.

In I Cor. 9:6-8 we read these words: “Remember this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under conpulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need.”

A few years ago my wife and I experienced first hand faith promise giving. The church we attended challenged us to give beyond our means and let God provide the gift. We prayed about it and responded with a sizable promise of more money than we should have been able to give. In this particular church since the giving involved a building fund and raising money for a new addition they decided to have ten percent Sunday. We were all to try to give ten percent of the money promised by a certain Sunday.

A few weeks before that Sunday arrived I received a letter in the mail at my office. A year earlier I had designed a brochure for a church in another town. It was a brochure designed to help them raise funds for a new youth center. The pastor that ask me to help him conceptualize this campaign to raise $600,000 causally mentioned that he would pay me for my services. I told him I was glad to help and never gave another thought to being paid for my part in the campaign.

That church raised the money, and a year later I had never heard from the pastor nor did I expect to. I will never forget receiving the letter from him and the totally unexpected check of $500.00. I had many thoughts not the least of which was, “Wow now that will be great to put back and use as that little pile of cash that people sometimes try to squirrel away without anyone else knowing it.” Now I know that this was a lot more money than the twenty dollars that I usually manage to try to keep somewhere in the lost regions of my wallet. I began to think of the guitar I could buy, the new gun I was wanting. “Visions of sugar plums” were dancing in my head if you understand what I’m saying.

As I waited in the drive up window line at the bank, all of the sudden God impressed me with the fact that this wasn’t my money at all. This was his money and He had provided it to allow us to make the ten percent offering. In fact, it was the exact amount we needed.

God will provide if you ask him to allow you by faith this week to arrive at the amount He wants to give through you to support missions through this local church.

This is not a pledge.
This is not legally binding.
This is not something that you will ever receive notices about.


This is something that you and God will have to keep track of.

I want to encourage you this morning. Begin to ask God what He wants to give through you. The missionary committee has set a goal of $30,000.00. I think that is great. I think we can do it.

Next Sunday we will ask you to respond by filling out the Faith Promise form that you have been given today.

Can we just take time this morning to ask God to give us the ability to know this week what He wants to do in us.

Prayer

2002/11/17