It Will Be Measured Out To You!

“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.”

Luke 6:38

If you purchased one share of Coca-Cola when it went public in 1919, how much do you think it would worth today? Hold that question.

This week the church rises to give to the King. GTTK is a one-time giving campaign at Agape to fund the work in the Pek Kio community all year round. We want everyone at Agape to be a shareholder in what God is doing in our midst. Let me explain. We need a paradigm shift when it comes to giving. You don't have to give. You get to give. We naturally think that the more we give the less we'll have. Not true. God can do more with the 90% that we have left after we have given to Him than we can do with 100% when we have given Him none. It comes down to the law of measures: "With the measure you use it will be measured unto you." I believe that. I've experienced that. And that principle operates even in a tough economy; especially in a tough economy!

Let's take a moment to think of giving as buying stock in the kingdom. And the truth is that those kingdom shares will earn compound interest for eternity. Talk about a Return on Investment (ROI). It earns eternal dividends beyond your years on this earth! I did a little research to put it in perspective. If you purchased one share of Coca-Cola stock in 1919, and simply held that one share, by the year 2000 it would have split into 4608 shares. And that original $40 investment, if you kept reinvesting the dividends, would have been worth $7 million. Wow!

Here's the bottom line: we'll never regret one ounce of energy, one second of time, or one cent of money invested in the kingdom of God. If in the natural what you invest can bring you returns, how much more true it is with God.

You can’t out give God . No matter how much you give away, you always get more back. In Matthew 19:29, Jesus said, “Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fieldsfor my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” That’s a 10,000% return ! That doesn’t mean we give to get . The Bible says that if you do the right thing for the wrong reason it doesn’t count. Proverbs 16:2 says, “ Motives are weighed by the Lord .” We don’t give to get, but when we give with the right motive, we always get back more than we gave up. That is the law of the measure . Jesus said, “ With the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

Giving is good for us . Harvard researchers have found that the act of giving has a dramatic effect on the immune system. Giving boosts the number of T-cells (disease-fighters) and endorphins (pain-killers) in our system. Stella Reznick says, “ The one who ends up getting the most from a good deed may, ultimately, be the good Samaritan .” On a natural plane , giving is good for us . But we don’t just give because it’s good for us. We give because it glorifies God . And God promises supernatural reward .

Some people have a one-sided view of justice, but justice is a two-sided coin . Justice is not just making sure every wrong is punished , but it’s also making sure that every right is rewarded . I believe that for these past eleven years Agapians have been so rewarded in countless ways primarily because we have been a generous people, giving to the Lord; giving to the cause of the poor in missions and giving to reach the lost in the community.

Let's keep that tradition strong this Sunday!