The Give Way
“You can give without loving, but you can’t love without giving.”
For some, giving and especially to be seen as giving, is a means to some particular end. Most notably, we would think of worldly politicking. However, politicking does not just relate to the several political parties that are in the news daily. Political giving is found in every day human interactions, wherever one wants to be seen by others as a giver in order to be elevated in their eyes.
The Son of God spoke of a totally different kind of giving. “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you have no reward from your Father in heaven” (Matthew 6:1). Our Father is looking at our heart when it comes to giving. Are we giving for the sheer pleasure of giving or is it for notoriety? If it comes from sincere love – He openly rewards us.
God’s reward can come in many forms. Solomon speaks of one such form. “He who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord, and He will pay back what he has given” (Proverbs 19:17). God can give to the giver kind for kind. If the giver has given kindness or a listening ear to someone in need, God can bless with same. He can also bless in this temporal life with greater wisdom, understanding or in the peace of mind that comes from giving. Above all of that, is the blessing of eternal life to come.
Christ sets the pace for us when it comes to giving from the heart. The Apostle Paul said, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). In His unfeigned love for each of us, Christ gave His very life. There was no selfish thing to gain in doing so, no carnal glory. His hope and that of our Father – through Christ’s death – was to give us the Kingdom.
Their way of life and plan of salvation is all based on giving in love. In Jesus’ own words. “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world” (John 6:51). We each consume that bread, in symbol, at Passover time. And what we consume is exactly what we are to become.
Thus, we remember that we can give without loving, but we cannot love without giving.
Marshall Stiver
