Welcome to Waymaker Church! We are so excited to have you join us today! We exist to Encounter, Live for, and Advance the Kingdom of God!

This morning, we are wrapping up the final message in our Heart of the House Series. Over the past month, we have taken a deep dive into the mission of the church and our core values.

Our mission is to encounter, live for, and advance the kingdom.

We believe that if we are to accomplish our mission, we must live out our core values.
1. Intimacy - We will stop for God and stop for people.
2. Faith - We will invade the impossible.
3. Authenticity - We will choose real love, real life, and real character over fake religion.
4. Development - We will empower the next generation.

Today, we will look at our last core value:
5. Generosity - We will live generously.
I think to properly frame this message; we should start with a proper definition of being generous.

Generosity is rooted in a heart of compassion and kindness, and it is displayed in a readiness to give more than is usual or expected. Generosity can be displayed in your time, treasure, and talents. Our aim is to live selfless without reservation.

Hebrews 13:16 “But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”

Biblical generosity is a lifestyle of freely sharing what we have, are, or will become, to reflect God's love and grace. The understanding of generosity is that all we have is a gift from God, and it is to be used for His purpose and the benefit of others.

The heart of generosity is woven through the scriptures.

In Genesis 18:1-15, Abraham before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah offers who he thought was three strangers (but were actually angels), food, water, and a place to rest on their journey.

In Exodus 25, the Lord says to Moses regarding the building of the tabernacle to bring Him an offering. (Giving monetarily and other substance)

It’s easy to think that this is a lot to ask of his people. These are costly gifts. But God has just rescued them from Egypt and enabled them to defeat the Amalekites. He’s provided them with everything they need, and their freedom. He’s asking for far less than he has given them and is giving them something ultimately far better—his blessing and presence, and the promise that he’ll be their God and they’ll be his people.

Exodus 36:2-7. Giving time and talent.

Generosity to the poor and the stranger. Leviticus 19:9-10.

God tells his people to leave some of their harvests, so people living on the margins don’t go without. The other laws surrounding this in Leviticus instruct people to treat each other with respect and love, especially those considered outcasts in that culture–like the blind, deaf, workers, servants, or women.

Their generosity to the people around them shows that they trust him to provide and helps them to understand how he uses their generosity to help others.

In the New Testament we see a continuation of generosity.
When Jesus saw the multitude, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. Matthew 9:35-38.

The good Samaritan Luke 10:29-37.

Each of these stories demonstrate a kingdom value of generosity.
We believe God intends generosity to be transformational. Biblical generosity means changing the way we think about all of our resources, not just money, in order to uplift others, strengthen relationships, and glorify God.

The measure of generosity and how we serve those around us is a reflection of our service to Jesus.

The generous life is about kingdom stewardship. We are caretakers what has been entrusted to us. Paul gave instruction to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:17-18 concerning the rich.

I want to pause for a moment to consider the definition of rich. I think for most, a rich person is anyone who has more than you.

The scripture reveals in Luke 21:1-4 that kingdom generosity is less about the amount and more about the heart.

What I love most about this story is that she offered to God what she had. It was about her heart to trust God with her life. She was in great need and found a way to be generous.

Generosity is not about a transaction to check a box, to feel better about our status in comparison to others, or to receive a worldly write-off for our good deed.

The heart of generosity is kingdom advancement. Joyfully giving of our time, talents, and treasure produces kingdom transformation, releases joy, blessing, and favor into our lives and the lives of others.

The generous life begins with the purpose of our heart. The one who lives a generous life will see the blessing, provision, and abundance of God.