From: Stinginess and the Generosity of God, (10-21-26), by Randy Alcorn at:
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On a trip to Ukraine in 1991, my pastor friend and I spent the evening with a large family, feasting, singing hymns, laughing, and praising Jesus together. We felt guilty when we learned our hosts had served an entire month’s ration of butter at the meal. However, they assured us there was nothing they would rather have done to serve their brothers in Christ.
To the selfish person, the generous giver’s behavior appears foolish. Why part with a month’s worth of butter to serve rich visitors who have unlimited amounts of butter at home? Scripture says the opposite: “Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything. The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed” (Proverbs 11:24-25). A life characterized by greed and stinginess is not Christlike, nor is it happy. If we know Jesus, we will become more and more like our generous God.
Proverbs 23:6-7 says, “Do not eat the bread of a man who is stingy; do not desire his delicacies, for he is like one who is inwardly calculating. ‘Eat and drink!’ he says to you, but his heart is not with you.” The stingy person calculates, “What will sharing cost me?” In contrast, the generous person asks, “What can I give to bless others?” While the stingy person sees giving as a burden and a loss, the generous person knows that giving is a blessing and great gain.
Scripture warns us to avoid a stingy person, and it also instructs us not to be a stingy person. Deuteronomy 15:10 says, “Do not have a stingy heart when you give, and the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you do.”
God sees our hearts and knows us well. We can be doing all the “right things” outwardly — staying debt-free, living within a budget, and giving regularly — yet still be inwardly greedy and stingy toward both our loved ones and those in need. Tight-fisted stinginess, whether motivated by selfishness or fear, is as dangerous as careless self-indulgence. Our goal is not to be penny-pinchers fretting over every expenditure but joyful, responsible, and generous money managers. Carefully stewarding the money God has entrusted to us, with the goal of having more to give to his kingdom, is wise; stinginess, which focuses on self-preservation, is profoundly unpleasing to God.
Understanding God’s own generous nature is key to fighting stinginess. Charles Spurgeon wrote, “Let me be bountiful and liberal, for so shall I be like my Lord. He gave Himself for me; shall I grudge Him anything?” God is not stingy. His generosity abounds; it’s overflowing, even excessive. Aren’t we glad God doesn’t calculate how much grace to give us? The greatest passage on giving in all Scripture ends not with “Congratulations on your generosity,” but “Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!” (2 Corinthians 9:15).
The highest possible incentive to be generous, in a self-denying way, is found in the Lord Jesus Christ himself, who “though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). For Paul, it is unthinkable that anyone who really delights in knowing this Christ could be stingy.
A fear that God won’t provide what we need if we give openhandedly can motivate our stinginess. But Jesus teaches that generous giving isn’t a cause for insecurity and worry. It’s a cure for it. After Jesus tells us not to worry about life’s necessities, he says, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
Paul experienced this reality firsthand. He told the Philippians, “I am well supplied, having received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent” (Philippians 4:18). Since they gave so generously to provide for him and his work, Paul was confident God would provide the same for them: “My God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:19). God graciously gives us money and possessions to meet real needs, both our own and those of others.
A friend once asked me, “Do you know any generous person who’s unhappy?” I gave it a lot of thought. I know many generous people. Some have been through great tragedies or dealt with seasons of depression. But would I, overall, describe any of them as unhappy? No. Their generosity, which reflects the Lord they love, infuses joy into their lives.
I asked myself another question: “Do I know any stingy person who’s happy?” The answer came quickly: “Not a single one.”
If you want to be miserable, greed and stinginess are the perfect recipe. Think of Ebenezer Scrooge from the classic Charles Dickens tale A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the story, the wealthy miser is caustic, complaining, stingy, horrendously greedy — and profoundly unhappy. But after a radical transformation from his three visions, having been shown his sins of stinginess and greed, Scrooge walks through the streets of London freely distributing his wealth to the needy. He is giddy with delight. Grace will do that to you! This man, who only one day earlier scoffed at the idea of charity, now takes great pleasure in giving.
Scrooge is the fictional counterpart of Zacchaeus, who, after his encounter with Christ and radical transformation, said he would give half his money to the poor and pay back fourfold those he had cheated. In response, Jesus did not merely say, “Good idea.” Instead, he said, “Today salvation has come to this house” (Luke 19:9). Jesus acknowledged the reality of this man’s salvation based on his cheerful eagerness to part with his money for the glory of God and the good of others. Zacchaeus understood God’s generosity toward him, and his heart responded accordingly.
May it also be so with us. As we fix our eyes on Christ, may we search our hearts for the sins of stinginess and greed, confessing them to our gracious Father. And then, like the transformed Scrooge and Zacchaeus, may we experience the gospel joy of generous giving!
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Lord, I acknowledge that everything I possess is from your loving hand, and I give you thanks. Grant that I may willingly consecrate all I am and all I have to you; to be used according to your will. I pray that you guide and direct me in my service to you and to others. I pray in the name of my Lord Jesus Christ, who gave his all for me. Amen.
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