Unreserved?
How, meaning to what measures, do you give when you are trying to help someone? Do you give what you feel is just enough, being like a distance runner, holding back something for later? Or do you give your best, your all, meeting the present need? While we previously discussed this in Giving To Give, may you get an even greater depth or perspective of the end of the following Luke scripture on giving;
Luke 6:38 Give and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
Recently a preacher expounded that God did not just give us His best, He gave us His only. Would you ever desire for God to give to you in a reserved measure? Yet that is how we give to others, and as a result how we give to Him: Inasmuch as you have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me. (Matthew 25:40) We purpose and try to give just enough of ourselves to a situation or need, and reserve to ourselves what remains. Know that with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. We must learn to give unreservedly, and then God will return the blessing and multiplying unreservedly; it is a spiritual truth. In relation to holding back anything, consider Ananias and Sapphira of Acts 5:1 – 11: it did not result in blessings to them as they had supposed.
Can you understand from the parable of Luke 19:11 – 27, that each servant received in the same quantity of measure that he had given and gained? The servant who gained ten pounds received the abundance of ten cities, the servant who gained five pounds received five cities, and the servant who gained nothing truly received nothing, for even that one pound that he had was taken away! Since we know from other scriptures that we can be given thirty, sixty, or an hundred fold in return for what is given, we should receive from this scripture that it refers to with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. We know that each servant started with the same amount, so the gain they achieved is an indicator of the effort that they put into their labors. We need to give with our all, not with reservation.
Please realize that this “giving with all” is only related to that giving nature, having no part in your salvation (which is by the grace of God, Ephesians 2:8 – 10); but only determines the depth of receiving. It was noted that the divine nature is to love and to give, so godliness is to love and give, and when you find contentment in that loving and giving, you will find great gain (I Timothy 6:6). We are not to have a motive to personally increase ourselves, but we are to purpose to give in love! Do you believe that Jesus gave of His love reservedly in His passion? The measure Jesus had was to give all, and God loved us that much even when we were vile;
Romans 5:8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
Please note again from the Luke scripture that Give and it shall be given unto you. The divine promise of increase is that if you are a true and unreserved giver, God will bless in that same measure, and provide more for you to give! Our wrong motives or desires frequently give us reservations in the midst of our giving, and prevent our receiving;
James 4:2 – 4 Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.
Consider again the reservations of the man from Mark 10:17 – 31 who came to Jesus to ask Him what he needed for eternal life. Verse 21 says Jesus loved him, and told him: sell all and give to the poor to have treasure in heaven. The man went away grieved, reserving in his heart his possessions, more than the promise of God: his failure was that his walk and his giving to God were reserved. Although he had a desire to have, did ask, and did not ask amiss, in his greed and the friendship of the world, his reservation prevented his receiving. God is also the giver of righteousness if we will receive it: this man could not fully receive it. Do you have a heart after God’s heart, desiring His holiness? Until we are wholly righteous, we cannot be holy. Allow God to give you the desires of your heart, which will then give you a heart for heavenly things;
Colossians 3:2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
Matthew 6:19 – 21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Abraham gave his son in complete obedience to God, believing that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, according to scripture (Hebrews 11:17 – 19). Do you fully understand what the scripture then declares when it says that Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness (Galatians 3:6)? There was no reservation to or for himself on the part of Abraham: and he received for his obedience the blessing and multiplying of God;
Genesis 22:15 – 18 And the angel of the Lord called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thine only son: That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies: And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.
Can you recognize that the phrase “and hast not withheld thy son” meant that Abraham gave unreservedly in full obedience? Obeying God fully and completely should be recognized as a commandment of scripture: King Saul walked in a partial obedience, seeming to always reserve to his own ways or purposes, and it resulted in his being rejected of God. Despite his physical sin and failures, David is declared of God as a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. (Acts 13:26) David had a heart to give fully to God. We have already mentioned the holding back of Ananias and Sapphira, but realize that God is not only talking about extremes, but wants our full yieldedness in all things;
Colossians 3:17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
Colossians 3:23, 24 And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.
Ephesians 6:6 – 8 Not with eye-service, as men-pleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; With good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men: Knowing that whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether he be bond or free.
I Corinthians 10:31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
Each of these verses include the word whatsoever, which in Merriam-Webster is defined as whatever; of any kind or amount at all. Know then that if you are unreserved in whatsoever ye do, giving to God all of your only, you will glorify God, receive blessing and multiplying in this life, and receive the reward of the inheritance. It is sometimes difficult to give up or leave the things and people that are dear to us, but we must obey and go where and when He commands: you will receive abundantly for it;
Mark 10:29, 30 And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake, and the gospel’s, But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions; and in the world to come eternal life.
Please note in the above reply of what we will receive if we give all, that we do not receive in return multiple fathers, or multiple wives. God the Father is so infinitely exceeding of receiving an hundredfold of our earthly father that our blessing is also that exceeding: and one wife at a time is more than you need! As I was confronted and challenged with this scripture I had to confess to God (and to others) that I did not want the hundredfold: I preferred to have, to love, and to be around the individuals God had already provided. I felt I was choosing quality over quantity, but consider from these scriptures in Luke that the quality is also there;
Luke 18:29, 30 And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God’s sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
If you also are at the place of satisfaction or complacency, seek and ask God to give you His love for others, so that you may reach those He has called you to minister to! Your reward will be great!