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Love Gives (Part 1)

Leading the Way / Michael Youssef
The Cross Radio
December 30, 2019 1:00 am

Love Gives (Part 1)

Leading the Way / Michael Youssef

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December 30, 2019 1:00 am

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Welcome to leading the way with Dr. Michael yes I am so thankful to these friends who have said that we gonna match your giving you go to hear more details about this, but I am coming to you at the end of the year because this is a lost opportunity to respond to this challenge because God has some amazing doors that he opened for us and we want to take advantage of every one of them. As you know I received no compensation from leading the way, this is my labor of love, just like your giving is a labor of love. I'm looking forward to hearing from you. Thank you and God bless leading the way is a listener supported worldwide gospel ministry. Now is the perfect time to support the many outreaches because it's December's triple giving challenge currently right triple $100 can become $300 $500 becomes $1500 $1000 becomes $3000 triple the impact as we move toward 2020.

The number to call 86662643561 online weird LTW.org in recent weeks that the world wants to make you think it's all about getting really weeping and dated with messages about getting creativity from long days and nights of marketing meetings. Create a mindset throughout the Christmas season that you need and you deserve and you earned what was wrapped in the glistening paper and bows under the tree well today on leading the way. Dr. Michael you set challenges you with a fresh perspective on getting that we hope will not only alter your life and your living in these final days of 2019, but will overflow into 2020 and the years beyond. You'll see there were short series called love gives that God loves you and as you offer more of your life to him. His love for you grows even more. Join me now and listening to Dr. Michael yourself with today's word about how love gives a Danish philosopher once said gratitude is always a sign of weakness, but to go to bed with me repeated gratitude is always a sign of weakness, and I personally have never known a strong person, man or woman who is ungrateful. The strong men or women that I know everyone of them is filled with gratitude and by definition the strongest one is God. So he is the most appreciative of his children.

Why because although he needs nothing from us nothing. There is nothing we can do for him. He leverages appreciation on us throughout the Scripture you're going to discover if you read it carefully. The dog does not lead even the smallest of sacrifice. The smallest of sacrifice to grow unappreciated and unrewarded. Jesus said even the cop of cold water. Just think about this.

I don't know what a cup of cold water cost is not much but you know Jesus said that when this offered is going unnoticed by Jesus and is not unrewarded by Jesus that I wanted to imagine rhythmic this kind of scenario okay just use imagination. Suppose the Lord comes to you and he gives you $1 million you think the million dollars you put them in the back and then you hear about a street preacher, a man who preaches his heart out in the gospel and his leading people to Christ, and that you hear that this person can do with a car and he will probably do a better job in and he will be more effective if he just has a dependable car that he can use in his ministry. And so you decide.

Since you already have been blessed abundantly. You got it brought a check for $20,000 in the bottom a nice car in your mind you know deep down that this is pittance in comparison to the million dollars that you already got that you have in the back, but God or just giving you think about this. You could have bought him an old beat up car for $5000 right but you want to give a reliable car so you generously write a check for $20,000 now I want you to imagine the Lord is coming to you and he says to you, that was a wonderful thing you did. This was a thoughtful thing you did.

This was a gracious thing you did. Thank you for doing this.

Thank you for buying a good caught another beat up car that helps his men and is pretty. I applaud you for doing this. What was your response.

I know my response would be asked by all of this appreciation more. After all, their million dollars. Lord I don't deserve all of this appreciation. Lord Mayor million dollars for Lord, I don't deserve all of this appreciation. Lord, there's nothing to be appreciated because he gave me $1 million mark. I give is in comparison to what you have given me in Lockport.

How can you send me, how can you reward me and yet this is how God gives his appreciation to us all the time whether you you hear it or not, he does I speak on the authority of the word of God even when we begin to take some baby steps and walking by faith. Just like you, start walking is that you not come to that encounter, that you know what God is saying yeah yeah these few steps of faith. I appreciate that. Keep going keep going and he will bless usually conduct more steps and more steps of most of the run. Turn with me to second Corinthians chapter 9 beginning at verse six whoever sows sparingly will reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously were also reap generously.

Of course Paul speaking to an agrarian society. They understand that living.

This is the life for sowing and reaping on the know the synergy between sowing and reaping, but even in modern time and if you have done in the garden, you will understand that concept, there is a synergy between sowing and reaping after the word of God tells us about the relationship between the quantity of sewing and the quantity of reaping immediately.

The apostle Paul tells us about the deeper level of the love of God for us in proportion to the generosity and sewing for things I want to share with you about the hilarious given the generous giver for things.

First of all, the Lord has a soft spot in his heart for the hilarious given verse seven. Secondly, the Lord will abundantly bless the hell there is giver verses 8 to 11.

Certainly God is glorified by the hilarious giver verses 11 to 13 and forcefully God will answer the prayers on the half of the hilarious givers versus 1450.

Let's look at these very quickly. First of all, the Lord has a soft spot.

A special soft spot in his heart for the hilarious given I know your English Bibles have said. Then God loves a cheerful giver. The Greek word hell area losses from which we get hilarious. Actually means it's it's a lot stronger than just cheerful. It means the person who have joy in his or her heart and giving it means someone has fun and giving high-fiving as he writes the check. That means somebody is having a belly laughter as they give now I know that some people confused about this. Listen carefully. There are levels of love and the Scripture on the part of God. God loves his creation. He loves everybody. Then there is a deeper love that God has for those whomsoever that would come to him and receive Jesus as their only Savior and Lord. This is a deeper love than the love he has for the world, but has for creation that has for humanity that Hitler has for the sinner and the saints. It's a deeper love. Now I know that some people give out of guilt.

Some people give out of compulsion. Some people give, because I heard some slick presentation on the guy who manipulated their emotions and they respond to it like some sheep will get fleeced by false shepherds. But that's not what Paul is referencing here he is talking about the hilarious giver and the hilarious giver gives from a cheerful heart, not the obligation that hilarious giver gives out of joyous, continuous and systematic giving and that is why Paul said those Hilarious Givers Have Special Pl. in God's heart already told you that God loves his creation. He loves humanity.

But then he has a deeper love for those who are his children and John 1627 his word.

Jesus said the father himself loves you.

That's a special love he has for his children because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. So he loves humanity he loves his own in the deeper level much deeper level but then he loves the hilarious giver. Here is a laser focus. He has a unique responsive love for those individuals who imitate him because he is hilarious giver.

These are generally does not give out of compulsion gives out of love, and therefore the hilarious givers imitating God. God is the most generous of all God is the most hilarious giver of all God is the most joyous giver of all and that is why he showers them generously with deep affection and appreciation. I know this is mind-boggling.

We know how much it means to us. For those who are dear neared our hearts appreciate us. It means a whole lot more just perfunctory thanks by a stranger, for whom we've done something, it means a whole lot more. So I want you to imagine with me what it really means to you that God himself, the creator of heaven and earth, the God of power in my expressing the appreciation for you. I wanted tell you. For me there is nothing sweeter and more uplifting.

Along the journey. Then the Almighty God appreciating you because you are effusive in your giving back to him. God has a soft spot for the hilarious givers. Secondly, God blesses the hilarious giver. Look at verse eight and God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in everything. Let's do that again and God is able to make what abound to you, so that then at having you will abound in everything, everything, when God says in his word. All he means one thing all all here something you know, I know this, it is possible to give without loving as possible to give without necessarily minor. Even though the person or maybe you give in order to receive something back to payback or kickback or whatever you might give in order to get I need a tax deduction on my give because you know you do get praise from people all your gives all sorts of reasons, without necessarily love but you cannot love without giving.

You cannot tell me less. I like giving when God wanted to show his love to us. He gave give everything is only in heaven that will understand the unity between the father and the son and what it means for the father to his son but if you say I love God or love, and you give him diddly squat or the close of falling off the table, represent question why does God want to bless the hilarious giver. He really does it from cover to cover in the Scripture because it is the evidence of you loving him and that you are trusting him that he was provided for you this year is going to provide for you next year for the rest of your life is what David said have been young mold of never seen the righteous forsaken nor his children begging for bread many of you know my customer not written a book suffered from here even though I was ordained to the ministry and I was not a cheerful giver until I was challenged by the word of God is the word of God to challenge me. In fact, I was ordained to the ministry and I was living by site and not by faith. I remember the day like yesterday when the Lord literally challenge me from his word. Listen, I know the world does not understand living by faith I know that, don't expect them. Please don't expect the world to understand that there never will. The world would say to you, what are you doing how you squandering your resources are your endangering your net worth you are endangering your financial security. What are you doing you will not have any money left over to meet your needs and how do you know that God is going to provide for you next year when I get our session next year.

He doesn't bless you.

Based on Wall Street and is a blessing based on the Dow Jones industrial average. No bag giving by faith is very different from that stuff when you give hilarious little guy. You will have more, not less. If you give God first stood from the first fruit you will have more left over, not less, because God loves a hilarious giver. He will make all grace abound to you, God loves and blesses and deeply appreciate those who are like him hilarious givers. Those who believe with all of their heart, that with God nothing is impossible, that all things are possible with God.

Number 11. Listen to me if you have never experienced God's appreciation to you for boldly living by faith and going into the adventures of faith, you are missing out on the greatest joy you can ever have. You actually impoverishing yourself in every way, just as in every way he blesses you with your impoverishing yourself in every way spiritual wave material everywhere.

So, God stretches out, I'm not only limited but I see it in the lives of so many of my friends who are practicing it again and again God replenishes over, over and above is not just material things I'm talking about health blessings on talk about prayer blessings or unanswered prayer. I'm talking about minister blessings. This is a world of faith living not start living in our challenge. Everyone of you young or old, start entering interface living today and men. God has a soft spot for the hilarious giver God loves to bless the hilarious giver. Thirdly, God is glorified in the life of a hilarious giver when others are blessed by your generosity by hip being a hilarious givers.

The going to give praise and glory to God. They will give the credit to the Lord and the Lord turns around and gives you the credit that amazing I'm telling you out on the Middle East.

I know a deal when I see one. This is a deal not beloved our culture lavishes everything on itself.

We leverage everything on ourselves, and now we have people who want the government to give them everything for nothing others want to grab everything from those who work hard and give it to those who can work, but if you store tragic is not biblical. The Bible is innocent of this type of greed and entitlement mentality. The Bible is innocent of this attitude of gratitude. The Bible is innocent of those who have no appreciation for the grace of God. Don't miss what Paul is saying here. Verses 12 and 13 because of your generosity. The recipients of your generosity will praise God for you because of your generosity. People will see that the gospel is being evident in your life because of your service because of your sacrifice, you have proved that you are truly saved and you doing this out of gratitude to God not remember in the context you have to understand why Paul is saying this to Corinthians. See Collins was the sin city.

Of the day the together was Las Vegas of those years was known as sin city and so imagine the incredible joy, incredible thankfulness, the incredible gratitude that the poor believers in Jerusalem are experiencing when they hear that there's generosity. As a result of those who are saved in sin city.

Imagine that absolute ecstasy. Imagine the wrath of God on behalf of the Corinthians. Imagine the glorifying of God for the evidence of the salvation that being brought to sin city. God has a soft spot for the hilarious giver God longs to abundantly bless the hilarious giver.

God is glorified by the hilarious giver forcefully.

Verse 14 God will answer the prayers that this is really sensitive one. I wanted to listen carefully, God will answer the prayers that are offered on behalf of the hilarious giver verse 14 and their prayers for you. Their hearts will go out to you because of the surpassing grace of God given to you. Then Paul goes on to say thanks be to God for his indescribable gift beloved, I cannot count the number of times that people walked up to me in the Middle East and the Far East in Europe and Australia throughout this great country and the first thing there was say to me you know I pray for you see, you don't understand when people pray for us.

They don't even know us. God hears their prayers. So many poor and persecuted believers around the world who have been blessed by this ministry. Don't tell me that God is not in the medical business and don't tell me that God still does not answer prayer right now. According to his promises. When you cling to his promises. God will answer prayers. If you have ever asked the question what can a poor person over there.

There do for me. I'm rich American think again. Think again. Their prayers for you there thankfulness to God for you through the gratitude to God on your behalf is incalculable, incalculable, you can calculate. You don't know what's going on around you don't know how many times God delivered you, you don't know how many times God blessed you without you even knowing it. So here today may be a challenge for the first time with the word of God. I want you to take a step of faith and taking God's promise and take him at his word.

I wanted to take the first step in trusting of God's provision that he was protected.

You blessed you in the past will bless you today and in the future as step to becoming a hilarious giver is my challenge for everyone of you today. You're listening to leading the way with Dr. Michael you sent and a challenge to get home variously through your life into your cats. Now is the perfect time with leading the race getting challenge. Learn more about it when you visit LTW.org or when you call us at 866-626-4356. That's 866-626-4356.

Now we know that not all who listen to leading the way in this station are connected to a local church.

Some may be in transition. Others may be physically or situationally hundred from engaging locally but slightly want to mention that there is an online option three leading the way. Each week Dr. Michael you set live streams from his church. That's the church of the apostles in Atlanta.

You'll not only hear the strong teaching that you're familiar with from leading the way that you can also join in worship with the people in apostles. It's available each and every Sunday at 10:30 AM at Eastern time and we hope that you will enjoy it Tesco to LTW.org and when you get to click on watch, there's a link that will take you right to the live service on that page that LTW.org. In addition, you can watch the leading the way weekly TV program on LTW.org and on Roku, YouTube, and of course check your local listings with your cable or satellite provider will give you all the stations and times) your area. We thank you for tuning in.

There is the music that it's like you to invite you to listen again next time right more leading this program is provided by leading the way with Dr. Michael you sent