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The farmer who plants a great deal of seed is going to enjoy a more bountiful harvest than the farmer who plants only a little. Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 9:6 this is also the case for the spiritual realm. Those who give generously will reap abundantly for the kingdom of God. It is not always easy to know how and when to wisely give our money. The beauty of giving our resources to the Lord is that what is given is never lost, it is sown. Not only are needs met through our giving to God, when we give generously we also will “be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God.” (9:11) There is a snowball effect when we give generously. A temporary, finite resource becomes an eternal blessing not just for us but for God’s kingdom outworking and even for God himself when we entrust it to him. Consider the generosity of the God we serve, who had all he could ever want perfectly within himself, and chose to sacrifice greatly in order to invite us into eternal relationship with him and all its blessings. Do we believe happiness is found in that relationship and not in material goods or financial security? If we do, then our giving becomes an act of trust in that belief and an act of worship of the God who is more generous than we dare to hope.

For Group Leaders

1. Begin in prayer. Welcome the Holy Spirit to the group and invite Him to lead, guide, and convict your group as you meet together.
2. Reflect on Sunday’s sermon as a group. What were some highlights? Was anything particularly helpful, convicting, or confusing?
3. Consider the following questions and pick a few to focus your discussion.

Examine the Word

• Read Luke 12:13-15.
• Read Malachi 1:10-14; 3:6-15.
• Read Mark 12:41-44.

For Discussion

• Explore Jesus’s statement in Luke 12, “life doesn’t consist in an abundance of possessions.” Do we really believe this? Why might it be hard for us to believe? How is our culture setup against this belief?
• What do you think is so appealing about prosperity gospel? How is it related to the “myth of more,” the idea that the the more we have, the better life is? Discuss how these passages in Malachi speak against these two prevalent lies.
• What do you think it looks like for you to give God your first and best?
• What is comforting about Jesus’s view of the poor woman’s giving in Mark 12? What is convicting?

Practice

• Tithing: Are you giving to the local church? For opportunities on how to give at Dallas Bible, visit dallasbible.org/give.
• Giving: Do you support any missionaries? Consider giving to the short and longterm youth and adult missions trips and missionaries we are sending out. For a list of our missionaries and more information on how to give you can visit dallasbible.org/missions.
• Worship: take inventory of all the things big and small, physical and immaterial, that God gives to you in a day. Spend particular time thinking of things that are easy for you to take for granted. Once you have a list in front of you, use it to praise God for the incredible generosity he practices toward you, and worship him for the things he is freely giving not just to you, but to all, even those who rebel against him and curse his name.
• Prayer: Ask God to give you new eyes to see his generosity toward you, so much so that your own giving becomes an ever- growing joy. Ask God to help you see those around you who are in need and to pounce on giving opportunities with quickness and self-forgetfulness in such a way that you give without your left hand knowing what your right is doing (Matthew 6:3).

For Family Discussions

• Take some time to talk about the sermon together. What did you learn that was new? Were any parts confusing?
• Money buys us lots of things we can enjoy. Is God more valuable to us than money? How so?
• God wants us to be generous. How has God modeled generosity for us? Make a list of the gifts God gives us each day, including ones we might take for granted.
• How can your family give together? Discuss how you might set up a way for your children to practice tithing, perhaps from an allowance you provide.
• Spend time in prayer thanking God for his constant, generous provision, most especially the life and work of Jesus.

This week, we’re in Practice #5: Serve with Time & Talents. Today, let’s get really practical as we explore options for serving here at Dallas Bible. Would you consider one of the following options as your next step?

1. Sunday Serve Team

One of the gifts we get to provide to one another on Sunday mornings is hospitality - a welcoming smile, a friendly face, a genuine conversation, or simply some coffee. We have new guests joining us each week and we want to honor them well by being prepared to answer their questions, integrate them at DBC, and make them feel seen and loved. Our hospitality team is comprised of greeters, ushers, and coffee bar servants. If you love people and want to help us live out our DBC value of “intentional relationships, not passive familiarity” then we’d like to have a conversation about you joining our team!

2. Family Ministry Team (Kids Jr., Kids, Youth)

Worship happens not only in the main worship center among adults on Sunday mornings. It happens all across our DBC campus - where babies, kids, middle schoolers, and high schoolers assemble to praise God, learn about the Scriptures, and grow in their faith. Would you like to partner with us in pouring into the next generation? If you want to have a deep impact on the world around you, consider serving with our family ministry teams.

3. Media Support

Our worship services depend on the behind-the-scenes work of people who assist with lighting, sound, slides, video, and more. The media team helps us to excellently cultivate a worship-filled experience for those who join us in-person on Sundays as well as those who join us online. If you enjoy using technical skills to serve the body of Christ, we’d like to have you join our team.

To start a conversation about serving in one of these areas, fill out this form.

This week, we’re in Practice #5: Serve with Time & Talents. Set aside 30 minutes today (or schedule a time in the near future) to take a spiritual gifts inventory. A helpful and thorough one is provided by Denison Forum HERE. 

Once you have your results, prayerfully bring these before the Lord:

• Father, please confirm to me what spiritual gifts you’ve given to me - through words of affirmation, opportunities presented to me, and observations from those around me.
• Lord, I want to serve you. Give me open doors to serve you in ways that align with my gifts.
• Most of all, keep me humble. Help me to have a servant hearted mentality when it comes to any opportunity to serve within the body of Christ.
• Make me like Jesus, who did not come to be served but to serve.

This week, we’re in Practice #5: Serve with Time & Talents. Set aside 15 minutes with us to explore what and why disciples of Jesus are called to serve. Today, we’ll begin exploring a theology of service from the New Testament.

The Greek term “diakoneo” (see description here) means to “minister, serve, provide for, care for, attend to” and is the root of the English word “deacon.” It’s used regularly throughout the New Testament as is a pattern established by Jesus for His disciples to follow (see Mark 10:35-45). The mandate to serve one another has two main sources: (1) the call to be like Jesus, and (2) the reality of the living organism known as “the church.”

First, we serve because we are called to imitate Jesus and to model our lives after His. Paul says this to the church at Corinth: “Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ” (1 Cor 11:1). The book of Romans promises us that the work of the Holy Spirit is to produce Christlikeness so that we are “conformed to the image of his Son” (8:29). This language of image hearkens back to Genesis 1 where we learn that humankind has been made in the image of God. In Christ, the image of God is being restored in us - moment by moment, day by day.

To what are we being restored? Well, Jesus was, above all, a servant. He served God and he served others. No task was beneath Him and no person was overlook-able. Jesus’ goal was to show the world who the Father is - a God who sees and loves with ferocity. And our goal is to be the same kind of image-bearer, one who reflects the heart of God to the world through sacrificial service. Some questions to consider:

• Are you like Jesus in this respect? How is serving others a regular part of your day? How is God calling you to serve in a new or different way? Are any tasks beneath you?
• Christlikeness involves participation with the Holy Spirit - submitting to His work in and through us. Would you say that you are participating with the Holy Spirit’s work in you? How or how not? What would it look like for you to “walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16-26)?

Second, we serve because of the reality of the New Testament entity known as “the church.” In Ephesians, the apostle Paul discusses the mystery of the church: “This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel” (Eph 3:6). Previously, God worked through the NATION of Israel. Now He is at work in the church, which is a living organism, a BODY composed of men and women from every background who know and follow Jesus. By its very nature, a body is a composition of interconnected parts - parts which must work together or “serve” one another in order to be healthy. We serve one another because we now belong to one another. Some questions to consider:

• What benefit would come from regularly reminding yourself that you are one small part of the body of Christ (the church)?
• How does service go hand-in-hand with being part of an entity like the church?
• According to Ephesians 4, what is the ultimate goal of our service to and with one another?

Let’s pray: “God, you are the holy Creator of the universe. You made me in your image so that I would work to cultivate your creation. You called me to love you and serve you with all that I am and all that I have. Let me see the call to serve as a call to worship you - to use my body, mind, and strength to honor you. Help me to freely serve you with my time and my talents, all to the glory of your Name. Amen.”

This week, we’re in Practice #5: Serve with Time & Talents. Set aside 15 minutes with us to explore what and why disciples of Jesus are called to serve. Today, we’ll explore a brief theology of service from the Old Testament.

The Hebrew term “abad” (see description here) includes the connotations of “work, serve, labor, cultivate.” Often, “work” and “serve” are interchangeable within the text. This verb appears early in the Scriptural story when “the Lord God [takes] the man and [puts] him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it.” Adam and Eve are to be servants of creation - cultivators of God’s earth. This is a pattern established for all of God’s image bearers to follow.

In his book “Every Good Endeavor,” pastor Tim Keller says this: “The fact that God put work in paradise is startling to us because we so often think of work as an unnecessary evil or even punishment. Yet we do not see work brought into our human story after the fall of Adam, as a part of the resulting brokenness and curse; it is part of the blessedness of the garden of God” (pg. 23, emphasis mine). Genesis lets us know that our calling to “rule over the earth” (1:28) is one of delight and joy. We have the opportunity to serve Him through cultivation.

Some questions to consider:

• How do you view work and service? Are they the same thing or different, especially as they relate to God as the one whom we serve?
• What kinds of work/service do you enjoy? How has God designed you as a cultivator and image bearer?
• Do you see serving God as an unfortunate necessity or a blessing? How can you reframe your thinking to match God’s description of service?

Read 1 Samuel 12 slowly. Take down a few notes.

1 Samuel 12 records the prophet Samuel’s “farewell address” wherein he replays his own history of serving the Lord and recounts Israel’s recent sinfulness. His admonition to his listeners in v. 24 is simple and straightforward: “fear the Lord and serve him faithfully with all your heart.”

That call is for us today. Will we fear Him and serve Him faithfully? That is His desire.

Let’s pray: “God, you are the holy Creator of the universe. You made me in your image so that I would work to cultivate your creation. You called me to love you and serve you with all that I am and all that I have. Let me see the call to serve as a call to worship you - to use my body, mind, and strength to honor you. Help me to freely serve you with my time and my talents, all to the glory of your Name. Amen.”