“Do you like cantaloupes?” asked Marge. With big smiles, we replied, “We love cantaloupes!” Marge promptly produced two and said, “That will be $6.” This interaction was not at her fruit stand, but in shaking hands as our congregation exited the church doors. We thought Marge was sharing her bounty, but Marge was making a buck.
MAKING A BUCK IN HARD TIMES
In Nehemiah 5, there are wealthy people taking advantage their own Jewish brothers during hard times. Many people returned to the Holy Land from exile with little extra money. In the previous chapter, Satan attacked the Jews from the outside, now he attacks within their ranks. Greed runs rampant among God’s people to the point that resentment explodes when making a buck replaces caring for each other.
THE GREAT OUTCRY
“There was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews. ‘We must obtain] grain in order to eat and stay alive…We are putting up our fields, our vineyards, and our houses as collateral in order to obtain grain during the famine…We have borrowed money to pay our taxes to the king on our fields and our vineyards… Some of our daughters have been subjected to slavery, while we are powerless to help, since our fields and vineyards now belong to other people.’” Satan turns brother against brother. Greed eats away at the fabric of the nation.
GREED OFFENDS GOD
While working on rebuilding the city walls the people demonstrated tremendous unity. That collaboration and cooperation has now evaporated. Nehemiah is outraged what brother is doing to brother for the sake of a buck. Greed offends God.
WHAT THEY OWNED WAS NOT THEIR OWN
God always takes offense at an ungenerous heart. Satan has a field day. In the early Christian Church, displaying open generosity was a work of the Holy Spirit. “All the believers were united in heart and mind. And they felt that what they owned was not their own, so they shared everything they had…There were no needy people among them, because those who owned land or houses would sell them and bring the money to the apostles to give to those in need. (Acts 4:32-35) Generosity is an attribute of God.
GLORY OF GOD IN THE BACK OF A TRUCK
During summers at GCC one often sees a truck parked outside the church doors after a morning service. In the back of it is the harvest of a farmer’s gardens. He brings bags and encourages people to freely fill them with what they can use in their kitchens. His generous steward’s heart freely displays God’s generosity. The glory of God can be seen in that truck.
RULE FOR GENEROSITY
What is a good rule of thumb for generosity? C.S. Lewis wrote: “I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusements, etc., is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving away too little. If our giving does not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say it is too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot do because our charitable expenditure excludes them.”
My bounty isn’t really mine. I am just a steward of it. Marge’s cantaloupes, the money held back by Nehemiah’s countrymen, and the GCC farmer’s produce all belong to God. Joy begins when we demonstrate the glory of God through generous hearts.
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