Weekly Blog - 31 July 2023 - Personal Giving
Personal giving
This week in Arise’s weekly blog, we take a look at personal financial giving, and how it forms an essential part of our faith. The Bible challenges us as followers of Jesus to give radically, living simple lives, keeping only what we require for necessities and a few occasional treats, and giving the rest away. As Jesus challenged us, “Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out” (Luke 12: 33), and Zacchaeus said when he came to follow Jesus, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” (Luke 19: 8) Radical generosity like this can literally be the difference between life and death for many in the greatest poverty or oppression. How can we as Christians justify anything else? Even in tough economic circumstances, when we rightly should also be sensible and make sure we and our families are provided for, we should still try to give what we can. God can use even the smallest amount given from a generous heart in incredible ways.
Arise believes that when we give, we should try to do so through Christian organisations that operate via local churches as much as possible, so we continue to strengthen the capacity of the church to have impact. Where there are no Christian organisations in a specific area, we should of course support non-Christian groups who are still doing important work. Giving is something that should apply not just throughout our lives, but also at the end of our lives, where we should aim to pass on only a reasonable amount to our children, and give as much as possible away (The Arise Manifesto, pg 65 – 67).
Giving is one of five ways that we as Christians can outwork our calling to transform the world around us through evangelism, discipleship, fighting social injustice, eliminating poverty and restoring the environment. The other ways in which we can do this are through prayer, practical action, ethical consumption and speaking out in advocacy. Each week Arise provides a weekly action that enables us to put each of these five elements into practice in our lives. Giving is an important part of that. Arise doesn’t need your money, and we will never ask for it, but other amazing organisations do.
There are many great Christian and non-Christian organisations we should consider supporting financially. In the area of evangelism, we should consider supporting organisations that have really demonstrated their ability to help ordinary Christians and churches become involved in effectively sharing their faith, such as Alpha, Christianity Explored or HOPE Together. In both evangelism and discipleship, we should also generously support our own local church. In the area of social justice: International Justice Mission, Barnabas Fund, Christian Solidarity Worldwide, Open Doors, Release International and many other Christian organisations work for improved human rights and religious liberty. Amnesty International, Freedom House and Human Rights Watch are great secular groups doing the same thing. When it comes to tackling global poverty you might wish to support Christian Aid, Cafod, Compassion, Tearfund or World Vision – all excellent Christian organisations doing great work. Secular groups such as Action Aid, Oxfam and Save the Children do similar good work in this critical area. For poverty right here in the UK, Christian organisations like CAP or the Trussel Trust are doing great work that we should also consider supporting financially. For the environment, A Rocha is a notable Christian organisation, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace, the World Wildlife Fund, and your local Wildlife Trust are good secular ones. There are of course many other great smaller organisations in all of these areas. Research and pray to decide which God would like you to support financially. Happy giving.
Find out more
Find out more about how God is at work in the world, and the role we all have to play in that work, in the Arise Manifesto. This report is Arise’s big picture, researched, Biblical, holistic and practical vision for a better world. It looks at what the Bible says, and what we can learn from the best data and the world’s leading experts on the five major areas of evangelism, discipleship, social justice, development and the environment. It then draws these lessons together into a practical road map for the changes we need to see in our world, which the Arise movement campaigns to achieve.
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