Glorifying God.
Wisdom of Sirach 35:7-10 LXX
Glorify the Lord with your generosity,
And do not reduce the firstfruits of your hands.
In every gift let your face be cheerful,
And sanctify your tithe with gladness.
Give to the Most High as He has given to you,
And give to Him with generosity, according to your windfall.
For the Lord is He who repays,
And He will repay you sevenfold.
Personal Challenge...
The admonitions to glorify our God with our words and our possessions continues with this passage. We do not do these things in order to earn God's favor, but because God's favor has already been poured out upon us through the work of His Son on our behalf. This is also not some prosperity doctrine where we are promised to receive seven times what we give. This note from the Orthodox Study Bible sums this up well:
"If we give our tithe, the Lord has promised to repay us sevenfold. How? Perhaps by making us more wise in the management of our money. Or He may prosper our work so that we have even more to give. Or both! Even better, He always enriches the generous giver with joy and many spiritual blessings."We must always remember that God's economy is much different than man's and has eternal consequences.
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