Written by: Lincoln Huseby (Youth Director)
“In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” -Acts 20:35 NASB
This passage has been circulating in my mind for the past few months–with the question lingering in my mind: What if we as followers of Jesus genuinely believed these words, and we all agreed with Christ, that indeed it is more blessed to give than to receive? If we did, I believe that our personal lives would more closely resemble Christ’s. Our churches would be transformed and our communities would be confronted with the grace and truth of the Gospel without excuse.
Jesus’ Example
It’s interesting that this saying of Jesus was never included in any of the four gospels, but it finds its way into the book of Acts. Yet, it certainly shouldn’t be surprising that He said it. It isn’t out of His character, a departure from His message, or even a deviation from His mission. Jesus was a radical giver, manifesting the grace of God in truly astonishing ways.
Jesus washed the disciples’ feet, ate with tax collectors and sinners, fed the crowds, healed the sick and the lame, and was ultimately crucified for our sakes. He gave of himself completely in his life and in his death, and counted serving as a greater honor than being served. Reading the gospels, we see time and time again the gracious nature of Jesus displayed. He was always giving, even at the expense of his own reputation, comfort, and life. Jesus oriented Himself in such a way as to maximize how much He could give to others.
The World’s Example
Not only did Jesus exemplify a giving life, but He also called his disciples to follow in His example. Matthew 20:25-28 NASB reads:
“25 But Jesus called them to Himself and said, ‘You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great men exercise authority over them. 26 It is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant, 27 and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave; 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.’”
It is not a well kept secret to any of us that this isn’t typically how the world works. People aren’t waiting in line to serve other people or using their influence to gain positions of servitude. Instead, you find the exact opposite, people seeking positions and wealth to have others serve them.
Jesus is certainly not naive about this. That is why he talks about the rulers of the gentiles and the great men lording over those under them. The world’s view of leadership, especially in the first century, is that those on top deserve to be served and those below exist to serve those above. In other words, the one with the power to do so orients themself in such a way as to maximize what they can extract from others.
This shouldn’t be surprising for us as believers, for the Bible teaches that all of us are born into a sinful nature and a selfish nature that desires exactly that–to be served, not to serve, and preeminently concerned for our own welfare and security, not others’. Therefore, we intuitively think that it is more blessed to receive than to give. We believe that we will be happiest when we have all that we desire and need. The word blessed actually means “happy”. However, we shouldn’t think of ourselves as better than those first century rulers, for we are often guilty of the same thing. We are constantly trying, and often succeeding, at maximizing what we can get, so that we can obtain “happiness”.
Why? Because we so easily confuse happiness with what we have, whether that is stuff, status, or security. This is the exact message we receive on a daily basis through advertising, movies, and social media. To have is to be happy, but this is certainly false. Solomon in the book of Ecclesiastes goes into great detail why all these things fall short of giving any lasting satisfaction.
Jim Carrey, the celebrated actor and comedian, puts it in his own words: “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.”
Yet, Jesus does give us the answer. And how counterintuitive of an answer it is, that is more blessed to give than to receive. But, how fitting this is with the wisdom of God and the teachings of Jesus. His messages throughout the Gospel run contrary to what we innately think. For example, Jesus says in Matthew 23:12, “He who Exalts himself will be humbled, he who humbles himself will be exalted.” Matthew 16:25: “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”
All of these seemingly implausible teachings Jesus perfectly lived out, demonstrating to us the truthfulness of them. He didn’t just command these things, but lived graciously, humbly and, sacrificially, of which Philippians 2:3–11 so perfectly illustrates:
“3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross! 9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
We have received, therefore, we should give.
It is the Gospel that saves us, that changes us, and that gives us hope. The Gospel only comes by the grace of God that we receive by faith in Jesus Christ–the faith that his sacrifice and resurrection are sufficient for us. Our sin and guilt has been taken away and crucified with Christ, reconciled to God by His work. This wasn’t won on our own or because we have convinced God or merited his favor in any way.
That is the God of scriptures that we believe in: a gracious and merciful God. Jesus is who we are to be imitators of and followers of in our lives. He is the very epitome of generosity. How then will the world believe in the remarkable generosity of God and his gospel if His people fail to live it out? Does the Gospel make sense coming from people who would rather take for themselves than give to others? Obviously not. If we are to be His ambassadors to the world, we are to not only say that God loves a cheerful giver but to live as one. We would do well to believe in the words, mission, and character of Christ that it is indeed more blessed to give than to receive.