What We Believe About Generosity
Generosity is more than something we do; it is part of who we are becoming as followers of Jesus. How we handle what God has placed in our hands reveals what we believe about Him, His provision, and His Kingdom.
Scripture teaches that everything we have ultimately belongs to God. We are stewards of what He has entrusted to us, and we want to steward it faithfully. Because of that, we believe followers of Jesus should live with open hands, giving faithfully, generously, cheerfully, and obediently as an act of worship to God.
These seven statements help define what we believe about biblical generosity and stewardship.
1. Everything we have comes from God.
God is the owner; we are the stewards.
Our resources, abilities, opportunities, and possessions have ultimately been entrusted to us by Him. Biblical stewardship begins when we recognize that what we have is not simply ours to consume, but something God has placed in our hands to steward for His purposes.
That means the question isn't only, “How much should I give?” A better question is, “God, what do You want me to do with what You've entrusted to me?”
When we understand that everything belongs to God, generosity becomes less about giving something away and more about faithfully managing what was His all along.
Scripture: 1 Chronicles 29:11–14; Psalm 24:1–2; Matthew 25:14–30; Psalm 50:10–11; 1 Timothy 6:17
2. We give to God through the local church to build His Kingdom.
Jesus established His Church and entrusted His people with the mission of making disciples and carrying the Gospel into the world. We believe giving faithfully through the local church is one of the ways we participate in that mission together.
Our giving is bigger than keeping the lights on, maintaining a building, or funding programs. We give so people can know God's heart, live in freedom, build and belong, and leave a legacy.
When we bring our resources together, we can accomplish more together than any of us could accomplish alone. We can reach people, disciple families, invest in the next generation, care for those in need, strengthen our city, and carry the Gospel farther.
Giving through the local church is an expression of our commitment to God, His house, and His mission.
Scripture: Matthew 28:19–20; Acts 2:42–47; Malachi 3:10; 1 Corinthians 16:1–2; Philippians 4:15–18
3. God cares about the heart of the giver.
God does not need our money. Everything already belongs to Him.
What God desires is our heart.
Throughout Scripture, we see that God isn't simply looking at the size of a gift. He looks at the faith, obedience, sacrifice, and worship behind it. Jesus demonstrated this when He drew attention to a widow whose offering was financially small but represented extraordinary trust.
Generosity is therefore not about comparison. It isn't about impressing God or impressing people. Giving is an opportunity to trust God and participate in what He is doing.
And as we learn to live generously, God does something in us too. Our grip on possessions loosens, our trust in Him grows, and our hearts become increasingly aligned with His.
Scripture: Matthew 6:1–4; Mark 12:41–44; 2 Corinthians 8:1–7; 2 Corinthians 9:7
4. We honor God by giving Him our first and our best.
Throughout Scripture, God's people are taught to honor Him with the firstfruits of what He provides.
We believe the tithe, the first ten percent of our income, is a biblical practice that teaches us to put God first. Tithing isn't paying God back, and it isn't purchasing His blessing. It is an act of worship, obedience, and trust.
But stewardship doesn't stop at ten percent. If everything belongs to God, then He cares about how we steward the other ninety percent too.
The tithe establishes a pattern of putting God first, while generosity invites us to continually ask what God might want to do through everything He has entrusted to us. Offerings and other acts of generosity allow us to give above and beyond the tithe as God leads and provides.
We don't want God to simply be part of our financial lives. We want Him to be Lord over all of it.
Scripture: Proverbs 3:9–10; Leviticus 27:30; Malachi 3:10; Matthew 23:23; 1 Corinthians 16:2
5. We choose generosity over accumulation.
God is a good Father who provides for His children, and Scripture tells us that He gives us good things to enjoy. Having resources isn't wrong, and enjoying God's provision isn't something we need to feel guilty about.
But Scripture also warns us not to place our hope in wealth.
Jesus taught us not to spend our lives simply storing up treasure on earth. Instead, we are invited to live with eternity in mind, to be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share.
Generosity reminds us that our security isn't found in what we can accumulate. Our security is found in God.
We want to hold God's blessings with open hands and continually ask how what He has given us can become a blessing to someone else.
Scripture: Matthew 6:19–21; Luke 12:32–34; 1 Timothy 6:17–19; 2 Corinthians 9:6–11
6. We give willingly, cheerfully, and prayerfully.
Biblical generosity isn't produced through guilt, pressure, or manipulation.
Scripture tells us that each person should give what they have determined in their heart to give, “not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
That means generosity should be both intentional and prayerful.
We want to ask God what obedience looks like and then have the faith to respond. Sometimes that response will be comfortable. Other times generosity will require sacrifice. But our motivation remains the same: we give because God has been overwhelmingly generous toward us.
Our generosity is a response to His generosity.
Scripture: 2 Corinthians 8:9; 2 Corinthians 9:6–8; Matthew 6:1–4
7. Generosity moves us toward people.
Generosity never stops with us.
Jesus consistently moved toward people, especially those who were hurting, overlooked, vulnerable, or in need. He taught that when we care for “the least of these,” we are serving Him.
So biblical generosity isn't only about what happens during an offering. It shapes the way we live.
We want to be generous with our finances, our possessions, our time, our homes, our encouragement, and our lives. We want to notice needs and respond. We want to take care of people, strengthen families, serve our city, and leave a legacy that outlives us.
We have been blessed to be a blessing.
Scripture: Matthew 25:34–40; Deuteronomy 15:7–11; Acts 20:35; Hebrews 13:16
A Life of Generosity
Ultimately, generosity is about lordship.
Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” How we handle our resources is connected to what has our heart.
Our goal isn't simply to become people who give. We want to become generous people, people who trust God as our provider, put Him first, faithfully steward what He has given us, and live with open hands.
We don't give because God needs something from us. We give because everything we have came from Him in the first place.
And when God's people live generously, the Church is strengthened, people are reached, lives are changed, and the Kingdom moves forward.
We have a city to reach and a Kingdom to build.