True Worship in Spirit & Truth: Understanding Tithes & Offerings

John 4:23 "But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. 24] God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."
Deuteronomy 26:9 He has brought us to this place and has given us this land, "a land flowing with milk and honey"; 10] and now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land which you, O LORD, have given me.' Then you shall set it before the LORD your God, and worship before the LORD your God. 11] So you shall rejoice in every good thing which the LORD your God has given to you and your house.
A. Worship is an all encompassing, all inclusive experience. It is both spiritual and physical; temporal and eternal. It involves the total person, spirit, soul, body and even our possessions.
We must challenge ourselves to worship God in fullness and in the release of everything to Him. 
It is human nature to worship according to our own preferences and pleasures—like the Samaritan woman. However, the problem with such worship is that it is unbalanced and conveniently neglects that part of worship which is undesirable. 
God requires that we worship Him at two levels at all times: “In Spirit” and “In Truth.” 
“In Spirit” addresses the supernatural dimension of our walk with God and the transcendent nature of His presence 
“In Truth” addresses the practical, everyday actions we engage in obedience to the Truth. Jesus said, “Your Word is Truth.” 
Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service (“your act of spiritual worship” -NIV). 
The Worship / Stewardship Connection
B. True worship involves the presenting of our tithes and offerings to God. We often treat offerings as an intrusion into the service. In reality, it is integral to our worship experience.
1. In giving of our tithes and offerings, we engage in a sacrificial act that shows our submission to God’s order.
The bringing of tithes and offerings has always been a part of the worship experience of God’s people. 
When we worship “In truth” then will we bring God our bodies and our substance. 
The fact that we pay tithes and give offerings is the proof of his submission to God. 
When the “Majii” or “wise men” came to worship Jesus after his birth, they brought sacrificial gifts. It would not have been true worship if they brought nothing. 
Remember, that if you have nothing to give, He accepts your willingness as an offering. 
Worship is a sacrifice. Every true sacrifice is costly and often uncomfortable. 
Worshipping God with the tithe and offering was established before the Law as the indication of Abram’s recognition of God’s provision. Genesis 14:18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was the priest of God Most High. 19] And he blessed him and said: "Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; 20] And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand." And he gave him a tithe of all.”

Jesus Resurrection Grace & Light: This Changed Everything!

Colossians 3:1, If you then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. 3 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.
Jesus resurrection changed everything. All of us have heard about the resurrection of Christ, but I wonder If we appreciate how powerful, pervasive, and precious it actually is. Sometimes, we become more fully aware of greater things in life. Let me share some examples and illustrate the scope and power of Jesus resurrection with an parable from the science of light.
 

Gifts of Grace: Your Design and Destiny: Part 4, "How to Stay Encouraged"

Joshua 1:9, Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
Isaiah 40:31 But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Encouragement inspires hope. Hope in the Lord renews strength. Strength causes you to soar, run, and walk victoriously.

Gifts of Grace: Your Design and Destiny: Part 3, "Embrace Your Gifting"

"But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift." ~ Ephesians 4:7 
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10
“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God... 1 Peter 4:10
Romans 12:6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
Prophesy - Speak for the will and purpose of God
Serving - Helping others without expectation of payment or praise
Teaching - Training and empowering poeple through instruction
Encouraging & Exhorting - Lifting the hearts and minds of others. Imparting hope and courage
Giving - Supplying needs and resourcing God’s purposes
Leading - Casting vision, showing the way forward, sustaining purpose
Showing Mercy & Kindness - Helping people recover from mistakes, shame, and trouble.

Gifts of Grace: Your Design & Destiny, Part 2 "How to Use What You Have"

"But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift." ~ Ephesians 4:7 
For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2:10
“As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God... 1 Peter 4:10
“To be what we are, and to become what we are capable of becoming, is the only end of life.” ~ Robert Louis Stevenson
Creativity or talent, like electricity, is something I don't understand but something I'm able to harness and use. ~Maya Angelou

Gifts of Grace: Your Design & Destiny, Part 1

"But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift." ~ Ephesians 4:7
Ephesians 4:7 Amplified Bible 7 Yet grace [God’s undeserved favor] was given to each one of us [not indiscriminately, but in different ways] in proportion to the measure of Christ’s [rich and abundant] gift.
John 1:16 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Design defined: Design is the creation of a plan or convention for the construction of an object, system or measurable human interaction (as in architectural blueprints, engineering drawings, business processes, circuit diagrams, and sewing patterns).
The art or action of conceiving of and producing a plan or drawing of something before it is made.
Grace = God’s ability
Measure = How much God gives
Gift = What God gives
Watch music video: "We Shall Overcome: A Jazz Tribute to Black History. https://vimeo.com/257068202
 

Preparing Your Heart & Life for Increase, Part 6 | The Parable of the Householder: The Power of Balance

Matt: 13:52 (NLT) Then he added, “Every teacher of religious law who becomes a disciple in the Kingdom of Heaven is like a homeowner who brings from his storeroom new gems of truth as well as old.” 53 When Jesus had finished telling these stories and illustrations, he left that part of the country. 54 He returned to Nazareth, his hometown. When he taught there in the synagogue, everyone was amazed and said, “Where does he get this wisdom and the power to do miracles?” 55 Then they scoffed, “He’s just the carpenter’s son, and we know Mary, his mother, and his brothers—James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas. 56 All his sisters live right here among us. Where did he learn all these things?” 57 And they were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his own family.” 58 And so he did only a few miracles there because of their unbelief.

Preparing Your Heart & Life for Increase, Part 5 | Parable of Dragnet: Power of Discernment

Matt. 13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, 48 which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, 50 and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth
We are fishers of men, but sometimes we get bad fish. 
His own ministry illustrated this point: many who followed him for a time did not truly believe in him  (John 2:23-24), and one of his own disciples was in fact an agent of Satan who betrayed him (John 13:2, 27). 
The kingdom of God is exclusive
Luke 17:20 Now when He was asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He answered them and said, “The kingdom of God does not come with observation; 21 nor will they say, ‘See here!’ or ‘See there!’ For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you.” 22 Then He said to the disciples, “The days will come when you will desire to see one of the days of the Son of Man, and you will not see it.
The kingdom of heaven is inclusive
Matt. 13:47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind

Preparing Your Heart & Life for Increase

Open Doors for You
Part One, Preparing Your Heart and Life for Increase
Revelation 3 “The Faithful Church
7 “And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write,‘These things says He who is holy, He who is true, “He who has the key of David, He who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens”:[c] 8 “I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it; for you have a little strength, have kept My word, and have not denied My name.
 Jesus spoke a parable describing the conditions of the people’s hearts in relation to God’s word, or the seed. How you handle the seed of God’s is the most important thing that you handle.
1. The Sower and the Soils (13:1-9) - The Power of Conditions 
2. The Tares (13:24-30)  - The Power of Challenge 3. The Mustard Seed (13:31-32) - The Power of Potential 4. The Leaven (13:33) - The Power of Mystery 5. The Hidden Treasure (13:44) The Power of Value 6. The Costly Pearl (13:45-46) The Power of Priority 7. The Dragnet (13:47-50) - The Power of Judgment 8. The Householder (13:52) - The Power of Balance
Matthew 13:1 On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea. 2 And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore. 3 Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: “Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them. 5 Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away. 7 And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them. 8 But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop: some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

Free Indeed. Free Forever.

Key Scriptures 
 
John 8:31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” 33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. 35 And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. 36 Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.
 
If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.
~ Isaac Newton
 
We are free indeed and free forever. (Say it)
 
Freedom is a treasure and a legacy. It is a treasure because is it valuable. It is a legacy because we did not create it, we only inherited freedom. Freedom and responsibility go hand in hand. We have the responsibility to live a certain way and we have the responsibility to share it.
 
When Jesus says he makes us “free indeed” he is talking about freedom in the total sense, at every level.
 
The word "indeed" means:  Truly, in reality, in point of fact, as opposed to what is pretended, fictitious, false, conjectural
 
“We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline.”  Rev. Dr. KIng
 
Dr. King possession the spiritual and intellection capacity to be prophetic and proactive. He and the ministers who led the movement were closer to God and ten times smarter than the oppressors.  
 
Psalms 119:98, Your commands make me wiser than my enemies, for they are my constant guide.
 
Here in the 21st-century many people are not living in the freedom they have already been provided because they've not experienced freedom indeed through Christ. 
 
We are free indeed and free forever. But here's the hook, with freedom comes responsibility. It is our actions that determine if we live in what God has provided or if we continue to miss the best that God has for us.
 
Looking again at our text: John 8:31 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. 32 And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” 33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants, and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can You say, ‘You will be made free’?”
 
Some of Jesus’ own people thought that they already possessed all the freedom they needed. We don’t want to make that same mistake in only leaning on religion or what our society defines and freedom. 
 
To be “free indeed” requires a Savior
 
We Are Free Indeed and Free Forever. That’s we are empowered and can empower others.