Receiving and Giving
Passages (First Nations Version): Matthew 5:1-10 , Luke 18:15-17 , Matthew 25:31-40
Preacher: Mark Kingston
Jesus talked most about the Kingdom of God - where life is done the way God intends. Heaven shows us that in full: everything runs His way. But here on earth, it is still breaking through. Through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, the Kingdom has already pushed into the world. But it’s not here in full….not yet! And that’s why the world still feels so broken.
So what’s God doing about it? First He invites us to receive. Then He sends us out to give. Let’s unpack that quickly.
First, He invites us to enter His Kingdom and taste what life His way is like. But getting in is easier for some than others. The key is knowing how much we need Him. That’s why Jesus points to little children and the poor in spirit. Kids don’t come to barter or prove they deserve it. They just reach out. It’s trust, not transaction. And the poor in spirit are the same. They don’t have cash to pay or resources to offer in exchange for what they need. All they’ve got is desperation and open hands. But it turns out open hands are exactly what God loves to fill.
But here’s the danger: if your hands are already full, with your own plans, your own strength, or the myth that money can fix it all, then you’ll miss Him. You can’t cling to your own stuff and take hold of God at the same time. Full hands keep you shut out. That’s why Jesus told the rich young ruler to give away what he had to the poor. It wasn’t that poverty is somehow better. It’s that blessing is always meant to be shared. He’d been given much, but he stockpiled it. And because he wouldn’t release it, he missed out on the joy that comes from giving and he missed out on Jesus.
That leads to the second truth about the Kingdom: it runs on generosity. When God gives to us, it’s never just for us. He meets our need, but He always gives more, so we can share it. It’s like being handed a hot sausage roll when you’re starving. You eat, you’re satisfied….but then you realise He’s given you a whole bag of sausage rolls. The extras aren’t for stockpiling. They’re for passing on to the next hungry person you meet. John puts it this way in chapter 1 of his gospel: God’s way is “exuberant giving and receiving.” That’s the rhythm of the Kingdom.
But with so much need in the world, remember you’re not called to fix everything. That’s God’s job. What He does ask is that you notice His nudge. Notice the person He puts in front of you, the need He brings across your path. Notice it and then trust Him enough to step toward it. Life in the Kingdom is responding to one nudge at a time. That’s how Jesus lived too: “I only do what I see my Father doing.” This is how the Kingdom grows: one person receiving, one person passing it on, one act of generosity at a time.
The King is with the poor because that’s where the Kingdom loves to break through.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
Empty vs full hands
Jesus says the Kingdom belongs to children and the poor in spirit. What does it look like in real life to come to God with “empty hands”? Where are you tempted to hold on to “full hands”… your plans, your strength, or your stuff?God’s generosity
We said God doesn’t just scrape us by. He gives more than we need, so we can pass it on. Where in your life have you seen God provide more than enough? How could that “extra” be meant for someone else?One nudge at a time
With so much need in the world, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. What does it mean for you to notice His nudge… the specific person or need God puts in front of you? How can we learn to trust and act on those nudges?Where the Kingdom breaks through
Jesus says He hides among the poor. What does it change for you to think that serving someone in need is actually serving Him? How could this reshape the way we see our community and our part in it?
