Be generous in your response to what God is doing

Be generous in your response to what God is doing

Luke 11: 47-51 “Woe to you, because you build tombs for the prophets, and it was your ancestors who killed them. So you testify that you approve of what your ancestors did; they killed the prophets, and you build their tombs. Because of this, God in his wisdom said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and others they will persecute.’ Therefore this generation will be held responsible for the blood of all the prophets that has been shed since the beginning of the world, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, this generation will be held responsible for it all.”

That generation were more responsible than all simply because the prophets all spoke of this moment when the Messiah would be standing in front of them. But they did not recognise Jesus and would be instrumental in his crucifixion. Further they had elaborate tombs for these prophets and yet do not speak about how those prophets were killed.

The prophet Zechariah was killed by stoning because he spoke against the rebellion of God’s people (2 Chronicles 24). Their ancestors did this. Zechariah not only prophesied Jesus would come but he even prophesied his betrayal by the 30 silver coins (Zechariah 11).

Be generous in your response to what God is doing.

It is easy to be generous towards the past when the past has proven the prophet correct.

But when the prophet is moving in the present and speaking of the future then we are tempted to be less so. We become sceptical, we are dismissive; if God was going to speak He would do it through a different person, through me, right? I wonder how many messages we have missed and how many acts of power we have ignored simply because we were not generous to what He was doing right in front of our eyes?

When I was a young minister I would drive miles to the other end of the country if I heard that God was doing something. People would say to me back then that no one should have to do that. If God was wanting to do something He would do it right here without any need to travel. They were not generous to what He was doing. I hope as I get older that I never lose that generosity for the things of God. I will fight cynicism that kills generosity.