SteemChurch: "It's better to give than to receive"

Giving means that it is a delivery to another. Grace is in giving with love and liberality; One of the things that cause the blessings of God to reach us is learning to give, and at the same time is the only rule to receive something from God, we must remember that blessed is to give to receive. In (Acts 20:35) God speaks to us through this verse that it is better to give than to receive.

It is better to give than to receive because it produces the character of Christ
Giving to Christians, in the biblical context, means reproducing the character of Christ. The Bible speaks of a fullness in the book of Acts (20:35): "It indicates that the giver adopts the character of Christ, whose nature it is to give." That is why the attitude of giving and the character of the giver are closely related.

Naturally we give according to the fruit we produce. And what we are is what we produce. An apple tree produces only apples and not oranges or other fruit. It can not produce another fruit different from its nature. Jesus said that "by the fruit the tree is known."

Since in the word of God, man is enlightened and compared to a tree, as children of God, we need to ask ourselves a simple question: What kind of fruit is there in my tree? We can not really give of what we do not have.

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The question we must answer is: What is our character, Christocentric or egocentric? The nature of our giving depends on the response we give.

If our character is Christocentric, our way of giving will be full of love, generosity, sensitivity and understanding for the needs of others; we will show a mentality of abundance. Now, if it is egocentric, then it will be full of selfishness, interest and pettiness; which leads us to have a mentality of scarcity.

Giving is the nature of God and received in the life of Christ
The nature of God is in giving. As he expresses it (2 Corinthians 8: 9) "For you already know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who for your sake became poor, being rich, so that you with his poverty might be enriched."

As believers and children of God, giving (with generosity and love) is also in us that spiritual nature received from Christ. Being new creatures and being born again, we receive the nature of God, which is love; and the Holy Spirit enables us to give with love and generosity.

How do Christians give a vocation?

It is better to give than to receive, this is an inescapable vocation to which every Christian believer is called to fulfill, since it was the best example that the Lord Jesus Christ left to his disciples.

The Bible exhorts us, with priority, to learn what is better to give than to receive. However, this attitude does not occur alone automatically; it needs to be worked, and even forged so that it grows and develops in us, until it becomes natural in our life; as a habit; For this characteristic way of relating and orienting ourselves in our interaction with others. "Jesus did not say that it would be easier to give than to receive, but that it would be more blessed."

For the man to receive is more natural than giving. Life is completely directed, in the whole process of its growth, by a constant receiving. The Bébes claim the food, the affection and the attention of their mother with tears.

The husband and wife wait for each other for the caresses and compliments of each other. All the people we hope to receive. Just as we also long to be recognized. So in each breast there is a hungry heart to receive affection and recognition; and that, in principle, can not be questioned. But in the Christian life it is a foundation and a principle of giving kingdom.

What are you building?

In life we can not build, on (a basis) what we receive, but on (a foundation) and that is what we give.

There are people who go through life looking instead of giving, live in a continuous desire to receive, without ever giving, this is developing that man has a selfish and self-centered life; that is based and focused on their own needs, which makes them unable to see and feel the needs of others.

Jesus Christ clearly expressed that it is more blessed to give than to receive. This demands a profound change in our way of thinking, seeing and doing things in life, as well as acquiring a commitment. It implies leaving our comfort zone. There is no way to give without compromising your time, or your money, or energy, or perhaps resources.

Is giving and receiving reciprocal?

To the extent that we seek the welfare of others, that makes our life pleasant. When we give to others, we are satisfied in our need to give. We could say that there is no better way to enjoy the goods if you are not giving them.

Let us be blessed to give with love, to bring hope to those who need it most. Many face the consequences of a divorce; those who experience the death of a loved one; those who bear the rebellion of the children; those who live under the influence of an insurmountable vice. Let's take ownership of this and be happy to give them a word of encouragement, or perhaps a hug of hope, also a real demonstration of affection through the facts.

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The vast majority of people concentrate their efforts on collecting fruits, that is, (receiving) instead of giving. It is easier to be a receiver (consumer) than a giver; that's why there are so many people around us with needs that few can cover.

But when we are willing to give, it is inevitable to receive. Because while you are in charge of giving to others to a great extent, God is responsible for covering all your needs, that is why whenever we approach the needy, we are blessed with their gratitude and love, and at the same time we develop in our being the character of Christ.

The word of God commands us to imitate Christ in his attitude of service
This expression, "it is more blessed to give than to receive," was said by the most gifted man that this world has known, Jesus, who incarnated with his example, the greatest example of a life that he invested in others.

The life and ministry of Jesus was a constant giving, serving and helping people. And in the mouth of Jesus, these were not comprehensive words, but it was a vocation and a mission of life, to serve and give to humanity what was in their heart. When Jesus said those words he was on his way to the cross to give his life for all humanity.

When we are able to give, we reproduce in our lives the altruistic and kind character of Christ. God gives with generosity; abundantly. The nature of God is love, and he constantly demands that he give to others.

Just as the sun needs to give light while it is burning, for God needs to give. Christians, followers of Christ, need to reproduce the liberal, detached, altruistic, generous and giving character of our teacher and model that is Jesus Christ.