Giving to get

You may have heard today’s verse in a variety of contexts.  One of which is when someone wants money from you, particularly church people.  The way it goes is generally along the lines of “If you give to God He will give you much more in return.” This is usually followed by promises of prosperity and an expectation of guilt if you don’t or can’t give.  It can sound like a way to guarantee a lottery win with just a small donation.  That is the problem with taking this and any other verse out of context.  Jesus’ words here are actually directly in the middle of a conversation about forgiveness and love.  One of the most difficult things in life is to forgive those who have wronged us and love those who have something against us. Jesus assures us that to give forgiveness and love in those seemingly impossible situations is the most rewarding, liberating and freeing thing that we can do.  In fact it is living out in faith what we have and continue to receive so freely from Him. The more we forgive the greater we understand how much we have been forgiven and we show our gratitude for the forgiveness we have received.