Are You a Revolutionary Liberal?
(Keep reading-titles can be deceiving 😊)

I bet you read the title of this post and thought, “Great another political opinion?” Well, you are incorrect. Christ-A-Tarian is a blog with posts that will challenge you to increase your spiritual walk. It has always been my goal to encourage believers to continue to grow more and more Christ-like. Therefore, “Are you a Revolutionary Liberal? – is not a question for you to answer your political affiliation; however, it is an opportunity for you to apply this same word to your life with a R{EVOL}utionary Biblical perspective.

To explain, the word liberal has more than one meaning, and the meaning that I want to use for this post is, “given, used, or occurring in generous amounts” (Source 1). For those who are followers of Christ, generous (liberal) giving should be a part of our everyday vocabulary.

Recently, I was listening to Joyce Meyer’s message, The Beauty of Generosity, and her message immediately connected with my heart. This is what is known as a Holy Spirit “tap” or “nudge”. Through this message, He revealed ways for me to increase my giving. Specifically, God does not just call us to give of our tithes, time, and talents, but do so liberally. This is clearly seen in Isaiah 32:8 “But, the noble openhearted, and liberal man devises noble things; and he stands for what is noble, openhearted, and generous”. Did you catch the key words, “liberal man”? Without a doubt, when we are liberal in our thinking, we become noble, openhearted ambassadors for Christ.

Now, let us apply liberal giving to the three T’s in specific ways that brings glory to God:

First, TITHES. The concept of tithing is an Old Testament Mosaic law with a New Testament backing. What do I mean by this statement? God through Moses established a tithing requirement of money, animals, land, and/or vegetation as an offering. The Israelites were to give back to God as a reminder to always trust in His provisions. The concept of tithing crossed over into the New Testament but not as a law for Christ was interested in the giver’s motives. The early church promoted giving as a free-will collection to help those in need (source 2). Today, financial giving is still a choice and with the hardships of 2020, it may be difficult for some to monetarily give more. Thus, remember Jesus knows your heart and just making an extra plate of dinner to share is more valuable than gold.

Next, TIME. We all have 24 hours in a day. How we spend that time is important to God for He loves to spend time with us. As I mentioned in my last post, God is the Creator of both time and you. Thus, when you pray, read the Bible, sing songs of praise and worship, and gather with other believers, He is right in the center of it. Moreover, He wants you to use your time to help other people. Whether you volunteer at church or help your neighbor shovel (I am currently looking at the snow falling)- a genuine liberal giving of time is priceless.

Lastly, TALENTS. Our gifts, talents, or abilities are an inheritance from God. It is with these gifts that we can accomplish His will. Many Christians do not realize that God’s will is the same for all of us. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, Love your neighbor as yourself' ” (Luke 10:27). These are the two most important commandments. Now, does this mean we all accomplish His will in the same way? Of course not. My ability to write is different than someone’s ability to teach, lead, protect, or support. Thus, maybe you can turn a hobby into a blessing. For example, use that beautiful voice God gave you and record yourself singing a praise and worship song on your iPhone. Then, send it to everyone (add me to that list) -music has a way of touching our souls .

Ultimately, we honor the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit when we intentionally give generously of our tithes, time, and talents. Therefore, declare yourself as a R{EVOL}utionary Liberal and show the world your true alliance belongs to the Trinity.

Sources:
1. Liberal | Definition of Liberal by Oxford Dictionary on Lexico.com also meaning of Liberal
2. The Origin of Tithing (letusreason.org)