What does generous discipleship look like?

The Generous Discipleship team invite us to consider how we give thanks to God by giving our time, talents and finances.

Psalm 100 provides us with a complete picture of a life of generous discipleship. It’s a psalm to worship and give thanks to God.

At the beginning, we are called to shout out our praises to God. This particular shout was reserved for the king and would be used when he returned from victory. It was also a way to declare where your loyalties were placed and who you were committed to serving.

In verse 2, we are urged to ‘worship the Lord with gladness’. The original Hebrew word used in this verse is a.vad, a combination of worship and service. It is with this attitude that we approach generous discipleship.

In verse 3, we are reminded to love God intelligently, recognise we are his, and seek to know him more. Rather than relying on the faith of others or becoming complacent on our Christian journeys, we are encouraged to grow in the wisdom and knowledge of God.

In Mark 12:30, Jesus commands us to ‘love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength’. A life of generous discipleship requires all of who we are, including our minds. The Bible invites us to come to Christ as little children, but this doesn’t necessarily mean keeping our faith simple. While discovering more about God through his word, we can make wise choices as we follow his plan for our lives.

In the paraphrase of verse 4 in The Message, we are called to: ‘Enter with the password: “Thank you!”’ We are often so quick to outline to God all the things we need that we forget to enter his presence with thanksgiving. As we reflect on our giving, we need to look at all we have to be thankful for individually and as a church.

This psalm calls ‘all the Earth’ to worship God, and we are part of the reflection of his glory on Earth. The much-loved hymn ‘O Worship the King’ (SASB 52) reminds us how God is ‘pavilioned in splendour and girded with praise’ – but is that the case? The challenge for all of us is to live lives of praise and thanksgiving that draw others to Jesus.

The psalm concludes with a reminder of God’s love and faithfulness. We are called to worship as an expression of our love for God, and through our service to others show his love. Sometimes we may get a little weary in serving or see the limitations and obstacles in our situation, but it is in those moments that we remember God’s faithfulness to us.

Psalm 100 is a song of praise and thanksgiving, and it is with this attitude that we can begin the process of reviewing our giving, whether that be our time, talents or finances.

Reflect and respond

Shout

Read the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10:17–24. How do you live out a life that shouts your allegiance to King Jesus? In what area was the rich young ruler struggling to shout his allegiance to Jesus?

Worship

Read about the woman of Shunem in 2 Kings 4:8–10. In what ways are worship and service interlinked? What does the woman of Shunem teach you through her attitude?

Know

Read the story of a foolish landowner, a frustrated leader and a wise woman in 1 Samuel 25. Her wisdom encourages us to seek God and love him with our minds, discovering more about him. What stands in the way of you getting to know God more?

Enter

Read John 12:1–8. What gifts from God are you thankful for? What prompted Mary to give such a generous gift?

Love

Read the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 in Matthew 14:13–21. What was the disciples’ attitude to giving in comparison to Jesus? Think of an example of God’s faithfulness to you or your church.