"Each person should do as he has decided in his heart—not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver."
2 Corinthians 9:7
Giving to Village Church
We love our suburb and have a special place in our heart for the Inner West and all of Sydney as well. But our heart is one that bleeds. Of the 10,000 people living in Annandale- let alone the 5 million people living in Sydney, very few know the love of Jesus and the hope that he offers everyone.
Village Church came about because we wanted to change that. The vision of our church was never to see a small group of like-minded individuals get together just to share a common interest. It was a big vision- an ‘out there’, ridiculous, bold vision:
“To see God glorified by thousands of people committed to honouring and trusting Jesus in Annandale, the Inner West, and beyond.”
This is a huge vision. A crazy, insurmountable, impossible vision. The kind of vision that you need God to turn up for if it’s ever going to become a reality! But that’s what puts fire in our bones. It takes money to do this; a vision like this needs resourcing, but we have a God who does the impossible. And trusting him, we’d love to share with you, how you can worship God, be spiritually enriched, increase your joy, and partner with us in growing God’s kingdom- all through the simple act of being generous with the money he has so graciously given you.
In this short verse Paul tells us four things about giving money:
1. Each person
Paul encouraged everyone in the church to give. He wrote ‘each of you’. Like Paul, at Village we encourage ‘each person’ who is a member of our church to be generous and give financially to the work of the ministry (as people who desire to participants and beneficiaries of our ministry).
2. Decide in your heart
Paul encouraged his readers to consider in advance how much they would give. Many churches still pass round a basket for the offertory. While there is nothing wrong with this, it can sometimes lead people to give in a reactionary way, and thus only give what’s in their wallets, rather than in a considered and thoughtful way. At Village we encourage our members to give via direct debit (details below). This ensures that they have an opportunity to ‘decide in their hearts’ before giving.
3. Not reluctantly or under compulsion
The point here was not that they should feel no reluctance in their own hearts. After all, sometimes it is the act of giving despite our natural tightfistedness that helps us to grow in sacrificial generosity. Rather, the point Paul is trying to make is that God doesn’t want people to moan and groan about having to give their money to him. ‘Reluctant giving’ does not please God. For this reason, we discourage our members from giving if they can only do it reluctantly, and we encourage and spur a desire to grow in generosity (in view of God’s generosity to us)! All of our members are able to participate and benefit from our ministries regardless of whether they financially support us or not.
4. Cheerfully
The final thing Paul urges his readers to do is give cheerfully. We believe that if we have our hearts captured by Christ and his purpose, then we’ll actually want to give all of ourselves toward work of his Kingdom. We therefore encourage our members to ‘give cheerfully’ and remember how much God has been generous to us, knowing that God desires to see cheerful, joyful generosity in his people.
How much should I give?
In the Old Testament, God’s people were instructed to give a tithe (10%) of their income back to God, but the New Testament never names a specific amount that we should give. Rather than holding forth a ‘law’ or ‘ruling’ on how much we should give, the New Testament puts forward a new idea of ‘sacrificial generosity’- generosity as a response to God’s grace shown to us in Jesus Christ.
At Village, we see a tithe as the springboard for generosity. For this reason, we invite our members to consider tithing their income to support the work of the gospel at Village, as well as encouraging our church to grow in generosity by giving above and beyond this (at Village and also to other causes).
How do I give?
As you become a member of Village Church and you consider how you can support Jesus’ work here, we’d love for you to fill in a Pledge Form, or give a one-off gift. Our members make an annual pledge each November, allowing the church leadership to make wise, informed planning decisions about our church’s financial future.
Name: Village Church
BSB: 062 102
Account No: 0090 1407
Reference: “Your name” (not essential, but helpful- particularly if you make a pledge)
All giving information is kept private. Our Operations Manager and Bookkeeper have access to this information. Additionally, there are tax-deductible giving opportunities at Village; for more information on this, scroll to the bottom of this document.
If you would like to talk more about giving or ask a question, please contact our bookkeeper on 9660 2444 , or via accounts@villagechurch.sydney.
What will my money be used for?
All money given to Village Church will be used for the growth of God’s Kingdom. This may include staffing, ministry operations, property, mission giving, and/or anything else that we believe will advance the cause of the gospel.
For more resources on giving and generosity, check out these bible talks below.