To be a Christian is to be a receiver and a giver.

Many of us have been educated on the importance of having a retirement account to which we make consistent contributions. Yet while it would be wrong for us to completely dismiss the matter of making sound financial decisions, as believers we must also consider our giving and investing in light of eternity.

In his letter to the church in Philippi, the apostle Paul commended his brothers and sisters in Christ for their willingness to “share [his] trouble”—a partnership that included the sharing and giving of material gifts. The Philippians’ generosity was outstanding in that it stood in direct contrast to the absence of such support for Paul from other churches. Although their church was a fledgling congregation, the Philippian believers had determined from the very outset that they would support the apostle in his gospel work.

Their support for Paul was not only outstanding but also longstanding. The Philippians’ giving wasn’t sporadic. Rather, it was marked by consistency and continuity as they sought to help him with his needs again and again. Although a decade had elapsed since Paul first preached the gospel to them, these men and women were still committed.

Their giving was not the result of a one-time emotional surge nor the product of external manipulation. No, this early church gave in the awareness that everything they possessed had been given freely to them. Indeed, in sending out the disciples, Jesus had reminded them that because they “received without paying,” they were to “give without pay” (Matthew 10:8). In other words, the foundation of sacrificial, generous, resourceful partnership is the grace of God. That foundation is established when we understand that all we are and all we have—all our resources, our gifts, and our talents—is from Him.

We do not all have the same gifts or capacity for giving—and monetary giving is certainly not the only avenue for benevolence! Yet since we are all recipients of what God has given to us, we will all be those who look to give to others. God has purposefully put His people together in such a way that we are each to give “according to the grace given to us” (Romans 12:6). We shouldn’t give simply because we’ve been manipulated or because we listened to a stirring song that brought us to the point of tears, nor should we give because we’ll get our name on a building or a bench. No, we should give for one reason and one reason only: because God has so freely and so generously given to us.