With all my resources I have provided for the temple of my God — gold for the gold work, silver for the silver, bronze for the bronze, iron for the iron and wood for the wood, as well as onyx for the settings, turquoise, stones of various colors, and all kinds of fine stone and marble — all of these in large quantities. Besides, in my devotion to the temple of my God I now give my personal treasures of gold and silver for the temple of my God, over and above everything I have provided for this holy temple: three thousand talents of gold (gold of Ophir) and seven thousand talents of refined silver, for the overlaying of the walls of the buildings, for the gold work and the silver work, and for all the work to be done by the craftsmen. Now, who is willing to consecrate themselves to the Lord today?” Then the leaders of families, the officers of the tribes of Israel, the commanders of thousands and commanders of hundreds, and the officials in charge of the king’s work gave willingly. 1 Chronicles 29:2-6
“David’s gifts are a reflection of his devotion to God and the place that will be built in honor of his God (note the triple reference of the “temple of my God,” vv. 2, 3 [2x]). In the light of David’s abundant personal gifts to the temple project, he challenges the congregation to follow his example — expressed as personal choice to show devotion to God… In the light of David’s challenge to the people to follow his example of abundant generosity, the leaders of the Israelite community respond with their own display of generosity toward the Jerusalem temple project. The chronicler emphasizes the “willing response” of the community leaders and the resulting joy of both the people and king. Note that the focus of the leaders’ giving is Godward… These corporate acts of wholehearted freewill giving and joyful celebration work to to transition David’s description of the temple as the “temple of my God” to the Israelite community’s embracing the “temple of our God.”
Frederick J. Mabie in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: 1 Chronicles-Job, general editors, Tremper Longman III and David E. Garland (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010) 152.
In today’s Scripture, not only does King David’s giving reflect his devotion to God, but he challenges the leaders of his people to follow suit. Generosity starts with leaders and their abundant generosity.
If you are leader engaging in a funding project, perhaps for a worship center, a Christian education facility, or some other dedicated space for ministry, I suggest you follow this pattern.
Teach your congregation or constituency to join you in consecration, not construction. Giving to construction will knit their hearts to a building. Giving to consecration will connect their hearts to God.
That’s why “giving is Godward.” Don’t call the people you serve to give to a project, instruct them to give to God. And you must lead the way in this. This pattern transforms the givers, connecting you and them, to God.