Collection – or Offering?!

It was in a conversation with the church treasurer that the topic arose. Almost everyone who leads the Family Worship Service announces that the collection will be taken up.

But what is a collection? Well, to me it is something to which I am asked to contribute. It involves people with collecting cans standing in the shopping precinct on a Saturday morning, or going door-to-door in the early evening. It also conjures up the picture of the bin-men collecting our household rubbish week by week!

An offering, on the other hand, is something that I gladly and willingly bring to the recipient. It is a form of gift; something I present. It conjures up a picture of Jesus on the cross, willingly giving His life as a sacrifice for my sin.

So, in church, I prefer to talk about the offering – a tangible expression of my gratitude to Father God for all that He has done, and continues to do, in and for me. He shouldn’t have to “rattle a can” in front of my face in order to receive what may even be a somewhat grudging contribution! It should be my desire to give, and to do so joyfully (see II Cor.9:7), not only of my material wealth, but also my whole being:
"And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all He has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind He will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship Him. Don't copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." (Rom 12:1-2).