Giving

As part of our commitment to one another as church family, alongside friendship, prayer and service, we express our motivation in the gospel and our commitment to the church’s mission by giving financially. This comes not through guilt or coercion, but out of gratitude for what our God has done for us – “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)

All the details below can also be found in a leaflet available at Cornerstone Sunday Services or can be download here.

How to give
As a church, we do rely hugely on the generosity of the church family to fund what we do – renting buildings, paying staff, organising events and reaching out with the gospel in our area. The Bible tells us to give out of joyful obedience to God (2 Corinthians 9:7) rather than obligation. As Cornerstone has come into existence we have also been hugely blessed by individuals and other churches partnering with us and supporting us financially.
Below are some of the Biblical principles for loving generosity from 1 and 2 Corinthians. The Corinthian Christians were to give:

They set aside money on the first day of every week. We need to be thoughtful and committed in our giving, not random and sporadic.

Each one of them was commanded to give. Giving is not something reserved for the few but is for all God’s people.

They gave in keeping with their income. We must give within our means. We will not all be able to give equal amounts but we will all be able to give sacrificial amounts.

They gave without pressure. Giving shouldn’t be about gimmicks and guilt but about a grace-filled heart wanting to respond to the Lord’s loving generosity.

In 2 Corinthians 9 we are reminded that God loves a cheerful giver. It’s easy to give for the wrong reasons – to relieve our guilt, to avoid other avenues of Christian service, to be seen to be generous by others. The apostle Paul tells us that God loves a joyful and big-hearted response to all that he has lavished on us.

Their are a number of different ways to financial support the ministry at Cornerstone, see our How to Give page.

To see how we spend the money that people give, see our church budget.

If you have any questions about giving and/or finance please contact our Treasurer.