The Investments
When we hear the word, “investment,” we can frequently think in financial contexts, considering things like money, earnings, profit, loss, interest and portfolios. I’d like to suggest, however, that, “investment” can have more than just a financial application. For example, I have a friend who is really smart when it comes to all things writing. She thoroughly enjoys reading and has an outrageous amount of experience with authors, editing and all things written. Over the course of our friendship, she has “invested” some of her wisdom into my writing journey and I’m a much better author because of her investments, which are honestly more like gifts. As I think about her “investments”, I’m coming to see that she’s given me lots of amazing gifts which are not anchored in an investment or a transaction exchange.
So, in thinking about investments, who has invested in you? If you reflect on your life, did you have some teachers who have made deposits in your growth and development? Have you had coaches who invested to make you a better player or competitor? Or maybe you received “investments” from people who lacked diplomacy or graceful articulation, like a cranky boss or hostile co-worker, teammate? Do you have friends who have helped you learn something new or do something with their expertise?
As you ponder these questions and possibilities, it’s also a good time to consider the gifts that God has given to each of us. I’d suggest that God’s highest and most profound gift is love, for the simple reason that God is love (1 John 4:16). Here are some important verses to digest in thinking about who God is and God expressing love:
· Romans 5:5b, “. . . the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”
· 1 John 4:16, “We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.”
· Ephesians 3:19, “to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.”
In addition to God giving us love, God has also invested into us lots of talents, unique wisdom, grace, forgiveness and heaps more, such that we can let these investments get multiplied through us to benefit others. Within this idea of investment, it’s implied that there’s an outcome or return. So, at the most basic level, investment is rooted in the foundation of exchange or transaction. In contrast, a gift is freely given without strings attached, expectations nor return on investment.
In my opinion, this is where God is drastically different from humans. Of course, it’s possible that humans can give without expectations or strings attached. But more often than not, humans invest because we want something in return. We invest because we want to feel good, see an improvement, make a difference, receive recognition, feel important, etc.
No doubt that God invests in us. The idea of seedtime and harvest is demonstrated throughout natural principles, we are not to take our place in the Kingdom for granted. (2 Corinthians 9:8-11) Thankfully, however, God doesn’t only invest in humanity, expecting a return and possibly interest on the investment.
At the very center and core of who God is, since God is love, He is generous. Generosity is implicit with the demonstration of genuine love. Most of us probably know one of the most famous verses in the Bible, John 3:16. In this verse we read, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Of course, we know that God wants us to believe in Jesus, but God gave Jesus, His only begotten Son. This was not an investment. God gave Jesus for us, not for Him. We are the ones that receive the blessing from this gift. Not only that, but later He sends Holy Spirit! John 14:16-17 “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you.” Genuine love is genuinely and extravagantly generous!
When we think about genuine love, let’s be careful to differentiate between investing and giving. Let’s be honest with ourselves about our motives and remember that our best selves are expressed through genuine love and not just wise investments.