Black Friday has been around for a few decades. Cyber Monday originated around 2005. But Giving Tuesday is practically ancient. Jesus was talking about the importance of giving 2,000 years ago (even though people couldn’t give on their laptops… or phones or tablets for that matter).

Whether he was talking about a widow giving an offering at the temple, a young rich man giving up his wealth, or his followers who gave a cup of cold water to someone in need, Jesus’ repeatedly reminds us that giving to others is a way to honor God.

But don’t take my word for it. Check it out what Jesus has to say below.

Matthew 5:42 (GNTD):
"When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something, lend it to him.”

Matthew 25:31-40 (GNTD):
"Then the King will say to the people on his right, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world. I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes, naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me, in prison and you visited me.’ The righteous will then answer him, ‘When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? When did we ever see you a stranger and welcome you in our homes, or naked and clothe you? When did we ever see you sick or in prison, and visit you?’ The King will reply, ‘I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these followers of mine, you did it for me!’"

Mark 12:41-44 (GNTD):
"As Jesus sat near the Temple treasury, he watched the people as they dropped in their money. Many rich men dropped in a lot of money; then a poor widow came along and dropped in two little copper coins, worth about a penny. He called his disciples together and said to them, “I tell you that this poor widow put more in the offering box than all the others. For the others put in what they had to spare of their riches; but she, poor as she is, put in all she had—she gave all she had to live on.”

Luke 6:38 (GNTD):
"Give to others, and God will give to you. Indeed, you will receive a full measure, a generous helping, poured into your hands—all that you can hold. The measure you use for others is the one that God will use for you.”

Luke 14:12-14 (GNTD)
"Then Jesus said to his host, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or your rich neighbors—for they will invite you back, and in this way you will be paid for what you did.When you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind; and you will be blessed, because they are not able to pay you back. God will repay you on the day the good people rise from death.”

Read more about how one girl saw the gift of God’s Word given at the launch of a new Bible translation in Mexico.