The story of the Bible begins with a beautiful portrait of God as a generous host, providing everything needed for his creatures to enjoy his good world. The narrative in Genesis 1 depicts God as the one who orders and energizes a creation that generates an overabundance of value. When God appoints humanity as his partners and co-rulers over creation, he supplies for all their needs and asks them to trust his generosity and live by his wisdom. And this all sounds great, until the humans begin to doubt God’s generosity.

The biblical story shows how God chooses one family through whom he wants to restore the blessing of abundance to all nations. Abraham and his Israelite children are supposed to be the vehicle of God’s abundance for others. However, throughout the Old Testament the Israelites live from a scarcity mindset, and it sets them on a course for self-destruction. The story of the Old Testament concludes with all humanity, even the Israelites, sitting in a mess of their own making.

Jesus' work on Earth is God’s response to a history of human selfishness. In a great reversal of expectations, God decides to give the ultimate gift, himself. In Jesus we see the creator God identify with humanity’s suffering and plight of scarcity. Jesus chooses to go without adequate food and shelter, and he reached out to the homeless and hungry in order to share God’s abundance with them. Ultimately, Jesus allows the selfishness of his own people to kill him, and he overcomes their evil with his generous love in his resurrection from the dead. He invites his followers to live as if the future reality of God’s abundant Kingdom has truly arrived here and now.

The risen Jesus invites his followers to imitate his same life of generosity toward others. Living generously requires a posture of trust in God, and it’s all rooted in the conviction that God has given us all we need. If Jesus gave the ultimate gift of his own life for us, despite our selfishness and failure, then the only reasonable response is to extend that same loving gift to others. The story of Jesus has the potential to recreate us in the image of the generous God who loves to give abundantly.