Nov 11
6
Is the Church is Only Interested in Money?
Unfortunately, there are those within the visible Christian church who will do anything they can to get your money. I pray they are few and far between, but there are so-called pastors and churches that will lie to you, pressure you and shame you into giving them your money. As a Christian pastor, I make no apologies for them. Such things are disgraceful.
But understand this: none of them represent Jesus.
Jesus is all about free and cheerful giving. His Word says: “Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
Though I will be the church’s harshest critic when it is wrong, I’ve also witnessed moments of Christian charity that can only be described as remarkable. I’ve pressed five hundred dollars into the hand of a needy senior citizen – a gift of Christian love from someone who wanted to remain anonymous. The note that came with it simply read, “In Jesus’ name.” As a pastor, I was privileged to witness the beautiful joy of Jesus on both ends of that transaction.
Yes, you say, but those stories are few and far between. Maybe so, but the heart of Christian giving remains the same. Any faithful Christian church has a legitimate concern for spreading the message of Jesus. It is the Church’s mission to tell the world about Jesus at any cost. And one of those costs is money. Any church has expenses it needs to pay to “do ministry.”
But the church is also concerned that the motivation behind the giving of money is untouched by human pressure or joyless obligation. We don’t want you to give a dime until the love of Christ compels you to give. God doesn’t want your money. He wants you!
And that’s the real question. Does he have you? Jesus warned us to examine ourselves with this: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Anyone who claims the church is only after their money is either going to the wrong church or has their heart set on the wrong treasure.
Here’s what God’s Word says: “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.” And again: Life does not consist in the abundance of your possessions” (Luke 12:15).
Let’s be clear, money is not the problem, nor is having money. It is the “love of money” that is a “root of all kinds of evil” (1 Timothy 6:10).
We are tight-fisted with our money when we fail to understand that money is a blessing and a tool. It is a blessing for us to enjoy, and a tool to do His work.
Once you understand “it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed … but with the precious blood of Christ” (1 Peter 1:18) and that God has given you a faith in him that is “of greater worth than gold” (1 Peter 1:7), Then we also see that we love (and give) because he first loved us, and gave himself for our salvation.
Then, and only then, will the death-grip we have on our money and possessions miraculously loosen. Then comes an act of giving that is born of a freedom you never knew before. Your hand just opens up in spiritual act of dependence, trust and worship of your God.
