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The Tithe · Providence Baptist Church - Sermons

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Alright, thank you all very much. As was mentioned earlier, I had the flu this week, at least I think that's what I had this week.
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! On Wednesday, I had a temperature of almost 103. My highest measure was 102.9. I just felt like I cooked all day Wednesday.
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And I was really hoping to have a little more energy for today, but I really feel like I could fall over just at any moment.
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Like if the air comes on, I might just tip over here on the stage.
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I told Wes before the service started that my hope this morning was to not say anything false and to not start just coughing madly during the sermon.
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So, I've got my bottle of water in my hand. I might be drinking from it profusely this morning as we open up the Word of God together.
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Now, we've been working together through the Gospel of Mark, and we're going to take another break from it today.
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And I just want you to know that as a general pattern, as a church, we're committed to verse-by-verse exposition.
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As a general pattern, we find it to be the healthiest way that we can work through the Word of God together.
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However, there are times that it's important to stop and look at something in a more topical fashion.
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And topical preaching can be done healthy, so don't ever hear us when we talk about believing a pattern of verse-by-verse exposition is the best pattern,
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that other places are wrong for doing it differently.
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There are a lot of very Gospel-centered, Christ-exalting churches that pastors preach on topics,
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and they do so in an expositional way, which is essentially to say that they teach what the Bible has to say.
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They don't use the Scriptures to support their own opinion, but they bring to you what the Word of God has to say about a particular topic.
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So this morning, I don't know if anybody ever pays any attention to the bulletins that we give out,
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but this morning we're going to look toward a biblical practice of the tithe.
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That's what we're going to talk about this morning.
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And I think this is a good time to do that for our church for multiple reasons.
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Number one, if you do give to Christ Family Church, you just got your giving statement, so you know exactly how much you gave last year.
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So you kind of know where you stand in that process, and it's a good time to stop and think and reflect on whether or not you're giving faithfully.
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Secondly, we're coming in under budget for the year, and it's early in the year so far.
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We are trusting in God's provision for this year, but as a church, we voted on a budget to support a budget,
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and we're coming in up underneath that at this point, which doesn't cause any panic in anybody in the leadership's place.
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We've been under budget at other times before, but sometimes things like that can be indicative of another thing,
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a deeper thing going on within our church.
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And it may not be, but it's probably a good time to stop and really look at what the Bible has to say about giving for that reason.
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And then thirdly, just my own conviction about the topic of giving.
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And this is what I mean.
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In the past, in a lot of ways, I have really relegated this topic off and thought of it almost as,
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and maybe even unintentionally taught it as, a necessary evil.
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An example of that is the way we do giving, the box being in the back.
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There's nothing wrong with doing that.
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Not many healthy, biblical, Christ-exalting churches do the offering that way,
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and I think it is a way to do the offering that is perfectly acceptable.
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But I've got to tell you, the reason we started doing it that way is because I didn't want to make a big deal about collecting money at all.
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Just shove it off there. It's a necessary evil. Stick it in the back. Don't make a big deal.
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A little mention at the end of the service is enough.
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And that really does you a disservice.
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Because the Bible has much to say about giving.
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And this is a giving that is to your profit, not to mine as a person who receives a salary from this church,
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but to your profit.
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My heart in this is the same as Paul's heart in 2 Corinthians chapter 12, where he says,
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I seek not what is yours, but you.
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I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls.
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So understanding how it is that we ought to give and what we should be giving to is really incredibly important for our own sake.
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How is it that if we're to be disciples of Christ, drawn into obedience in every way,
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and following Him, that we are supposed to handle our money?
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So, for example, turn to Mark chapter 4.
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It's where we've been together.
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We just finished up chapter 4.
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The aim of Mark, as is the aim of all of the Gospels, is to convince us that Jesus is who He said He is,
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that He is, in fact, the Son of God, and to find us following Him in every way.
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And I've simplified that for you by saying that we would be disciple-making disciples.
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Now, be clear, there is no other kind of disciple.
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Disciples make disciples, because that's what Jesus did.
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So if we're following Jesus, we will make disciples.
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But because it seems in this age there needs to be some clarification on that point,
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I'll continue to say to make disciple-making disciples.
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This is the great calling that we have, and this is the argument that Mark is making for us,
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using all of these different pictures of Jesus' life.
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And he pauses, particularly in chapter 4, to give us some of the teaching of Jesus.
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And he talks in these different parables.
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This is entirely unplanned on my part, so forgive me here.
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The parable of the sower.
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And he talks about this good fruit that yields 30-fold and 60-fold and 100-fold.
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Then he talks about the lamp under the basket.
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It shouldn't be hidden under the basket or up underneath the bed,
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but it should be put out to give light to the room.
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He talks about the sower that doesn't know how it is that seed sprouts up,
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but he sows, right?
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And then the mustard seed.
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We don't understand how it is that the kingdom of God becomes the thing that it becomes,
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the magnitude that it has, but yet we still are to be about this work.
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And so he's building this case for us here that we should be disciple-making disciples.
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Our church has a vision statement.
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The Christ Family Church exists to glorify God by experiencing, proclaiming, and displaying the supremacy of Jesus Christ in all things to all peoples.
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And this is unique to us.
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I mean, this is our statement, but this should not be a unique drive of the Christian life, right?
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We're not trying to create a cult of vision as if God has given us some special vision statement,
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and we're going to follow this vision statement together, right?
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This is the biblical mandate to all believers.
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We've just put it in these words because we found them particularly beautiful,
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and we thought we could communicate the different aspects of Christian living through such a statement.
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And so we're called to be disciple-making disciples, and that includes the way we deal with our money.
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It includes all aspects of our living.
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The Bible is not silent about finances.
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You sit in a lot of churches, and you would think so.
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You would think that Jesus never spoke to the topic, but he spoke to it all the time.
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The Bible is full of teaching about the potential evil of money, the way it should be used righteously,
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and it's missed so often, so often in our churches.
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And I don't want to be a church, and I don't want to be a pastor that leads you in that way.
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There's a study, it's a really fairly famous study called Passing the Plate.
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It was done in 2008.
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I would encourage you to look at it in greater depth.
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But it gives us a little bit of an idea of the state of giving of American Christians.
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And this is of committed Christians.
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So these are those who self-reported that their faith is very important to them,
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and those who stated they attend church at least twice per month.
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And that's another sermon about what it means to be a committed Christian.
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But this is the way they qualified who these people were.
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Committed Christians in America.
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$2.5 trillion a year is the income of these committed Christians in America.
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Which means that this group, if we pulled out committed Christians in this reporting,
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this group could be admitted to G7.
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I don't know if you know what that is, but that's the summit of the seven highest,
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the seven largest economies in the world.
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They get together and they talk world problem, world economy.
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And Christians in America, committed Christians in America,
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could be admitted to that group with the $2.5 trillion a year that are earned by those households.
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Households.
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So if we start with the premises of a tithe being 10%,
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if 10% was given, $46 billion more than is currently given would be given.
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If all of those households gave 10%,
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46 billion more than is currently given.
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That's a phenomenal amount of money.
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And you may be thinking, well, 46 billion really isn't that much money in the scheme of things.
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But 10 billion would sponsor 20 million children for a year.
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Pretty phenomenal.
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$330 million would sponsor 150,000 indigenous missionaries in countries close to religious workers.
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150,000 indigenous missionaries in countries close to religious workers.
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$2.2 billion would triple the current funding of Bible translation, printing, and distribution.
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And we've only spent...
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Oh, I can't do the math off the top of my head.
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I'm such in a fog right now.
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Anyway, after we've spent that, we still have $33.5 billion left to spend per year.
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That money, it's a staggering amount of money.
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And so much good can be accomplished with it.
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The average percentage of income given across the board of these committed Christians is 6%.
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However, the median amount...
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This is the shocking fact.
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The median amount given of each of these households is $200 a year.
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The median.
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That would be in college, right?
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The average one in the middle, right?
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The average number.
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Not the average of the total, but the number in the middle.
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$200 per year, which is just over half of 1% of after-tax income.
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Just over half of 1% of after-tax income.
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The reason it averages out to 6% is because there are many very generous, very philanthropic people counted in this number
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that pull that average way the other direction and give everybody a little bit of credit there.
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But it's not coming from the vast majority of believers, but from a few that are really faithful in their giving.
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So, what does God's Word have to say about our giving?
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And let's start just in one place.
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We're going to get all over the place today.
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But let's look in Luke chapter 12 together first.
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Always good to start with our Lord's teaching.
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Luke chapter 12 beginning in verse 15.
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And He said to them,
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Take care and be on your guard against all covetousness.
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Or you could replace the word there with greed.
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For one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.
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Now, beloved American church, just sit and let that soak into your heart for a moment.
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Jesus said,
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Take care and be on your guard against all covetousness or greed.
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Whether you have money or you don't have money.
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We're all in this category, speaking to every single one of us.
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What is going on in your heart as it concerns money?
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Right?
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For one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.
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Verse 16.
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And He told them a parable saying,
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The land of a rich man produced plentifully.
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And He thought to Himself,
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What shall I do?
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For I have nowhere to store my crops.
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And He said,
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I will do this.
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I will tear down my barns and build larger ones.
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And there I will store all my grain and my goods.
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And I will say to my soul,
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Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years.
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Relax, eat, drink, be merry.
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But God said to him,
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Fool, this night your soul is required of you.
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And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?
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So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.
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Now this is not a parable He's teaching here to tell us that we ought not save.
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That we ought not invest in the future.
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That we ought not be in some way planning now for retirement later.
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This is not what He's saying here.
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Remember, this is a parable coming right off of Him saying to be on our guard against greed.
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Because our life does not consist in the abundance of our possessions.
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So recall that.
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If we do not want to be the fool, what is He saying to us?
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He's saying that we should be rich in what we do with our money toward God.
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We should spend what we have on the kingdom.
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The Bible teaches elsewhere that we should save.
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I would commend it to you, having worked as a budget coach.
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You should do some saving.
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It's a good thing.
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In fact, your saving can serve the kingdom of God.
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What he's saying is, don't live for yourself.
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Don't take possessions and hold on to them tightly.
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That you may have them and you may turn them over and treasure them.
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He will call you a fool one day.
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These things you cannot hang on to.
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You can't take them with you.
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So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.
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Now there's an Old Testament practice, an Old Testament law called the tithe.
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And we should look at that together to begin with.
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So turn with me to Leviticus chapter 27.
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I have to tell you this morning that I desperately want to make tithing a law to you.
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It would just make things so easy.
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If I could just simply make a simple justification.
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It was an Old Testament law and nowhere in the New Testament does Jesus negate it.
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He doesn't.
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He doesn't tell people to not tithe in the New Testament.
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I would love that you say, so 10%, get it done.
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If you're not doing 10%, you're being disobedient.
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How dare you?
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You should do 10%.
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Let's all go home.
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It would be a lot easier.
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It would be easier for me personally.
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It would be very nice just to simply pull out my calculator.
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Anytime I had any income come into our house.
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Do the quick calculation.
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Write the check.
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Put it in the box.
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And I'm done.
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That would be so simple.
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But it's not quite that simple.
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Now, there were two types of giving taught in the Old Testament.
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There was required giving and there was voluntary giving.
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So, in required giving is where we first start to see this picture of the tithe.
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Which, in Hebrew, ma'aser literally means tenth part.
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So, Leviticus chapter 27, verse 30.
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Every tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's.
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It is holy to the Lord.
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Now, what was done with all that tithe?
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What was done with it?
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Because it's the Lord.
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Does the Lord store it up?
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Does the Lord have it someplace?
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No.
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It was used to support the administrative work of the government.
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But remember that this was a theocracy at the time.
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At the time, God reigned over Israel.
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And the Levites were agents in God's governance.
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So, the Levites received payment for the work that they did in the temple.
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But this was the way the government itself was run.
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It was a theocracy.
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I praise God one day we'll return to such a rule.
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We won't live in a democracy in your Lord, but a theocracy.
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A righteous rule over the top of us.
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But this was what was going on at this time.
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Right?
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There were actually other tithes as well.
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Not just the general tithe, but there was a tithe.
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We don't turn there, but Deuteronomy chapter 14.
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We'll take a look at it later.
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But there was a tithe for the funding of a national festival.
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It happened.
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Every year, they brought in tithes and they ate.
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And if they couldn't travel with the food that they ate to the place they were supposed
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to go to, they sold it, took the money, and they went and bought whatever they wanted in
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this place.
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And it was a big festival that that tithe took care of.
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There were smaller requirements, right, that were intended to provide for the poor.
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Turn to Leviticus chapter 19.
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I'll show you what I mean.
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This is not the only place this is found.
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Smaller requirements or laws placed on the Israelites.
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Leviticus 19, verse 9.
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When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge.
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Neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest.
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You shall not strip your vineyard bare.
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Neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard.
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You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner.
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I am the Lord.
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So there was requirements placed on them even for how they were to provide for the poor.
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And that just wouldn't go to the edge of the field.
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Just don't take everything out.
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When you pull the harvest, don't strip it completely clean, but leave some behind for those who are
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poor.
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And this was required giving in that day.
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Secondly, there was voluntary giving.
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Exodus chapter 25, verse 2 says,
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Speak to the people of Israel that they take for me a contribution.
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From every man whose heart moves him, you shall receive the contribution for me.
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1 Chronicles 29, 9.
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Then the people rejoiced because they had given willingly.
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For with a whole heart they had offered freely to the Lord.
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And this was to gather in the things necessary to build the temple, to decorate it, to make
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it ornate the way the Lord had commanded.
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And this was voluntary giving.
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This was not compulsory.
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It was voluntary.
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So these are the two types we see in the Old Testament.
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And you could argue, I've heard the argument made that we are now given the same command,
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the same required giving to support the government with our taxes.
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And we are.
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I mean, not negate that.
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Matthew chapter 22, verse 15 through 22.
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And Romans 13, 1 through 7.
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We are supposed to obey civil authority.
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And we are supposed to pay to Caesar what is Caesar's.
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So pay your taxes.
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As a good part of a democracy, vote for people and vote for laws that decrease taxes.
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That's a good thing that we can do together.
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There's no thing that the government can do better than a private individual, I would assert
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to you.
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I digress.
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Right?
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Right?
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So you can make this argument that we're now fulfilling that requirement, the Old Testament
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requirement of the tithe, because now our governing is being taken care of that way.
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But it's a little more complicated than that, isn't it?
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Because that doesn't include the running of our churches.
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And I praise God for that, that we don't have state church.
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But it's a little more convoluted than that.
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But the point of what I'm trying to say to you, in so many words, is that tithing just
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can't be taught as a law.
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Right?
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Giving 10% of everything that you have just simply can no longer be taught as law.
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But it certainly can be taught as principle.
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It certainly can be taught as principle.
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And I want to show you why, as we look at the New Testament, what it has to say on the
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matter with four reasons.
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Right?
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Four reasons.
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And there are some more.
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But four reasons to give at least a tenth of what you make to the work of God.
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Number one, giving at least a tenth today is in keeping with the purpose of the tithe
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in its day, at least in part.
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Another example, Old Testament example, Numbers 18, 20, 21.
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And the Lord said to Aaron, you shall have no inheritance in their land, neither shall
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you have any portion among them.
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I am your portion and your inheritance among the people of Israel.
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To the Levites, I have given every tithe in Israel for an inheritance in return for the
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service that they do, their service in the tent of meeting.
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You remember when the Israelites were led into the promised land, the land was divided
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up amongst the tribes.
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And there was one tribe that didn't get the vision in that.
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They didn't get the means by which to produce income, which would have been land.
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Right?
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And those were the Levites.
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They were specially set aside for temple service.
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And so the way they were able to profit was that they were given a tenth of everybody else's
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earnings because they served in this special role in that way.
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Right?
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So Old Testament, just stick with me.
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I'm building that case for you.
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I've already said it.
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We're saying it again.
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There are still men and women who set aside vocational employment in order to serve the needs
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of the church at home and abroad.
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This is still something that happens today, is it not?
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It happens quite often.
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In fact, I use myself as an example.
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Up until last year, I worked two jobs.
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And for quite some time, I worked a full-time job so that I could work here for no money.
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And then we've slowly transitioned those two things.
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But I've set aside vocational employment.
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I don't have time to do a job that earns income for my household so that I can serve the
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church.
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Be an example of that.
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Another example.
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I'm sitting amongst us.
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I haven't spotted a space yet, but I'm sure I will in a moment.
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Daniel Gentry is a member of our church.
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There he is, right in the middle.
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Daniel Gentry is a member of our church.
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And our church's hope is to send him and his soon-to-be wife, brand-new fiancé, sitting
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on the front row with him there.
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It's the first time I've said hi to you.
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To Nicaragua in a little over a year if the timeline works the way we think it may.
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And as a church, we would like to support him in doing that.
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And Daniel, great guy, said, I'll just go down there and work.
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But we would love to be able to send him so that he can devote himself fully to the work
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of God in that place.
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Now, we're all called to be missionaries.
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We're all called to lead.
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We're all called to be pastors.
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But we just do it in various ways.
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And there are some who are set aside for this particular way in which to serve.
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And we have to make a living somehow.
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My family doesn't eat apart from your generosity.
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And I thank you for it.
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Because we do eat.
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And we eat well.
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We're doing just fine.
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But this is the way in which God cares for these people.
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A couple of examples of that.
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Paul writes in 1 Timothy 5, verses 17 and 18,
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Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor.
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Which, fascinatingly, he's talking about pay here.
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Especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.
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For the Scripture says, in Deuteronomy 25, verse 4,
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You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,
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and the laborer deserves his wages.
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This is from Luke 10, verse 7, and some other places as well.
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So, the worker's worth is wages.
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You shouldn't muzzle the ox when it treads out the grain.
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There should be some provision for this kind of worker.
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Again, in 1 Corinthians 9, verse 13 and 14,
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Paul writes,
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Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service
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get their food from the temple,
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and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings?
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He's talking about the Levites there,
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and their service in the temple.
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Verse 14,
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In the same way,
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the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel
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should get their living by the gospel.
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Right?
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So, giving at least a tenth today is in keeping with the purpose of the tithe in its day.
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Right?
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At least in that way.
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To help to provide for the work being done.
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Now, the question gets asked here,
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If I'm going to give at least a tenth of what I make,
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should I only give it to the church?
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And my answer,
24:38
my simple answer to that is no.
24:41
Again, I'd like to make a law here and go,
24:43
Yeah, you should.
24:44
All of it should come here.
24:47
But you need to be very, very prayerful about where it is given,
24:49
because many churches are anemic,
24:52
and are starved financially,
24:53
and as a church,
24:54
it's such a blessing to pool our resources,
24:57
and get to do things in our community,
24:59
to have the kind of resources we need,
25:01
to really reach out and do stuff as a church.
25:04
Right?
25:04
You should really consider bringing it together,
25:07
so that we can cooperate in efforts in that way.
25:10
If you're constantly shooting your money out in a thousand different directions,
25:13
because there are already,
25:14
I mean,
25:15
millions,
25:15
you get offers all the time,
25:17
places that you can send your money.
25:19
It becomes really difficult as a church to be effective in a community,
25:23
and so you should consider that.
25:24
But,
25:24
you're going to have people come to you going on trips,
25:26
and living overseas full time,
25:28
and doing things like that,
25:29
and I would say,
25:30
Yes,
25:30
give.
25:31
Yes,
25:32
give.
25:32
Support the work of the local church,
25:34
and I would say,
25:34
support it primarily,
25:36
but look to the ways you can give otherwise.
25:38
I can't make a law at that point.
25:41
Right?
25:42
So,
25:42
giving at least a tenth today,
25:43
recognizes and honors that Old Testament principle.
25:50
Secondly,
25:51
giving at least a tenth today,
25:54
honors God as the owner and giver of all things.
26:02
Psalm 24.1 says,
26:04
The earth is the Lord's,
26:06
and the fullness thereof,
26:07
the world and those who dwell therein.
26:11
Everything belongs to God.
26:15
You're very,
26:16
very deluded in your thinking,
26:17
if you think that only a tenth belongs to God,
26:20
and therefore you're going to give it to Him.
26:21
And the other 90% you can do with as you please.
26:26
Everything that we have,
26:27
ought to be carefully considered,
26:30
and we ought to be looking at it and saying,
26:32
how is it that I can use this to the glory of God?
26:35
So,
26:36
how is it that Sam and I can pick a home in a location that we can serve God in?
26:42
How is it now that we have a home that we can use it to the glory of God?
26:46
Right?
26:46
Is it our private refuge?
26:48
Is it our place to get away from people?
26:50
Sometimes,
26:51
because that's good for the kingdom.
26:52
Sometimes it's good to get away and be in a refuge.
26:55
Wednesday,
26:56
I cooked at 102 degrees all day.
26:58
No one needed to be around me.
27:00
I needed to be in my home by myself that day.
27:02
But our home should also be a place that's welcoming,
27:04
where we can be hospitable,
27:05
where you can bring people in and show them what family life looks like,
27:08
and wrap our arms around them.
27:10
Right?
27:10
Like our home should be used in that way.
27:11
Our cars should be used in that way.
27:13
Right?
27:14
Can I fit an extra person in the back seat of this car versus this car?
27:17
This car has got cool rims,
27:19
but this one will hold another person.
27:21
Right?
27:21
Maybe that's the decision that you should be making.
27:24
Right?
27:24
We need to be thinking about how is it that everything belongs to God,
27:28
and how is it he would use everything that we have for his service.
27:33
Now turn with me to Deuteronomy chapter 14.
27:36
I'm really going to only make you look at one verse.
27:38
I just want you to see it in its context.
27:42
I'll go there with you too.
27:43
I didn't set it as one of my goals not to have a voice at the end of this,
27:56
so we'll see how that goes.
28:02
So Deuteronomy chapter 14,
28:03
we've got instruction beginning in verse 22
28:06
for this tithe that was for this banquet that was to be had each year,
28:12
this festival that was to be had each year.
28:14
And there's a lot of instruction about exactly how it was to take place.
28:17
There's some instruction at the end for a philanthropic part of it,
28:21
that there should be things left for the Levites
28:23
and for the father of the will of the sojourner.
28:26
We see that in verse 29.
28:28
But the main thing I want to draw your attention to is to verse 23.
28:35
Where God says that you may learn to fear the Lord, your God, always.
28:42
To have this big festival, to recognize,
28:46
to give proper place to the fact that God had provided all of these things.
28:53
Matthew Henry and his wonderful commentary on the whole Bible,
28:57
on this text, says,
28:58
The whole appointment evidently was against the covetousness, distrust,
29:04
and selfishness of the human heart.
29:06
It promoted friendliness, liberality, and cheerfulness,
29:09
and raised a fund for the relief of the poor.
29:11
They were taught that their worldly portion was most comfortably enjoyed
29:15
when shared with their brethren who were in want.
29:20
So that's why this particular tithe was put in place,
29:23
that they might learn to fear the Lord God.
29:28
That they might put their heart in a proper place
29:30
and recognize that all things come from Him.
29:36
Now, let me give you just a simple example of this.
29:39
I have a three, almost four-year-old now,
29:42
going on seven-year-old, named Caban.
29:46
And when I get home from work, often I'm tired.
29:49
I've spent the day with people.
29:51
I've spent the day in thought, hopefully deep thought.
29:56
And I am usually very exhausted when I get home.
30:00
And the question that always arises,
30:02
a couple minutes after I've been home, is,
30:04
Hey, Daddy, you want to come play with me?
30:06
Hey, Daddy, you want to come play trains with me?
30:08
Hey, Daddy, you want to come play cars with me?
30:09
And most of the time I really feel like going,
30:11
Nope, I don't.
30:13
I don't.
30:14
I feel like sitting in that chair
30:15
and doing nothing for a couple of hours.
30:19
And it's not really acceptable in that case,
30:22
is it, for me to say,
30:24
Caban, I've spent all day loving you.
30:26
Look, I've been at work today.
30:28
I've been trying to earn income for our household.
30:31
I've been trying to do things that are good
30:32
for our community and for our church.
30:35
I've really been spending all day loving you.
30:37
Go play by yourself.
30:38
It just wouldn't even resonate with him, right?
30:40
He wouldn't get that at all.
30:42
So how do I show him?
30:43
How do I prove to him that I love him?
30:46
I go play with him, right?
30:47
I get down on the floor.
30:49
I'm sore and hurting.
30:50
And I lay on my side on the hardwood floor.
30:53
And I play trains and cars with my son, right?
30:57
Now, certainly God is not a toddler.
30:59
And God doesn't need us to express our love to him in this way.
31:03
But the way we show ourselves that we trust him,
31:06
the way we show ourselves that we believe that he is the provider of all things,
31:11
that all things belong to him,
31:13
the way we show others that we believe that that is true is we give.
31:19
We give liberally.
31:21
We give a tenth and a beyond.
31:24
We say this money came from God.
31:28
It belongs to God.
31:30
He can use it however he wants to use it.
31:32
And I know he'll continue to provide for me.
31:35
I can tell you in my own life,
31:37
in my short life of earning money and giving,
31:41
God has never, ever failed me.
31:45
You all have all had everything you've ever needed.
31:48
Even in some of your stinginess, right?
31:51
You've had what you needed.
31:52
Try giving and see what God will do for you.
31:54
See if he won't continue to provide for you faithfully.
32:00
So it honors that God is the owner and giver of all things.
32:03
He is the owner and giver of all things,
32:04
whether you recognize it or not.
32:06
But it honors that.
32:07
It gives evidence that you believe it to be true.
32:09
It shows other people that as well.
32:13
Thirdly,
32:15
giving at least a tenth today
32:18
helps protect our hearts from the wiles of money.
32:23
From the wiles of money,
32:27
the deceitfulness,
32:29
if you would prefer,
32:31
of money.
32:31
That was the word that popped into my head
32:32
and I liked it.
32:33
So,
32:34
I used it.
32:36
It helps protect our hearts
32:38
from the wiles of money.
32:40
hear me carefully.
32:41
It helps protect our hearts.
32:43
It's not the only thing.
32:43
You can consistently give,
32:47
put a number in your head and give,
32:49
and still be deceived by money.
32:52
Right?
32:52
But it helps protect.
32:54
Letting it loose into the kingdom
32:56
helps protect our hearts
32:57
from the wiles of money.
33:00
Turn to Hebrews chapter 13.
33:01
This is going to be the reason
33:08
you guys prefer verse by verse.
33:19
Beginning in verse 5.
33:20
Keep your life free from love of money
33:24
and be content with what you have.
33:27
For he has said,
33:29
this is so good,
33:30
keep your life free from love of money
33:32
and be content with what you have
33:33
because of a promise.
33:35
Right?
33:35
You can do this
33:36
because there's a promise
33:37
that's been made to us.
33:39
I will never leave you
33:40
nor forsake you.
33:43
So,
33:43
we can say,
33:44
the Lord is my helper.
33:47
I will not fear.
33:48
What can man do to me?
33:51
And that's Psalm 118.6
33:52
that the writer of Hebrews
33:54
is quoting there.
33:55
Right?
33:55
Money is not the solution
33:57
to our problems.
33:58
Money is not our security.
34:00
The fact that Jesus has said,
34:02
I will never leave you
34:03
nor forsake you
34:05
is our security.
34:06
Right?
34:06
Therefore,
34:07
we can keep our life free
34:08
from love of it.
34:09
We can keep ourselves
34:10
away,
34:12
our hearts from being captured
34:13
by the deceitfulness
34:16
of money
34:17
because Jesus has said,
34:19
I will never leave you
34:20
nor forsake you.
34:22
I will care for you
34:24
as a father does
34:25
for a son.
34:28
Matthew 6,
34:29
verse 19.
34:31
I'm going to start reading it.
34:32
You can get there
34:32
if you want to.
34:34
Do not lay up for yourselves
34:35
treasures on earth
34:37
where moth and rust destroy
34:38
and where thieves break in
34:40
and steal.
34:43
But lay up for yourselves
34:44
treasures in heaven
34:45
where neither moth nor rust destroys
34:47
and where thieves do not break in
34:48
and steal.
34:50
For where your treasure is,
34:52
there your heart will be also.
34:55
The eye is the lamp of the body.
34:57
It's beginning in verse 22.
34:59
So if your eye is healthy,
35:01
your whole body will be full of light.
35:03
But if your eye is bad,
35:05
your whole body will be full of darkness.
35:07
If then the light in you is darkness,
35:10
how great is the darkness.
35:13
No one can serve two masters
35:14
for either he will hate the one
35:16
and love the other
35:17
or he will be devoted to the one
35:19
and despise the other.
35:21
You cannot serve God and money.
35:26
Ah, these words of Jesus
35:28
should just rip through our Christian culture.
35:31
Right?
35:32
Just leave people laid waste
35:35
through our Christian culture.
35:37
You cannot serve God and money.
35:41
Now the interesting language
35:43
beginning in verse 22
35:44
about the eye,
35:45
this was a common Greek analogy,
35:49
a metaphor.
35:51
This eye was thought to be
35:52
the eye of the mind.
35:53
So essentially,
35:54
he's saying
35:55
the way in which you think,
35:59
the way in which you process,
36:00
the things that you love
36:01
and hold dear,
36:02
that is a lamp to the body.
36:04
Right?
36:05
So if you love the world,
36:07
if you serve money,
36:08
if you do that kind of thing,
36:09
that's what's going to fill you.
36:10
That's what he's saying to us here.
36:12
Right?
36:12
If you love God,
36:14
your body will be full of light.
36:15
Right?
36:15
This is the idea
36:16
that's being communicated.
36:17
He says,
36:17
so if your eye is healthy,
36:19
your whole body will be full of light.
36:20
If your eye is bad,
36:21
your whole body will be full of darkness.
36:24
And then he sums this up
36:25
by saying,
36:26
you cannot serve God and money.
36:30
And I think that we all have read this
36:33
and we've all said,
36:33
well, that's fine.
36:34
Like, that's cool.
36:35
I get that.
36:36
That's very clear to me.
36:37
I understand that to be true.
36:39
And we quickly then want to say,
36:41
well, but it's okay to have things.
36:43
We just can't serve things.
36:45
And to a degree,
36:46
I'd say, yes, that's true.
36:48
There are some things you can have.
36:49
I'm not making a call to you today
36:51
that you ought to be impoverished
36:53
by any stretch of the imagination.
36:55
Right?
36:55
Some people would make a pitch
36:57
at this point to say
36:58
that much of the world
36:59
only lives on a dollar a day.
37:00
Well, it's more expensive
37:01
to live in the United States.
37:02
Right?
37:02
It's not really a fair comparison.
37:04
It costs more to live
37:06
in the United States.
37:07
But we all have so much more
37:10
than we need.
37:12
We all have so much more
37:15
than we need.
37:16
Many places in the world
37:17
they're very thankful
37:18
to have one pair of shoes
37:19
that are not worn out.
37:20
How many pairs of shoes do you have?
37:23
Can you count them?
37:26
Socially acceptable
37:27
to have a couple different pairs of shoes.
37:28
I would agree.
37:29
Not really probably good
37:31
to wear flip-flops to a formal.
37:33
Right?
37:33
It's okay to have
37:34
some things like that
37:35
in the culture that we live in.
37:37
But you have to really ask yourself.
37:39
Right?
37:39
Really ask yourself.
37:40
If I have
37:41
some of the things I have,
37:42
do I not worship them?
37:44
Right?
37:45
If I came to you
37:46
and any given thing
37:47
that you owned
37:47
and I said,
37:48
this would serve
37:49
the kingdom of God.
37:50
If I could only take this from you
37:52
and I could sell this,
37:53
we could do such good things
37:54
with the kingdom of God.
37:55
How long would you hesitate
37:57
before you said,
37:58
okay?
38:00
Right?
38:01
Test yourself
38:02
in this way.
38:03
Ask God to show you
38:05
the things that you serve
38:06
in your life.
38:08
Right?
38:08
These things
38:09
will be indicative
38:10
of where your heart
38:11
is at.
38:12
Let me give you
38:13
a couple of examples.
38:15
Some men in history.
38:17
Many of you,
38:17
I hope,
38:18
know who Rich Mullins is.
38:19
Many of you probably
38:20
don't know who he is
38:21
and you should.
38:21
You should go
38:22
check out his lyrics.
38:26
Rich Mullins
38:26
took all the profits
38:28
from his tours
38:28
and album sales
38:29
and gave them,
38:31
they were entrusted
38:32
to his church.
38:33
He gave all of these
38:34
to his church
38:35
who paid him,
38:37
and this was by his request,
38:38
the average salary
38:40
in the U.S. that year.
38:41
Right?
38:42
He made millions of dollars
38:43
in his career.
38:45
Very, very popular,
38:47
famous Christian artist.
38:48
Made millions of dollars.
38:50
It was all given
38:50
to his church,
38:51
and all he asked for
38:52
in return
38:52
was that he wanted
38:53
an allowance.
38:53
He wanted to make
38:54
what the average male
38:55
made in the U.S. that year.
38:57
And the rest of it
38:58
was given away
38:59
to kingdom purposes.
39:00
Right?
39:01
Rich Mullins
39:02
didn't trust himself
39:03
with his own money.
39:04
That's why he did it that way.
39:06
He said,
39:07
I don't want to be deceived
39:09
by riches.
39:10
I don't want to be drawn away
39:12
from my devotion to God
39:13
by the temptation
39:14
of all that money.
39:16
So I'm going to give it
39:16
to the church.
39:17
It's all going straight
39:18
to them,
39:18
and they're going to
39:19
give it out.
39:20
In that way.
39:21
Just give me what it takes
39:22
for the average guy
39:22
to live each year.
39:25
Another great example
39:25
is John Wesley.
39:28
In the first year
39:29
of his ministry,
39:29
his income
39:30
was 30 pounds.
39:33
I don't know how
39:33
to translate that
39:34
to you.
39:36
Especially not for the year
39:37
that he lived in.
39:38
1700s.
39:39
But it was 30 pounds.
39:40
And he found
39:41
he could live on 28.
39:42
So he gave away two.
39:44
In the second year,
39:45
his income doubled.
39:46
But he held
39:48
his expenses even.
39:49
And so he had
39:50
32 pounds
39:51
to give away.
39:52
So catch that.
39:54
He gave away
39:55
more than he lived on.
39:57
So he was giving away
39:58
a full salary.
40:00
In the third year,
40:02
his income jumped
40:03
to 90 pounds
40:04
and he gave away
40:05
62 pounds.
40:07
In his long life,
40:09
Wesley's income
40:10
advanced to as high
40:11
as 1,400 pounds
40:12
in a year.
40:14
But he rarely let
40:15
his expenses rise
40:16
above 30 pounds
40:17
in a year.
40:18
So he was able
40:19
to do so much.
40:22
And this is where
40:23
we begin to think
40:23
of this idea
40:24
of giving at least
40:26
a tenth.
40:27
Giving at least
40:28
a tenth.
40:30
I would commend
40:30
to you for the reasons
40:31
that I already stated
40:32
that you ought to
40:33
just go ahead
40:34
and sit down
40:34
and pull out
40:34
the calculator.
40:35
Young people,
40:36
I know you don't
40:37
make a lot of money.
40:38
I know that your jobs
40:39
seem pitiful.
40:40
But you do
40:41
make money.
40:42
And it adds up.
40:44
It really does.
40:45
Sit down and do
40:45
the calculation
40:46
and figure it out
40:47
and start at this place
40:48
and begin to ask God
40:50
how he would have
40:50
you give more
40:51
and the ways
40:53
in which he would
40:53
have you give.
40:54
Should I give it
40:55
every bit of it
40:56
to the church?
40:57
Are there some
40:57
other ministry areas
40:58
that are important
40:59
that need my funding
41:00
as well?
41:01
Begin to be drawn
41:02
into relationship
41:03
with him
41:04
that he might direct
41:06
the way you give.
41:07
And that is the beauty
41:08
of us not being able
41:09
to make just a simple
41:10
easy law,
41:11
just a little dogmatic
41:12
thing that we go through
41:13
is that God says
41:15
there's some parameters
41:16
to the giving.
41:17
Right?
41:17
I want you to check this out.
41:19
It's going to be
41:20
about like this.
41:21
Here's the dangers
41:22
of not doing it.
41:24
Come to me
41:24
and I'll give you
41:25
the answers.
41:26
Right?
41:26
Come to me.
41:27
Spend time with me.
41:28
Sit with me.
41:29
Abide in my word.
41:30
Right?
41:30
Begin to care about
41:31
the things that I care about
41:32
and you'll start spending
41:33
your money
41:34
the way you're supposed
41:34
to spend your money.
41:36
Right?
41:37
So if you care about
41:38
how it is
41:38
you spend your money
41:39
then you're going
41:41
to draw it deeper.
41:42
You're going to go
41:43
into a deeper place
41:44
with the Lord
41:45
and that is always
41:46
always
41:46
a good thing.
41:49
Now people have asked me
41:50
various questions
41:54
about how
41:54
to do giving here.
41:56
We're actually
41:56
next week
41:57
going to pass
41:58
not a plate
41:58
probably a bucket.
42:00
So just look for
42:01
that change
42:01
next week.
42:03
We're going to be
42:04
looking for some ways
42:04
to better incorporate
42:06
giving together
42:07
as part of our
42:08
worship service.
42:09
Not to manipulate you
42:10
but to serve you.
42:12
To say this is important
42:13
and it matters.
42:14
We're going to be
42:14
looking for some ways
42:15
to do that.
42:16
But people have asked me
42:17
questions like
42:18
can we do online giving?
42:20
Is there a way
42:20
that maybe we could
42:21
take cards for giving?
42:23
Things like that.
42:25
And there's a
42:26
primary reason
42:27
that we don't do it.
42:28
Well I mean
42:28
there's two primary reasons.
42:30
The first one is
42:30
many of you may not
42:32
know this
42:33
but if you run a credit card
42:34
you have to pay
42:34
a credit card transaction fee
42:36
on it.
42:36
It's usually
42:36
just under 3%.
42:38
As a church
42:40
we don't want to pay
42:40
3% of all of our giving
42:42
to credit card companies.
42:44
That would
42:44
that would actually be
42:45
a pretty good ding
42:46
in our small budget.
42:47
And I don't think
42:48
you want that happening either.
42:49
I don't think
42:50
3% of what you give
42:51
you want going
42:52
to a credit card company.
42:54
But secondly
42:55
and really more importantly
42:56
it's good for you
42:59
to get into
42:59
the habit
43:00
of sitting down
43:03
writing the check
43:04
counting out
43:05
the singles
43:05
whatever it is
43:06
that you do
43:07
and going through
43:07
the practice
43:08
of doing that
43:09
of coming together
43:10
as we come together
43:11
as a church
43:11
and giving should be
43:13
something that's
43:13
on your mind.
43:15
We're a culture
43:16
that tends to consume
43:17
so much
43:18
in church setting
43:20
but to be thinking
43:21
about what can I do
43:22
to come and give
43:23
and of course
43:23
I don't just mean
43:24
financially
43:24
if that's what we're
43:25
talking about this morning.
43:26
You should be thinking
43:27
about how you can give
43:27
in all aspects
43:29
of our service together
43:30
but that's a way
43:32
for you to be thinking
43:32
like what is my part
43:34
to play?
43:34
What do I do
43:35
in this service?
43:37
How is it that I can
43:37
come and contribute
43:38
to what's going on?
43:39
You can certainly
43:40
always contribute
43:42
in that way.
43:43
You can never give
43:45
too much
43:46
to our church.
43:48
I promise
43:49
that we will do
43:49
God honoring things
43:50
with the budget.
43:52
Getting involved
43:53
in giving
43:54
is a really
43:55
really valuable way
43:56
for you to get involved
43:57
with the life
43:57
of a church too
43:58
and I'm speaking
43:59
specifically
43:59
to young people.
44:01
You should be
44:02
giving your money
44:03
to a local church
44:03
and you should be
44:04
caring what the local
44:05
church is doing
44:05
with those funds.
44:06
It should matter to you.
44:08
We have a quarterly
44:08
budget meeting
44:09
for that very reason.
44:10
We want to be
44:11
very above board.
44:12
We want to say
44:12
this is the budget
44:14
that we decided on
44:15
together as a church.
44:16
This is the direction
44:17
we said that the Lord
44:18
is leading us in
44:19
this year
44:19
and we're supporting it.
44:21
Here's what we're
44:21
doing with it.
44:21
This is where the money
44:22
is going or
44:23
we don't have enough money.
44:24
What are we going to do?
44:24
What are we not going to do
44:26
as a result?
44:27
Look, we have an abundance.
44:28
Abundance.
44:29
Praise God for the times
44:30
that that's happened.
44:31
What should we do
44:31
with the abundance?
44:32
How should it be spent
44:33
on the kingdom?
44:34
It's a valuable way
44:35
to get involved
44:36
in the life of a church
44:37
and as you get older
44:39
you're going to make more
44:40
and you're going to give more
44:41
and I really hope
44:42
that you get more invested
44:43
in a church
44:44
in that way.
44:47
Alright, that was thirdly.
44:49
Fourthly,
44:51
giving at least a tenth today
44:53
is a means for good works
44:58
which glorify God.
45:01
It's a means for good works
45:03
which glorify God.
45:07
I think most of you
45:08
who are hearing me
45:09
and understanding
45:10
what I'm saying right now
45:11
understand that things
45:13
cost money in this world.
45:14
Right?
45:15
The way things get accomplished
45:17
in this world
45:18
is by money.
45:20
2 Corinthians chapter 9
45:22
verse 6 through 10.
45:27
Turn there.
45:28
You should turn there.
45:30
I didn't hear pages flipping.
45:31
You should turn there.
45:38
And we're almost done.
45:50
2 Corinthians 9
45:54
beginning in verse 6.
45:55
The point is this.
45:58
Whoever sows sparingly
45:59
will also reap sparingly.
46:02
And whoever sows bountifully
46:04
will also reap bountifully.
46:06
We've been talking about
46:07
sowing, haven't we?
46:09
Back in Matthew,
46:10
I mean, excuse me,
46:10
Mark chapter 4.
46:12
The one who sows sparingly
46:13
will reap sparingly.
46:14
Whoever sows bountifully
46:15
will also reap bountifully.
46:17
Here, Paul's talking about giving.
46:19
How is it that we give?
46:20
Financially.
46:21
Verse 7.
46:22
Each one must give
46:22
as he has decided in his heart,
46:24
not reluctantly
46:25
or under a compulsion,
46:26
for God loves
46:28
a cheerful giver.
46:30
And God is able to make
46:31
all grace abound to you
46:33
so that having
46:34
all sufficiency
46:35
in all things
46:37
at all times,
46:39
you may abound
46:39
in every good work.
46:42
As it is written,
46:44
He has distributed freely.
46:45
He has given to the poor.
46:46
His righteousness
46:47
endures forever.
46:49
He who supplies
46:50
seed to the sower
46:51
and bread for food
46:52
will supply and multiply
46:54
your seed
46:55
for sowing
46:56
and increase
46:57
the harvest
46:58
of your righteousness.
47:00
Now, get what Paul
47:00
is saying here to us.
47:02
That if you
47:02
give bountifully,
47:05
right,
47:05
it's the admonition
47:06
he's making there
47:07
in verse 6.
47:08
If you give bountifully,
47:09
God will continue
47:10
to provide to you
47:11
bountifully,
47:11
but not so that you
47:12
can have stuff,
47:14
right?
47:14
He doesn't say
47:15
having all sufficiency
47:16
in all things
47:17
in verse 8
47:18
and ended at that.
47:20
Yeah, give
47:21
so that you can have.
47:22
No, that's not
47:22
what he's saying at all.
47:23
He's saying give
47:24
so that you can have
47:24
so that you can give
47:26
in verse 8.
47:27
You may abound
47:27
in every good work,
47:29
right?
47:29
And you see,
47:30
the result of this
47:31
is that our righteousness
47:33
has an increase,
47:36
right?
47:37
The reason we're
47:38
given things
47:39
is that we might
47:39
enjoy God
47:40
and enjoy the kingdom
47:41
of God,
47:42
that we might
47:42
give freely to it
47:44
and experience
47:45
what God does
47:46
in those circumstances,
47:48
right?
47:49
That we give away
47:50
something that we
47:50
can't hold on to
47:51
and we can't keep
47:52
to gain things
47:53
that we can.
47:54
We store up treasure
47:55
in heaven
47:55
rather than treasure
47:56
on earth.
47:58
So we give
48:01
so we can get
48:01
so we can give
48:02
so we can get
48:02
so we can give
48:03
so we can get
48:03
so we can give
48:04
and this is God's economy
48:05
and the way in which
48:06
God's people
48:06
can accomplish
48:07
so, so much
48:10
financially.
48:12
There's a test
48:15
God asks of us
48:17
or we ask of God
48:19
in Malachi 3,
48:20
verse 10.
48:20
He says,
48:21
Bring the full tithe
48:21
into the storehouse
48:22
that there may be
48:23
food in my house
48:24
and thereby put me
48:25
to the test,
48:26
says the Lord of hosts,
48:27
if I will not open
48:28
the windows of heaven
48:30
for you and pour down
48:31
for you a blessing
48:31
until there is no
48:32
more need.
48:35
Just see what will
48:36
happen if you begin
48:37
to give the way
48:38
I've asked you to give.
48:40
See if I don't just
48:41
continue to pour down
48:43
on you and provide
48:44
and to provide
48:45
and to provide
48:46
and to provide.
48:48
This is the way
48:49
in which God
48:50
accomplishes
48:51
His work.
48:52
And I hope
48:53
that it is your
48:54
great desire,
48:55
I hope it is your
48:55
primary desire
48:56
in your life
48:57
to magnify
48:58
God.
49:00
Because of what
49:01
He's done on your
49:02
behalf in the gospel.
49:04
Because He sent Christ
49:05
to die on your behalf.
49:07
That it is your
49:08
great desire
49:09
and great joy
49:10
in this life
49:10
to magnify
49:11
the person
49:11
and work
49:12
of Jesus Christ.
49:13
And so by
49:14
magnify the Father.
49:15
Shouldn't it be?
49:16
It would be the
49:17
great desire
49:17
of all of our lives
49:18
not to have
49:19
more stuff,
49:20
not to own
49:21
more things
49:22
or go on
49:22
better vacations
49:23
or have a
49:24
better experience
49:25
here or there.
49:26
But to make
49:27
Christ known,
49:29
it should be.
49:31
That's not always
49:32
for me.
49:32
It should be.
49:33
It should always be.
49:34
It should always
49:35
be the case.
49:36
How is it
49:38
that we're
49:38
using our money
49:39
to accomplish
49:40
this thing?
49:41
So giving
49:41
at least a tenth
49:43
today is in
49:44
keeping with
49:44
the purpose
49:45
of the tithe
49:45
in its day.
49:46
It honors God
49:47
as the owner
49:48
and giver
49:49
of all things.
49:50
It helps protect
49:51
our hearts
49:51
from the wiles
49:52
of money
49:53
and it is a
49:54
means for good
49:55
works
49:56
which glorify God.
49:57
Let's pray together.