Money and the Church
Every church at some time has asked: "What if everyone in our church practiced biblical tithing?" If we were good stewards with that money, it could be a powerful tool for a purpose driven church. God's kingdom would be advanced. Only through money? Absolutely not. Without the Holy Spirit's presence and power, the church will do nothing that ultimately matters, even with abundant financial resources. Money is a tool, but only a tool.
I heard a stagering statistic related to this thought. Here's what could happen if the everyone in the church practiced biblical tithing. Ponder this: "If members of historically Christian congregations in the US had given at the 10% level in 2003, an additional $156 billion would have been available for mission." Yes, that is billion with a "b."
I have heard people say that one of the reasons people do not want to give a worthy portion of their money to the church, is that they don't want to unleash such power in the church. Whether or not that is true, the church would be able to better compete with the world with greater financial resources. Think about it. Are we holding back ALL that the church could do by holding back in our giving?
My wife and I began tithing when it made no sense, if you know what I mean. We were just starting out. Our income was meager. But we had this conviction that we should give 10% of all our income to the Lord. It was not well thought out. I did not have a theology of giving. I could not cite biblical texts to support our convictions. But we have practiced biblical giving for 39 years. And we are glad about that. It is true that God will bless you for giving, but not necessarily financially. If fact you may not be able to do some things you wanted to do because you gave away some of your resources. It's all about where your heart is.
We are trying to stretch our giving further. 10% is only a biblical starting point. If we give according to our blessings, we will want to move beyond the norm of tithing.
I heard a stagering statistic related to this thought. Here's what could happen if the everyone in the church practiced biblical tithing. Ponder this: "If members of historically Christian congregations in the US had given at the 10% level in 2003, an additional $156 billion would have been available for mission." Yes, that is billion with a "b."
I have heard people say that one of the reasons people do not want to give a worthy portion of their money to the church, is that they don't want to unleash such power in the church. Whether or not that is true, the church would be able to better compete with the world with greater financial resources. Think about it. Are we holding back ALL that the church could do by holding back in our giving?
My wife and I began tithing when it made no sense, if you know what I mean. We were just starting out. Our income was meager. But we had this conviction that we should give 10% of all our income to the Lord. It was not well thought out. I did not have a theology of giving. I could not cite biblical texts to support our convictions. But we have practiced biblical giving for 39 years. And we are glad about that. It is true that God will bless you for giving, but not necessarily financially. If fact you may not be able to do some things you wanted to do because you gave away some of your resources. It's all about where your heart is.
We are trying to stretch our giving further. 10% is only a biblical starting point. If we give according to our blessings, we will want to move beyond the norm of tithing.
posted by Pastor Randy Gauger at
8:56 AM
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