Christian Living Archives - Page 15 of 21

Tithing: What About The Curse?

August 22, 2012 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

Not All Curses Are Mystical
Not All Tithers Are Immune

In the very last book of the Old Testament, almost the last chapter of the book, Malachi makes an extraordinary statement. It contains a promise that is both positive and negative, good and bad news, and it focuses on one’s material well being.

On the one hand it promises a material blessing and on the other it guarantees a curse. No middle ground is mentioned.

Kind of like a cold sweat, this verse offers thrills and chills at the same time. Since God made the promise we need to study it carefully.

[do_widget id=media_image-4]

The promise is found in Malachi 3:8-10 and Malachi is quoting God.

Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed me. But you say, Wherein have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings.

9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for you have robbed me, even this whole nation.

10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in my house, and prove me now herewith, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

Even though some think this applies only to Israel in the Old Testament it still deserves a look. The blessing mentioned here is repeated by Jesus in the New Testament and since it was originally attached to the tithe it makes sense to understand how it worked.

God Promises To Bless Tithing

Exactly what is tithing? Usually the word “tithe” is associated with money and money is involved but it is much more than finance. Tithing involves a relationship between the individual and God, and the arrangement is simple. The individual faithfully tithes and God, in turn, blesses materially and in other ways. The important thing to remember is that this isn’t just another good idea for raising ministry funds. Malachi was quoting God not expressing his personal opinions and he wasn’t making a “general” appeal for offerings.

The formula is not difficult to grasp. The only question is, exactly what constitutes a tithe? We need to answer that question because God promised to bless tithing specifically, not “generosity” or “giving” in general. This wasn’t a promise to respond in kind.

In a nutshell God said:

Tithe! I’ll bless you for it. You’re cursed anyway. You’re robbing me when you don’t.

This isn’t poetry. It’s a clear, concise statement of truth. Even though some think the “curse” and the apparent demand for a tithe seems harsh there are reasons to think differently.

Unlike salvation which is unconditional, tithing is contractual and conditional. It has two sides. We do our part and God does His part. Salvation is unconditionally guaranteed but God’s material blessing is not. God does the blessing only when you do the tithing. Doing whatever you feel you can, whenever you think possible is not the deal, so we need to understand how tithing worked, especially as it relates to blessing-cursing. This will give us a format to work with today. [Read more…] about Tithing: What About The Curse?

Be A Toothpicker Not A Nitpicker

August 20, 2012 by EnnisP 1 Comment

Being Only Positive, Only Negative
or Only Neutral
Is Not Constructive

This is the second sermon in our “Stick” series in which sticks are used to illustrate things we should do or be as a church. The first sermon used “Chopsticks” to illustrate the functionality of the church. It emphasized the importance of each member’s committed effort in the work a church does.

Chopsticks work well only with coordination and practice and the same is true with church members.

This sermon, however, uses toothpicks to illustrate the importance of constructively critical interaction between the members. To do better we must get better. A toothpick symbolizes the decent and appropriate approach to finding and removing flaws.

So, the first message focused on function and the second focuses on relation.

To keep the picture clear it is important to start with a few passages of Scripture. We are talking about the church so it is important to have an idea what the Bible says about this organization.

That makes sense. Church is not my idea or your idea or just a good idea, it is God’s idea so we need to know what He says about it.

So let’s take a look.

The Church Is Functional

In Matthew chapter 16 and verses 19 and 20 Jesus was speaking to His disciples – core members of the church He started – and He said:

I will build my church (you guys), and the gates of hell will not prevail against it (you). 19 I will give you (the church) the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

There are a couple of interesting observations to take away from this passage.

One, Jesus is the one building the church.

We, the church members, work but Jesus is ultimately the leader and builder. He makes things work together for our good. He does what we can’t do and brings about outcomes that we might not otherwise realize.

As builders with Christ we must be faithful, committed and determined to do our best but Jesus is in the lead. It’s kind of a paradox. He does the building but not without us. He works through people and for them.

Two, this passage resonates with delegated authority and personal responsibility.

Jesus is the builder but we have the “keys” to the kingdom. The person with keys is trusted. God designates which doors are to be opened but “key” people unlock them. That’s power!

Simply put, having the keys means we are authorized to make decisions, initiate action and perform functions – binding and loosing. And to say we are authorized to do this means we are accountable if we don’t. Sitting around doing nothing is not an appropriate response to a passage like this. [Read more…] about Be A Toothpicker Not A Nitpicker

Can Time Replace Money for Tithes?

August 18, 2012 by EnnisP 1 Comment

Anyone Can And Should
Give Their Time To God
Should We Consider It A Tithe

A person’s time can qualify as their tithe but under what conditions? Can anyone do this? Would all time-served qualify?

Just off the top of my head, I came up with a few thoughts on the matter. You be the judge but keep this in mind. For time to qualify as a tithe, it must add value to the organization.

Churches are not aimless. God commissioned them to do many good things in this world and, large or small, they need some kind of structure to get the job done. Tithe money is the resource for funding the effort so if time and service are to qualify as a tithe then following are some possible ideas for gauging the effectiveness of a person’s time.

It doesn’t have to be overly rigid but a few guidelines to keep in mind are:

Serve the same amount of time regularly.
Serve in a pre appointed time slot or at lease one that coordinates with the church schedule.
Serve in a capacity you can handle.
Serve reliably.
Serve cooperatively and under the direction of the organization.
Provide a useful service.

Sounds like an employment contract and it should. Giving your time as a tithe instead of money should work very much like a job. Employees work at a designated time and perform specified functions for which they are paid, usually by the hour.

Not showing up on time or performing poorly can be more hurtful than helpful, just like a job.

The time you serve in church shouldn’t be treated any less significantly than any other employment. It is important. It needs to add value.

THINK!AboutIt?

Be A Chopstick Not A Chop

August 7, 2012 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

What Do Churches and Chopsticks
Have In Common

We recently had “Chopstick” Sunday at church. The title of the sermon was “Be A Chopstick Not A Chop” and the message was quite simple.

Instead of being just an individual attending church, each person should aim more and more toward becoming a collective part of the whole.

The word Church, after all, is a collective noun. It refers to one entity but is made up of many parts working in unison – church members – and chopsticks illustrate what that looks like in practice.

You could say the word hand is also a collective noun. It is one appendage on your body but it has several parts – digits – that work well together to do many complex things, like hold and use chopsticks. Easier said than done.

Chopsticks are very simple gadgets but aren’t so easy to use. They enable a person to eat food one-handedly but it takes more than just chopsticks to accomplish this. It requires the synchronized effort of at least four fingers coordinated enough to perform the task.

Each finger has a different part to play and must practice to get the movements correct. The skill to grip a piece of food with chopsticks and transport it without incident from plate to mouth doesn’t come naturally. It requires each part to perform a different function separately but in unison to accomplish this goal.

I’m not sure why anyone would want to eat food one-handedly but they do and chopsticks in a deft hand make that happen. The point is, like chopsticks, the church involves many different parts working together, with coordination, to accomplish whatever goal they visualize.

And just like chopsticks, it takes practice to get it right. This is important because in a word, the best way to describe a human being is: limited. We are not stand-alone entities. For any individual to accomplish any notable thing, others must do their part. Therefore, the philosophy is: [Read more…] about Be A Chopstick Not A Chop

What Does “Purpose In Your Heart” Mean?

July 17, 2012 by EnnisP Leave a Comment

“To give or not to give”
Is NOT The Question

Every Christian knows that “giving” is what we do. No one questions it. It is automatic. Even new Christians, not yet schooled in the art of giving, have a nagging sense of responsibility to give. When urged to do so they give without hesitation, in most cases. This means, of course, that “Giving” or “Not Giving” is not the question.

The real question is “how much should one give and how regularly?”

Or to put it another way, how does one determine how much they should personally give? Is there biblical instruction, a rule of thumb to follow, or a general principle to apply?

Most of the responses to that question fall into one of two categories: Tithing or Grace Giving.

Tithing is contributing 10% of your net income (some say gross) to God’s purposes. That statement isn’t exactly clear. There are still questions to answer but the Grace concept is a little less definitive. I’ll share more just now.

[do_widget “Image”]

Unfortunately, the discussion between the adherents of these two schools is often frictious. Not always but often and that isn’t strange. Money is a sensitive issue so we shouldn’t be surprised when people get lathered during discussions on right and wrong ways to manage it. For the record, just so you know, I’m not trying to start a fight here. [Read more…] about What Does “Purpose In Your Heart” Mean?