Preached by Rev. Ed Brouwer at The Gathering Place, Osoyoos
Pulpit Series Volume 20 Issue 8 April 25, 2010
Today in this sermon I’d like to focus on one of the ways that you and I have been called to do the work of God on earth.
Matthew 10:7-8 As you go, preach, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand. Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely give.
These were the marching orders that Jesus gave His disciples.
How is the work of God funded?
God did not intend for His church to beg for money… (There is no record of that in scriptures.) From the beginning, God has chosen to finance His work through the system of tithing.
Since Moses, God directed support through offerings
1. The Tithe was for temple and Levites
2. They tithed EVERYTHING (Grain, money, any gain)
I Chronicles 29:1-9 King David said to the entire assembly, "My son Solomon, whom alone God has chosen, is still young and inexperienced and the work is great; for the temple is not for man, but for the LORD God. "Now with all my ability I have provided for the house of my God the gold for the things of gold, and the silver for the things of silver, and the bronze for the things of bronze, the iron for the things of iron, and wood for the things of wood, onyx stones and inlaid stones, stones of antimony and stones of various colors, and all kinds of precious stones and alabaster in abundance. “Moreover, in my delight in the house of my God, the treasure I have of gold and silver, I give to the house of my God, over and above all that I have already provided for the holy temple.. (3,000 talents of gold, 7,000 talents of refined silver)… the people rejoiced because they had offered so willingly, for they made their offering to the LORD with a whole heart, and King David also rejoiced greatly.
Old Testament was a system of Law, and Jesus expounded on the spirit of the law.
Adultery - Jesus demanded more - No Lust
Murder - Jesus demanded more - No Hate
Why do we think He demands less when it comes to our giving?
I Corinthians 16:1-2 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also.
On the first day of every week each one of you is to put aside and save, as he may prosper, so that no collections be made when I come.
Give as you prosper (Colgate and the others)
We plan all our bills with forethought, how much forethought goes into what you set aside to support God’s work?
We need to understand that there is a difference between tithes and offerings.
Thank God for people who give beyond tithes. Unfortunately for many people it goes like this... “Well I like the church this week, so I'm going to give it an offering”
However, we must understand that we have a spiritual obligation to God in the area of money.
When pastors preach on the subject of money, it gets real quiet... just like it is now.
Some think pastors stop preaching and get to meddling when they speak about tithing and offerings. But it is all part of true discipleship.
Malachi 3:8-9 Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed me. But you say, In what way have we robbed You?... the answer ...In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation.
Have you ever focused on the principle in Psalm 24 The earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. For He has founded it upon the seas, And established it upon the waters”.
Psalm 50:10-15 For every beast of the forest is Mine, And the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains, And the wild beasts of the fields are Mine. If I were hungry, I wouldn’t tell you; For the world is Mine and all its fullness.
The principal is God owns everything!
God wants us to acknowledge that He owns it all, by giving back to Him a portion of what we control, a portion of what we say is ours, a tenth of the things that we possess.
When we tithe, we proclaim that God is our God. Tithing is an act of worship, the tithe is holy, it belongs to God.
It may help you to understand that the church is responsible to God for how it spends the tithe… we individuals are responsible to give it.
God mentions that if we pay our vows to Him, He is going to deliver us in time of trouble. Proverbs 3:9 Honor the LORD with your possessions, with the first fruits of all your increase; so your barns may be filled and your vats will overflow with new wine.
Tithing, quite frankly, makes the ministry totally and financially free to be responsible to God. If the Church were financed through the pleading efforts of the ministry in begging you for money, human nature would lead - it would lead to the ministry bowing to the whims and wishes of the congregation
Now back in Malachi 3:10-11 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, try Me now in this," says the LORD, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such a blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field," says the LORD
Brethren, what God is telling us is;
· Someone can steal from God, by not paying their tithes/offerings.
· Tithing is an act of worship.
· In tithing we acknowledge who is God in our lives
· If we honor God with our tithe, He will be free to bless us.
In closing, who does the Bible say was being robbed? Were the Levites being robbed? Were the priests being robbed? Were the ministers being robbed? No, God says He was being robbed!
You have robbed Me by not giving Me the tithe that belongs to Me, that which I say is holy.
Who is the victim if God is being robbed? The person who robs God comes under a curse.
Does God miss the $10 you as a young person didn't tithe? Did He wonder where His next meal was coming from?
We've already read the scriptural proof, that He doesn't need it, He owns everything! Tithing is not so much for God as it is for us.
Tithing is personal. It is between the individual and God.
You and I honor God with our tithe and in doing so He promises to bless us, to keep us, to watch over us.
Not only does God desire bless us if we give His tithe to Him, He rebukes the devourer.
The Ouch Factor: So what is it you gave God last week a tip, token or a tithe?
CONCLUSION:
Plan your giving, purpose in your heart what you will give to God and BE GENEROUS, God does not take leftovers
Generous giving please God
Generous giving helps to further God’s work speedily
Generous giving HONORS God
James 5:1-3 The “withheld pay” is Exhibit A in the evidence stacked up against the rich.
I wonder if withheld tithes and offerings will be viewed the same way.
Proverbs 11:24 One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.
Billy Graham, says: “One of the greatest sins in America today is the fact that we are robbing God of that which rightfully belongs to Him. When we don’t tithe, we shirk a just debt. Actually we are not giving when we give God one-tenth, for it belongs to Him already Leviticus. 27:30. This is a debt we owe. Not until we have given a tenth do we actually begin making an offering to the Lord!”
No comments:
Post a Comment