Just as a word of clarification on my purpose, I created this blog as a way to share a bit of myself with my friends and family - but mostly to share about my passion for the Lord Jesus Christ with anyone - and I mean anyone who will glimpse at these pages. In recent days, one person in particular has tried to make this blog a place for political commentary or debate. This is not the place.
Secondly, I would ask as a courtesy that - if you have a comment to make about a post - and I welcome that whether it's good, bad or indifferent - of course I would expect it to be "civil" and absent of profanity or other disrespectful overtones - that you attach your name. It simply is not the stuff of a real man to submit a writing and then run away from it as a scared dog. That is not what being a man is about.
I hope you will honor these requests - which I think are reasonable.
Thursday, December 30, 2010
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
A Timely Word on Giving - 2011
It seems like a good time to think about the idea of giving. I want to share a word from my friend and brother in Christ, Dr. Don Wilton, pastor of First Baptist Church Spartanburg. He shared in a writing yesterday morning:
Are you tithing? The Old and New Testament support the idea of the tithe. That is 10% on the gross - the gross - that is - of your family income.
This "tithe" is to the LOCAL CHURCH - NOT to the local YMCA, the United Way, the local organization that supports Pro Life or the Boy Scouts of America or the local Christian College or Love Worth Finding with Dr. Adrian Rogers or "Focus on the Family" or some other worthy ministry that is indeed worthy of your support. And if they are an organization focused on Biblical truth, they will tell you not to give to their organization until you have given your tithe to your local church.
Many of you are thinking, "my gosh, there's no way I can afford to do that!" - well, I'll only tell you what I've heard Dr. Gaines say a hundred times - "Respectfully, you can't afford NOT do do it... Will a man ROB the living God!?"
Are you giving above the tithe? This is called "sacrificial giving". Are you giving out of obedience to ministries and individuals God calls you by his Holy Spirit to give to? In short, are you giving 'til it hurts? There is nothing inherantly "wrong" with saving money for rainy days and retirement, but you must realize that "hoarding" money or being greedy with what God has given you is indeed sinful. All of it is on loan from Him. "Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." II Corinthians 9:7 We should never, ever give compulsively, without thinking it out or give with a bad feeling or in duress.. "God, I wish you weren't making me do this." We should, instead, think carefully and pray and listen for the Holy Spirit. According to Malachi 3:7-12,man cannot "outgive"God.
7Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? 8Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
9Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
10Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith 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.
11And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.
12And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.
This is the one time in the Bible where God seems to say, "Go ahead, I dare you, try me!!" And that is most definitely what he is saying!! He is saying, you have my promise, OBEY my command and I will fulfill what I have told you. We have three reasons to tithe. First of all, we need to obey as his children as an indication of our love for him. Secondly, he promises there will be - to use the parlance of our time "R.O.I. - "Return On Investment". Finally, we know that our local church needs these funds for basic operating costs, but that people are going to be saved, lives are going to changed forever, saints are being edified, these moneys are being used for KINGDOM PURPOSES!!! That's big - and it's everlasting. It will not burn up. If I spend $.99 on an iTunes songs or $24.99 on a new base ball cap, where will either one be in just five years? If I send $25 to Gideons International it will buy 33 copies of the New Testament to send around the World. It's just a thought.
Where is your heart in giving? When God lays it on your heart to help someone - and I hope he does that often - how do you do it? Do you make a public spectacle of it? Do you tell everyone about it? OR - do you casually slip the cash into an envelope and give it to a trusted acquaintance and ask him or her to give it to the person and insist that they NOT divulge who it came from?? That way - NO DOUBT about it - GOD gets all the credit - NOT YOU..
In conclusion, these are all difficult questions for me, too. And they are extraordinarily challenging financial times. More difficult for me than ever, now that I find myself unemployed and looking for work - and having to rely on people and their kindnesses and - more than ever - pleading with people for their prayer. I tell you this my friends - with all my heart - we need from God what we cannot do for ourselves. And this, too, the prayer of God's people ALWAYS helps. I'm hear for you and love you with all of my heart. Thanks for taking the time to read. With the New Year upon us, I pray that you might bow the knee in prayer and think some on the subject of giving. More than ever, though, I pray that you might think some on what you have done with Jesus. If you haven't bowed your knee in the larger sense, confessed your sin before him and reached out to him to fill the greatest need in your life, I pray that you will begin that journey. Click here for more information from a trusted source:
http://theencouragingword.org/know-him-act-now
“Do not do your charitable deeds…to be seen.” Mt 6:1 NKJV God measures your giving in two ways: (a) Your means—how much do you have? (b) Your motives—why are you giving?
“Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven…Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly” (vv. 1-4 NKJV).
Here are two stories that illustrate the point Jesus was making.
Story one: In 1977 a couple agreed to donate the three million dollars needed to build a new children’s zoo in Central Park, New York City. But problems arose because the two-inch-tall plaque acknowledging their gift wasn’t big enough. Plus, a couple who’d donated half a million dollars thirty years earlier to build the original zoo, had a bigger plaque. It was proposed that the names of the original donors be replaced by the names of the new ones. When the park commission refused, the couple withdrew their gift.
Story two: It’s said that Charles Spurgeon and his wife would sell, but refused to give away the eggs their chickens laid. Even close relatives were told, “You may have them if you pay for them.” As a result the Spurgeons were misrepresented as being greedy. Only after Mrs. Spurgeon died was the full story revealed. All the profits from the sale of the eggs went to support two elderly widows.
Apparently the Spurgeons were more concerned with how God felt about their giving, than how people felt. How about you?"
I think Dr. Wilton's words are spot on. In my time at Bellevue Baptist Church, Dr. Steve Gaines preached several sermons on this topic. And I took several things away from those teachings that I'd like to share with you in this post. The summary of those points is really quite simple and cut to the heart of the matter.
Are you tithing? The Old and New Testament support the idea of the tithe. That is 10% on the gross - the gross - that is - of your family income.
This "tithe" is to the LOCAL CHURCH - NOT to the local YMCA, the United Way, the local organization that supports Pro Life or the Boy Scouts of America or the local Christian College or Love Worth Finding with Dr. Adrian Rogers or "Focus on the Family" or some other worthy ministry that is indeed worthy of your support. And if they are an organization focused on Biblical truth, they will tell you not to give to their organization until you have given your tithe to your local church.
Many of you are thinking, "my gosh, there's no way I can afford to do that!" - well, I'll only tell you what I've heard Dr. Gaines say a hundred times - "Respectfully, you can't afford NOT do do it... Will a man ROB the living God!?"
Are you giving above the tithe? This is called "sacrificial giving". Are you giving out of obedience to ministries and individuals God calls you by his Holy Spirit to give to? In short, are you giving 'til it hurts? There is nothing inherantly "wrong" with saving money for rainy days and retirement, but you must realize that "hoarding" money or being greedy with what God has given you is indeed sinful. All of it is on loan from Him. "Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." II Corinthians 9:7 We should never, ever give compulsively, without thinking it out or give with a bad feeling or in duress.. "God, I wish you weren't making me do this." We should, instead, think carefully and pray and listen for the Holy Spirit. According to Malachi 3:7-12,man cannot "outgive"God.
7Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? 8Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
9Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
10Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith 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.
11And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.
12And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.
This is the one time in the Bible where God seems to say, "Go ahead, I dare you, try me!!" And that is most definitely what he is saying!! He is saying, you have my promise, OBEY my command and I will fulfill what I have told you. We have three reasons to tithe. First of all, we need to obey as his children as an indication of our love for him. Secondly, he promises there will be - to use the parlance of our time "R.O.I. - "Return On Investment". Finally, we know that our local church needs these funds for basic operating costs, but that people are going to be saved, lives are going to changed forever, saints are being edified, these moneys are being used for KINGDOM PURPOSES!!! That's big - and it's everlasting. It will not burn up. If I spend $.99 on an iTunes songs or $24.99 on a new base ball cap, where will either one be in just five years? If I send $25 to Gideons International it will buy 33 copies of the New Testament to send around the World. It's just a thought.
Where is your heart in giving? When God lays it on your heart to help someone - and I hope he does that often - how do you do it? Do you make a public spectacle of it? Do you tell everyone about it? OR - do you casually slip the cash into an envelope and give it to a trusted acquaintance and ask him or her to give it to the person and insist that they NOT divulge who it came from?? That way - NO DOUBT about it - GOD gets all the credit - NOT YOU..
In conclusion, these are all difficult questions for me, too. And they are extraordinarily challenging financial times. More difficult for me than ever, now that I find myself unemployed and looking for work - and having to rely on people and their kindnesses and - more than ever - pleading with people for their prayer. I tell you this my friends - with all my heart - we need from God what we cannot do for ourselves. And this, too, the prayer of God's people ALWAYS helps. I'm hear for you and love you with all of my heart. Thanks for taking the time to read. With the New Year upon us, I pray that you might bow the knee in prayer and think some on the subject of giving. More than ever, though, I pray that you might think some on what you have done with Jesus. If you haven't bowed your knee in the larger sense, confessed your sin before him and reached out to him to fill the greatest need in your life, I pray that you will begin that journey. Click here for more information from a trusted source:
http://theencouragingword.org/know-him-act-now
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