Last Sunday I shared with you what I thought God was placing on my heart regarding Asbury for at least the next couple of years. A direction that I believe is based on three key Scriptures; Mark 12.18-21, Matthew 28.19-20 and John 15.8. Taken together, these three passages tell us that God wants disciples of Jesus to make thousands of disciples that are devoted to loving their God and loving their neighbor. I used the eighth wonder of the world, compound interest, to illustrate what that could look like for us if we compounded our interests together. After all, if Jesus said that one person’s faith could move a mountain in Matthew 17.20 then imagine what combining the faith of 400 people could do. Faith, there’s no doubt in my mind that we have the faith to become known as the church that sets the bar for what it means to love God and love neighbor.
But I have to tell you that it will take more than just faith. It will take faith AND finances just as it did for Jesus’ ministry according to Luke 8.1-3.
[S] “After this, Jesus traveled about from one town and village to another, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve were with him, 2 and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary (called Magdalene) from whom seven demons had come out; 3 Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod’s household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means.” (NIV) [S]
Did you notice that Jesus’ ministry didn’t rely on faith alone? According to verse three Jesus’ ministry depended upon the financial support of his followers as well. Likewise, if we’re going to be successful at helping others love God and their neighbors it’s going to take more than just a lot of faith. It’s going to take a lot of finances just as it did for Jesus. But don’t let that discourage you! Don’t let that scare you. Because I believe we have the financial ability to make it happen here. All we have to do - is follow God’s plan for the revenue.
And for that we read from the Gospel of Matthew 23.23-24. [S] “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices-mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law-justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.” (TNIV) [S]
The word of God for the people of God. Thanks be to God.
God’s plan for the financial revenue of the church is the tithe. That might surprise many because so many disciples have been taught that the tithe is Old Testament and obsolete. Nothing could be further from the truth as Jesus’ response displays. Note that Jesus did not condemn the tithe! Jesus did not say the practice of the tithe was to be ignored or neglected. In fact, Jesus said just the opposite. Jesus said to show more mercy without neglecting the practice of tithing. In other words, Jesus encouraged them to keep tithing. And this makes sense because Jesus was a Rabbi which meant that Jesus would have most likely been a tither too.
The tithe, literally translated means a tenth. And in the bible it was applied to giving God one tenth of one’s revenue whether that came from farming, trading stocks (sheep and cattle) shepherding, or business. Ten percent of one’s income was given to God. God’s plan is for us to live on the remaining 90%, which is enough to live on because in Malachi 3 God said He would provide for those who tithe.
I had some figuring done the other day to help me get an idea as to what kind of difference Asbury could make if we became a tithing church. And boy did I like what I saw. I took the average household income from several of the zip codes that the majority of those who associate with Asbury live to figure out the average tithe. And then I multiplied the average tithe by the number of households associated with the church. The average household income in our zip code is $67,000.00 a year making the tithe $6,700.00. Multiply that by 904 households in our congregation and we would have a little more than $6,000,000.00 available for ministry each year. To put that in perspective the annual giving for last year was a little over one million dollars.
Imagine what we could do if we took Jesus’ statement on tithing seriously. No more summer slumps! No more last minute appeals. No more extra requests. No more capital fund campaigns. Within a year’s time we could not only fund all our ministries, but we could pay off our existing debt and still have enough left over to build a new worship facility without borrowing a dime. We could also buy school supplies for the children who are unable to afford it and probably even their school clothes or uniforms. And that’s just the first year. Imagine what a difference we could make the following year with another six million dollars for ministry! Unbelievable isn’t it?
When it comes to making a difference, tithing really makes a difference, wouldn’t you say? And yet, the majority of disciples have yet to become tithers. Even though that’s the case, I believe that every disciple has the desire to become a faithful tither. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who doesn’t want to tithe. I believe a lot of disciples want to tithe, but they just don’t think they can or know how to get there from where they are.
[S] And so, I want to give you three examples that can help you become the tither you secretly desire.
[S] The first example is what I refer to as the power of one. I have a friend who told me that he had always wanted to tithe, but just didn’t see how he could do it. Then one day into retirement he decided enough was enough and initiated a plan that would fulfill his secret desire to be a tither. Using his contribution statements and his income forms he figured out what percentage of his income was going to the Lord’s work through the church. It was average, about 2%. He didn’t think he was ready to jump right into giving a tenth immediately, so he made the decision then and there to increase his giving by 2% of his gross income a year so that at the end of three or four years he would be tithing. He was ecstatic about finally being a tither. I’ve not seen many 75 year old men get very excited about giving, but becoming a tither was a highlight in his life.
I would encourage you to figure out what your giving to the church actually is in relation to your gross income, and then increase it by 1% of your gross income every year. For example, if someone is making $36,000 a year and is giving $100 a month to the church, they are giving 2.8% of their income. If they round that up to 3% their giving would increase $8.00 a month to $108. If they increased it to 4%, it would rise proportionally to $144 a month. That’s doable for most people. Just think, if everyone did this beginning this year, this church would be that tithing church within the decade.
[S] The second model that might help someone become the tither they secretly desire is called the Malachi Method. In Malachi 3.10, God said, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.” (Malachi 3.10, TNIV)
In a sense the Lord was telling the Hebrews to experiment with tithing and see what happens.
In this approach a person simply commits to tithing from an upcoming paycheck. It’s not a long term commitment, but short term, one paycheck. Identify a pay period in the near future that you will target to tithe from. Invert your budget. Make the first check you write the Lord’s tithe. And then realign your budget accordingly with what is left over. Try this once. And when you discover that all of your needs are still being met and that God has blessed you in other ways, you make the decision to try tithing another pay check until you’re convinced that God’s promise to bless you is trustworthy and you make it a long term commitment.
[S] And finally, there’s what I call the bungee jump approach. This is for those who like adrenalin rushes. This is for those who say, “I know this is what I’m supposed to do. I know I just have to push off and do it.” And so you just do it and yell the entire time until it’s done. But when it’s done you realize how exhilarating it was and you can’t wait to do it again.
A side note for those of you who still want to use checks instead of the automatic draft. I invite you to make God’s tithe [S] payable to “God” instead of Asbury UMC. You’d be amazed at what that does to one’s perspective on giving God his tithe. I’ve done that and I’ve never been told by a bank or a church not to do so.
Some of you may discover that this is not really possible for you because you are carrying such a heavy debt load. That doesn’t mean you can’t become the tither you secretly desire. It just means that your first step in your overall plan to become one involves getting your debts taken care of. You start there, so that you can get to the place where you can start increasing the percentage you give until you become a tither.
David Moore sent me a story from USA Today title The New Face of Giving. In it was the story of a Josh Hofing, a thirteen year old boy who is going to tithe from the gifts he receives for his Bar Mitzvah and use the tithe to build a well in Ethiopia. I don’t know if you realize it or not. But there are many people in the Little Rock area who are thirsty for Jesus. And our ability to give them the water of eternal life is impacted by the compounding of our faith and finances.
Here’s the ask. I’m asking you to make a tangible and intentional step towards tithing. I’m asking you to do this, because I believe that there is nothing more rewarding and beneficial than giving to the cause of Jesus the Christ. I’m asking you to do this because I know the joy that awaits those who become tithers. I’m asking you to do this, because I have seen what can happen when we compound our faith and finances, and it is very good.
Do you want to make a difference in the life of another? Then I ask you to step up to tithing for 2009. Next Sunday, everyone is asked to bring their pledge card to worship. If you forget we’ll try to have some extras in the pews. There will be a time for you to bring your pledge card to the altar to consecrate it to the glory of God. Next Sunday is going to be a big day in the life of this church. What decisions are made between now and then will impact our ability to make thousands of disciples who are devoted to loving God and loving their neighbors. What will 2009 be like? That depends on what happens October 26.
