Title: Why Go To Church: Money Matters!
Text: I Timothy 6:6-19
Thesis: Giving money is a way we love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and our neighbor as ourselves... and to lay up treasure in heaven!
Introduction
Johann Tetzel was a Dominican monk who served at the Pope’s direction in Germany. His claim to fame was his oversight of the selling of indulgences. Indulgences were offered for sale to those who wished to secure God’s forgiveness for either the living or the dead.
Tetzel was no stranger to the technology of the day. He promptly used the invention of printing press to mass produce indulgence slips which were then delivered, i.e., marketed door to door.
So if you wished to have your sins forgiven or the sins of your dearly departed forgiven, you purchased what was called an “indulgence.” Tetzel’s famous catch phrase was, “As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs.”
The money poured in from the sale of the indulgences and Pope Leo had money to build St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, finance the incidentals of court four times larger than that of the Roman Emperor, turn the Vatican into a work of art and perhaps even to finance a holy war. (http://www.preachingtoday.com/illustrations/1998/july/3915.html)
It is no wonder that over the centuries people have thought that anyone raising money for the Church must be a huckster.
However, whatever we may feel about raising money in the context of religion… money matters!
I. How we value having money is a reflection of our godliness.
“…men of corrupt mind, who have been robbed of the truth and who think that godliness is a means of financial gain. But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.” I Timothy 6:5-7
When I began to unpack this text I assumed a person with a corrupt mind was someone who had underlying motives or whose intention was to hornswoggle people and circumstances to his own financial gain. I assumed it meant a person whose mind was corrupt was a person who had twisted and skewed his religion so as to believe that his religious practices should result in personal financial gain.
It does mean those things but the meaning runs a bit deeper. The word corrupt in this text is the same word translated “destroy” in Luke 12:33 where Jesus tells his followers to sell their possessions and give to the poor. He said that in so doing they would be putting their money in purses that do not wear out, i.e., their money would be credited to their accounts in a heavenly bank where it will not be frittered away, where no thief comes near, and no moth destroys. For where your treasure is, there you heart will be. Luke 12:33-34
The word used to describe money that is destroyed by moths is the same word that describes the mind of a person who thinks godliness is a means to financial gain. Such a person has a moth-eaten mind that has impaired his ability place a proper value on money.
In an old Perry Mason rerun that first aired on December 14, 1957, Perry and Della are regulars at Morley Allen’s restaurant… a steakhouse. That night one of Morley’s waitress’ panicked when she saw a man she thinks is stalking her. As she flees the steakhouse she is struck by a car and killed. The only clue Perry Mason has is that she left behind “a moth-eaten mink.” The insinuation is that the mink being moth-eaten made it a ratty looking piece of fur. Why would a waitress at Morley’s be pretentiously wearing a ratty, moth-eaten mink? Who was she trying to impress?
A garment that is moth-eaten is a garment full of little holes where the moth eggs have hatched and the larva have eaten. A mind that is moth-eaten is full of little holes eaten away by false teaching and faulty ways of thinking.
Here is the contrast between the way a moth-eaten mind thinks and the way a healthy spiritual mind thinks:
The moth-eaten mind thinks that becoming godly will result in financial gain. Godliness and greed are linked in the mind of the corrupt-minded person.
Jesus says, when you become godly, you become increasingly content. Godliness and contentment are linked in the mind of the person whose mind is not moth-eaten. “Godliness with contentment is great gain.”
The Word of God goes on to remind us that apart from the treasure we have stored up in heaven as a result of the way we think about and use our money here on earth… we basically just break even in this life. We certainly bring nothing with us when we come into this life and we will take nothing with us when we leave this life… so we bring nothing in and we take nothing out. The implication is that whatever it is that we valued in this life is forfeited when we check out. You may recall that Job, who was once a really, really rich guy said, “Naked I came into this world and naked I shall depart.”
So, the bible says that given our poverty in the beginning and our poverty in the end… in between we might find it helpful to be grateful that our needs are met in the interim. However, it is the value we place on money as we live in the interim of this earthy existence that gets many people in trouble spiritually.
The Word of God says that the love of money is an evil root. What makes loving money a bad thing and how does loving money affect our relationship to God?
II. How we think about money is a reflection of our love for God.
“For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money have wondered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” I Timothy 6:10
John Wesley once said, “The fault does not lie in the money, but in them that use it.” (John Wesley, The Use of Money)
There is nothing inherently wrong with money. In fact an Associated Press Science Writer reported the findings of the National Academy of Sciences study to the effect that “People’s emotional well-being and happiness increases along with their income up to about $75,000. Increasing income above $75,000 does not increase happiness but it likely will result in a better life. However, while more money may improve a person’s sense of success, it does not necessarily mean a happier life. (http://abcnews.go.com/print?id=11569857)
I have tried being poor and I did not find it all that satisfying. I have never experienced great wealth so I cannot comment on what that would be like but I have found that having enough to meet our needs is better than not having enough to meet our needs.
Somewhere along the way we sometimes lose our way and contentment is replaced by discontent and the desire for more become greed and then we are in trouble.
Just as the word “corrupt” was important to our understanding of wrong thinking about money, the word “root” is important to our understanding of what it means to love money.
The root is described as the organ of a plant that is typically beneath the surface of the soil and is out-of-sight, so to speak. The root serves three primary purposes:
• The root absorbs water for the plant.
• The root anchors the plant securely in the soil.
• The root stores nutrients to feed the plant.
So the unseen root is the source of everything we see of the plant above the surface of the soil. The plant and the kind of fruit it bears is a direct result of the root. Whatever is in the root feeds the plant and the fruit born of that plant. (wikipedia.org/wiki/root)
Hebrews 12:15 speaks of a how a root of bitterness can cause destroy a person and that person’s relationships. In a similar way, the love of money may be a root that brings all kinds of grief to a person’s life.
We do not need to look far to find evidence that the love of money brings all kinds of grief to a person’s life. A minimal estimate of boxer Mike Tyson’s earning over a nine year period was $300,000,000. That means Mike Tyson made and spent an average of $3,333,333 every year for nine years. I did not envy his life then and I certainly do not envy him his life today. It was a life squandered in extravagance and self-indulgence.
The bible describes the Christian who loves money as a person who has wondered from the faith. The last few years have been a wake-up call for many of us when we increased our incomes, built bigger houses with bigger mortgages, bought nicer cars, charged more on our credit cards and saved less.
Then we found out about unemployment, many saw their 401 Ks wiped out, many saw the equity in their homes evaporate… and then some of us realized how much we love having money and how much we hate not having it. And we are back to learning about living within our means and learning to be content and really grateful for what we have and learning to save a little and to trust God more.
The bible says we are to flee from the love of money and chase after righteousness and godliness in I Timothy 6:11.
Some of you may have noticed that I am driving a different car these days. My old car, which was only ten years old and only had 190 k miles on it, died rather suddenly. So I went shopping and found a car two years newer and with a hundred-thousand miles fewer.
On Wednesday evening after Confirmation Class I stopped in at the Shell for some gas… the little computer on the dash of my 8 year old car constantly nags away reminding me that with each passing mile I have fewer and fewer miles remaining in the gas tank. I was down to 37 miles. So there I am gassing up at the pump when a nearly new SUV pulls up to the pump opposite me. A man got out and approached me, apologized for bothering me and asked if I could give him a few dollars for gasoline. He was on his way home from work, was nearly out of gas and payday was not until Friday.
I looked at my 2002 sedan and then I looked at his 2009 SUV. Here was a man driving an expensive vehicle I would not consider within my price range, asking me for money.
This is not a commentary about the man asking me for money… it is about me.
A person’s love for money is evidenced by the desire to get it. And a person’s love for money is evidenced by his reluctance to give it away. I had sixteen dollars in my pocket. That was what I planned to live on for the week.
In response to the question, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?” Jesus replied, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it, Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.’” Matthew 22:37-40
How we think about the sixteen dollars in our pockets is a reflection of our love for God and for others.
How do we respond to the challenge of escaping the hold we have on our money or the hold our money has on us?
III. What we do with our money is part of the way we love God with all our heart, soul and mind and our neighbors as ourselves.
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. I Timothy 6:17-18
God’s Word argues that worldly wealth is a fickle mistress. When we have it we feel powerful and secure but when we don’t have it we feel hopelessly insecure. The bible describes the riches of this world as uncertain and urges us to place our trust in God who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.
So, given the relative uncertainty of money which can be exhausted, stolen or eaten up in some other way, we should use our money in this life to lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven, which the bible likens to a firm foundation for the coming age. Just as we are concerned to lay up a little nest egg as a hedge against disaster or a cushion for our later years, we are to lay up a little nest egg in heaven as a cushion for the life to come.
I have an acquaintance who has profited a great deal as the stock market has made a resurgence. He watched his money grow and grow and told himself that as soon as it hit a certain number he was going to sell and pay off his house. It did and so he sold and paid off his house. The market has continued to go up every day and every day he checks the newspaper to see how much of what he didn’t have has been lost.
Since the real estate market tanked and tanked our equity along with it, I have been keeping an eye on how much I have lost. Isn’t it telling that we are more likely to give a great deal of consideration to what we might lose but give little thought to what we might give away.
I think what God is trying to get across to us is that..
We demonstrate our love for money and our lack of trust in God when we worry about how much we stand to lose. And we demonstrate our love for God and others when we consider how to do good, be rich in good deeds, are generous and willing to share.
Conclusion:
What we do with our money defines our faith as either superficial or substantive.
Giving money is a way we love God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength and our neighbor as ourselves.
Billy Graham once said that a checkbook is a theological document; it will tell you who and what you worship.
Money matters in the Christian life. And I can think of no better place to share than to give to the needs and ministries of my church. If I have a heart for missions, my gifts help support the various faith missions and missionaries as well as the missionary endeavors of our denomination and conference. If I have a heart for children or youth, my gifts support the children’s and youth ministries of our church. If I have a heart for the poor, my gifts help those in need both nearby and far away. I can give gifts through our Samaritan Fund. I can give gifts through our church to Inter Church ARMS. I can give gifts to the local food bank and to the Denver Mission. I can give gifts through Covenant World Relief. I can share the Word of God through gifts to the Gideons. If I have a heart for the building and maintenance of our church property, I can give gifts to those needs. If I have a heart of higher learning I can give gifts to our university and seminary. If I have a heart of camping and retreat ministries, I can give gifts through our church to those ministries.
The bible says that it is in giving that we lay up for ourselves treasure in heaven so what we do with our money matters. It matters to God and it matters to all who benefit by our generosity and willingness to share.
Why should you go to church? Because church is a place where by laying up treasure in heaven, you express your love for God and others may be expressed through sharing.
