If you were to study the New Testament to discover what Jesus talked about more than anything else, what do you think that would be? Relationship with God, Heaven,
Hell, Prayer, Love?
MONEY!!!!
• 16 OF THE 38 PARABLES ARE CONCERNED WITH HOW TO HANDLE MONEY OR POSSESSIONS.
• 1 OUT OF 10 VERSES IN THE GOSPELS (288 IN ALL) DEAL DIRECTLY WITH THE SUBJECT OF MONEY.
• THE BIBLE OFFERS 500 VERSES ON PRAYER,
• LESS THAN 500 VERSES ON FAITH,
• BUT MORE THAN 2000 ON MONEY & POSSESSIONS!
Why? Our trust in God is PROVEN and DISPLAYED by what we DO with what we POSSESS!
God is the OWNER!
I am the MANAGER!
God owns it ALL!!!
Malachi 3:6-12
"I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says the LORD Almighty. "But you ask, ’How are we to return?’ "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, ’How do we rob you?’ "In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse-- the whole nation of you-- because you are robbing me.
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 you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty.
"Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty.
God says:
“For EVERY animal of the forest is MINE, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know EVERY bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are MINE.”
Psalm 50:10-11 (NIV)
A PRE-TEST:
If you made $400.00 this week,
how much belongs to God?
ALL OF IT!
“None of these temporal things are yours;
you are only stewards of them, not proprietors.
God is the Proprietor of all:
He lodges them in your hands for a season;
but they are still His property.”
- John Wesley
TITHING REPRESENTS TRUST!
The Scripture speaks of trusting God with a tenth of our income – a “tithe” because He wants us to remember that we are not our own and that He wants to bless us.
“We honor God by first giving to Him from our paycheck. In doing so, we acknowledge His ownership of everything before we enjoy any of it ourselves!”
-Chuck Swindoll -
1 Corinthians
6:19c-20a
“You are not your own; you were bought at a price.”
MONEY REPRESENTS LIFE!
The dollars in our wallet or purse represent the time we invest at our place of employment. Our paycheck is an exchange for giving ourselves to our job. The money we get represents our life. Therefore, we give a portion of our life to God when we place our offering in the offering plate! WHEN WE GIVE WE ARE SAYING, “LORD, I REMEMBER THAT I AM BOUGHT WITH A PRICE! I WILL GLORIFY GOD WITH ALL MY LIFE! Take my gift so that Your Kingdom might increase!”
When we tithe, we go into business with God! God invites us into partnership with Him. When we rob God by not tithing, we cheat ourselves because He promises to prosper and protect his partners!
1 Corinthians 16:2
“On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income!”
A colorful Eastern Ohio preacher reminded his congregation of this very fact that God promised He would open the windows of heaven for those who tithe. Someone asked him, “What if we only give five percent?” “No! the preacher replied, “God doesn’t do windows for less than 10%!”
What God claims, I yield!
What I yield, God accepts!
What God accepts, He fills!
What God fills, He uses!
Whatever you place into God’s hands He promises to use and bless!
A pastor friend of mine was asked to preach on tithing while on a missions trip to Honduras. He thought, “How can I help these folks to be good stewards when poverty is so rampant here?” When he arrived at the church, he noticed they had made an altar of rocks on the table in front of the pulpit so they could receive their offering at the close of the service. My pastor friend struggled through the singing as he thought of the people’s impoverished condition. Nevertheless, he reminded them that God requires a tenth. He told them, “If you have ten cows, God expects you to give one! If you have ten chickens, God expects you to give one!” He noticed a lady let in the midst of his message. At the close, they encouraged the people to bring their gifts and place them in the rock altar. In the midst of the crowd coming to give their gifts to God was the lady, carrying a puppy. She had ten puppies and she wanted to be faithful to give God what belonged to Him!
You cannot take it with you,
but you can send it on ahead!
Matthew 6:19-21
"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal.
But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.
For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
Stewardship begins with loving,
not giving!
"Some say, Dedicate the heart and the money will follow; but our Lord put it the other way around....If your treasure is dedicated, your heart will be dedicated. If it is not, it simply won’t. It’s as simple as that!”
-G. Timothy Johnson -
