Faith Fundamental Baptist Church
Morning Worship Service
September 12, 2004
¡§Show Me the Money¡¨
Pastor Joseph Conrad M. Edpao
INTRODUCTION:
Our study is focused on stewardship. I believe that last Sunday we had a clearer understanding about stewardship. We need to remember that we are not focusing on this theme in order to generate funds. But our goal for this month of stewardship is to build Christian character. (Faith raising, not fundraising)
I believe that it was impressed into our hearts and minds that we are not owners of anything in this world strictly speaking, because in order to own something we must have the power to create and sustain something. And we believe that only God has the power to create and sustain things. Even though we don¡¦t own anything in this world strictly speaking, according to our speaker last Sunday, we cannot deny that we have some things in our hands, and these are loaned to us by God. Why? It is because God wants us to enjoy life.
Are you enjoying your life? We should because God Himself has given us the things that we need in order to enjoy life. But sad to say that many people, even Christians, do not enjoy life in spite of the many blessings God has given them. What do you think is the reason why people don¡¦t enjoy life? The answer boils down to Christian Stewardship.
Someone said, ¡§An appreciation of Christian stewardship gives you the freedom to enjoy what you have.¡¨ Many Christians don¡¦t have a proper understanding and appreciation of Christian stewardship that¡¦s why they don¡¦t enjoy the things that they have. It is our desire for this month that we would be able to learn and appreciate Christian stewardship in order for us to enjoy what we have. If we enjoy what we have then we will be grateful to God.
Let me first give you my definition of a steward. I. Being a steward is a privilege. It¡¦s a privilege because God Himself has trusted us and has given us the assignment of handling things well. As a steward, we must be reliable. We must execute our assignments well.
II. Being a steward implies having power. We must not abuse this power because it was only delegated to us by God. As a steward, we must be responsible. We must exercise our authority that was delegated to us by God well.
Although our intention is not to raise funds, this morning I would be talking about money. Yes, you heard me right, MONEY.
ILLUSTRATION:
I found some interesting information on the Internet. As most of us know, Michael Jordan is one of the highest paid athletes in the world. He makes over $300,000 a game; that means if he plays 30 minutes, he’ll make $10,000 a minute. Assuming he makes a conservative $40 million in endorsements next year, he’ll be making $178,000 a day, whether he is working or not.
If he sleeps 7 hours a night, he makes $52,000 every night while visions of sugarplums dance in his head. If he goes to see a movie, it’ll cost him about $7, but he’ll make $18,550 while he’s there. If he decided to have a 5 minute egg, he’ll make $618 while boiling it
If he wanted to save up for an Acura NSX at $90,000, it would take him a whole 12 hours. If you were given a tenth of a penny for every dollar he made, you’d be living comfortably at $65,000 a year
Next year, he’ll make more than twice as much as all of our past presidents for all of their terms, combined! Amazing isn’t it? But Jordan will have to save 100% of his income for 270 years to have the net worth of Microsoft CEO, Bill Gates!!!!!!!!
Money is the common thing that every one of us has. It may not be as much as other people have, like Jordan does, but I believe that it¡¦s one of the things that our hands hold every now and then. God has given us money in our hands, and as stewards we must be reliable and responsible with our money.
Money is not a joke. Biblically, money is a big deal. If we would look at the Bible, Jesus spoke a lot about the dangers and opportunities of money. One person by the name of Rod Sider once compiled the entire Bible passages about money and possessions into a book, and it looks about half as thick as the Bible itself. Money is a big deal, and we need to know how to handle our money because if would not handle it properly, it can destroy us and not bring true and lasting happiness. Money is our friend but it can also be our greatest enemy if wouldn¡¦t handle it properly.
I¡¦ve entitled my message from God¡¦s Word this morning ¡§Show Me the Money.¡¨ It is my intention to show you biblical truths concerning money. It is my prayer and desire that after hearing this message this morning, we would have a biblical understanding about money so that we can enjoy this blessing that God has given us.
If you would look at a coin, there are two sides, the head and the tail. This morning I would like to show you the two sides of money, the head side-which most Christians love to hear and know; and the tail side-which most Christians forget to consider and put into heart.
I. The ¡§Head¡¨ Side
Let¡¦s look first at the head side and see some truths about money. These are the truths that we love to hear about money.
A. Money is Essential (v.18)
King Solomon said that it is good and proper for us to eat and drink, and to find satisfaction in our toilsome labor under the sun during the few days of life God has given us. What Solomon here is saying is that God wants us to enjoy our life here on earth. And God is giving us everything that we need in order for us to enjoy life. One of the things that God gives us in order to eat, drink and find satisfaction is money.
Money is essential. We cannot deny the fact that money is a necessity in life. We need money to buy our food, to travel around the city, to pay for our electric bill, etc. Although I believe that it¡¦s possible for us to survive even without money, but it¡¦s very hard to live life nowadays if you don¡¦t have the ¡§thing.¡¨ It is hard to move around today without the round.
With our economic situation right now, where prices are zooming high, you would realize that money is really essential. According to the news, diesel prices would increase another peso and the gasoline 30 centavos. Not to mention the additional pesos that will be added to our electricity rate. Maybe for the young people, we don¡¦t see its real necessity yet, but once you would earn your own money, you would realize the importance of money to our daily living and its value in living our daily lives.
The first lesson that I would like for us to learn is that we need to thank the Lord that we are able to move around because He¡¦s giving us the round. I believe that every one of us here this morning have money. It may not be as much as others have, but what you have right now in your hands (wallets or pockets) is a gift from God because He knows that it is essential to our daily living.
One way to show that we are thanking God for this gift is by valuing every centavo that God is giving us. According to my research, in 1955 the value of a peso was so high that Php. 2.50 is equivalent to a dollar. An old lady said that a peso could even last you for a week. Now, if you would give 1 peso to a child today, they would get mad at you. Today, 1 peso is equivalent to a juicy fruit gum.
I remember one time when we went to 711, a boy was asking for some money after helping us backing up. I reached out of my pocket and gave him 25 centavos. The boy asked me if it was a button that I gave to him. He was planning to return it to me because he¡¦s saying that it has no value.
Brethren, we need to value every centavo God has given us. Every centavo counts and we need to be good stewards of each centavo that God is giving us. Don¡¦t just let the 25 centavos being scattered all over your house. Instead of just letting them lie around, why don¡¦t you pick it up and put it into your coin banks.
Money is essential; therefore we must learn to regard every centavo God is giving to us.
B. Money is an Endowment from God (v.19) ¡§gift from God¡¨
Money is a gift from God. I believe that we would all agree with this. When we are given a gift the first thing that we do is that we say thank you. We appreciate the giver of the gift. And then once we open the gift and see that it¡¦s the one that we’ve wanted for a long time, then we appreciate the gift as well. But in the long run, there is a tendency that we tend to forget the giver because we are so focused on the gift. What is proper is that every time we would see the gift, it must remind us of the person who gave it to us.
Since money is a gift from God, it should serve as a tool for us to always look up and say ¡§thank You¡¨ for allowing me to have it. Do you thank God only when you receive a big amount? Do you thank God when you have a peso in your hand? Sometimes we complain instead of thanking God when we need more money but have less in our hands. And we forget to thank God that we have the ¡§less¡¨ in our hands. Remembering God and thanking Him is not a one time event. If you truly believe and appreciate that God is the source of money and that it is His gift, you would always look up to God and thank Him for every centavo that He is giving us.
The gift should not take away our appreciation of the Giver. Money should not serve as a distraction from God but it should serve as a guide to help us look to Him and thank Him always.
Every time we would see money, let¡¦s remember the One who endowed it to us.
C. Money should be Enjoyed (v.19)
As we have said, the reason why God gives us things in our hands, especially money, is for us to enjoy our life here on earth. God enables us to enjoy money. God wants us to enjoy life. He wants us to say to Him, ¡§Lord, thank You for giving me life and allowing me to live because I enjoy it. It¡¦s great to be alive!¡¨
But I would like for us to notice here that it is God who enables us to enjoy money. Without God, it would be impossible for us to really enjoy money. And this is what Solomon is trying to say. Without a proper relationship with God, money would be vanity. Even though we would have all the money in the world, it would useless without God.
That¡¦s why many rich people commit suicide and are not satisfied with all the wealth that they have. It¡¦s because they don¡¦t really enjoy it. Why? Because God has not enabled them to enjoy it because they don¡¦t have a proper relationship with God.
According to verse 19, to enjoy the wealth and possessions God is giving us is a gift from God. One of the greatest gifts God has given us is the power to enjoy the things the He has given us. Money is a gift from God and we should enjoy life through it.
But let me give you a warning. There is the tendency that we would over-enjoy money. Don¡¦t fall into the tendency of over-enjoying money. If you fall into it, you might fall in debt.
Money should be enjoyed if you have a proper relationship with God.
II. The ¡§Tail¡¨ side
You might say, ¡§Pastor that¡¦s exactly what I¡¦m doing right now. I¡¦m valuing every centavo God has given me, I¡¦m appreciating God for the gift, and I¡¦m enjoying it! Let¡¦s close in prayer! ƒº¡¨ Ooops, wait a minute. I¡¦m not done yet. That¡¦s not all that we need to know about money. There¡¦s more and to listen to this very carefully. Let¡¦s look at the other side of the money.
A. Money is Temporary (vv.14,15)
First of all, for us to enjoy the money that we have, we must realize that money is only temporary. It is not something that would outlast eternity. Solomon said that ¡§Naked a man comes from his mother¡¦s womb, and as he comes, so he departs. He takes from his labor that he can carry in his hands.¡¨ This is the basic truth about earthly possessions, they would be left behind.
Brethren, money is temporary, it is finite. It was not designed by God to last forever. Even if you put your money in the bank, you¡¦re not sure whether it would stay or not. Recently we heard in the news about the people who worried about their savings at First Savings Bank. The bank closed and the people where worried if they would be able to get their money still. What Richard Simmons said was true, ¡§That money talks I¡¦ll not deny, I heard it once, it said ¡¥Good-bye.¡¦¡¨
Sad to say that many Christians treat money as if they would be able to take it with them to heaven. If ever we would be able to take our money to heaven, it would be of no value because we would be even walking on gold there. We won¡¦t need our money there. We should keep in mind that money is temporary. Let us not be like Bertha Adams.
ILLUSTRATION:
Bertha Adams was seventy-one years old. She died alone in West Palm Beach, Florida, on Easter Sunday, 1976. The coroner¡¦s report read: ¡§Cause of death¡Kmalnutrition.¡¨ After wasting away to fifty pounds she could no longer stay alive. When the state authorities made their preliminary investigation of her place, they found a veritable ¡§pigpen¡Kthe biggest mess you can imagine.¡¨ One seasoned inspector declared he had never seen a dwelling in greater disarray. The pitiable woman had begged food from neighbors and gotten what clothes she had from the Salvation Army. From all appearances, she was a penniless recluse-a pitiful and forgotten widow. But such was not the case.
Amid the jumble of her unclean, disheveled belongings, two keys were found which led officials to safe deposit boxes at two different local banks. The discovery was absolutely unbelievable. The first box contained over 700 stock certificates, bonds, and solid financial securities, and cash amounting to nearly $200,000. The second box had more currency-$600,000. Adding the net worth of both boxes, the woman had well over a million dollars. Bertha Adams¡¦s hoarding was tragic, and her death was an unusually grim testimony to the shriveled focus on her life. Her great wealth did her no good whatsoever. Its proper use could have meant good health for her and many others.
Though money is temporary, we can use it to an investment that would last for eternity. By investing your money into the building up of God¡¦s kingdom, you are making an investment that would last not only in this lifetime but for eternity. Matthew 6:19-21 says, ¡§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 break in and steal.¡¨
Let us store up treasures in heaven by investing our money in the Lord¡¦s work.
B. Money is Tempting (v.10) ¡§Whoever loves money¡¨
Money is not only temporary but it is also tempting. Why is it tempting? Verse 10 says, ¡§Whoever loves money¡K¡¨ There is the tendency that we would put our love on money; that it would be the focus of our love, attention, and life.
Love implies an ardent and vehement (passionate) inclination of the mind and a tenderness of affection at the same time. It denotes a strong emotional attachment for and a desire to possess or be in the presence of the object of love. It is like the attachment between parents and children, relationships by marriage, and the close ties of friendship.
Brethren, money is tempting. There is a tendency that we would be so attached to it that our minds and affections are inclined into it. 1 Timothy 6:9 says, ¡§People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires¡K¡¨ I don¡¦t know if you¡¦ll agree with me, but with the situation that we have right now, the tendency of Christians to love money becomes higher.
Money itself is not bad, it is actually a gift from God. But when we start to put our affection on money, that¡¦s when it becomes bad. If there is one tragic thing that can ever happen to a Christian, that is when he starts loving money. 1 Timothy 6:10 says, ¡§For the love of money is the root of all evil.¡¨ How would you know that you¡¦re starting to love money? It¡¦s simple-when money starts to take the place of God in your life.
ILLUSTRATION:
An American, British and Filipino pastor got talking about giving money to God. The American pastor says: "when God tells me so, I just empty my wallet in the collection plate." The British pastor is quite impressed with this impulsive but charitable attitude of his American colleague and is ashamed to tell of his approach. He says: "I draw a circle of about a meter or three feet around me, I throw the money in the air and everything that lands within the circle, I’ll put in the collection plate." The Filipino pastor, thrifty and penny pincher that he is, is not ashamed of his own approach. "I just throw everything in the air and everything that God wants, He’ll just keep and the rest that falls to the ground is mine again."
I¡¦m not saying that you practice that, but the truth is when you love something or someone it¡¦s hard to let go. Once you love money, it would be very hard to let go of it. Jesus said that we cannot serve both God and money at the same time. Jesus is not merely saying that it¡¦s hard or difficult to serve two masters at the same time. What He is saying is that it is impossible to do so. Either you serve God or money. Do you know that when we start to put our love on money, we are starting to let go of God in our lives.
Let us serve God by loving Him, not money.
C. Money can be Treacherous (v.10)
Although money is temporary, it is tempting because there is the tendency that we will put our affection on it rather than on God. Once we start to love money, it can be treacherous or dangerous. Why is it dangerous? Let¡¦s read Ecclesiastes 5:10 again- ¡§Whoever loves money never has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.¡¨
According to a Roman proverb, ¡§Money is like sea water. The more you drink, the thirstier you get.¡¨ If we start loving money, we would always be asking for more. We would never be satisfied with the money that we have on our hands. Actually, no amount of money could ever satisfy a man¡¦s love for it.
Most of us have the mentality that the reason why we are not content is because we have less. We often think ¡§if only I have more money, or a latest model car, or a bigger house, etc. then that would be enough.¡¨ Do you think more money, more investments, more jewelry, more cars, bigger houses, designer clothes, higher salary will make you content? NO. Why? The truth is if you can¡¦t be content with little, you won¡¦t be content with much.
That¡¦s why in 1 Timothy 6:6 he wrote, ¡§Now godliness with contentment is great gain.¡¨ Before he talked about the love of money, he reminded us that we need to be content, because godliness with contentment is great gain. The word contentment means self-sufficiency. It means that we are to be satisfied and sufficient. We should not seek for more than what God has already given unto us.
Let us be satisfied with the money God gives us.
CONCLUSION:
"The paradox of our time is that we spend more but have less; we buy more and enjoy it less. We have bigger houses and smaller families; more convenience and less time; more medicine and less wellness. We have multiplied our possessions and reduced our values. These are the days of two incomes, but more divorce, fancier houses and broken homes. We have learned to make a living, but not a life. We have added years to our lives, but no more life to our years.¡¨
This is the paradox of our time. We¡¦re getting more but it seems that we¡¦re enjoying life less. Like king Solomon said, every thing is vanity unless we have God in our lives. We thank the Lord that He has blessed us with many things today. We thank the Lord for money. Let us put in mind the things that we have learned this morning and may it be a guide as we strive to become good stewards of money.
¡§Money is in some respects like fire; it is a very excellent servant, but a terrible master.¡¨ ¡V P.T. Barnum
Money is a gift, but it should never be our god.
