MUCH OF THIS SERMON AND ITS OUTLINE IS TAKEN FROM A SERMON FROM RICK WARREN’S CHURCH WHICH OFFERED A SERIES ON THINKING CLEARLY ABOUT VARIOUS SUBJECTS.
THINKING CLEARLY ABOUT YOUR FINANCES
Sermon Outline Pastor Rick
Glenville New Life Community Church PCUSA
1/30/05
Growing & Building In 2005
Proverbs 3:1-10 Luke 16:1-11
“If you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth,
who will trust you with true riches?” Luke 16:11 (NIV)
FIVE HABITS FOR FINANCIAL FREEDOM
I. EARN _________________________________________
“In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we appeal to people--no, we command them: Settle down and get to work. Earn your own living.” 2 Thess. 3:12 (NLT)
II. PLAN ___________________________________________
“Riches can disappear fast... so watch your business interests closely. Know the state of your flocks and herds.” Pr. 27:23-24 (LB)
STARTING POINT:
“Get the facts at any price!” Pr. 23:23 (LB)
“Plan carefully and you will have plenty; if you act too quickly you will never have enough.” Pr. 21:5 (GN)
“…Stupid people spend their money as fast as they get it.” Pr. 21:20b (GN)
III. SAVE __________________________________________
“The wise person saves for the future..” Pr. 21:20a (LB)
“Money that comes easily disappears quickly, but money that is gathered little by little will grow.” Pr. 13:11 (NCV)
IV. RETURN __________________________________________
“‘Bring to My Storehouse a full tenth of what you earn... Test Me in this,’ says the Lord. ‘I will open the windows of heaven for you and pour out all the blessings you need’.”
Mal. 3:10 (NCV)
“On every Lord’s Day you should put aside something from what you have earned during the week, and use it for this offering. The amount depends on how much the Lord has helped you earn.” 1 Cor. 16:2 (LB)
“Honor the Lord by giving Him the first part of all your income, and He will fill your barns... to overflow!” Pr. 3:9-10 (LB)
V. ENJOY _______________________________________________________________
“It is better to be satisfied with what you have than to always be wanting something else.”
Eccl. 6:9 (GN)
“Be content with what you have...” Heb. 13:5 (NIV)
What most people do: The order God blesses:
1. Earn it 1. Earn it
2. Enjoy it 2. ____________________
3. Repay it (past) 3. ____________________
4. Save it (future) 4. ____________________
5. Give it (eternal) 5. ____________________
“Why spend money on what does not satisfy?” Isa. 55:2 (NIV)
“If I have put my trust in money, if my happiness depends on wealth... it would mean that I denied the God of heaven.” Job 31:24,28 (LB)
Pray this in your heart: “Father, I want to follow Your financial principles in 2005. Forgive me for spending more than I make. Forgive me for unwise purchases. Help me to get back on track with Your plan. Today, I commit myself to Your financial principles. With Your help in 2005 I’m going to start keeping better records. I’m going to learn to plan my spending. With Your help I’m going to save some for the future. And I’m going to put You first in my finances by returning the tithe back to You. Help me to enjoy what I have. Jesus Christ, I invite You to be the manager of my life. I want to trust You with my finances and with my future. In Your name I pray. Amen.”
THINKING CLEARLY ABOUT YOUR FINANCES
Sermon Outline Pastor Rick
Glenville New Life Community Church PCUSA
1/30/05
Growing & Building In 2005
Proverbs 3:1-10 Luke 16:1-11
As part of our theme , Growing and Building in 2005, we will be doing a series of messages on thinking clearly. Today we’re going to start with the area of finances. Why start here. Well first There are more divorces over finance than there are over sex. Fifty-one percent of all divorces occur over financial tension.
Making a lot of money is no guarantee that you know how to manage it. The second is that God does not want us living under financial tension and stress. God has a plan that can get us and keep us out of debt. This will be a sermon you will probably here once every year.
The Bible says that the way that you handle your money determines how much God can bless your life. Jesus said it. The Bible says that the way that you handle your money is the evidence of your spiritual maturity. And if you don’t manage your money well, if you’re not responsible with your finances, the Bible says that God is not going to trust you with the responsibility of true spiritual blessings.
Jesus said this in Luke 16:11, “If you have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealthy, who will trust you with true riches?” Your personal responsibility with your money determines how much God can bless your life. Finances are tests of character.
Solomon was the wisest and richest man in the world. He wrote down God’s financial principles in a book called Proverbs. Today I want us to go back and review the five most important financial principles. It’s like a star with five points on it. To complete the star you need all five points. If you’re going to be one of God’s stars in finances, you’ve got to have all five points. It’s true with these too. Just because, for instance, you may be saving, doesn’t mean you’re doing the others. Or you may be tithing but you may not be doing the others. The issue is you’ve got to do all five things in order for your finances to be in the way God wants them to be and you to be financially free.
These five things are habits to be developed. You’ve got to be willing to do them as readily as you brush your teeth.. You don’t just do them once and that’s it. You’ve got to make them a part of your lifestyle. Today we’re going to show you God’s plan for how to get out of debt. Just getting a home equity loan is not enough. Jesus came to set us free in all areas of our lives.
1. EARN AN HONEST LIVING. The principle of WORK.
The Bible says we were created to work, the very first command of God is go to work, we’re made in God’s image and God is a worker. Work is one of the Ten Commandments. 2Thessalonians 3, “In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ we appeal to people – no, we command them: settle down and get to work. Earn your own living.” . The first principle of financial freedom is you’ve got to earn a living.
Every once in a while you run into one of those unemployed spiritual types that say, “I’m just waiting on God to provide for me.” That person needs to get up and go find a job!” God provided for you when He gave you a brain, when He gave you two hands and a back and feet to get to work. Energy. Don’t just wait around. God gave you what He wants you to have in order to provide for yourself.
There’s also the person who does little or nothing because they’re sitting around waiting for the next big deal to happen saying “I’m waiting for my ship to come in.” Swim out to it! Don’t wait for it. Just get to work. Take some kind of a job until the job you want opens up for you.
In fact the Bible says in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, “If a man won’t work, he shouldn’t eat.” That doesn’t say if he can’t work because sometimes you can’t. It says if he won’t work. If it’s a matter of character, you’re just lazy. The Bible says you shouldn’t eat. God wants us to earn an honest living.
2. PLAN YOUR SPENDING. This is the principle of BUDGETING.
You’ve got to set some financial goals and stick with them. Don’t go through 2005 the way you went through 2004 – just fumbling around in the dark, drifting around, spending, guessing, not really knowing where your money is or where it’s going.
Proverbs 27:23-24 says, “Riches can disappear fast. So watch your business interests closely. Know the state of your flocks and herds.” God’s word is saying “Know where you’ve put your money. Know where it’s going.”
Here’s the starting point: Keep good records. You’ve got to keep track of your finances. You’ve got to be aware of how you use your money. Have you ever said, “I just don’t know where it all goes.” If you’re saying that, that should be a warning light – a great big red warning light that says you’re not keeping good records. People say, “Money talks.” It doesn’t talk; it just quietly slips away. And it doesn’t leave any forwarding address. Have you ever asked the question, where did my money go.
You have to plan your spending but in order to plan your spending you have to keep good records. Proverbs 23:23 “Get the facts at any price.” You need to be realistic about your finances. You need to ask, “How are we really doing? Before going out and buying something whether with cash or on credit.”
Let me give you a simple equation: Ignorance plus easy credit equals disaster. If you don’t know where you’re headed in your finances you’re not keeping good records and you’ve got credit cards, you’re already in trouble. You’re putting debt on that you can’t afford and you don’t even know you can’t afford it. You’re going further and further behind. Ignorance plus easy credit equals disaster. You have to be up on where your money is going. You have to plan your spending.
There are four things you need to know:
First you need to know “What I own.” That’s your assets. You need to make an inventory, a list of all the things you own. You need to know what you own.
Second, you need to know “What I owe.” That’s your liabilities, your debts. Get them all out on the table and figure out how much in debt you really are. You need to know what bills show up every four months or six months like insurance and property tax bills.
Third you need to know, “What I earn.” It’s amazing how many people don’t even know exactly what they earn. If you earn $25,000, after regular taxes you only have 19,750. Instead of 2083 a month, you actually have $1645. If you earn $50,000, after taxes, you are only bringing home $36,700. Instead of the $4166 a month, you actually have $3058 a month. That’s without anything taken out anything but federal, state, social security and city taxes.
Fourth, you need to know, “Where it’s going.”
Take a month and write down every dollar that you spend. It’s the only way you will know where your money is going and what kind of budget you can come up with. The easiest way to lose money is to keep more than $20 in your wallet at a time. You have to have a record of where your money actually went, in order to figure out how you can use your money to help you get out of debt.
You say, “I don’t have time to do all that. I don’t have time to write it all down.” Do you have time to worry about your finances? If you’ve got time to worry, you’ve got time to write it down. If you’d write it down, you’d have a whole lot less to worry about. This is a principle that’s in God’s word. First, earn an honest living. Second, plan your spending and keep good records.
Proverbs 21:5, “Plan carefully and you will have plenty. If you act too quickly, you will never have enough.” If you don’t get anything else, get what I say right now. Financial freedom is not determined by how much you make. It is determined by how you spend it. If you don’t have a plan, your yearning will always exceed your earning and you’re always going to be in debt. No matter how much money you make, your expenses always rise with income. They always do! There are people who can’t live on a hundred, a hundred-fifty grand a year. Their yearning exceeds their earning. What you need to do is write it down and get a plan.
When you go out, you fall prey to a very important trap. “Plan carefully and you’ll have plenty. If you act too quickly [circle “act too quickly”] you’ll never have enough.” This is referring to impulse buying. Impulse buying is, “I see it, I’ve got to have it! It’s in the window, it’s in the catalog, on the television. Every advertisement is made to encourage impulse buying. They don’t want you to think about it. They don’t want you to plan your spending because when you plan it you realize you can’t afford it now.
So what they want you to do is not think. They want you to make a decision based on emotion. They stir up your emotions by the lighting and the color and all the sex appeal and everything in it just to make you have impulse buying. Have you ever bought something that you later regretted buying? Yes. We’ve all done it. You say, “Why did I buy this? I can’t afford it. I can’t make the payments. I can’t do the upkeep.” You made it on an impulse.
Advertisers know that there is one word that causes impulse buying more than any other word. Some of you cannot resist this word. When you see this word, you immediately put your car in reverse, pull out of your driveway, do not pass go and go straight to that store. Because the word is almost irresistible. You’re addicted to it.
The word is “Sale”. Some of you can’t stand to miss a sale. “I have to buy it now! Look how much I’m saving!” You couldn’t afford it in the first place but look how much you’re “saving”! or “If I don’t buy it now, it will cost more later!” You can’t afford it later or now so don’t buy it either time. Thinking that you’re saving money by buying something now is a real faulty kind of logic. The Bible says if you don’t plan your spending you’re going to give into this impulse buying.
Proverbs 21:20 is God’s IQ test. “Stupid people spend their money as fast as they get it.” The Bible says if I spend my money as soon as I get it, I’m a fool! I’m stupid, dumb. I’m acting in a very foolish manner. Stupid people spend their money as fast as they get it.
You need to plan your spending. How do you break the habit of impulse buying? How do you spell relief? BUDGET! What is a budget? A budget is simply planned spending. A budget is telling your money where you want it to go rather than wondering where it went. You’re saying, I want it to be spent this way. If you don’t do that, it’s just going to go all over the place. If you want to control impulse buying, you’ve got to nip it in the budget.
Here’s your homework: I want you to go home and make a little, simple budget, if you don’t have one. First, put down how much you pay for rent or house payments, how much you pay for utilities, how much you pay for gas and food… You get to the end and how much do you have left over? Nothing. Because you’re spending more than you really make most likely. Then you go back and start cutting. It’s never any fun. But if you want to get to financial freedom and enjoy the fruits of financial success, you’re going to have to learn to live on a budget. That’s your homework!
There’s a third principle of financial freedom.
3. SAVE FOR THE FUTURE. This is the principle of INVESTING.
Proverbs 21:20, “The wise man saves for the future.” The Bible says it is wise to save. But we’re not very good at this as Americans. We live in this “Spend it now, live for today” mentality. We don’t follow God’s principles to save for the future.
Proverbs 13:11, “Money that comes easily disappears quickly.” A Florida newspaper reported that a study showed that 70% of lottery winners in Florida are bankrupt within three years. “Money that comes easily disappears quickly. But money that is gathered little by little will grow.” What’s little by little? By saving it.
You need to set three kinds of financial goals: Saving goals, spending goals, giving goals. You need to know those and be clear about them.
The Bible has a lot to say about investing, far more than we can cover today. In Proverbs 6 it says, “Go study little ants. They store up food in the summer so when the winter comes they’ll be well taken care of.” The reason we don’t do that is we want everything now.
Those of you who work on commission know that it can be feast or famine. Your income varies. It goes up and down from month to month. You know how difficult it is to say let’s establish a repayment plan and get out of debt. You didn’t get into debt overnight. You’re not going to get out of it overnight. But if you’ll apply these five financial principles, you can do this too.
Earn an honest living (that’s the Principle of Work), Plan your spending (that’s the Principle of Budgeting), Save for the future (that’s the Principle of Investing)
4. RETURN TEN PERCENT BACK TO GOD. That’s the principle of TITHING.
You know about this. We’ve talked about tithing before. God says the first ten percent of all that I make goes back to Him to honor Him as number one in my life. Most of you understand this but maybe some of you are new. In Malachi 3:10, God says, “Bring to My storehouse a full tenth of what you earn.”
Tithing means ten percent. It doesn’t mean five percent, two percent, twelve percent. It means ten. That’s what tithing is. “Bring to My storehouse a full tenth of what you earn. Test me in this,” says the Lord. “And I will open the windows of heaven for you and pour out all the blessing that you need.”
Notice the words Test Me”. This is the only place in the Bible where God says, “I dare you!” Only one place in the Bible does God say, “This is how you can prove that I exist. You can prove it by tithing. You put Me first in your money, give Me the first ten percent back, and see if I don’t bless your life. Test Me. I dare you. Try it out!”
Why did God say ten percent? I haven’t the slightest idea. He could have said twenty percent. He could have said fifty. He could have said, “Give Me ninety percent and you live on ten,” because the truth is He owns it all. We don’t really own anything. You get to use it for sixty, eighty, ninety years and then you give it back. You didn’t bring any money into this world and you’re not taking any out. You only get to use God’s money while you’re here and then somebody else will get to use it and God will let them use it. You don’t really own anything. Everything you have comes from God.
Why do I tithe? The Bible says three reasons:
1. Out of gratitude for my past. Every time I give ten percent back to God – that means if I make a hundred bucks, ten bucks go to God. If I make a thousand bucks, the first hundred bucks go back to God. God obviously doesn’t need my money. He doesn’t need your money. So why does God say do it. Because He wants what it represents. Your heart. People are more selfish about money than anything else. We get real nervous when we talk about giving. Some of you are real nervous right now. The most sensitive nerve in the body goes from the heart to the pocketbook. God says, “I know that you spend most of your life revolved around money – thinking about it, spending it, saving it, earning it, using it, investing it, worrying about it, paying it, repaying it.” So He says, “I want to be number one in this primary area of your life. So ten percent comes right back to Me.”
When I give my tithe to God, I’m saying, “God, I realize that I wouldn’t have anything if it weren’t for You. You gave me my mind. You gave me my health. You gave me my body. You gave me the clothes on my back. I’m just saying here’s ten percent back to You out of gratitude but I know that it all came from You in the first place.”
2. It’s a priority statement in the present where it says, “God, it proves that You’re number one.” You can say that God is number one in your life but if you’re not tithing, you’re kidding yourself. God says, “I want to be number one in your time, your money, your relationships.” I can do lip service, saying, “Jesus is number one in my life.” But if I’m not tithing I really don’t trust Him. I don’t believe He’ll do what He says. So it’s saying in priorities, “God, You’re number one. I give you the first day of every week (Sunday), I give You the first part of my day, I give you the first part of my money.”
3. It is a statement of faith. Every time I tithe, I’m saying, “God, I believe Your promise. I believe that You will take care of me, that somehow You’ll figure out how I can live on 90% better than if I had all 100%. So I’m going to trust. If I trust You enough to save me and get me into heaven, I’ll trust You enough to take care of my finances.”
When Pastor Toby and I got married about 24 years ago, we made the commitment to tithe and have never broken it. It was not always an easy street financially, but God is faithful. If you want to get out of debt, you need to put God first because you His blessing on your life.
Some of you are saying, “I’m broke. I can’t afford to tithe!” Can I respectfully submit to you that you can’t afford not to? You need God’s blessing in your life to get out of debt. The best time to start tithing is when you’re in debt. It’s either you’re going to figure it out on your own or you’re going to do it God’s way. Which one do you think God’s going to bless? Which one do you think God’s going to honor? Which one do you think God’s going to help you the most with? It really comes down to a matter of “Do I really trust God? Do I believe He’ll do what He says?” Test Me in this, He says.
When do I do it? “On every Lord’s day [Sunday, when you go to worship] you should put aside something from what you have earned during the week and use it for the offering. The amount depends on how much the Lord has helped you earn.” Tithing is an act of worship. You give it when you worship. Supporting outside agencies, community groups, fraternities and sororities or other Christian organizations is not tithing. Tithing is an act of worship where ten percent of my money goes to God as an act of worship. If you want God’s blessing on your finances, you need to put Him first.
Here’s the principle: whatever you want God to bless in your life, put Him first in it. You want God to bless your relationships? Put Him first in your relationships. You want God to bless your time? Put Him first in your time. You want God to bless your money? Put Him first in your money.
If you’re not tithing ten percent and you’re not saving anything, you’re living above your means. There are more promises related to giving in the Bible than any other subject. Why? Because God wants you to learn to be like Him and God is a giver. Let me give you one: Proverbs 3:9-10, “Honor the Lord by giving Him…” the leftovers of all your income? “Honor the Lord by giving Him the first part of all your income and He will fill your barns to overflow.” That means right off the top. I’ve discovered that if I pay all my bills first and then put God last instead of first, there isn’t any money left. There’s too much month left over at the end of the money. Have you noticed your money runs out before the month does? So I say, Right off the top.
But I need to say this, some of you are tithing but you’re saying, “I’m not seeing God’s blessing in my life.” You’ve got to do all five of these principles. All five! You’ve got to earn an honest living. You’ve got to plan your spending. You’ve got to save for the future. You’ve got to give ten percent back to God and then the fifth principles is very important…
5. ENJOY WHAT I HAVE. That’s the Principle of Contentment.
Ecclesiastes 6:9, says “It is better to be satisfied with what you have than to always be wanting something else.’ We are not satisfied with what we have, we always want something else. People are so busy getting more and more they don’t have any time to enjoy what they’ve got.
People go out and they get overextended. Their yearning exceeds their earning. They buy a house more than they can afford. They buy a car better than they can afford. They over spend, they get all kinds of credit debt. Then they have to go out – both husband and wife have to work to hustle to make ends meet because they bought more than they could afford. There’s constant tension, constant frustration, constant fatigue because we’re always trying to keep up with everybody around us. Pretty soon we get real tired and relationships start to frazzle
I know we rationalize this and we say, “It’s only temporary. We’re hustling right now but it’s only temporary.” Who are you kidding? A temporary solution has become a permanent lifestyle. You say, “One of these days when things settle down.” They’re not going to settle down! They’re not going to settle down until you choose to settle them down. If you wait for them to settle down, by that time the kids will be gone and it’s too late.
The key to all this is Hebrews 13:5, “Be content with what you have.” One couple had to learn this the hard way and they’re working their way out of debt by applying these five principles:
You didn’t get in debt overnight. You’re not going to get out overnight. But if you don’t do something it’s going to be worse next year. You need to take these principles and make them work. If you feel the pressure of finance in your life, if you find yourself arguing at home over bills, if you’re saving nothing and you’re spending all of it, this is a symptom.
It’s a symptom of a much deeper problem than you think. Yes, you need financial principles and yes, you need a money manager to help you make this thing work. But you need more than that. Because an unmanaged finances represent an unmanaged life. Out of control finances are a symptom of an out of control life. You don’t need just money management, you need a life manager. And His name is Jesus Christ.
Do these principles work? Absolutely. But two things: One, you have to do them all you can’t pick and choose. It’s the five points of a star. And two, you’ve got to do them in the right order.
Here is the world’s order, what most people do with their money:
1. First they earn it
2. Then they spend it all. They enjoy it.
3. If they have any left over, the repay it – past
4. If they have any left over after that, they might save a little bit
5. If they have any left over after that, they might give some.
Here is the order that God blesses:
1. You earn it.
2. You tithe it. You put God first. “God, You’re number one in my finances.”
3. You save it. You pay God first, you pay yourself second. It’s your money that God has given you.
4. You repay. You set up a repayment plan so little by little get out of debt
5. You enjoy the results of that in your life.
The Bible says you will never ultimately be satisfied by things. Isaiah 55:2, “Why do you spend money on that which doesn’t satisfy?” The greatest things in life aren’t things. This is why you have to redecorate all the time. Things don’t change and we get bored with them. That’s why the car that you used to think was so cool, you’re bored with now. That’s why the decorations you thought were so great, you’re bored with now. That’s why the computer you bought last week is already out of date. Things don’t change and people do. So you’re never ultimately going to be satisfied by things. The root of your financial problem is really a matter of values and trust. What do I value and who do I trust?
“If I put my trust in money, if my happiness depends on wealth, it would mean that I denied the God of heaven.” Whatever I trust for my happiness is my god.
I want to close today by praying for those of you who are in financial difficulties, who are in financial stress. God wants to help you get out of debt. But you’ve got to do two things: One, you’ve got to do your part. Take the outline and do a little self-evaluation. Put a checkmark by each of the principles that you’re already doing. Then put a star by the ones that you’re going to start today or this week. It’s a waste of time if you don’t act on what the Bible tells us to do on how to get out of debt and be financially free.
Prayer:
Father, You’ve seen these hands. I don’t know their individual situations but You do. Many of them are experiencing financial stress and difficulty today. As they follow Your principles, I pray that You will miraculously turn around their finances. I know they didn’t get into debt overnight and they’re not going to get out of it overnight. But replace that debt with dedication to do the right thing. Replace the pressure with peace. Help them to get out of the hole and onto Your pathway to financial freedom and success.
Pray this in your heart: “Father, I want to follow Your financial principles in 20005. Forgive me for spending more than I make. Forgive me for unwise purchases. Help me to get back on track with Your plan. Today, I commit myself to Your financial principles. With Your help in 2005 I’m going to start keeping better records. I’m going to learn to plan my spending. With Your help I’m going to save some for the future. And I’m going to put You first in my finances by returning the tithe back to You. Help me to enjoy what I have. Jesus Christ, I invite You to be the manager of my life. I want to trust You with my finances and with my future. In Your name I pray. Amen.”
