INTRO: This past January the pastors were at a retreat in Duluth and the speaker told of a missionary friend who was trying to reach this group of people in Mexico.
They had a difficult time because these villagers had what he phrased “a scarcity mentality.” The missionary said their belief affected their whole lives. For example, parents would only have one child because their belief was if we have two children our love would be split in half, 50% going to one child and 50% going to another child. Heaven forbid if you had 4 children, each child would only receive 25% of their parents’ love.
This scarcity view believed there is only so much of the pie, and the more people you had the smaller shares of the pie each would get.
As a result of this belief system, the missionary found it very difficult to reach this group for the gospel because this “scarcity view” created a mentality of greed among the people because there is only so much of the pie so I better get otherwise I’ll be left out.
The missionary tried to teach these people about God’s way and he phrased it “the abundance mentality.” For example, God does not have a limited supply of love. God’s love is abundant, he pours it out on all his children. God’s love is not contingent on the number of children he has.
Question: For us today what is my belief, do I have a scarcity viewpoint or an abundant viewpoint?
Thought: Before you answer that question, you need to realize you were born and raised in a society that has a scarcity mentality. It’s called supply and demand.
Example. What happens when the supply of oil is down - gas prices go up, food prices go up. Reality there is only a limited supply of oil
Problem: When I am raised in a society that believes in a scarcity mentality I need to be very careful that I don’t bring those beliefs into my walk with God otherwise there is going to be a lot of problems.
Question: In my walk with God does my relationship with God show a scarcity mentality or does it show an abundant mentality?
-This can be hard at times to answer, but God so faithful. He gives us a window to see into to see what I truly believe and it’s called money.
Truth: Larry Burkett, famous Christian author and financial counselor says, “How you handle money is the clearest outside expression of your spiritual condition (outward expression of an inward experience).”
Today: I’m going to talk about some foundational principles of money.
TITLE: What Do You Believe?
TEXT: Malachi 3:6-12
I. Background. The Jews have returned home after their horrible ordeal in Babylon. They rebuilt Jerusalem, and had a mighty move of God. But they had become cold religiously and lax morally. They grew comfortable.
A. The Lord does not change. V. 6a, “I the Lord do not change.” God is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
1. If God punished sin in the past, he will do so in the future. He is the same; he never changes.
In regard to tithing—
2. People will say, “That’s the Old Testament, Pastor. We’re not under it anymore. It does not relate to us.”
-Untrue. -How many women felt pain in childbirth?
-How many have lost a loved one within the last couple years? (Adamic Covenant)
-How many have seen a rainbow recently?—God’s promise to never again flood the earth. (Hope that covenant is still for today.)
B. The concept of tithing is for today. Just as the children of Israel were instructed to trust in God, we today are instructed by the text to trust in God.
1. Notice—“The Lord says, ‘Return to me, and I will return to you.’” The Lord instructs them. What is the problem?
-V. 8, “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me.”
2. They were robbing God of tithes and offerings.
a. Tithing is one-tenth or 10% of one’s income given to God through the ministry of the local church.
-Tithing is not an invention of the church or a principle developed in the old covenant of the Mosaic Law.
-Tithing first occurred as an act of faith by Abraham.
Point: Tithes and offerings are simply a trust issue between God and his children.
3. Let me give a simple example to help you understand. If I make $1000 a month gross, I would tithe $100 a month to my local church.
-It wouldn’t be a tithe if I gave it to the Billy Graham Association or some missions program. That would be considered an offering.
a. V. 10, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse.”
-A storehouse is where you’re being fed, where you and your family belong and have decided to worship together.
TS: Let’s look at what happens when we don’t obey. To learn this, let’s look at what happened to them.
C. What happens when we don’t obey? V. 9, “You are under a curse – the whole nation of you – because you are robbing me.”
1. Simply, you are under judgment. It’s a terrible thing to be under the judgment of God. I’ve experienced it on a few occasions. After you’ve been taken to Father’s woodshed, you don’t want to go back.
-Let me say one more thing about Father’s woodshed. It may take time to get out.
Example. At Damascus Way, as a counselor in the re-entry program for ex-cons, I got burned out, gave up, and wouldn’t minister to the guys anymore. The Lord told me and I refused to listen. He countered, “You don’t, I’ll remove you.” Being young and stupid I said, “Then do it.”
The next day I was done and out on the street looking for another job to support my family. God opened the door to a job “that was a crusher.”
-God not only broke me physically but mentally. Yes, I begged God to help as the months passed. Then one day God finally spoke to me and released me from the woodshed.
-Dad wanted me to understand something about how miserable life can be without the blessing of God.
D. Let’s talk about the blessing of God. V. 10 instructs to bring the tithes in and he challenges the people to test him in this. (This is the only place in scripture where we’re told to test the Lord.)
1. God will throw open the gates of heaven.
2. The blessing is more than we can handle.
3. He keeps the devourer out of our lives.
4. Others will call you blessed.
E. If some are still struggling with this concept called tithing, do what I do. (What would Jesus do?)
1. Jesus tithed so I should tithe. Pastor what scripture references:
-Matthew 5:17, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.”
-Under the law you were required to tithe as a Jew, so Jesus obeyed the law (he fulfilled it).
-Matthew 23:23. Jesus is coming down on the Pharisees and teachers of the law because they are not showing justice, mercy, faithfulness. But in this rebuke he does say they are tithing. They even are tithing their spices. Jesus makes a statement, “You should have practiced the latter (justice, mercy, faithfulness) without neglecting the former (tithing).”
II. Wanting money is dangerous – be careful your want of money is not greater than your want for God.
A. You cannot serve both God and money (Matthew 6:24). You cannot serve two masters.
1. It’s interesting that Jesus puts money on the level with God when illustrating a point.
-How true this is, either God will be your God or your money will be your god.
2. Think of it this way – who is leading you, who has the most influence over your life?
Question: Today what are you concerned about - your walk with God or your personal finances?
B. Remember what I said, money is just a window into my relationship with God. There are other windows that God gives us to see through.
1. Some have walked away from God to serve money (1 Timothy 6:10) because these two masters give different orders and directions.
Thought: Money is not evil, it’s the love of money. It’s a root of evil that produces a lot of wicked fruit in us.
2. I think we underestimate how much influence our society has affected us and here’s one of those principles it teaches. “You’re not content and here is the answer to your problem.” The answer always revolves around needing more money to buy more stuff so I can be happy and content.
-This is a lie from the pit of hell.
Conclusion
The exciting thing about God, is he will let us make the choice of how blessed we want to live. It’s not up to our boss or neighbor or our enemies. We choose how blessed we are going to live, no one else does.
-Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”
Example. What kind of blessing do you want from God (spoon or shovel)?
Question: Is your belief about God “an abundant mentality” or “a scarcity mentality”?
