Archive for the 'Bible Studies for Life' Category
Financial Giving Through The Local Church
Few topics are turned over more frequently in a pastor’s mind than the topic of how to talk about money with his church family. Because of the bad reputation some pastors develop for constantly speaking about money, others are hesitant to address the topic at all. For most people, any conversation about money in the church is way too much.
Most pastors and churches rapidly run away from the message of giving, rather than toward it. Therefore, stewardship is one of the most neglected subjects in the church. This results in disastrous choices that people make personally as well as lame, paralyzed giving taking place in the church. The Lord Jesus Christ deserves better than this and since we believe the Gospel is imperative for salvation, we must become more committed to Gospel advancement regionally, nationally, and internationally. All of which takes money.
The Trap of Attempting to Serve Two Masters
The Bible speaks about idols and warns against giving one’s self over to them. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus addressed the issue of attempting to serve two masters. In Matthew 6:24, Jesus says, “No one can be a slave of two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot be slaves of God and of money.”
Money and material possessions can be a great trap. The ease with which we can accumulate “stuff” can lead to our being controlled by it. The only cure for greed is generosity.
As mentioned above, Jesus said we would serve one of two masters. If we did not serve God as master, we would serve material wealth and possessions. The problem is not how hard it is to serve both, but the impossibility of doing so. Reliance on “stuff” cuts off our trust in God. On the other side, faith in God removes the need to find security in our “stuff.” Nothing cures the greedy heart and grasping hands like generosity.
Tightening our Grasp
As I write this, we remain in a sluggish economy. Officially we have not been in a recession in some time, but many people are still feeling its effects. The temptation in times like these is to hold onto everything that comes into our hands. Rather than holding things loosely, we tighten our grasp. That tightening is a symptom of placing our trust in things rather than God. The greatest way to secure our future financially is to obey all God says about giving
The opposite of holding onto material wealth and possessions is being generous. The Bible gives us numerous teachings on being generous and provides multiple examples of generosity. Again, the only way to insure you will never become greedy is to be generous. Greed is just as active to the human heart for those living in poverty as those living in abundance.
We See it Over and Over: Gain Through Giving
God’s people were instructed in Proverbs 3:9-10 to “Honor the Lord with your possessions and with the first produce of your entire harvest; then your barns will be completely filled, and your vats will overflow with new wine.” Being generous and honoring the Lord with possessions has long been a command.
Rarely has a picture of generosity been more clearly given than that of the widow who ministered to Elijah in 1 Kings 17. With a desperate famine in the land, the food supply for her and her son had dwindled to one remaining meal. Rather than praying for her or encouraging her to trust God, Elijah requested the last meal for himself.
While that may seem like an odd, even insensitive, request to us, the widow did what the prophet asked her to do. Because of her obedience, Scripture records that the widow’s supply of oil and flour were miraculously extended. She and her son were saved from death.
In the New Testament, Jesus has much to say about giving. In Luke’s Gospel, He gives this promise: “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 back to you” (Luke 6:38). What a tremendous promise of God’s reward!
Another poignant example is Paul’s experience with the Macedonian believers. He records in 2 Corinthians 8 that while the Macedonians themselves were enduring extreme poverty; they begged Paul for the opportunity to give to the relief offering (vs.1-5). Paul used their generosity to challenge the Corinthian Christians to follow suit.
Embracing His Command and Rejoicing
Too often, I think we approach giving to our local church not as a command to be embraced, but as a challenge to be evaded. Generosity is often not viewed as a means of knowing God better, but as a burden.
The Bible tells us God has given to us an “indescribable gift” (2 Corinthians 9:15). When we think about this gift (Jesus) our hearts should be filled with rejoicing because of God’s grace. We are never more like Jesus than when we give.
Generosity is a reflection of the character of God. God, in fact, loves a cheerful giver. Cheerfulness precedes and follows giving when God, not money, is our master. When God is our master our view of possessions is the same as His: they are tools for His glory.
As God’s people, let us be committed to supporting the work of the Kingdom through our local church. Honoring the Lord with the first tenth of all God has given to us will elevate not only giving within the church, but Gospel advancement globally. Additionally, it will serve as our personal invitation to God to bless us as we obey Him.
When we give this way through our local church and go beyond by supporting a mission effort taking place locally, nationally, or internationally, the joy of investing in the work of Christ far outweighs the short-lived excitement of spending money on ourselves and accumulating more.
Yours for the Great Commission,
Ronnie Floyd
Senior Pastor, Cross Church Northwest Arkansas General Editor, Bible Studies for Life
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.
Developing intentional discipleship
We hear a lot about discipleship and making disciples in churches today. This is a very good thing since Jesus both made disciples and commanded us to do so. In fact, the Great Commission — essentially His last words before returning to heaven — is fixed around the singular command of “make disciples” (Matthew 28:19).
Discipleship as our Missional Centerpiece
It is clear we must not treat discipleship as haphazard or accidental since Jesus made it the centerpiece of our mission. The early missionary, the Apostle Paul, taught and lived a discipleship model that bore fruit all over the Middle East and Asia Minor. He wrote to the believers in Thessalonica:
“Although we could have been a burden as Christ’s apostles, instead we were gentle among you, as a nursing mother nurtures her own children. We cared so much for you that we were pleased to share with you not only the Gospel of God but also our own lives, because you had become dear to us. For you remember our labor and hardship, brothers. Working night and day so that we would not burden any of you, we preached God’s Gospel to you…As you know, like a father with his own children, we encouraged, comforted, and implored each one of you to walk worthy of God, who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.”
(1 Thessalonians 2:7-9,11-12, HCSB)
Note the descriptions Paul uses: we were gentle, nurtured, cared for you, we shared our own lives, we were like fathers to children, we encouraged, comforted, and implored you to walk worthy of God. To Paul discipleship was about giving the Gospel through giving life. He did not simply teach the Thessalonians; he poured himself into them. As he said, “We were pleased to share with you not only the Gospel of God but also our own lives.”
An Intentional Disciple Making Strategy
In his second letter to Timothy, Paul described to Timothy a particular strategy for making disciples: “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, commit to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2:2). This is a four-generation discipleship strategy. Paul teaches Timothy, Timothy commits the truths to faithful men, then those faithful men will teach others.
If you take these two passages together (which, in essence, are just summaries of Paul’s entire church planting strategy) it forms the core of an intentional discipleship. Commit truth (which he defines as “the Gospel of God”) to faithful people who will repeat the process. This is intentional discipleship. It is the making of disciple-makers. This is the Great Commission.
A Blueprint for Discipleship
In 1 Corinthians 3:10, Paul used a construction metaphor to describe the process of discipleship: “According to God’s grace that was given to me, I have laid a foundation as a skilled master builder, and another builds on it. But each one must be careful how he builds on it.”
Good builders are intentional about their construction. Haphazard construction results in problematic structures. A proper blueprint, good materials, and skill are needed to complete the task.
Each one of us who are believers heard the Gospel from another person. If we have grown in the faith it was likely because our parents or a mentor poured themselves into us, teaching us the faith. If we had the time and ability we would be able to trace our spiritual discipleship all the way back to Paul, then to Jesus.
Think for a moment about Jesus’ strategy. He chose 12 men to be with Him. They traveled with Him, listened to Him, saw Him perform miracles, were endowed with miraculous power themselves, heard Him explain parables, and saw Him crucified, resurrected, and ascended. It was the strategy of shared life, the same strategy Paul used.
Jesus prepared these men. Eleven of them became the leaders of the early believers. Both Jesus’ strategy and Paul’s strategy were successful precisely because they were intentional. As should ours be.
Yours for the Great Commission
Ronnie Floyd
Dr. Ronnie Floyd is the President & CEO of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee.