Sermon Nuggets Mon Feb 28 Money Matters
Prov 17:16
16 Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no desire to get wisdom?
(NIV)
Money Matters
I decided to do my meditations these next two weeks on Money. The Bible is very practical when it comes to material things as well as spiritual things. There is much that could be said about money management.
I knew a man who took very seriously his commitment to Jesus Christ. When he read that he was suppose to leave everything and follow Jesus. He quit his job, and starting preaching in parks. It was suspected he was having a mental breakdown. The pastor talked to him about his responsibility as a father and husband to take care of his family. 1 Tim 5:8 If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
God’s will can be carried out by both earning and living and sharing a witness for the gospel. Which is correct? He quoted the verse on his mind, Matt 19:29 “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.”
Did that mean he should no longer work? Did that mean he was in disobedience to God and not worthy to be a disciple of Jesus? At what point is the conflict of human responsibility and radical devotion to Jesus God’s will?
That man’s possessions, nor his responsibility for his family, kept him from following Jesus Christ. There are others however who are in persecuted countries where a believer in Christ might have to leave everything behind, even family. I’ve talked to a friend of Dr. Pat named Markos who was defying threats on his life and family and through God’s protection so far has seen hundreds of thousand come to Christ through the Jesus film. He had taught people how to disciple new believers when they are new Christians themselves.
I have to admit I believe most Christians are on the other extreme. They are not desiring to give up everything to follow Christ, but rather wanting to follow Christ without any change whatsoever especially in the way they handle their money and possessions. Since finances and money management is a private thing it is considered offensive for anyone even to question how people chose to handle material matters. I don’t like some of the things that the Bible says about finances because it brings conviction to my heart asking myself if indeed I am living the way the Lord wants me to.
An overwhelming portion of the Bible teaching and stories revolve around money and possessions. It affects everyone’s life. An important part of our Spiritual commitment to God is what we think about money and how we handle it. This week I want to look at four areas of how to look at money from a Christian perspective.
Pastor Dale
Sermon Nuggets Mon March 1 Foundation of Money Management
Verses- Luke 16:11 If therefore you have not been faithful in the use of worldly wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you.?”
Matt 6:24-25
24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
Recognize the Foundation of Money Management
Finances are still the number one reason for marital conflict. If we were to go over your receipts and checks each family would have their own story of values, and commitments, of decisions, and recreation, of who you are as individuals. And what type of marriage you have. When Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there is your heart also.” That was an extremely insightful comment of how to tell what people are made of.
Howard Dayton in his book, Your Money Counts, mentions three important principles
1) How we handle our money affects our fellowship with the Lord. Luke 16:11 Jesus was saying how to handle money does affect our spiritual relationships.
2) Possessions compete with the Lord. What we own and what we want to own compete with Christ for Lordship over our lives. Jesus says we must chose to serve one of two masters. God or money Mt 6:24. Many people who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ will let the Lord control every area of their life except their financial area. That area we want to be in charge of, not the Lord.
3) Much of our lives are centered around the use of money. During the week how much of your time is spent earning money? How much of your time is spending deciding how to spend your money. How much of your time is spend paying bills, buying food, clothes, and goods in the shopping centers, and other stores. How much of your time is spend discussing what you can and can’t do because of money and it’s limitations, or shopping on the internet, or auctions, or how much of your time is spend cleaning and sorting and moving, and caring for your possessions, whether it is a house, or lawn, or making beds, or doing dishes. There comes a time when people need to ask a most important questions. Do we own our possessions or do our possessions own us?
There are two parts to handling money, God’s part and our part. God owns it all, The term than God uses to refer to himself most often when it comes to money is Master. After Job lost all his possessions and even all his children, there was one thing left that could not be taken away, God. And He worshipped. Moses forsook the treasures of Egypt to be identified to suffer with his people of Israel and wander the next 40 years in a dessert. Both knew their foundation of life was in the living God, not in what they owned or how much they had.
When you talk about God being master you must recognize the concept of ownership. “The earth is the Lords and all that is in them.” The Lord is the creator of all things and as never transferred ownership to us as mankind. Never. He has only given to us the responsibility of taking care of the earth and everything. Job understood an important financial principle. “Naked I came from my mother’s womb and naked I shall return, blessed be the name of the Lord.” When you die you own nothing. All the resources go to heirs. So the greatest lesson is to give your heart to the Lord that you may inherit the treasures of heaven. “What shall it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses is own soul.” Mark 8:36
I was reading about an unusual inheritance request of one lady that wanted to buried in her Ferrari and if her family would follow her request they could inherit her money. They placed her body in the car and incased the car in cement so no one would dig up the car at some later date. You might think what a waste of money. I think also what a waste of life to think that somehow your casket being a Ferrari is any different when you are dead than a gunny sack. Your possessions means nothing if you do not have the Lord Jesus Christ in you life. When we have come to terms with the foundation of the ownership question then our attitude is not ‘Lord what do you want me to do with my money’, but rather, “Lord, what do you want me to do with your money?”
I remember an illustration Bill Gothard made in one of his seminars, He gave his car to the Lord and it was the Lord’s car. He was wondering why the Lord was allowing his car to stall on the highway. He looked up in his rear view mirror to see another car coming over a hill and failing to stop in time. Gothard was hit from behind. He got out and said, “Lord look what happened to your car.” And he walked away freely because it wasn’t his. It was the Lord’s.
But what God wants you and I to learn more than anything else is He will provide for our needs. Do we see him as being a provider? For 40 years he provided food for his people who were where He wanted them to be in the dessert. He provided quail. He provided shelter, not according to their wants, but according to their needs. It is a faith walk to believe that God will provide.
Pastor Dale
Sermon Nuggets Weds March 2 Faithfulness
Verses- Matt 25:23 "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master's happiness!'
Eph 6:5-8 Slaves, obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ.
6 Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but like slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart.
7 Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men,
8 because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free.
Recognize the Faithfulness of Money Management
Foundational is the understanding that God owns it all and we are stewards of His possessions he entrusts to us. We are to be faithful stewards, or money managers. In order to be faithful we need to know what we are supposed to be faithful doing.
We are in charge of handing anything that God gives us. Some people think that 10% belongs to God, whereas 10% tithe is a reminder that 100% is all His. The parable of the talents shows us that it doesn’t make any difference if we have 1 talent or 5 talents or 10 talents. It doesn’t make any difference if we have 100 dollars 1,000 dollars or 10,000 dollars we are suppose to be faithful with what God had given to us. He who is faithful in little things will also be faithful in much.
I like to think of how I handle things differently when they are borrowed than when I buy them myself. Generally I treat them with better care in hopes of returning them in as good a condition as when I borrowed it.
Eph 6:5-8 tells us to be faithful at work. Laziness and cutting corners on the job are simply forms of stealing from our employer. Lets’ not be guilty of stealing. Be willing to work for your income. The normal means of income ordained of God is supplying our needs through work, inheritances, or investments.
But be scrupulously honest in all business matters. Be honest in the little matters as well as big ones. I bid on something on ebay. I realized others were bidding and upping the price I originally offered. Since there was more than one item for sale I matched their price and it was accepted. I noticed I had gotten it at my original bid whereas the others got it at the increased bid. I wrote him back and told him of his error and I should be charged the greater price. He thanked me for my honesty and but gave it to me less than the others anyway.
Likewise I sold something on ebay for $21.00 but the buyer gave me $22. I returned the $1.00 informing him of the approved bid. He told me to keep it. Other vendors have taken advantage of me and other vendors have given me good deals. I am not responsible for what others do, but want to do what is fair or agreed upon to my knowledge as unto the Lord.
Now I am happy to do business with those people again because they were honest and they are happy to do business with me because of the same. We live in an age of relative honesty in which people formulate their own standards of honesty with change with circumstances.”When it comes to being faithful I believe God honors being faithful even if at times you are taken advantage of. It is only for a time. If you believe God will disciple you then why cheat?
To be faithful also means seeking to live within your means. Treat others financially the way you would want to be treated. The Bible also says Prov 20:23 “The Lord loathes all cheating and dishonest” and Lev 19:11 “You shall not steal or deal falsely, nor lie to one another."
Being faithful implies more than just money management. It is faithful in all that the Lord gives to us. One of the concerns we can’t ignore is our natural resources. God has given to us the responsibility of taking care of the earth, water, and environment. It is not a political issue, it is a spiritual issue. We have seen the abuse of eroded farmlands, and dry wells and poisoned lakes, and stripped forest land and unbreathable air. We have seen the abuses of use without responsibility or renewal. The diminishing rain forests and the extinction of animals is part of the greedy desires to live without regard to God’s world and only ours.
How much trouble has been caused by unfaithfulness in money matters? Are you in trouble? Are you headed for trouble? Determine today that for Jesus’ sake, you’ll be right and honest about money matters.
Society says you have earned your money spend it, however you want. The Bible says you will be satisfied when you have been a faithful manager of handling money from God’s perspective.
Pastor Dale
Sermon Nuggets Thurs March 3 Fruitfulness
Verses- 1 Tim 6:6-10 But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.
People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction.
10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
1 Tim 6:17-19 “As for the rich in this world, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on uncertain riches, but on the Lord who richly furnishes us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good deeds, liberal and generous, thus laying up for themselves a good foundation for the future so that they may take hold of the life which is life indeed “
Recognize the Fruitfulness of Money Management
Jonathan Edwards compared living on earth is like a business man on a trip who was given an expenses account by his employers for his travel and food. We are on a business trip, sometimes a vacation, paid by our employer- God to carry out his business and pay for our needs along the way.
Money is a means of exchange for goods or services to help us along this life’s journey. It is a means of value for work done and goods and services received. Its main purpose is used to provide for needs and helping others, serving the Lord, and enjoying the abundance God provides without selfishness, gluttony, or pride.
The Lord desires our thankful spirit recognizing even the food we eat and purchases are every day provisions from his grace. God wants us to us see our blessings and respond in thanksgiving. The earth’s resources are abundant.
Now dear people I get bothered when I see Christians preach extremes. I hear some preachers talk about how guilty we should feel if we have possessions. Some will exhort us to live a life of poverty. Jesus called the rich young ruler to sell all he has and give to the poor and follow him. The Bible teaching wants to wake up rich Christians to stop living selfish non giving lives. But on the other hand I see others who claim to be people of faith preaching a health and wealth gospel that teaches the reason we are not rich is because of our lack of faith or obedience.
Teaching on wealth requires us to look at all the passages. Are there rich people in the Bible whom God blesses and is in God’s will? Absolutely! Are there poor people in the Bible whom God sets up as examples of faith and righteousness? Absolutely!
Why did God fill the earth with abundance and make it fertile and filling it with thousands of different plants and animals good for food? Why did He fill it with color and precious metals and gems and raw material that can be made into tools and houses and cars and telephones and computers and air conditions and musical instruments? None of this was really necessary if He had intended us merely to survive in half naked state.
I believe the biblical answer is that God gave us an abundant earth for our enjoyment and our management and our entertainment allowance so that in skillful developing and thanksgiving we can use these gifts to glorify Him not glorify ourselves. I Tim 6:17 “He is the God who richly furnishes us with everything to enjoy.” “For everything created by God is good and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving. ( 1 Tim 4;4 ) Is it wrong to enjoy a hot fudge sundae on a hot day, or a nice dinner at Mr. Steak, or an orchestra concert? These too can be gifts of God if they are not used in over indulgences and we are faithful to Him first in our gifts and tithes and used in obedience to carry out his word and will
Part of the fruitfulness we enjoy is to be share with those who are going through crises of weather, war, unemployment and especially circumstances beyond their control. It is not wrong for Christian to be rich, nor is it wrong for them to be poor. There were rich people in the NT churches and the apostles never rebuked them for being rich.
Paul writes to Timothy to instruct the rich to be humble about their riches and not haughty. Some are given the spiritual gift of giving generously and used as a means to help others. They are to always be mindful of the heavenly riches that await us all.
There were also poor people in the churches. Their poverty is not an indication of lack of blessing from God. “Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Lk 6:20 and “Has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which he has promised to those who love him?” James 2:5
I do not really trust God for my daily bread. I have enough food stocked up in my house to feed everyone in church one meal a day for a week, I’m sure. The key is not how much you have, but contentment with what Gods gives to you.
Many times it is ignorance or social, political, and religious strife that is the main cause of famine and starvation. In India millions of people starve, while cows are allowed to eat half of the annual grain production. Yet the animals cannot be killed, or even eaten for they are sacred in Hinduism. This is satanic bondage to a system that cruelly destroys human life and impoverishes it. Oh that the people would be open to truth of the good news and the provisions of God properly handled.
Some are impoverished due to ignorance, lack of education, or training. Our responsibility is to teach people to be self sufficient. Some are lazy and don’t work.
Material rewards are necessary as an incentive to work. The Bible teaches that the laborer is worthy of his hire. Luke 10:7 The plowman should plow in hope and the thresher thresh in hope of a share in the crop. 1 Cor 9:10. But we must not use these resources for sin. Too often Gods’ good food is used for gluttony, chemical for drug abuse and extortion, printing presses and television and videos and computers for pornography and factories producing modern day idols that turn our affections from the living God. To enjoy the fruitfulness of money management is to rejoice with thanksgiving and obedience to our Creator.
Part of money management is living with fruitfulness that is given from above to carry on our journey in responsibility, work, rest, and entertainment for the glory of God and the help of others.
Pastor Dale
Sermon Nuggets Fri March 4 Freedom
Verses Phil 4:11-13 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
13 I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
Matt 6:33-34 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Recognize the Freedom in Money Management
One of the principles of stewardship is don’t use what we do not have. Much more will be shared about this next week, but the basic principle is freedom from money worries begins with seeking to living within your means. Emergencies not withstanding, debt has bound people to creditors and enslaved families with worries that in many incidents could have been prevented.
To enjoy the resources God has given you also means don’t seek the things God has not given to you or allowed you to have. We are a nation in extreme debt and apeople in extreme debt because a great deal of effort is placed into buying things now and paying for them later. The credit card companies lure you to enjoy the good life today and then reality sets in when 1,000 of dollars in charges and fees and interest result with money we ill afford to pay.
Without debt we are free from worry or being overly concerned. Contentment is mentioned 7 times in the Bible. Surprisingly 6 of those times refer to possessions. We are not born with inner contentment it is something to be learned.
Our society says-Happiness is gained by how much you have and the ability to get what you want. But the Bible says that is not freedom. It teaches a more important principle as you learn to follow the Scriptural principles of how to handle money.
You will draw closer to Christ and learn by the power of the Holy Spirit to be content in any and every circumstance. That is freedom of Money Management.
I think one of the most important decisions you can do today as an individual and family is commit by faith your possessions, finances, bills, job unto the Lord.
By an act of faith let Him know that beginning today no longer do you own anything, but will give him the right to all of your possessions and finances and you will follow to the best of your ability and understanding what He wants you to do with is.
Pastor Dale
