FIDELITY'S REWARD

A life-or-death choice confronts us daily: be a faithful disciple or be a faithless drop-out. 

Let’s allow The Word to speak to our hearts regarding our allegiance and fidelity to Christ:

John 8:30-32

³⁰ As he spake these words, many believed on him.

³¹ Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;

³² And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

I Corinthians 4:2

Moreover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful.

Matthew 25:21,23

His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Revelation 2:10b

…be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

Sisters and brothers, be encouraged to persevere in faithfulness…and be continually blessed!

NEVER LOSE HEART

No matter what goes on, in or around your life, endeavor to maintain faith, balance and perspective.  During your crisis moments, consider the story of the shipwrecked survivor who was the only one person left alive on a remote Pacific island.  He prayed fervently every day, asking God to send someone along to rescue him.  Day by day, he looked for God’s help, but he just couldn’t find it.  Growing weary of waiting, he decided to construct a crude and meager shelter in order to protect himself and his few possessions.  But then one evening, after foraging the island for food, he returned and found his shelter completely consumed by fire.

Everything he owned was now burned up.  The castaway sailor was totally confused and terribly angry with God.  In despair, he shouted at God: “WHY?  Why did you do this to me?”  Then he fell into a deep sleep on the sandy shore.  Before dawn, he heard the sound of a boat rapidly approaching the island.  At long last, his rescuers had arrived!  He asked them how they knew he was there on the island.  The rescuers said they saw the huge fire and smoke signals he had made the night before.

It is so easy to feel angry, confused or hopeless whenever things seem to go wrong for us.  But we should never lose heart, because GOD is always up to something behind the scenes.  So remember…the next time your ‘house’ is on fire, it might simply be a smoke signal that God has planned for your personal deliverance. 

Finally, we must reflect prayerfully on the example of Jesus, and draw inspiration from it.  He suffered the agony and humiliation of public crucifixion.  Yet, while despising the shame, he endured the cross and won ultimate victory for all of humankind.  During your darkest moments, “Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Hebrews 12:2-3, NIV)

In truth, we are constantly comforted and sustained by the promises, plans and purposes of God.  His Word is our beacon, our rescuer and our reward.  “For I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord, plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11, NIV)  My sisters and brothers, be continually blessed!

THE GOSPEL OF GREED (Pt. IV)

The key question for today is “What is the litmus test for determining whether (or not) we are utilizing church or personal funds appropriately?”  According to the Time Magazine article, “Does God Want You To Be Rich?” the Christian church is largely ‘split’ on the issue of prosperity teaching because (from the authors’ perspective) the scriptures are vague or inconclusive regarding money matters.  Co-authors, David Van Biema and Jeff Chu, state the following:

“Scripture is not definitive when it comes to faith and income. Deuteronomy commands believers to “remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth,” and the rest of the Old Testament is dotted with celebrations of God’s bestowal of the good life. On at least one occasion--the so-called parable of the talents (a type of coin)--Jesus holds up savvy business practice (investing rather than saving) as a metaphor for spiritual practice. Yet he spent far more time among the poor than the rich, and a majority of scholars quote two of his most direct comments on wealth: the passage in the Sermon on the Mount in which he warns, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth ... but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven;” and his encounter with the “rich young ruler” who cannot bring himself to part with his money, after which Jesus famously comments, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

Both statements can be read as more nuanced than they at first may seem. In each case it is not wealth itself that disqualifies but the inability to understand its relative worthlessness compared with the riches of heaven. The same thing applies to Paul’s famous line, “Money is the root of all evil,” in his first letter to Timothy. The actual quote is, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.”

So the Bible leaves plenty of room for a discussion on the role, positive or negative, that money should play in the lives of believers. But it’s not a discussion that many pastors are willing to have. “Jesus’ words about money don’t make us very comfortable, and people don’t want to hear [them]” notes Collin Hansen, an editor at Christianity Today.” [This concludes the Time article quote].

From my perspective, the message of scripture is never muddled or unclear.

All the teachings of Jesus emphasize advancing the Kingdom of God.  John the Baptist, the cousin and forerunner of Jesus, declared prior to Christ’s public ministry, “Repent…for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 3:2)  It is no accident that Jesus echoed these exact sentiments (for they are originally His): “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)  Fact is, the majority of Jesus’ parables focus on establishing the Kingdom of God in the earth.  (Matthew, chapter 13, et al)  Even The Lord’s Prayer (The Disciples’ Prayer) emphasizes this concept.  “Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” was the constant prayer of Jesus Christ. (Matthew 6:10)

At this precise point, the so-called ‘prosperity preachers’ skid off the tracks and collide with eternal truth.  Their emphasis on ‘the here and now’ directly contradicts the Pauline prescription for true Biblical prosperity: “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.” (Colossians 3:2)  For in the words of Jesus Christ, “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.” (Matthew 6:21)

While some Church leaders busily tout and display material success via burgeoning bank accounts, palatial mansions, private jets and helicopters, etc., there is a veritable host of hurting and dying people that we fail to serve!  I am not a ‘hater’—not at all—as some readers may conclude.  But sometimes I scratch my head and wonder aloud: ‘How much is too much?  Do we really need to line our pockets and live in the lap of luxury to affirm our worldly status or to confirm divine blessings?  Are we more about ego gratification than about serving fallen humanity and ushering lost souls into the Kingdom of God?’

A few decades ago, I was the Minister of Outreach at a large urban church in a southern state.  One day, an elderly and infirmed lady called the church and asked for help.  Her caretaker (an adult daughter) was traveling on business and had forgotten to buy groceries.  The caller needed someone to assist her by driving her to the bank and supermarket to pick up necessary food items.  I responded affirmatively and was on the way out the door when the senior pastor called out: “Where are you headed?”  I explained the elderly lady’s dilemma and my intended mission to help.  The pastor’s response totally shocked me.  “We don’t do things like that,” he remarked rather casually.  So I returned to my office and decided that my wife and I would respond to this woman’s urgent need at the end of the workday.  John, the apostle of love, stated it more eloquently that I ever could: “Whoso hath this world’s good(s), and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?” (I John 3:17)

I must pose two serious questions to the leaders and laity of The Church:

1)        What is the biblical reason for our existence…Kingdom-building or personal empire-building?

2)       If our greedy quest for wealth sacrifices the salvation of even one soul…what will CHRIST say to us?

This is entirely a matter of motives and priorities, i.e. what we decide to “seek first.” (Matthew 6:33)  Christ indeed promised to add overflowing blessings to His people, whenever and wherever we seek the good and growth of His Kingdom.  Nevertheless, at the beginning of this devotional, I posed a strategic question: “What is the litmus test for determining whether (or not) we are utilizing church or personal funds appropriately?”  Answer: If whatever we are doing with our blessings builds God’s Kingdom (not ours), we are most assuredly on the right track. 

If there is indeed to be an end-times redistribution of wealth, as many prophets and prosperity preachers emphatically decree, what will the church DO with it?  Bottom-line: We are divinely blessed…to BE a blessing!

Why not let Jesus Christ have the last word? 

Matthew 6:19-20

¹⁹ Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:

²⁰ But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

Sisters and brothers, be continually blessed.  And as God honors and favors your life with genuine prosperity (inclusive of spiritual, material, physical, emotional and financial components), USE ALL OF YOUR BLESSINGS TO BUILD THE KINGDOM OF GOD!

THE GOSPEL OF GREED (Pt. III)

Christ commands us to exercise sound scriptural stewardship.  (Luke 16:1-2 – I Corinthians 4:1-2)  In fact, He commissions, commends and ultimately confers compensatory crowns upon all believers who do so. (Matthew 25:14-40)  To wit, the scriptures suggest a strong causal connection between funds garnered through tithes and offerings and tangible opportunities to harvest lost souls for the Kingdom of God.  That being the case, the following question is begged: ‘Since there is a direct connection between funds the church receives and the ability to finance its soul-winning mission, is it reasonable or right to spend even the smallest sum on self-gratifying or frivolous endeavors?’  Indeed, this is the mission-critical question that we must ask ourselves as we systematically raise and appropriate funds within the institutional church.

Time Magazine published a relevant article on Sunday, 10 September 2006, which implicitly highlights the foregoing question.  That article – entitled Does God Want You To Be Rich? – was authored by David Van Biema and Jeff Chu.  Key excerpts of the article are/will be reprinted here (today and tomorrow) for your prayerful consideration:

“In three of the Gospels, Jesus warns that each of his disciples may have to “deny himself” and even “take up his Cross.” In support of this alarming prediction, he forcefully contrasts the fleeting pleasures of today with the promise of eternity: “For what profit is it to a man,” he asks, “if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?” It is one of the New Testament's hardest teachings, yet generations of churchgoers have understood that being Christian, on some level, means being ready to sacrifice--money, autonomy or even their lives.

But for a growing number of Christians, the question is better restated, “Why not gain the whole world plus my soul?” For several decades, a philosophy has been percolating…that seems to turn the Gospels’ message on its head: certainly, it allows, Christians should keep one eye on Heaven. But the new good news is that God doesn’t want us to wait. Known (or vilified) under a variety of names--Word of Faith, Health and Wealth, Name It and Claim It, Prosperity Theology--its emphasis is on God’s promised generosity in this life and the ability of believers to claim it for themselves. In a nutshell, it suggests that a God who loves you does not want you to be broke. Its signature verse could be John 10: 10: “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” In a TIME poll, 17% of Christians surveyed said they considered themselves part of such a movement, while a full 61% believed that God wants people to be prosperous. And 31% agreed that if you give your money to God, God will bless you with more money.

“Prosperity” first blazed to public attention as the driveshaft in the moneymaking machine that was 1980s televangelism. Now, after some key modifications (which have inspired some to redub it ‘Prosperity-Lite’), it is booming. Of the four biggest mega-churches in [the USA], three--Joel Osteen’s Lakewood in Houston; T.D. Jakes’ Potter’s House in Dallas; and Creflo Dollar’s World Changers near Atlanta--are Prosperity or Prosperity-Lite pulpits (although Jakes’ ministry has many more facets). While they don’t exclusively teach that God’s riches want to be in believers’ wallets, it is a key part of their doctrine. And propelled by Osteen’s 4 million--selling book, Your Best Life Now, the belief has swept beyond its Pentecostal base into more buttoned-down evangelical churches, and even into congregations in the more liberal mainline denominations.

The movement’s renaissance has infuriated a number of prominent pastors, theologians and commentators. Fellow mega-pastor Rick Warren, whose book The Purpose Driven Life has outsold Osteen's by a ratio of 7 to 1, finds the very basis of ‘Prosperity’ laughable. “This idea that God wants everybody to be wealthy…there is a word for that: baloney. It’s creating a false idol. You don’t measure your self-worth by your net worth. I can show you millions of faithful followers of Christ who live in poverty. Why isn’t everyone in the church a millionaire?”

Advocates note Prosperity's racial diversity--a welcome exception to the American norm--and point out that some Prosperity churches engage in significant charity. And they see in it a happy corrective for Christians who are more used to being chastened for their sins than celebrated as God’s children. “Who would want to get in on something where you’re miserable, poor, broke and ugly and you just have to muddle through until you get to heaven?” asks Joyce Meyer, a popular television preacher and author often lumped in the Prosperity-Lite camp. “I believe God wants to give us nice things.” If nothing else, Meyer and other new-breed preachers broach a neglected topic that should really be a staple of Sunday messages: Does God want you to be rich?” [This concludes today’s excerpt from the Time article, Does God Want You To Be Rich?]

In closing, there is a serious question that we must ‘chew on’ while considering the will of God regarding the fiscal affairs of churches and individuals.  That is, “What is the litmus test for determining whether (or not) we are utilizing church or personal funds appropriately?”  We will engage this key question tomorrow.  But here are four teasers for your critical thinking and reflection: 1) Are our financial decisions Kingdom-driven or ego-driven?  2) Do our financial decisions serve us or the mission of soul-winning?  3) Since our primary focus is on eternity, how much money or material goods do we need (personally) in this present world?  4) If even one soul is lost because the gospel is not fully extended due to misappropriation of funds for self-serving ends, what will GOD have to say about that when we stand before Him in judgment?  Sisters and brothers, be continually blessed and stay tuned…more to come tomorrow!