Church Obligation or Godly Obedience? part 1
A post on Twitter I saw recently
Have you ever been to a church service where they give a mini sermon before they take up the offering? I have been to several places that do this. Lately, hearing these makes me want to throw up in my mouth a little.
Jesus said on multiple occasions that what comes out of your mouth is from your heart (Matthew 12:34, 15:18). Does this have implications for the church organizations that are constantly talking about money? I think it does.
It seems that church organizations will not call you out on most sins because they want to “love” you and do not want you to feel “condemned.” There seems to be one big exception. You will get called out for not fulfilling your obligation to tithe. You can feel the waves of “Biblical obligation” spouted out from the stage with the promise of showers of blessings from heaven if you are obedient. Yet, poor people stay poor. It is the one “sin” that the church organization can check up on because they have your giving records (which is why I give in cash). Yes, I have seen the giving records whipped out before. Shame, shame.
As a side note, what I see as the typical American church view of giving has trouble matching up to the Bible that I read. Jesus clearly demonstrated God cares (even more) about the other 90% and the heart behind it’s use. That is for another discussion on another day.
Why do church organizations feel the need to preach about tithing before every collection? Is it fear? Fear that there salaries will not be met. Fear that they will not be able to buy all the cool lights so they can be like the cool mega churches. Could it be greed? Anyone who has paid attention to the church world very much has heard or seen some of those TV personalities who have leveraged giving for there own gains. This approach has not just been used by guys on TV.
Who’s name are you trying to build? Is it the name on the sign or is it Jesus? Most people are going to respond “Jesus.” Do your actions match that proclamation? Is your church organization trying to be the shining light in your town or is it lifting Jesus up as the shining light?
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19,21). We usually read these verses and put its application on individuals. It can be applied to groups of people too. Those groups can be corporations or congregations.
This is what I am really trying to get off my chest. “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19,20). Everything we do is to be motivated by following Jesus. Your motivation as an individual giving money and as a church organization asking for money is to follow Jesus. Beware of messages that promise blessings by 10 fold, 20 fold, 1000 fold, and a million fold return on what you give. God is not the ultimate slot machine. It is true that God does bless for generosity, but I believe God wants us to give with the attitude that we do not expect anything in return. The point is to “make disciples.” The message of Jesus should be heard more often then the message of “give to the church.” Using the time to make disciples is more important then drumming up some mini sermon to preach obligating the congregation to give before the offering is taken up.
I have a theory. If you make disciples you will not have to be bent on getting people to give. If you make disciples then people will be obedient and give to further God’s Kingdom. Real obedience comes out of the heart not out of the weight of obligation placed on them.
We are told to have faith that God will provide for our needs. Isn’t this true for any church organization that is fulfilling the great commission? When I am running short am I supposed to believe that God is my provider? When a church organization is running short should they believe God will provide or work up a couple heavy sermons on giving? Is it fine to make needs known? Of course it is!
When I am short on cash can I whip up a “give to Trevor” message? That would be nice. What I can do is make my needs known and believe that God will provide.
What comes out of the mouth reveals the heart. Remember this when you go to a church service. Is the heart about fulfilling God’s purposes?
If you are a part of a church community that is making disciples and lifting Jesus up high, you should be giving. There is power in community. I like what Mark Driscoll says, “Community must come around the mission. If community rallies around community, then people tend to get into exclusive groups or it gets to be about people getting there needs met. The point is to rally around the mission.”
Give to the mission. Give generously to people in need. Do not give out of the weight of obligation. Give out of obedience to God.
Be sure to read Church Obligation or Godly Obedience? part 2.
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Trav-
Truthfully, I have been where you have been and wrestled where you have wrestled in this blog. Here is the truth that I have discovered, Jesus talks more about money than He does Heaven in the Gospels. Why? I think it goes back to the whole idea of where your treasure is there your heart is.
I agree that there is some guilt and some manipulation in some churches. However, I will tell you that I talk about money and its place every week in my church when we worship Jesus by giving tithes and offerings. I do it b/c my people are largely young and fairly new to the Christian faith. I do not want them to give out of guilt or obligation but out of joy and dependence on God. So every week, I explain that truth.
You mentioned Driscoll in your post. In the early days of Mars Hill, they did not take up a public offering. They started taking up and offering about four years ago. I actually heard the podcast the first Sunday they did it. Pretty funny. Mark talked about why they were making the change and what they felt was the biblical precedent for the action. If you listen, Driscoll talks about money a lot and its place in the church and in the life of a believer.
One final note- I agree with you that there is NO place for making people feel guilty or under compulsion to give. Anyone who uses giving records in that way is sinning mightily and abusing their authority as a leader.
Just my 2 cents bro.
Ryan, thank you for your response. I am thankful for your words. Jesus talked a whole lot about money. It was also in a negative way most of the time. Warning against the love of it. We have some how taken the fact that Jesus talked about it more than anything as permission to talk about it a whole lot but not in the same way. Jesus was constantly warning. We warn our congregations against the evils of money and they can remedy the sin by giving it to us, your church. Kind of sounds self serving.
I love Mark Driscoll’s teaching, but it does not mean I agree all the time. His turn on how they take offerings is not really surprising.
This issue needs to be brought up and discussed outside of a pulpit. It is just to convenient for pastors to be the ones teaching on this subject. Giving effects them personally. That is why I bring it up. I am a nobody. It is about time for some nobodies to be talking about it. I am neutral to the Sunday offering.
I teach on financial stewardship as it arises from the scriptures in teaching the whole counsel of God, almost never as a specific topic. You are right that if people develop a devotion and commitment to Jesus, giving to the work of Christ will follow without our foolish efforts to coax and manipulate. That “real obedience comes out of the heart not out of the weight of obligation” is right on. No backlash here. Keep declaring.
Thank you Mike! I learned so much from your preaching. It mattered a lot to me.
I must admit that I find teaching and preaching about tithing humorous and usually have to bite my tongue to keep from laughing out loud.
I don’t know any church that really understands the Old Testament rules about the tithe. Study them and you will find that, in addition to income, God’s people were instructed to give 10% of their assets every year; even to the extreme of measuring one’s spices and giving one tenth.
And then Jesus comes along. He teaches the tithe is just the beginning; that in reality everything we count as “ours” really belongs to God. The New Testament view of money is best summed up with: “It is no longer a matter of what I can afford to give to God. Now it’s a question of how much do I dare keep for myself!”
“It is no longer a matter of what I can afford to give to God. Now it’s a question of how much do I dare keep for myself!”
It sure is easier to give 10% then face that statement.
I find it interesting that only people that receive there income based on giving has responded. That has been great.
I want to hear feedback from people like me who gets the plate handed to him.
I love your posts and I have never responded before, but this topic is been weighing on me. Due to the holidays and the weather, I have not been able to work much. I do excavation. Anyway, tithing remains important even when money is tight. I look at at it this way: It was never really my money anyway. God provides for me and my family. I am thankful our church focuses more on Christ’s Word and building His Kingdom than worldly things. When needs come, we, as a church, pray and trust God for the results. Never our will, but His. I feel it is important to give my time, also. Whether it is teaching Sunday School or just playing drums.
It does sicken me to see and hear the churches who are so money centered. I believe as you.. If they were taught to make disciples and to love others the way Christ loved them, then their selfishness would not be an issue.
Rick, thanks for replying. Thank you for being someone who sees that God is our provider, even if an employer signs the check.
See you at Jimmy’s Egg again soon.
See what happens Trev. You have a blog entry on giving, and Mike preaches on it the next Sunday! He did have a tremendous message again, as usual. Speaking from the red letters, Jesus’ own words. Today was Less is More. Focus on the attitude of giving as the poor woman who gave 2 mites. Others gave out of their abundance. She gave all she had. So it should be. We must give all we are and have. But wait—-why do we always focus on just the monetary aspect? Luke 6:38, which Mike used in wrapping up his sermon this morning talks about giving-and it shall be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over. Poured into your lap because your basket cannot hold it all. Why? The measure you use, it will be measured to you. Is there any mention of money anywhere in this chapter? No, but huge emphasis on relationships. It has taken way too many years, but I am finally starting to get IT. If you are judgmental, you will receive judgment back. A good measure. Pressed down, shaken together. If you give anger, bitterness, strife, abbrasiveness, you will get it back running over, thrown back into your face. The reason I have as many good relationships as I do now, is that I have curbed some, not all, of my past character faults, sin if you so desire. Grace has become very evident. And the rewards are more than money can buy.
You nailed it “Old Man!”
Sounds like you nailed it.
The instance of the poor woman gave her last two mites is at the top for me on the whole giving money thing. It is a favorite.
Good thoughts Trevor. Enjoyed reading your post.
Two things that I believe about giving.
1. People don’t know, what they don’t know. In other words, as you reached UnChristians, they will need to learn about giving and generosity. And yes, financial giving is a part of that. Obviously, if a church is teaching about tithing from the perspective “we need more money” then I would object to that motive. But on the flip side, how to do you argue motives? We can’t… we also can’t label all churches that teach about tithing to be looking for a money grab.
2. People are tied to their money. This is especially true in America and even American Christians. We find identity in money (or what it can buy). Christ calls us find our identity in him and not in money or things. So I appreciate a great sermon that reminds me of my tendency to find my strength in money. There are many Christians who bow at the altar of Starbucks, but give God pennies compared to the dollars they spend in restaurants and coffee. This is what the Bible calls out as idolatry.
It’s not about how much you give (while I still believe tithe of 10% is authority… generosity is above and beyond that) it’s the willingness and follow through to sacrifice for the furthering of God’s Kingdom… Financially. Not time, energy or efforts.
Trevor, you got some great thoughts here. Thanks for stirring my heart and causing me to evaluate what I believe and why!
“Thanks for stirring my heart and causing me to evaluate what I believe and why!”
Not enough people evaluate themselves. I am glad you do. Thanks for your comments.