For the Love of Money………Part 2
By Mac
12 May
2004
Almost three years ago, I did a quiet time that ended in a
written Bible Study, that I titled “For the Love of Money”. I based the study on, believe it or not, the
story about Balaam, the dude who got advice from a talking donkey. I passed out a copy of that study last week,
hoping some of you might find an opportunity to read it as part of your daily
quiet time. If you didn’t get the
chance, or fell asleep when reading it, the gist of the story was that we
sometimes love money a whole lot more than we love God. If you didn’t get a copy, and would like
one, you can go to www.MacIsIrish.com
and read or copy it….just click on the “Bible Lessons” button on my site.
A week ago Sunday, Rodney asked me if I would like to teach
a class on the subject of GIVING. He
originally wanted me to do it last Wednesday, but like most of us here, I was
not prepared to set aside the number of hours to get it done on time, so he let
me do it this week instead. I want to
thank him for allowing me to do this class, and I also want to tank Junior
Miller and AC Cheeks. They are the ones
that sicked him on me. Thanks for your
confidence, guys.
Rodney asked me to
TEACH a class, not PREACH one, or in other words, present Biblical teachings
about being ENCOURAGED in our giving, instead of BADGERING us to ‘show him de
money’.
DO you love money? I
do. I love the way it feels in my
hand. I like the looks of the new crisp
20-dollar bills…bigger numbers. I like
going to the post office with an old 20 dollar bill, and buy a half book of
stamps. The dispensing machine gives
back GOLD and SILVER dollars in change.
I like the looks and feel of those gold coins. I like having money to do fun things with. I enjoy spending money….I think I own the
greater portion of Home Depot and Sears now.
I spend a pretty good amount of money in those two stores. I love the way it feels when I get
something NEW. I do! Like a new car, a new stereo…even a new
razor. I realize it is sinful, but, God
DID say, we are sinful people.
The whole problem with loving money, is that sometimes we
just love it more than we do God.
Tonight’s lesson is going to center on giving some of that
money back to God.
Do not open your Bibles.
Leave them closed. You can take
notes if you want to. Like we say in
the military a lot: nothing I am going
to say is classified, so you can take your notes home with you.
Tonight’s class, I hope, will be like a class that one of
the early church leaders might have given to a group of early disciples. I want you to close your eyes for a few
seconds and just imagine yourself back 2000 years ago sitting on stone or cedar
benches, or even on the floor. Imagine
what you would be wearing. Imagine a
group of you all together to listen to a follower of Jesus. Imagine how much money you might have
had. Ok, you there? Open your eyes, but keep you mind back to
the year AD 54.
I have a fictitious letter from the elders and deacons of
the Atlanta Church of Christ, from the year AD 54.
And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the
grace that God has given the other sectors of the Atlanta church.
Out of the most severe trial, their overflowing joy and
their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
For we testify that they gave as much as they were able, and
even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own,
they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing
in this service to the saints.
And they did not do as we expected, but they gave themselves
first to the Lord and then to us in keeping with God's will.
So we urged Rodney, since he had earlier made a beginning,
to bring also to completion this act of grace on your part.
But just as you excel in everything--in faith, in
speech, in knowledge, in complete earnestness and in your love for us --see
that you also excel in this grace of giving.
We are not commanding you, but we want to test the sincerity
of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others.
For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though
he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty
might become rich.
And here is our advice about what is best for you in this
matter: Two years ago, you were the first not only to give but also to have the
desire to do so.
Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it
may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means.
For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable
according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.
Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you
are hard pressed, but that there might be equality.
At the present time your plenty will supply what they need,
so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be
equality,
as
it is written: "He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who
gathered little did not have too little."
I thank God, who put into the heart of Rodney the same
concern I have for you.
For Rodney not only welcomed our appeal, but he is coming to
you with much enthusiasm and on his own initiative.
And we are sending along with him the deacons who are
praised by all the churches for their service to the gospel.
What is more, they were chosen by the churches to accompany
us as we carry the offering, which we administer in order to honor the Lord
himself and to show our eagerness to help.
We want to avoid any criticism of the way we administer this
liberal gift.
For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the
eyes of the Lord but also in the eyes of men.
In addition, we are sending with them our brothers who have
often proved to us in many ways that they are zealous, and now even more so
because of their great confidence in you.
As
for Rodney, he is our partner and fellow worker among you; as for our brothers
and deacons, they are representatives of the churches and an honor to Christ.
Therefore show these men the proof of your love and the
reason for our pride in you, so that the churches can see it.
I want to reread two sentences in this fictitious letter:
For we testify that they gave as much as they were able, and
even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own,
they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing
in this service to the saints.
This letter is a slightly modified version of the one that
Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, what we now call 2nd
Corinthians, Chapter 8. This letter was
also intended for all disciples of all times.
Did you hear the encouraging words he said? He has confidence in you. You are willing and eager to give. He talks about your rich generosity. He said that he takes great pride in
us. If we had been there, we would
have been encouraged, no doubt.
What about now? What
about today? I want to encourage
you. I want to encourage you not only
to be like the Corinthian lovers of Jesus, but also just to encourage you about
the way you are. God has given us His
wonderful grace, and it is encouraging to me to see how most everyone in here
is trying to repay that great gift.
Look around you.
Most of you have worked on a job site or at home most of the day, and
yet you still came tonight to listen to me teach. THAT is encouraging.
Maybe you didn’t come to hear me, and maybe thought you’d get the chance
to listen to Rodney or Les or some of the better speakers we have in our
church. That in itself in encouraging
as well. You are no doubt, tired and
hungry, yet you still come to midweek service.
I am encouraged to see the mixture of races. When my beautiful wife Socorro---who does
not know my wife?---stand up---let everyone see how God has graced me with a
beautiful wife with a giving heart….when she and I went to North Carolina with
Rick and Kathy Gibbons (raise hands) a few weeks ago, we went to an
Episcopalian church on Easter. That
church too had a mixture of races….I counted two, two, African Americans in the
whole white assembly. I am encouraged
by your lack of racial bias.
I am encouraged when I see the numerous emails that
circulate when someone in the church, or a member of a disciple’s family, is
ailing or has passed away. I am
encouraged when I am in a hospital visiting a friend, and I see other Disciples
in there for the very same reason.
I am encouraged to
see the numbers of birthday, Christmas and get well cards that are handed out
between most of us almost on a weekly basis.
And, I am encouraged by your love.
Dan Clemenz has lead a challenge for raising money through a
garage sale on Saturday, May 15th, and a car wash at the Arby’s on
Powder Springs Road. That is a
demonstration of love of God and fellow man.
Sherrell Turner recently did a walkathon to raise money for
the March of Dimes.
Lisa Williams walked a 26-mile marathon in Ireland last
year, raising funds for the Leukemia Society.
They didn’t HAVE the money, but they had the heart to go out
and raise it.
I am sure there are many others in this classroom tonight
that are doing similar things. That is
extremely encouraging to me, and God.
Verse 12 in chapter 8 says “For if the
willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not
according to what he does not have.” This is so
critical to understanding the real purpose of GIVING. God doesn’t want you to go into debt to help someone else. Romans 13:8 says: “Let no debt remain
outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves
his fellowman has fulfilled the law.”
But if you do have, give. And
give willingly. If you don’t have a lot,
there are plenty of other ways to give.
How else can you give?
Besides tithing, I mean. Most of
you do it everyday. You give love to
your family and friends. You loan or
give them things, or money. You act
very similar to the first century disciples who shared everything among
themselves. Most of you also give a
tremendous amount of your time and or money to charity organizations. THAT is giving. Just think of all the people who have been helped by the generous
volunteers in this room. A lot of
times, we rely on the church to set things up for us to volunteer, but also a
lot of times, you do it on your own.
How do you feel after you volunteer to help some worthy
cause? Feels good, don’t it? Even if it is just helping your neighbor mow
his lawn. It feels good. How much more good should we feel, then,
when we give to people we don’t even know.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit,
brothers and sisters. Amen.
Class DISMISSED.