Convictions Regarding Building And Giving
1. Romans 14:23 says, “Whatever is not from faith is sin.” Therefore, we must attempt things that are beyond us so that we have to depend upon God. However, it also means that gimmicks, arm-twisting, manipulation, using people, etc. are out of bounds. We are to trust God by listening to His Word and His Spirit. I think it is also important that we trust that God’s people will do the right thing when it is presented to them in the right way. In other words, I believe in leadership that it is important to have positive expectations of people because if our expectations are negative, it is easy to end up trying to trick people into doing what we think they should do.
2. Philippians 4:19 says, “And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.” Where God guides, He provides. The late, great missionary Hudson Taylor said, “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supply.” The Lord is our ultimate resource. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. Faith is taking God at His Word and acting on it. When we obey, the results are in His hands. I believe that if we are in God’s will that He will give us everything we need in His time and His way. Furthermore, if you look at the context of Philippians 4:19, you find that it is really a conditional promise given to a church that was sacrificially giving to support the spread of the gospel in another area. Part of the reason I am confident that God will provide what we need is the fact that we reap what we sow, and we have sown into the building of God’s Kingdom, the planting of churches, the spread of the gospel, the meeting of people’s needs, and the support of other churches.
3. Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great mighty things, which you do not know.” God has sovereignly decreed to work in response to the prayers of His people so prayer can accomplish anything that God wills to accomplish. Maybe our greatest need is to pray through until we get what God has for us. We have to be careful to not just give lip service to prayer.
4. Matthew 6:19-21 says, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Giving is an expression of and revealer of the heart. Jesus presented it as a spiritual test. I believe that churches do not really have money problems-they have people problems. In other words, if the giving is not what is needed, it definitely means people are not being obedient and maybe that there are not enough people. Therefore, if the giving is not what it should be, the focus should be changing hearts through teaching God’s Word instead of external gimmicks, manipulative schemes, or unbiblical fundraising practices.
5. The church is people (1 Peter 2:9). Therefore, our calling is to build God’s Kingdom by building up people into disciples of Christ. This is a biblical command. Building buildings is not. Therefore, the building of buildings must be viewed as secondary to the building of people. Buildings are means to the end of building people. They are not unimportant because they can contribute to more effectively building up more people. However, these issues must be kept in their proper place and order. Ministry and missions must always be our priority. Otherwise, we will be guilty of doing what many churches seem to have done which is turning their facilities into idols.
6. Psalm 127:1 says, “Unless the Lord build the house, they labor in vain who build it, unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.” We need God’s plan, power, and blessing in everything we do or we will fail. We must carefully guard against trying to do things in our own strength. 2 Chronicles 16:9a says, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him.”
7. Sacrifice will be required in order to really honor God. David said that he would not offer God anything that cost Him nothing (2 Samuel 24:24). What price are we willing to pay in order to see God’s will be done?
8. Our giving is to be an obedient response to the love and grace that God has bestowed upon us (2 Corinthians 8-9). When done obediently and with the right motivation, it is an act of love and worship.
9. Jesus Christ is the Head of the Church (Colossians 1:18) so making decisions is about seeking His will. The Bible is the blueprint and our authority because it is the expression of His will (see Acts 15). Following Christ’s leadership and leading in a biblical manner are crucial. We are to seek spiritual ends with spiritual methods and motivation. Ultimately, leadership is about the teaching of truth and vision casting. We must avoid pragmatism at all costs.
10. People need to be taught God’s truth about giving because it is an important part of Scripture and part of teaching the whole counsel of God. However, it must in balance. People shut down when it comes to giving if they feel like you are using the Bible to get money from them instead of having the proper motivation in teaching about it.
