A Worldly Grief that Leads to Death

I can't take it anymore!!!! If there was a generation in the church that refused to talk about money it has clearly been replaced by a generation that loves to talk about money. Well, it is true that the Bible speaks of money often. We can't deny that. So if this is true, then church leaders need to be speaking about money. But if I hear another sermon on money that is nebulous I'm going to go nuts. If I hear another sermon that calls people to give more money but cannot give a plan from the Scriptures about how to give, I may lose it. Now, I'm joking (a bit). But it seems to me that the current evangelical talk about how God's people use their money lacks at least three vital elements. 1. There's little clarity in the current teaching on money. In the Bible, has God given Christians clear instruction about how to use their money? I find that many Christian leaders are not so sure. They are not convinced that God has been clear about how we should use our money. Many pastors deny that the Bible commands Christians to give a percentage of their money to the Lord. This is misleading to people. The one tenth tithe preceded the Law and was commanded by Jesus. Many pastors will not tell their people that their giving should be prioritized to their local church. This is also misleading because the book of Acts is full of people prioritizing their giving to their church. If your pastor is not clear on these things then he certainly is not in a position confront you concerning how it is that you give.....yet for an increasing number of people, their pastors are continually confronting them with their stinginess. Friends, what will be the result when teachers lack clarity but command devotion? The result will not be growth and change. I sense the result will be guilt and control (2 Cor 7:10). I sense the result is a worldly grief that leads to death, not the freedom of walking in obedience to Christ. The people will continually feel guilty for not doing enough and their pastors will hold the keys to their freedom as they dangle out the unending list of organizations and missions opportunities that "serious" Christians support. 2. Because there's little clarity, there's very little talk of sin within the current teaching. The prophet Malachi was outraged because the people of Judah were robbing God by not giving to him correctly (Malachi 3). It is only possible to rob God, when it comes to giving, if we understand that God deserves something. Are any of us robbing God? It is impossible to rob God when we boil down our understanding on giving to "give as the Lord is leading you." This line, sounds so spiritual but it denies the sinful propensity of my heart to hold back funds for myself and it makes me the final arbiter of how I should be giving. We routinely hear talk about "giving our all" and "never being able to out give God" and "give what God's placed on your heart" but these approaches always present God as a money monger who is never satisfied with what his people are currently giving. Friends, is that our God? Is he unclear about giving only to be disappointed with us? Jesus is clear with the Pharisees that they should never have neglected the tithe, nor justice, mercy, and faithfulness (Matt 23:23). We must face the reality that some Christians are pleasing God with their giving and some are not. Some are being obedient but some are proving their lack of faith in a sovereign God and an eternal Kingdom by withholding what is rightfully His. Some in our churches are obeying the Lord and some are disobeying God every day by not giving consistently, proportionally, generously, and cheerfully. 3. There's very little talk of the Cross within the current teaching. Regardless of what some are teaching, the story of the rich young ruler is not the biblical paradigm for salvation or even giving, in the church (David Platt or Shane Claiborne). If we use the story incorrectly and use the giving away of all money as a mark of genuine salvation then we must also use perfect obedience to the Law as another mark of salvation because Jesus also asks the rich young ruler if he has obeyed the commands. Interestingly, most teachers gloss right over this part of the story (I believe) because it does not meet their immediate agenda (to get people to give more money to their organization). Jesus was not giving the man a plan for giving or even living. He was digging deeper into his heart to expose the things that he placed his trust in (his morality and his money). Friends, Jesus was attempting to get the man to see the idolatry of his heart and his need for the Savior. But the man walked away sad. The text says he was sad because he had great wealth. His wealth was his savior and he was not willing to forsake it for the True Savior. How many sermons on money have you heard that did not touch on Christ's work on the Cross? All true obedience flows through a trust in Christ's Work on the Cross. All God honoring giving is motivated by Christ's work and is done cheerfully out of obedience to the entire teaching of God's Word concerning money.