Participants: Pastor Stephen Bohr
Series Code: CGC
Program Code: CGC000030
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01:12 Shall we bow our heads for prayer?
01:13 Father in heaven, we thank You so much for the privilege of 01:17 being here for this study today. 01:20 We ask for the presence of Your Holy Spirit as we study about 01:24 how to invest in our future, not only in this life 01:29 but in the life to come. 01:31 We thank you for hearing our prayer 01:34 for we ask it in Jesus' name, Amen. 01:37 There is no subject that Jesus addressed more frequently 01:44 than the subject of money. 01:47 Now Jesus spoke about a lot of things: He spoke about the love 01:50 of God, He spoke about the judgment and other subjects. 01:54 But time, after time, after time in the gospels, 01:59 Jesus speaks about money. 02:03 And so this evening, in our study, we're going to discuss 02:07 what the book of Genesis has to say about investing; 02:12 investing our material resources. 02:16 And our study is going to be very simple. 02:17 We're going to study four principles that we find in the 02:22 book of Genesis, and which are amplified in the rest of 02:25 scripture, on how to administrate the money that God 02:31 has blessed us with. 02:32 So lets begin with our first principle, which is found in 02:37 Genesis 1:1, Genesis 1:1. 02:42 I don't even have to look up this verse in my Bible. 02:45 I don't think you have to either. It says there: 02:54 Clearly we find in this text that God was the Creator. 02:58 And because God was the Creator, we know that He 03:03 is the owner of everything. 03:05 And so in Genesis 1:1 we find our first principle, 03:10 and that is that God is the owner of everything, 03:14 because He created everything. 03:17 Now lets notice some other texts in the Old Testament 03:21 which underline this specific principle. 03:25 Psalm 24:1, Psalm 24:1. 03:30 We find this same principle expressed in different 03:34 terminology. It says there in Psalm 24:1: 03:49 So notice once again the idea that the world is the Lord's, 03:54 and all of the fullness thereof. 03:56 When it says the fullness thereof, it's referring to 03:59 everything that is in the world. 04:01 By the way, many people might think that perhaps we're just 04:07 reading from the Old Testament. 04:08 But allow me to say that the apostle Paul 04:11 in 1 Corinthians 10:26 actually quotes Psalm 24:1, 04:17 and reaffirms in the New Testament that the earth is the 04:22 Lord's, and the fullness thereof. 04:24 Now lets notice several other Biblical texts that refer 04:29 to this same principle, that God is the owner of everything. 04:32 Psalm 95:5, Psalm 95:5. 04:38 The same idea comes through, obviously, in different words. 04:43 It says there in Psalm 95:5: 04:49 And then it explains why. 04:56 So notice once again, the seas belong to God, and the dry land 05:01 belongs to God, because God made these things. 05:05 Notice also Psalm 50. 05:08 Let's remain in the book of Psalm just for another passage: 05:12 Psalm 50 and I would like to read verses 10 through 12. 05:18 Psalm 50:10-12. It says here: 05:36 So notice, the cattle and the beasts belong to God. Verse 12: 05:53 So our first principle is that God is the owner of everything. 05:57 He is the owner of everything, because He was the Creator. 06:02 But not only does God own the beasts of the field, 06:07 the birds of the air, the fish of the seas; 06:11 not only does He own the trees, and the seas, but God also owns 06:16 the silver and the gold, minerals, 06:18 because He created these. 06:20 Notice in the little book of Haggai 2:8, what we find 06:27 about the silver and the gold. 06:29 Haggai 2:8. It says here: 06:43 So the silver and the gold also belong to God. 06:47 Now what about us? 06:49 What about our bodies? 06:51 Go with me to 1 Corinthians 6: 19, 20, 1 Corinthians 6:19, 20. 07:02 We find this very important principle expressed once again 07:06 that God is the owner, not only of the world and its fullness, 07:10 but He is our owner as well. 07:13 This is what He says: 07:38 Now it's become very common, for example, for women who 07:42 believe in abortion to think that their body belongs to them, 07:47 and they can do whatever they wish with their body. 07:49 They say, my body is mine, and what I do with it doesn't 07:52 make any difference. 07:53 The fact is that the Bible tells us very clearly that our body 07:58 belongs to God, because first of all God made it, and in the 08:02 second place God redeemed it through Jesus Christ. 08:06 Notice also 1 Timothy 6:7. 08:10 We're still on this first principle, the principle that 08:14 God is the owner of all. 08:16 1 Timothy 6:7, the apostle Paul says this, 08:21 and it's absolutely very true. 08:27 By the way, not even the clothes that we wear. 08:39 In other words, while we live we have, 08:42 when we die we have not. 08:45 Which means that everything that we have, 08:48 everything that we enjoy, belongs to God. 08:51 And as He gives us life, we have. 08:54 And when we no longer receive life, we no longer have. 08:58 Some people say, well, pastor, but all that I have 09:01 I've worked hard for. 09:03 Well, it's true that you've worked hard for it, 09:06 but let me ask you this, who gave you the resources 09:09 to be able to work? 09:11 Who gave you lungs to breathe, and a heart to beat? 09:15 Who gave you a mouth to speak, and eyes to see, 09:18 and ears to hear, which are so necessary for working, 09:22 and for making money? 09:23 Obviously, God has given us all of the resources 09:27 necessary to gain riches. 09:29 In fact we find this principle in Deuteronomy 8:18. 09:34 If you go with me there, Deuteronomy 8:18. 09:38 As Israel was about to go into the land of Canaan, 09:42 God gave them a very important warning. 09:45 And notice what He said in this warning. 10:01 So notice that it is God who gives us the power to gain 10:06 wealth, because He gives us all of the resources that we need 10:10 in order to gain wealth. 10:12 Perhaps we'll read only one more text that deals with this first 10:17 principle, that God is the owner of everything. 10:20 It's found in 1 Chronicles 29: 14, 1 Chronicles 29:14. 10:31 Here David is speaking about the building of the temple. 10:36 And I want you to notice what David has to say about the 10:41 resources that people brought for the building of the temple. 10:44 He's going to actually say that nothing that is brought belongs 10:49 to the person who brings it. 10:51 Once again, 1 Chronicles 29 and we'll read 10:56 first of all, verse 14. 11:15 Notice that they're just returning to God what already 11:18 belongs to God. And then we'll go to verse 16. 11:26 Actually, this is verse 15. 11:36 And now verse 16. 11:51 So they really weren't giving anything to God. 11:54 They were only returning to God that which 11:57 already belonged to Him. 11:58 So our first principle is that God is the owner of everything, 12:04 because God was the Creator of all. 12:07 Now let's go to principle number two. 12:10 It's also found in Genesis. 12:12 Principle number two is this: even though God is the owner 12:18 of all, He placed Adam and Eve, and us as well now, who descend 12:24 from them,... 12:27 ...of that which belongs to God. 12:30 We are not owners, we are administrators, or stewards of 12:34 that which belongs to the owner; that which belongs to God. 12:37 Notice Genesis 1:28, Genesis 1: 28. 12:44 God is speaking here about the creation of Adam and Eve, 12:49 and it says: 12:59 And now comes the key part that I want to underline. 13:11 Notice that Adam and Eve were given dominion. 13:13 That means that they were supposed to care for creation. 13:16 They were supposed to rule over creation. 13:19 But they were not the owners, they were the administrators, 13:23 or stewards of God. 13:25 Notice also Genesis 2:15. 13:28 It's speaking here specifically about Adam; 13:32 when Adam was created. 13:33 It says there in chapter 2 and verse 15: 13:45 Notice that Adam was placed in the garden of Eden to take 13:48 care of the garden; to keep the garden. 13:51 In other words, he was God's gardener. 13:53 He was God's steward, to take care of that which had been 13:57 made by the owner. 13:59 What I'm saying is that man does not own anything. 14:04 We are only administrators of God's goods. 14:08 Now there are some principles of good stewardship, 14:12 and I'm not going to look up these verses. 14:13 I'm only going to mention the characteristics 14:16 of a good steward. 14:18 In 1 Corinthians 4:2, the apostle Paul says that the first 14:23 and foremost requirement of a steward, or an administrator, 14:28 is that the administrator be found faithful; 14:32 in other words trustworthy. 14:34 A steward, or an administrator, of another person's goods 14:38 must be absolutely honest and faithful in everything 14:44 that he does with that which belongs to the owner. 14:47 Another characteristic is found in Matthew 25:27, where we have 14:54 the parable of the talents. 14:56 And you remember that there was one individual that received 14:59 one talent, and he buried the talent under the ground, 15:02 because he hadn't received many? 15:04 And when Jesus comes He demands an accounting from this 15:10 individual who buried his talent. 15:12 And He says, you should have taken this talent, 15:15 and you should have invested it so that I could receive 15:19 my own back with interest. 15:22 So notice that a good steward not only enjoys that which 15:26 belongs to the owner, but he invests, and strengthens that 15:30 which belongs to the owner. 15:31 Which means that God gives us strength. 15:33 Through exercise we are to gain more strength. 15:37 God gives us money; we are supposed to multiply that 15:40 for His honor and glory. 15:41 God gives us time; we're supposed to redeem the time, 15:44 and take advantage of the time, and invest our time wisely. 15:49 So characteristics of a good steward: first of all faithful 15:53 or trustworthy, secondly invest and multiply that which belongs 15:58 to the owner, and one further characteristic is that 16:02 eventually a steward is going to have to render the owner 16:06 an account. In fact, we find in Luke 16:2 that there was a 16:12 steward that had been embezzling money from the 16:14 owner, and the owner brought him before him, and he says, 16:18 I hear that you've been embezzling money from me. 16:23 In other words, as administrators of God's goods, 16:26 someday we are going to have to render Him an account for the 16:30 way that we have used the resources that He has given us. 16:34 Now we've studied two principles so far, both of them 16:38 in the book of Genesis, and amplified elsewhere 16:41 in scripture. The first principle is that God is the 16:45 owner of everything. 16:46 We own absolutely nothing. 16:48 The second principle is that even though God is the owner, 16:52 we are the administrators of the goods that belong to God. 16:57 In other words, we should be faithful. 16:59 We should invest what He has given us. 17:01 And we will have to render an account, as His stewards, 17:04 or as His administrators, someday. 17:07 Now let's go to principle number three. 17:10 It's found in Genesis 2:16, 17, Genesis 2:16, 17. 17:20 You see, God was the owner. 17:22 Adam and Eve were the stewards, or the administrators. 17:26 But there was something which God reserved for Himself, 17:30 which was only the property of the owner, which Adam and Eve 17:36 were not to use for themselves. 17:39 We find this in Genesis 2:16, 17. 18:02 All of the trees in the garden of Eden belonged to God, 18:05 no doubt whatsoever. 18:07 But this tree belonged to God in a special sense, 18:12 in a special way. 18:13 And Adam and Eve could actually enjoy the fruit of all of 18:17 the trees of the garden, as God's administrators, 18:20 but this special tree God conserved only for Himself. 18:26 Now let me ask you, is there something that God has reserved 18:32 today only for Himself of that which He has entrusted 18:36 us to administrate? 18:38 The answer is absolutely yes. 18:42 The Bible calls it the tithe. 18:46 Go with me to Leviticus 27:30, Leviticus 27:30. 18:55 Here we find a reference to the tithe. 18:58 Tithe means ten percent. 19:00 It says there in verse 30: 19:18 So in the case of Israel, all of the seeds they planted, 19:22 all of the animals that they had, and so on, one out of every 19:27 ten belonged exclusively to God. 19:30 They were not to administrate it. 19:32 They were not to use it. 19:34 God reserved it exclusively to Himself, and for Himself. 19:40 I've heard people say, well, Pastor Bohr, do you know 19:44 that the tithe was actually something for the Jews 19:48 in the Old Testament? 19:49 The tithe is not for Christians today. 19:52 You know, I find it kind of interesting that people today, 19:55 anything that demands a change of lifestyle was for the Jews. 19:59 People say, oh, the Sabbath? 20:01 No, that was for the Jews. 20:03 Healthful living and the distinction between clean 20:06 and unclean foods? 20:07 That was for the Jews. 20:09 Tithing? Oh, that was for the Jews. 20:11 Anything that requires a sacrifice, or requires an 20:15 investment for God, people say it was for the Jews. 20:19 By the way, do you know that the tithe did not 20:22 originate with Moses? 20:23 The tithe originated way back hundreds of years before 20:29 Moses ever lived. 20:30 We have two references to tithe in the book of Genesis. 20:35 We have in Genesis 14:18-20, the story of Abraham. 20:41 You know, he went and he fought against the kings that had 20:44 looted Sodom and Gomorrah. 20:47 And, of course, Lot lived in Sodom, his relative. 20:50 And so Abraham went and fought with them and he got 20:52 all of the loot back. 20:54 And as he's returning to the city of Sodom, with all of 20:57 things that he had rescued, he meets an individual called 21:01 Melchizedek, and Melchizedek was a high priest 21:06 of the Most High God. 21:07 And the Bible says that Abraham gave Melchizedek the tithes 21:13 of all of the loot that he was bringing. 21:16 In other words, tithe is mentioned in Genesis chapter 14. 21:21 It's mentioned in the days of Abraham. 21:23 Long before Moses, at least four or five hundred years 21:27 before Moses, tithing was a practice. 21:30 So it doesn't have anything to do with the Jews, or with Moses. 21:34 Furthermore we find another reference to tithing 21:37 in the book of Genesis. 21:39 In Genesis 28 we have the story of the ladder that Jacob saw 21:43 between heaven and earth. 21:45 It's been called Jacob's ladder, but it's actually 21:47 the Lord's ladder. 21:48 And immediately after Jacob sees that ladder in the dream, 21:53 and he wakes up, he promises the Lord, he says: 21:58 ...and you protect me along the way, I will give you a third 22:03 of everything, or not a third, a tenth of everything 22:07 that I receive, as a result of Your blessing. 22:11 And so we find very clearly in Genesis 28 that Jacob understood 22:18 the principle of the tithe. 22:20 He said, I will return ten percent to You. 22:24 So we find a reference to tithing in Genesis 14, 22:28 and we find a reference to tithing in Genesis chapter 28, 22:32 long before Moses and Israel came on the scene. 22:37 Now the question comes up, why should we tithe? 22:41 What should the tithe be used for? 22:44 If it belongs to God, it comes through my hands, how am I 22:48 supposed to give it? 22:49 Where am I supposed to give it, and what is the purpose or 22:52 intent for its use? 22:54 We find the answer to this question in Numbers 18:20, 21, 23:01 Numbers 18:20, 21. 23:05 And while you're looking for this passage in Numbers 18, 23:10 allow me to give you a note of explanation. 23:12 When the children of Israel left Egypt and they entered the 23:16 promised land of Canaan, God gave each of the tribes a piece 23:20 of land to distribute among the families that 23:23 belonged to that tribe. 23:24 Now allow me to say that there was one tribe that did not 23:29 receive anything in the land of Canaan. 23:33 They received no inheritance. 23:34 They received no land. 23:35 And so you say, well, if they didn't receive any inheritance 23:39 how could they survive? 23:40 You know, they couldn't raise animals 23:41 if they didn't have land. 23:43 They couldn't raise any agricultural products if they 23:46 didn't have any land. 23:47 So how could they survive? 23:49 Well, the answer is very simple. 23:51 The tribe which received no inheritance was Levi. 23:54 And God told the Levites, You are going to work 23:58 in the Sanctuary. 23:59 You're going to serve the spiritual needs 24:01 of the congregation. 24:03 And as remuneration for your Spiritual service to the 24:07 congregation, the congregation will bring the tithes 24:10 to the temple, and you will live off of the tithes that are 24:14 brought by all of the other eleven tribes. 24:17 Now let's notice this in Numbers 20, and beginning with 24:22 verse 18, Numbers 18:20, Numbers 18:20. 24:34 It says here: 25:10 Several important things in these two verses: 25:12 First of all, the tithe is given to the Levites by the Lord. 25:17 The people brought the tithe, yes, but the Lord was the One 25:21 who was giving the tithes to the Levites, because the tithes 25:25 belonged to God. 25:27 Another important principle is that the Levites had a 25:30 perfect right to receive the tithes, so that they could live 25:34 on this money which was brought, because they actually 25:37 served the spiritual needs of the congregation. 25:41 A very important and interesting detail that we find in 25:45 Numbers 18, is that even the priests tithed. 25:50 I mean, how could the priests ask the children of Israel to 25:53 tithe, if they didn't give an example and tithe as well? 25:56 We find in Numbers 18:26, that the priests also tithed. 26:04 Notice what we see here: 26:25 Notice that they were supposed to offer the tithe of the tithe. 26:29 The priests were to give a good example, and they were supposed 26:33 to tithe the tithes that Israel brought. 26:37 Now let's notice the book of Malachi 3:8, and we'll also read 26:43 the first part of verse 10. 26:45 Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament, 26:48 chapter 3 and verse 8. 26:50 The question is asked by God Himself: 27:09 And then notice verse 10. God says: 27:18 Let's stop there. 27:20 God says bring all of the tithes into the storehouse. 27:23 By the way, the storehouse is an area in the temple where 27:27 the agricultural goods were brought in and stored, 27:31 so that the Levites could receive remuneration for 27:35 their work in the sanctuary. 27:37 So we find very clearly here that God is saying to Israel, 27:41 you're not paying a faithful tithe. 27:43 You are robbing Me. 27:44 So if we don't return to God the portion that belongs to God, 27:49 we are actually robbing God. 27:51 We should bring all of the tithes, and notice, all of the 27:55 offerings into the Lord's storehouse. 27:59 Now some people say, well, this was only for the Jews 28:02 in the Old Testament. 28:03 Jesus didn't teach us that we're supposed to tithe, did He? 28:07 Well, the fact is that Jesus did. 28:09 In Matthew 23:23 the Lord Jesus actually rebuked the Pharisees. 28:16 He says, you tithe the mint, the dill, and the cumin 28:21 which are, by the way, little tiny seeds. 28:28 which are things like: 28:33 And then Jesus says, you should have done the tithing, 28:39 and also have justice, mercy, and faith. 28:43 You should have done these without leaving 28:46 the others undone. 28:47 In other words, Jesus implicitly taught that we are supposed 28:52 to tithe, as well as have mercy, and justice, and faith. 28:56 Some people wonder why Jesus did not reenact the tithe, 29:00 and say clearly, you're supposed to tithe, 29:04 just like in the Old Testament. 29:05 The fact is folks, that Jesus didn't have to say that, 29:08 because everybody was practicing the tithe. 29:10 The same is true of the Sabbath. 29:12 You won't find one reference of Jesus in the New Testament 29:15 that says, you shall keep the Sabbath, 29:18 at least in the gospels, keep the Sabbath holy. 29:21 And yet Jesus went into the synagogue on Sabbath. 29:25 Jesus kept the Sabbath. 29:26 Jesus taught the true meaning of the Sabbath. 29:28 But Jesus did not have to make a command to keep the Sabbath, 29:33 because all of the Jews claimed to be keeping the Sabbath. 29:36 Jesus simply had to correct the wrong view that they had about 29:40 the tithe, because they were tithing and they didn't have 29:43 mercy, justice, and faith. 29:44 They were keeping the Sabbath, so called, but they were not 29:48 having mercy on people. 29:49 They had lost the meaning of the Sabbath. 29:51 And so Jesus is saying, you should have mercy, justice, 29:55 and faith, and you should also tithe as well. 29:58 Now what about the rest of the New Testament? 30:02 Does the New Testament re-enact the principle of the tithe? 30:06 Well, the apostle Paul certainly does. 30:09 I want to just mention from 1 Corinthians 9, we're going to 30:13 read verses 13 and 14 in a moment, but I need to give you 30:17 the previous context. 30:18 The apostle Paul here is speaking specifically about 30:22 the tithe, and he gives three examples that are not Biblical, 30:26 and then he gives two Biblical examples to show that the 30:30 tithing principle is still binding upon Christians. 30:33 First of all he says, what person goes to war 30:37 at his own expense? 30:39 I mean, what would it be like if our president said to all of 30:42 our soldiers, I want you to go fight this war over in Iraq. 30:46 And I want you to pay for your own airfare, and you'll pay for 30:50 your own meals in the airplane. 30:52 And when you get there you're going to have to pay for 30:55 your own hotel, and your own food in restaurants. 30:57 I mean how many people would go to war if that was the case? 31:01 Obviously, not very many! 31:02 And so the apostle Paul says, if you go to war, you're going to 31:06 live off of the funds of the one who sends you to war. 31:10 And then he goes on to say, If you plant a vineyard, 31:14 you're going to be able to eat the grapes from the vineyard. 31:17 And then he gives a third example. 31:19 He says, if you raise a flock of cows, you have a right to 31:24 drink the milk that the cows produce, because you are worthy 31:27 of the work that you perform. 31:30 And then he's going to apply that principle to those who 31:33 preach the gospel. 31:34 He's going to say, if you preach the gospel, you have a right 31:37 to live from the tithes that are given by those who are receiving 31:42 the preaching of the gospel. 31:43 Let's go to 1 Corinthians 9:13, 14, where we find the Biblical 31:51 argument. By the way, there's another Biblical argument also. 31:54 The apostle Paul quotes from the book of Deuteronomy, which says 31:57 you shall not muzzle an ox when he treads the grainery. 32:02 You see, the oxen were used to tread the grainery to shred the 32:07 grain, and a muzzle was not to be put on their mouth, 32:12 because as they were working, they had a right to eat 32:15 of the grain that was on the ground, 32:17 because they were working. 32:18 And the apostle Paul actually uses the argument from 32:22 Deuteronomy to show that that principle applies to ministers 32:27 working in the gospel, and being remunerated for their work. 32:30 Notice 1 Corinthians 9:1-14. 32:40 That's where the whole passage is, but let's read specifically 32:43 verses 13 and 14. 32:46 Here the apostle Paul says the following words: 32:53 verses 13 and 14 of chapter 9. 32:58 Do you not know that those who minister the holy things 33:04 eat of the things of the temple? and those who serve at the altar 33:11 partake of the offerings of the altar? 33:14 Notice, those who serve in the temple, those who serve 33:18 at the altar, they partake of the things of the 33:20 temple and the altar. 33:21 That's referring to the tithes that were brought. 33:23 And then notice verse 14: Even so the Lord has suggested. 33:29 Is that what it says? 33:31 Even so the Lord has recommended. 33:35 Is that what it says? No. 33:38 Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel 33:45 should live from the gospel. 33:47 Obviously, he's taking the example of the priests that 33:51 served at the altar, and served at the temple, 33:53 priests that ministered to the spiritual needs of Israel, 33:57 and he's saying the same applies today to those who preach 34:02 the gospel; those who preach the gospel should eat from the 34:05 gospel. In other words, they should be remunerated from 34:09 the tithes. So we've studied three principles so far. 34:13 Principle 1. God is the owner of everything. 34:16 Principle 2. Even though God is the owner, He has placed us 34:21 as His stewards, or His administrators. 34:24 Principle 3. God has reserved for Himself something which is 34:29 exclusively for Him. 34:32 It is not to be used by us, and that is the tithe. 34:36 Now there's a fourth principle, which is extremely important. 34:40 We find this one in Genesis 1: 28, Genesis 1:28. 34:48 And then we're going to go to another verse that we find in 34:52 Genesis 2. But anyway, in Genesis 1:28 it says: 35:12 Notice, God blessed them. 35:15 Now what was the condition for them continuing to enjoy 35:19 the Lord's blessing? 35:20 Well, we know that there was a condition. 35:23 We find it in Genesis 2:16, 17, which we already read before, 35:29 but let's read it again. 35:30 It says here, And the Lord God commanded the man, saying, 35:33 Of every tree of the garden you may freely eat: 35:36 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you shall not 35:39 eat: for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. 35:43 Notice God is saying, look, I blessed you, and I bless 35:46 everything connected with you. 35:48 But I have this tree that I want you to respect: 35:51 the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 35:53 All of the other trees belong to Me, too. 35:55 You can use them, you can administrate them, but when it 35:58 comes to this tree, it's off limits. 36:00 It belongs exclusively to Me. 36:01 Now God says, if you partake of this tree, you're going to die. 36:05 You know, it's no coincidence that immediately after Adam 36:09 and Eve sinned, the word curse is used three times 36:14 in Genesis 3 and 4. 36:17 The earth is cursed, the serpent is cursed, and Cain is cursed. 36:22 What God is saying, is if you respect my tree, and you don't 36:30 use it for yourself, you will continue to enjoy the blessing. 36:35 If you, however, disrespect My tree, and use it for your own 36:39 purposes, then the curse is going to come. 36:42 And, by the way, it's not the case that God is sitting there 36:45 on His throne, He's saying, boy I'm just going to wait to see 36:47 who's going to tithe and who isn't, because I'm just 36:50 dying to curse someone. 36:51 That's not the case. 36:52 The case is that we bring a curse upon ourselves by not 36:57 respecting that which belongs to God. 36:59 And so the fourth principle is that if we respect God's 37:03 portion, that He has reserved for Himself, which now is the 37:06 tithe, a blessing comes upon us. 37:10 If, on the other hand, we use the tithe for our own personal 37:14 benefit, and for our own expenses, the result is 37:18 the curse, just like it says in the book of Genesis. 37:21 By the way, we find this same principle in the book of Malachi 37:26 chapter 3, Malachi chapter 3, and I would like to read 37:30 verses 9 and 10, Malachi 3: 9, 10. 37:35 God says to Israel: 37:44 What have they robbed Him from? 37:46 We noticed already in verse 8, in tithes and offerings. 37:50 Verse 10. 38:11 Notice what God is saying. 38:12 He's saying, if you respect the tithe; if you bring the tithes 38:16 to the storehouse, I will pour out upon you a blessing so great 38:20 that you will not have room to receive it. 38:23 Now let me explain something. 38:25 We do not tithe in order to be blessed. 38:28 We do not tithe because we are blessed. 38:33 We tithe and we are blessed. 38:37 I'm going to repeat that again. 38:40 We do not tithe in order to be blessed. 38:43 We do not tithe because we are blessed. 38:47 We tithe and we are blessed. 38:51 In other words, we're not mercenaries in the service 38:53 of God; where God says, if you're faithful in your taxes, 38:57 I won't curse you. 38:58 God is not a heavenly IRS agent. 39:00 In fact, the reason why I tithe is because it's a 39:04 matter of principle. 39:05 The tithe, I know, doesn't belong to me. 39:08 It belongs to God, pure and simple, and therefore 39:11 it comes through my checkbook, and it goes out 39:14 on the other side. 39:15 I bring it to church, because I know that it's not mine. 39:18 I know that it is His. 39:20 But even if I didn't receive blessings, I would still give 39:24 the tithe, or return the tithe, because it belongs to God, 39:28 as a matter of principle. 39:30 Now I'd like to share with you two stories that we find 39:33 in the Old Testament that illustrate these two principles, 39:37 or these four principles, actually, not only the last 39:40 two, but all four. 39:41 The fact that God is the owner of everything. 39:44 The fact that we are His stewards. 39:46 The fact that God has reserved something for Himself. 39:48 And the fact that we receive a blessing if we reserve that 39:52 which God has reserved only for Himself. 39:55 And we bring a curse if we use that which God has 39:58 reserved for Himself. 39:59 The first example that I would like to give is from the story 40:03 that we find in 1 Kings 17. 40:06 And we're not going to look it up. 40:07 You can look it up in your spare time. 40:08 It's in your list of texts. 40:10 But, anyway, it's the story of Elijah. 40:12 God told Elijah, I want you to go to the city of Zarepath. 40:15 And there you're going to find a widow that's going to sustain 40:18 you until it rains again upon the earth, 40:21 because Elijah was fleeing. 40:23 It hadn't rained for about three years. 40:25 So Elijah goes to Zarepath, and as he's coming into the town 40:29 he meets this little widow. 40:30 And she's picking up a few sticks to build a fire, 40:34 and to prepare her last meal, because she just has a little 40:36 bit of flour, and a little bit of oil left. 40:39 And so when Elijah sees her he says to her, ah, please bring 40:43 me a cup of water. 40:44 That was a real luxury, by the way, because it hadn't rained 40:47 for three years. So the little widow, she's going to bring 40:51 Elijah the cup of water, and Elijah says, as she's going on 40:55 this errand, he says, oh, by the way, bring me also some bread. 40:59 And the widow looks at him and she says, listen, I have just a 41:03 little bit of flour, and a little bit of oil, 41:04 and I'm going to go prepare just a couple of loaves of bread 41:08 and then my son and I are going to die, because we're not 41:11 going to have anything more to eat. 41:12 And Elijah says something very strange to this widow. 41:15 He says, listen, go and do as you have said. 41:19 Go and prepare the bread, but bring me a small loaf first. 41:27 Now that's interesting. 41:29 Elijah was God's minister. 41:32 And Elijah says to her, bring the small loaf first. 41:38 And then Elijah makes a promise, actually it's a promise 41:42 of God through Elijah. 41:44 Elijah says, if you do this, if you bring me the small loaf 41:48 of bread first, God promises that the oil will not be 41:53 lacking, and the flour will not be lacking until it rains 41:56 again upon the earth. 41:58 Now the widow had to make a decision. 42:00 She had to say, well, is it better just go ahead and enjoy 42:03 a full meal now and then die, or is it better to risk it 42:07 and give God's prophet the little loaf of bread first? 42:11 Well, all I need to say is that the little widow decided that 42:14 she would give the little loaf of bread to the prophet first. 42:18 And do you know what? 42:19 That barrel of flower, and that flask of oil produced flour 42:23 and oil continuously until it rained again upon the earth. 42:29 God, connected with the tithe, always gives a promise. 42:33 He says, if you are faithful in your tithes and offerings, 42:37 I promise that I will not forsake you. 42:41 I will not leave you. 42:43 I will provide for you. 42:44 But folks, the only way that we can know that that is true, 42:48 is if we test God, or if we try God. 42:52 In other words, we have to step out in faith, and we have to 42:55 say, I'm going to respect God's tithes. 42:57 I'm going to give offerings, and God promises that He's not 43:03 going to forsake me, and He's not going to leave me. 43:05 If we don't do that, we'll never know whether God's promise 43:09 was going to be fulfilled or not, because it won't be 43:12 fulfilled with us. 43:14 Another story which we find in the Old Testament, 43:17 which is really interesting, is the story of Joseph. 43:19 Genesis 39:1-9 has this story. 43:23 Joseph, of course, was taken as a slave to Egypt. 43:27 And he ended up in the house of a man named Potiphar. 43:30 And Potiphar developed a real trusting relationship with 43:34 Joseph. In fact, Joseph was the steward, it says in Genesis 39, 43:40 of Potiphar's house. 43:41 And Potiphar trusted Joseph so much that, we're told there 43:45 in that passage, that Potiphar didn't even know how many 43:48 many possessions he had. 43:49 He didn't know what he owned. 43:51 Basically all he knew was that he would come and he would eat 43:54 his meals at the table, because he trusted Joseph so much. 43:58 Joseph was a faithful steward. 44:00 But I want you to notice in this story that there was something 44:03 which Potiphar had reserved only for himself, 44:05 and that was his wife. 44:07 And Joseph, to show that he was a faithful steward, 44:10 had to respect that which Potiphar had reserved 44:14 only for himself, and that was Potiphar's wife. 44:17 Notice how we find the principles here. 44:19 We find the principles that Joseph recognized that 44:23 Potiphar was the owner. 44:24 Joseph was a faithful steward. 44:26 Potiphar had reserved something for himself, which Joseph was 44:31 not to use for himself. 44:32 He could use everything else, but he could not use 44:35 Potiphar's wife. You say, well, but wait a minute. 44:39 What about the blessing and the curse? 44:40 Wasn't Joseph cursed because he was faithful to God 44:44 rather than being blessed? 44:45 Well, it would appear so in the immediate context, but I'm not 44:51 going to get into the story. 44:52 As a result of Joseph's faithfulness in respecting the 44:57 wife of Potiphar, as well as obeying the law of God, 45:01 thou shalt not commit adultery, Joseph became the savior 45:05 of his father and his brothers, and he preserved the seed 45:09 through whom the Messiah would eventually come. 45:12 So if you look at it in the long range situation, 45:15 you'll find that Joseph's faithfulness in respecting that 45:20 which Potiphar had reserved for himself, 45:22 brought a huge blessing. 45:25 Now we need to talk a little bit about offerings. 45:29 You say, wow, so we're supposed to return to God ten percent, 45:33 and we're also supposed to return offerings to God? 45:36 Boy, God is really asking a lot from us. 45:38 Well, I don't think God is asking that much from us. 45:41 Let me give you an example. 45:42 Let's talk about someone like Bill Gates, for example. 45:47 What if Bill Gates came to you. 45:50 He's the owner of Microsoft, by the way, if you don't know. 45:52 He comes to you and he says, I'm going to open this company, 45:55 and I'm going to provide all of the capital, 45:57 all of the technology, all of the personnel. 46:00 I'm going to provide you with everything that you need 46:03 for this business enterprise to be successful. 46:06 And he says, I want you to be the administrator 46:09 of that company, and I'll tell you what I want you to do. 46:13 You administrate the company, you can keep ninety percent 46:18 of the proceeds or of the profit from the company, 46:22 and I want you to return to me ten percent. 46:25 Would you say, man, what a stingy guy? 46:29 You mean to say that he expects me to return ten percent to him? 46:34 Listen, folks, God has given us all the resources in the world, 46:37 and He only requires that we recognize that ten percent 46:42 belongs to Him, but He also wants us to show our 46:46 gratefulness, our thankfulness to Him by returning offerings. 46:51 You know, there's a very interesting word which appears 46:55 constantly in scripture, and that is the word give. 47:00 Do you know that God's kingdom is based on giving? 47:04 Satan's kingdom is based on selfishness and covetousness? 47:10 Allow me just to mention some verses in scripture that use 47:14 this little word with reference to God, and to Christ. 47:18 The apostle Paul, in Acts 20:35, quotes the Lord Jesus as saying: 47:24 It is more blessed to give than it is to what? 47:29 It is more blessed to give than it is to receive. 47:34 We find also in John 3:16... 47:37 We don't even have to look up that verse. 47:49 Notice once again, more blessed to give than to receive. 47:52 God gave His only begotten Son. 47:55 We have Matthew 20:28, the same idea. Jesus says: 48:09 Notice once again the emphasis upon the word give. 48:13 Luke 6:38 we find that Jesus says: 48:32 Notice once again, that if you give, it will be given unto you. 48:37 Also we find the experience of Zaccaheus. 48:40 You know, Zaccheus was a pretty selfish man. 48:44 He actually extorted money. 48:46 He was like a tax collector, and he extorted more money than 48:51 what people owed to the Roman government. 48:53 And when Zaccheus met Jesus on the road to Jericho, 48:59 we find that Zaccheus, you know, he wanted to catch a glimpse 49:04 of Jesus, and Jesus knew all the time that he was in the sycamore 49:07 tree, and so Jesus says, Zaccheus, come down for 49:12 I'm going to go to your house today. 49:13 And Zaccheus accepted Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord. 49:18 His heart was converted to the Lord. 49:21 Now I want you to notice what the first result 49:24 of his conversion was. 49:25 Zaccheus stood publicly, we're told there in Luke 19. 49:30 He publicly stood and he said: 49:45 In other words four times more I give. 49:47 And some people say, why would Zaccheus only give half 49:52 of his goods to the poor? 49:53 Well, the fact is, he probably needed the other half to restore 49:56 fourfold to the people that he had defrauded. 49:59 But I want you to notice that when Zaccheus is converted 50:02 the first result is that he considers money 50:06 in a different way. 50:07 He reckons money is a different fashion. 50:10 Now instead of hoarding riches, instead of extorting money, 50:15 instead of keeping money, now he is a giver. 50:20 We find many examples in scripture of this. 50:24 You know, here in the San Joaquin Valley we have, 50:28 on the eastern ridge we have the Sierra Nevada; 50:32 just absolutely beautiful this time of year, in the winter, 50:36 you know, on a clear day. 50:37 Today was a very clear day. 50:39 You have the snow capped mountains. 50:40 I want you to think about the cycle of water. 50:44 You know, in the springtime the snow on those mountains 50:47 melts. And the snow melts, trickles down the mountain 50:53 side in little brooks, and the brooks become streams, 50:56 and then those streams go into the Kings River, 51:00 and the Kings River goes into the reservoirs, 51:02 it goes into the ocean eventually, some of that water, 51:06 and then, of course, the water goes from the ocean and 51:09 condenses, goes into the clouds, and then the clouds send, 51:12 once again, their snow or their rain upon the mountains, 51:15 and the process begins all over again. 51:17 That's the cycle of water. 51:20 You know, the clouds give their snow to the mountains. 51:23 The mountains give their water to the streams. 51:25 The streams give their water to the rivers. 51:28 The rivers give their water to the ocean. 51:31 The oceans give their water to the clouds. 51:34 And once again the cycle begins. 51:36 If at any point any of these steps ceased to give, 51:41 life would cease to exist. 51:45 All of nature teaches the principle of giving. 51:50 Let's notice Mark 12:43, 44. 51:55 This is speaking about an offering which was given 51:58 in the temple. Mark 12:43, 44. 52:03 This is the experience of the little widow who put in her 52:07 two mites in the treasury of the temple. 52:10 Actually, I'm going to begin reading at verse 41 52:12 for the context. It says: Now Jesus sat opposite 52:17 the treasury and saw how the people put money 52:22 into the treasury, and many who were rich put in much. 52:27 I can imagine them just taking their coins and dropping them 52:32 from high up, so that everybody could hear all of the money 52:36 that we're putting into the treasury. 52:37 But now I want you to notice, among all of those rich people 52:41 comes this poor little widow. 52:42 Verse 42. Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, 52:48 which make a quadrance, a very insignificant amount. 53:04 Not more in amount, but she gave more in principle. 53:08 Why? Notice verse 44: 53:23 Do you know that our generosity is not measured by how much we 53:26 give, but by how much we have left after we have given? 53:30 Sacrifice is not measured by the amount that we contribute, 53:34 it's measured by the amount that we have left after 53:38 we have contributed. 53:39 She gave more because she gave everything that she had, 53:43 because she believed in the cause of God. 53:47 You know, we should really follow the example of Jesus. 53:50 2 Corinthians 8:9 says, that though Jesus was rich, 53:56 he became poor... 54:03 Jesus did not consider the riches and the glory of heaven 54:07 something to be grasped, or something to be hung onto. 54:10 Jesus was willing to give it all up in order to save us from sin, 54:15 so that we could be in His kingdom. 54:17 Those who have the heart of Jesus will have the same 54:20 priorities as Jesus does. 54:22 The Apostle Paul tells us in 1 Timothy 6:9, 10, that the love 54:28 of money is the root of all kinds of evil. 54:33 And, by the way, the King James version says, 54:36 is the root of all evil. 54:38 It can be translated either way, the root of all evil, 54:41 or the root of all kinds of evil. 54:43 Just look at this world today, and I think that if you look 54:47 carefully you'll see that this statement is true. 54:50 Almost every single problem in the world, at some point, 54:54 revolves around money. 54:57 Jesus said in Matthew 16:26, Matthew 16:26, 55:04 a very well known verse. 55:06 It's one of those formula sayings of Jesus. He says: 55:22 What does it profit a man if you're going to gain everything 55:25 in the world, and yet you lose your soul? 55:28 By the way, Ezekiel 7:19 tells us that someday soon, 55:34 when Jesus comes, people are going to take their silver 55:39 and their gold, and they are going to throw their silver 55:42 and their gold into the streets, and they're going to say, 55:46 this is no good. It doesn't do us any good, 55:49 because our gold and our silver will not be able to deliver us 55:54 in the day of the wrath of the Lord. 55:57 So we must make investments in the bank of heaven. 56:01 Let's notice our last text: Matthew 6:19-21, 56:09 Matthew 6:19-21. This is also one of those sayings of Jesus 56:17 which is very well known. 56:18 Here Jesus says this: 56:47 And so God gives us these four principles. 56:50 He is the owner, we are the His students. 56:53 He has reserved for Himself tithes and offerings, 56:57 by the way, and if we return a faithful tithe, 57:02 and our offerings, we receive a blessing. 57:05 If not, we bring a curse upon ourselves. 57:09 Let's make investments in God's kingdom. 57:13 Let's use our resources for His honor and for His glory, 57:18 and for our eternal investment in heaven. |
Revised 2014-12-17