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[ Band playing ]
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[ Applause ]
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>>Good morning, everyone.
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Isn't this a wonderful group
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that we have here this morning
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along with Dr. Denise Santos?
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It's been my privilege this week
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since Wednesday, to be working
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with 120 band students,
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and Dr. has been working with
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keyboard students, as well.
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We'd love to invite you back
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this afternoon, 4:00, at the
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Howard Performing Arts Center
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for our final festival
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finale concert,
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where you'll hear --
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This has just been a taste of
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what you'll hear this afternoon.
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Our scripture reading today,
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it's found in
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2 Corinthians 9:6-9.
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"But this I say --
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'He who sows sparingly
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will also reap sparingly.
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And he who sows bountifully
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will also reap bountifully.
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So let us each one give
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as He purposes in His heart,
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not grudgingly or of necessity,
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for God loves a cheerful giver,
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and God is able to make
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all grace abound toward you
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that you, always having
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all sufficiency in all things,
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may have an abundance
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for every good work.'
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As it is written,
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He has dispersed abroad,
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He has given to the poor, His
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righteousness endures forever."
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[ Band playing ]
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[ Applause ]
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[ Organ playing ]
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>> I thought we would begin
00:12:16.53\00:12:17.60
this morning with a test of your
00:12:17.70\00:12:20.30
denominational knowledge.
00:12:20.40\00:12:22.97
I don't mean religious
00:12:23.07\00:12:24.64
denominations.
00:12:24.74\00:12:27.18
I mean this.
00:12:27.28\00:12:30.65
Denominations as in different
00:12:30.75\00:12:32.25
types of bills.
00:12:32.35\00:12:33.48
That's what they refer to it.
00:12:33.58\00:12:34.35
And there's currency.
00:12:34.45\00:12:35.38
You have different types
00:12:35.48\00:12:36.45
of denominations, $1s, $5s,
00:12:36.55\00:12:37.72
et cetera, so I'm going to test
00:12:37.82\00:12:38.62
your knowledge.
00:12:38.72\00:12:39.89
Now, if you were in first
00:12:39.99\00:12:41.42
service, you need to take a vow
00:12:41.52\00:12:43.96
of silence for the next
00:12:44.06\00:12:45.29
few minutes, okay?
00:12:45.39\00:12:47.03
And if you are tempted to pull
00:12:47.13\00:12:48.20
out your phone and ask Google
00:12:48.30\00:12:49.93
for help, no, no, no, no, no.
00:12:50.03\00:12:51.43
This is church. Be honest. Okay?
00:12:51.53\00:12:52.43
We're testing your knowledge,
00:12:52.53\00:12:53.03
right?
00:12:53.13\00:12:54.34
So whose picture appears
00:12:54.44\00:12:56.14
on the $1 bill?
00:12:56.24\00:12:58.34
All right, that's pretty easy.
00:12:58.44\00:12:59.54
Isn't it? George Washington.
00:12:59.64\00:13:00.78
A whole bunch of these things
00:13:00.88\00:13:01.71
in circulation and whatnot.
00:13:01.81\00:13:03.31
How about this? $5 bill?
00:13:03.41\00:13:06.55
Abraham Lincoln. That's right.
00:13:06.65\00:13:07.85
Lincoln, 16th president
00:13:07.95\00:13:08.95
of the United States.
00:13:09.05\00:13:10.39
Moving on up here,
00:13:10.49\00:13:12.15
we have here the $10 bill.
00:13:12.25\00:13:13.79
Who's that?
00:13:13.89\00:13:15.46
[ Indistinct talking ]
00:13:15.56\00:13:17.66
Okay, a little bit of confusion
00:13:17.76\00:13:19.19
in the house about that.
00:13:19.29\00:13:20.33
This is Alexander Hamilton.
00:13:20.43\00:13:23.10
Haven't seen a $10 bill
00:13:23.20\00:13:25.43
for a while, huh?
00:13:25.53\00:13:27.20
Things are tight. Yes, right?
00:13:27.30\00:13:29.20
Alexander Hamilton, first
00:13:29.30\00:13:30.94
U.S. Secretary of Treasury,
00:13:31.04\00:13:32.01
founding father, cowriter of the
00:13:32.11\00:13:33.14
Federalist Papers,
00:13:33.24\00:13:34.34
et cetera, et cetera.
00:13:34.44\00:13:35.81
$20 bill?
00:13:35.91\00:13:37.75
Ah, yes. Okay.
00:13:37.85\00:13:39.21
Some unanimity on that one.
00:13:39.31\00:13:40.38
It's not that you're hard up.
00:13:40.48\00:13:42.38
You've got $20s in your wallet,
00:13:42.48\00:13:43.32
not $10s, right.
00:13:43.42\00:13:44.92
That's right -- Andrew Jackson.
00:13:45.02\00:13:46.39
Andrew Jackson was our seventh
00:13:46.49\00:13:47.79
president of the United States.
00:13:47.89\00:13:49.26
How about this one?
00:13:49.36\00:13:51.59
$100 bill. That's right.
00:13:51.69\00:13:54.03
This is -- Oh, we have some
00:13:54.13\00:13:55.40
well-heeled people in the
00:13:55.50\00:13:56.63
congregation this morning, yeah.
00:13:56.73\00:13:58.43
This is Benjamin Franklin,
00:13:58.53\00:14:00.64
listed among our founding
00:14:00.74\00:14:01.70
fathers, royal character
00:14:01.80\00:14:03.44
and innovator,
00:14:03.54\00:14:04.97
inventor, et cetera, et cetera.
00:14:05.07\00:14:06.81
Now, how about this one?
00:14:06.91\00:14:10.25
$1,000 bill.
00:14:10.35\00:14:13.52
Now, just so you know, this bill
00:14:13.62\00:14:15.75
was discontinued in 1969.
00:14:15.85\00:14:17.79
So they are still technically
00:14:17.89\00:14:19.35
in circulation, but they're
00:14:19.45\00:14:20.39
not being printed any longer.
00:14:20.49\00:14:21.46
Any idea who's on here?
00:14:21.56\00:14:23.89
Well, I actually heard it.
00:14:23.99\00:14:25.96
I actually heard it.
00:14:26.06\00:14:27.03
Grover Cleveland. Okay?
00:14:27.13\00:14:28.53
Grover Cleveland,
00:14:28.63\00:14:29.53
24th president.
00:14:29.63\00:14:31.80
You knew that one.
00:14:31.90\00:14:33.03
Did somebody know that one over
00:14:33.13\00:14:33.60
here?
00:14:33.70\00:14:34.57
No. All right.
00:14:34.67\00:14:35.77
Keep it on going here.
00:14:35.87\00:14:37.47
How about this one?
00:14:37.57\00:14:38.64
A $5,000 bill?
00:14:38.74\00:14:41.11
Who's on this one?
00:14:41.21\00:14:44.15
If you want to check your wallet
00:14:44.25\00:14:46.28
to see, you can --
00:14:46.38\00:14:48.05
you can do that now, okay?
00:14:48.15\00:14:49.55
Let's see who's on here.
00:14:49.65\00:14:51.15
James Madison, fourth president
00:14:51.25\00:14:53.19
of the United States,
00:14:53.29\00:14:54.29
father of the Constitution,
00:14:54.39\00:14:55.86
cowrote the Federalist Papers,
00:14:55.96\00:14:57.59
et cetera, et cetera.
00:14:57.69\00:14:58.66
Now, how about this one?
00:14:58.76\00:14:59.73
$10,000 bill?
00:14:59.83\00:15:01.96
This is a real thing.
00:15:02.06\00:15:02.86
$10,000 bill --
00:15:02.96\00:15:04.00
whose picture is on it?
00:15:04.10\00:15:05.27
>> Donald Trump!
00:15:05.37\00:15:06.80
[ Laughter ]
00:15:06.90\00:15:09.47
>> Way better than that.
00:15:14.14\00:15:16.38
[ Laughter, applause ]
00:15:16.48\00:15:18.85
I don't know who that guy is,
00:15:26.09\00:15:27.52
but anyway, I mean, it's --
00:15:27.62\00:15:29.46
It's actually Salmon P. Chase.
00:15:29.56\00:15:31.86
And some of you are wondering,
00:15:31.96\00:15:32.76
"Isn't that a fish?"
00:15:32.86\00:15:34.03
No, no. Salmon P. Chase
00:15:34.13\00:15:35.40
was actually
00:15:35.50\00:15:36.73
a fairly influential guy.
00:15:36.83\00:15:37.67
He was an Ohio
00:15:37.77\00:15:38.80
senator and governor,
00:15:38.90\00:15:40.17
U.S. Treasury secretary
00:15:40.27\00:15:41.70
under Abraham Lincoln.
00:15:41.80\00:15:43.44
You may remember Lincoln's
00:15:43.54\00:15:44.27
team of rivals.
00:15:44.37\00:15:45.64
And certainly, Salmon P. Chase
00:15:45.74\00:15:47.11
was on the rival side
00:15:47.21\00:15:49.34
of that team of rivals.
00:15:49.44\00:15:50.88
The last one here,
00:15:50.98\00:15:52.45
at least as far as
00:15:52.55\00:15:53.75
U.S. circulation is concerned,
00:15:53.85\00:15:55.15
the domination of $100,000.
00:15:55.25\00:15:59.82
You'll never guess it.
00:15:59.92\00:16:02.42
I didn't know it, either.
00:16:02.52\00:16:03.49
It's Woodrow Wilson.
00:16:03.59\00:16:04.76
Woodrow Wilson
00:16:04.86\00:16:06.06
was our 28th president.
00:16:06.16\00:16:07.83
This bill, you can see it there
00:16:07.93\00:16:09.40
if you can read it in the fine
00:16:09.50\00:16:10.50
print, it was known as a gold
00:16:10.60\00:16:11.20
certificate.
00:16:11.30\00:16:12.53
And it was actually -- It
00:16:12.63\00:16:13.64
wasn't considered
00:16:13.74\00:16:14.84
to be actually legal tender,
00:16:14.94\00:16:16.47
except when used
00:16:16.57\00:16:18.17
by the Federal Reserve Banks.
00:16:18.27\00:16:20.54
So if you have one of these
00:16:20.64\00:16:22.24
in your possession, there's
00:16:22.34\00:16:23.31
two things that you should know.
00:16:23.41\00:16:24.21
Number one, it's extremely
00:16:24.31\00:16:25.48
valuable to collectors.
00:16:25.58\00:16:26.48
They will give you a lot
00:16:26.58\00:16:27.52
of money for it, more than
00:16:27.62\00:16:28.58
the face value on the bill.
00:16:28.68\00:16:30.35
And the FBI is waiting to see
00:16:30.45\00:16:32.22
you after the church service is
00:16:32.32\00:16:33.22
done, okay?
00:16:33.32\00:16:35.56
Because you shouldn't have that
00:16:35.66\00:16:37.09
bill in your possession, right?
00:16:37.19\00:16:38.56
Okay. It's remarkable, isn't it?
00:16:38.66\00:16:40.90
I mean, you know, this parade of
00:16:40.96\00:16:42.60
personages that we put on our
00:16:42.70\00:16:44.33
bills, and the U.S. is not
00:16:44.43\00:16:46.10
the only country to do this.
00:16:46.20\00:16:48.14
For instance, Dame Mary Gilmore
00:16:48.24\00:16:50.44
began to appear in 2017
00:16:50.54\00:16:52.54
on the Australian $10 bill.
00:16:52.64\00:16:55.54
She's a widely-noted,
00:16:55.64\00:16:57.81
nationally-recognized
00:16:57.91\00:16:58.71
poet and writer,
00:16:58.81\00:17:00.05
and they placed her on this bill
00:17:00.15\00:17:01.12
beginning in 2017.
00:17:01.22\00:17:02.78
And, of course, this may be more
00:17:02.88\00:17:03.55
familiar to you --
00:17:03.65\00:17:04.59
Queen Elizabeth II.
00:17:04.69\00:17:06.35
She's been on a variety
00:17:06.45\00:17:07.36
of bills in the U.K.
00:17:07.46\00:17:08.72
and also in Canada.
00:17:08.82\00:17:09.86
This happens to be a $20
00:17:09.96\00:17:11.36
Canada note
00:17:11.46\00:17:12.79
that began circulation in 2004.
00:17:12.89\00:17:14.93
And on and on and on
00:17:15.03\00:17:16.93
the list could go.
00:17:17.03\00:17:18.10
Now, question --
00:17:18.20\00:17:20.17
Why do governments do this?
00:17:20.27\00:17:24.01
Why do they place the pictures
00:17:24.11\00:17:26.17
of these famous men and women
00:17:26.27\00:17:28.08
on these bills?
00:17:28.18\00:17:30.21
What's the message that's trying
00:17:30.31\00:17:31.25
to be conveyed there?
00:17:31.35\00:17:34.95
Is it safe to say that
00:17:35.05\00:17:37.72
if you use this piece
00:17:37.82\00:17:39.32
of paper correctly,
00:17:39.42\00:17:40.69
they're trying to -- you
00:17:40.79\00:17:42.19
might become like one of them?
00:17:42.29\00:17:43.83
Maybe someday
00:17:43.93\00:17:45.46
you'll sit in the white House.
00:17:45.56\00:17:46.73
Of course, in the United States,
00:17:46.83\00:17:47.60
you have to be dead
00:17:47.66\00:17:48.70
in order to get on the bill.
00:17:48.80\00:17:49.63
So don't aspire to that.
00:17:49.73\00:17:50.60
But -- But could it be
00:17:50.70\00:17:52.67
they're trying to send a message
00:17:52.77\00:17:53.94
of power and potential, maybe,
00:17:54.04\00:17:56.37
for what's on these bills?
00:17:56.47\00:17:59.11
And if that's the case,
00:17:59.21\00:18:01.41
I wonder just how much
00:18:01.51\00:18:04.28
is this paper money worth?
00:18:04.38\00:18:09.02
Now, some of you are thinking,
00:18:09.12\00:18:10.89
"Increasingly little
00:18:10.99\00:18:12.19
Pastor Shane, increasingly
00:18:12.29\00:18:12.89
little."
00:18:12.99\00:18:14.22
As insurance -- excuse me --
00:18:14.32\00:18:15.22
inflation continues to go up
00:18:15.32\00:18:16.89
and we have difficulty around
00:18:16.99\00:18:18.53
the globe with economic issues,
00:18:18.63\00:18:20.13
et cetera, et cetera, et cetera,
00:18:20.23\00:18:21.83
but the question is one
00:18:21.93\00:18:23.73
that needs to be answered
00:18:23.83\00:18:25.00
by every person that is
00:18:25.10\00:18:26.67
breathing, from the youngest
00:18:26.77\00:18:27.70
to the oldest,
00:18:27.80\00:18:29.10
because this is an issue
00:18:29.20\00:18:30.71
that will touch sooner or later
00:18:30.81\00:18:31.87
everyone.
00:18:31.97\00:18:33.31
What is the worth of this money
00:18:33.41\00:18:38.65
when it comes to the life
00:18:38.75\00:18:42.28
we are called to live?
00:18:42.38\00:18:47.12
If you have a Bible or a device,
00:18:47.22\00:18:48.56
whatever you have, turn please
00:18:48.66\00:18:49.69
to Matthew 25:14.
00:18:49.79\00:18:52.23
Matthew the 25th chapter,
00:18:52.33\00:18:54.03
beginning with verse 14.
00:18:54.13\00:18:54.93
It's on page 668
00:18:55.03\00:18:57.03
in the red pew Bible.
00:18:57.13\00:18:58.30
That's probably somewhere around
00:18:58.40\00:18:59.23
you there, at least most of
00:18:59.33\00:19:00.07
those Bibles.
00:19:00.17\00:19:01.20
Page 668, Matthew 25,
00:19:01.30\00:19:02.70
beginning with verse 14.
00:19:02.80\00:19:03.71
Let me give you a little
00:19:03.81\00:19:04.81
background here.
00:19:04.91\00:19:05.91
In Matthew 24 and 25,
00:19:06.01\00:19:07.78
we have Jesus' longest
00:19:07.88\00:19:10.88
discourse on the end of time.
00:19:10.98\00:19:13.55
Essentially, at the beginning
00:19:13.65\00:19:14.65
of chapter 24, his disciples
00:19:14.75\00:19:15.98
come to Him and say, "Lord,
00:19:16.08\00:19:17.32
tell us, what will be the signs
00:19:17.42\00:19:18.89
of the destruction of Jerusalem,
00:19:18.99\00:19:19.92
and what will be the signs
00:19:20.02\00:19:20.99
of Your coming, establishing
00:19:21.09\00:19:22.02
Your kingdom?"
00:19:22.12\00:19:23.39
Jesus weaves those two things
00:19:23.49\00:19:24.59
together in chapter 24.
00:19:24.69\00:19:26.26
He begins to tell some parables,
00:19:26.36\00:19:27.73
also.
00:19:27.83\00:19:29.16
And by the time we get to
00:19:29.26\00:19:30.60
chapter 25, we have this parable
00:19:30.70\00:19:33.40
often referred to as
00:19:33.50\00:19:34.57
the Parable of the Talents.
00:19:34.67\00:19:36.47
Now, if you're new to the Bible
00:19:36.57\00:19:37.31
and you're not sure
00:19:37.41\00:19:38.51
what a parable is, a parable
00:19:38.61\00:19:40.34
is an object-lesson story.
00:19:40.44\00:19:42.31
There are details in it
00:19:42.41\00:19:43.45
that are certainly rooted
00:19:43.55\00:19:44.48
in actual events, but it is
00:19:44.58\00:19:46.15
an object-lesson story.
00:19:46.25\00:19:47.78
And the point is real.
00:19:47.88\00:19:49.88
The point that Jesus is making
00:19:49.98\00:19:51.89
with this parable is intended
00:19:51.99\00:19:53.25
to be very, very real,
00:19:53.36\00:19:55.16
even if facets of the story
00:19:55.26\00:19:57.09
did not necessarily reflect
00:19:57.19\00:19:57.93
actual events.
00:19:58.03\00:19:59.16
Let's check this story out.
00:19:59.26\00:20:00.63
Matthew 25,
00:20:00.73\00:20:01.80
beginning with verse 14.
00:20:01.90\00:20:03.37
Jesus is speaking.
00:20:03.47\00:20:04.37
He says, "Again,
00:20:04.47\00:20:05.63
it will be like"...
00:20:05.73\00:20:06.84
In other words, the end of time,
00:20:06.94\00:20:07.67
those days.
00:20:07.77\00:20:08.87
And then Jesus returned,
00:20:08.97\00:20:10.01
establishing His kingdom.
00:20:10.11\00:20:11.17
"Again, it will be like a man
00:20:11.27\00:20:12.97
going on a journey
00:20:13.07\00:20:15.11
who called his servants and
00:20:15.21\00:20:16.75
entrusted his property to them.
00:20:16.85\00:20:18.38
To one, he gave
00:20:18.48\00:20:20.12
five talents of money,
00:20:20.22\00:20:22.12
to another, two talents,
00:20:22.22\00:20:23.75
and to another, one talent,
00:20:23.85\00:20:25.69
each according to his ability.
00:20:25.79\00:20:27.89
Then he went on his journey."
00:20:27.99\00:20:30.36
Now, pause for just a moment,
00:20:30.46\00:20:31.16
please.
00:20:31.26\00:20:33.06
These talents that are given
00:20:33.16\00:20:35.13
here, these talents are not like
00:20:35.23\00:20:36.33
the ability to play the guitar
00:20:36.43\00:20:37.03
or saxophone
00:20:37.13\00:20:38.27
or something like that.
00:20:38.37\00:20:39.20
This is actual money
00:20:39.30\00:20:40.84
in the parable that is given
00:20:40.94\00:20:41.97
to these servants.
00:20:42.07\00:20:43.41
And this was certainly
00:20:43.51\00:20:44.84
a factual thing.
00:20:44.94\00:20:45.74
It was not
00:20:45.84\00:20:46.94
an unusual occurrence.
00:20:47.04\00:20:47.94
If there was a wealthy
00:20:48.04\00:20:49.18
landowner, had a large estate or
00:20:49.28\00:20:50.41
whatnot, he would call his most
00:20:50.51\00:20:52.11
trusted servants
00:20:52.21\00:20:53.95
to take care of business
00:20:54.05\00:20:56.25
while he was away on a journey.
00:20:56.35\00:20:58.12
Servants then did not only
00:20:58.22\00:20:59.32
do menial tasks, some of them
00:20:59.42\00:21:00.42
were highly trained and highly
00:21:00.52\00:21:01.49
educated to take care of
00:21:01.59\00:21:03.06
precisely this type of thing.
00:21:03.16\00:21:04.66
So not an unusual thing.
00:21:04.76\00:21:06.43
He then gives
00:21:06.53\00:21:07.86
these quote talents.
00:21:07.96\00:21:10.23
Now, what's a talent?
00:21:10.33\00:21:12.03
Well, a talent in those days was
00:21:12.13\00:21:13.94
actually a measure of weight.
00:21:14.04\00:21:16.04
It was a measure of weight.
00:21:16.14\00:21:17.97
And scholars have debated
00:21:18.07\00:21:19.27
exactly what -- how much weight
00:21:19.37\00:21:20.74
that was, but we have at least
00:21:20.84\00:21:22.24
a reasonable understanding
00:21:22.34\00:21:23.45
that it was £75.
00:21:23.55\00:21:25.28
And we're going to guess
00:21:25.38\00:21:27.38
that this £75, one talent,
00:21:27.48\00:21:29.75
was not given in gold,
00:21:29.85\00:21:31.49
because, you know,
00:21:31.59\00:21:33.29
then, as now, most people
00:21:33.39\00:21:34.46
didn't just have gold --
00:21:34.56\00:21:35.52
it was too precious -- lying
00:21:35.62\00:21:36.52
around the house, et cetera,
00:21:36.62\00:21:37.73
but they did use silver
00:21:37.83\00:21:38.93
as currency.
00:21:39.03\00:21:40.53
So if this is £75 of silver,
00:21:40.63\00:21:42.23
let's try to get a picture
00:21:42.33\00:21:43.33
for how much money is being
00:21:43.43\00:21:44.27
given to these servants.
00:21:44.37\00:21:45.73
One talent, about $30,000.
00:21:45.83\00:21:48.17
I think the price of silver
00:21:48.27\00:21:49.14
this week was like $23
00:21:49.24\00:21:51.04
an ounce, $26 an ounce,
00:21:51.14\00:21:52.11
something like that.
00:21:52.21\00:21:53.21
Two talents, $60,000.
00:21:53.31\00:21:55.14
Five talents, $150,000.
00:21:55.24\00:21:58.31
Now, that's not a small amount
00:21:58.41\00:22:00.22
of money.
00:22:00.32\00:22:02.38
But scholars have also
00:22:02.48\00:22:04.79
pointed out that a talent
00:22:04.89\00:22:07.12
doesn't go as far as it used to.
00:22:07.22\00:22:09.46
And given inflation --
00:22:09.56\00:22:11.09
Actually, in those days,
00:22:11.19\00:22:12.66
the buying power for a talent
00:22:12.76\00:22:14.36
was way more than it would be
00:22:14.46\00:22:16.06
even using United States
00:22:16.16\00:22:17.37
silver prices, et cetera.
00:22:17.47\00:22:18.40
So, actually, if we take the
00:22:18.50\00:22:21.07
Bible's reckoning, one talent
00:22:21.17\00:22:23.67
was equal to 20 years' pay
00:22:23.77\00:22:28.81
for an unskilled laborer.
00:22:28.91\00:22:30.71
Twenty years' pay.
00:22:30.81\00:22:33.11
So if we bring that into
00:22:33.21\00:22:34.55
modern terms, one talent,
00:22:34.65\00:22:37.02
20 years' pay at minimum wage --
00:22:37.12\00:22:38.75
you know, the federal minimum
00:22:38.85\00:22:39.62
wage now is $7.25 --
00:22:39.72\00:22:41.19
if we just take that
00:22:41.29\00:22:42.26
minimum reckoning there,
00:22:42.36\00:22:43.76
one talent would equal $300,000,
00:22:43.86\00:22:46.26
two talents, $600,000,
00:22:46.36\00:22:48.43
five talents, $1.5 million.
00:22:48.53\00:22:52.90
Translation -- This is a h--
00:22:53.00\00:22:55.44
this is a truckload of cash
00:22:55.54\00:22:57.11
that the master is giving
00:22:57.21\00:22:58.11
to his servants.
00:22:58.21\00:22:59.17
This is not pennies.
00:22:59.27\00:23:00.64
He is entrusting
00:23:00.74\00:23:02.14
a sizable part of his fortune
00:23:02.24\00:23:04.75
to these servants.
00:23:04.85\00:23:07.65
And then He goes away
00:23:07.75\00:23:10.59
on his trip.
00:23:10.69\00:23:12.72
Let's see what happens next.
00:23:12.82\00:23:14.59
Verse 16.
00:23:14.69\00:23:16.26
"The man who had received
00:23:16.36\00:23:17.39
the five talents went at once
00:23:17.49\00:23:19.06
and put his money to work
00:23:19.16\00:23:20.00
and gained five more.
00:23:20.10\00:23:21.83
So also the one with the two
00:23:21.93\00:23:22.90
talents gained two more.
00:23:23.00\00:23:24.83
But the man who had received
00:23:24.93\00:23:26.27
the one talent went off,
00:23:26.37\00:23:28.17
dug a hole in the ground,
00:23:28.27\00:23:29.54
and hid his master's money.
00:23:29.64\00:23:32.17
After a long time, the master
00:23:32.27\00:23:35.21
of those servants returned
00:23:35.31\00:23:36.44
and settled accounts with them.
00:23:36.54\00:23:37.88
The man who had received
00:23:37.98\00:23:38.81
the five talents
00:23:38.91\00:23:39.95
brought the other five.
00:23:40.05\00:23:40.95
'Master,' he said, 'you
00:23:41.05\00:23:42.35
entrusted me with five talents.
00:23:42.45\00:23:43.59
See, I have gained five more.'
00:23:43.69\00:23:46.12
His master replied, 'Well done,
00:23:46.22\00:23:48.36
good and faithful servant.
00:23:48.46\00:23:49.29
You have been faithful
00:23:49.39\00:23:50.43
with a few things, I will put
00:23:50.53\00:23:51.76
you in charge of many things.
00:23:51.86\00:23:52.59
Come and share
00:23:52.69\00:23:53.83
your master's happiness.'
00:23:53.93\00:23:55.86
The man who had the two talents
00:23:55.96\00:23:57.00
also came.
00:23:57.10\00:23:58.23
'Master,' he said, 'you
00:23:58.33\00:23:59.57
entrusted me with two talents.
00:23:59.67\00:24:01.07
See, I have gained two more.'
00:24:01.17\00:24:03.84
His master replied, 'Well done,
00:24:03.94\00:24:05.87
good and faithful servant.
00:24:05.97\00:24:07.11
You have been faithful with
00:24:07.21\00:24:08.24
a few things, I will put you in
00:24:08.34\00:24:09.58
charge of many things.
00:24:09.68\00:24:10.45
Come and share
00:24:10.55\00:24:11.65
your master's happiness.'
00:24:11.75\00:24:14.42
Then the man who had received
00:24:14.52\00:24:16.08
the one talent came.
00:24:16.18\00:24:18.92
'Master,' he said,
00:24:19.02\00:24:21.49
'I knew that you are a hard man,
00:24:21.59\00:24:23.66
harvesting where you have not
00:24:23.76\00:24:24.89
sown and gathering where you
00:24:24.99\00:24:26.29
have not scattered seed.
00:24:26.39\00:24:28.60
So I was afraid and went out and
00:24:28.70\00:24:31.27
hid your talent in the ground.
00:24:31.37\00:24:33.70
See, here is what belongs
00:24:33.80\00:24:35.10
to you.'
00:24:35.20\00:24:38.04
His master replied, 'You wicked,
00:24:38.14\00:24:42.31
lazy servant.
00:24:42.41\00:24:44.85
So you knew that I harvest
00:24:44.95\00:24:46.75
where I have not sown and gather
00:24:46.85\00:24:49.25
where I have not scattered seed.
00:24:49.35\00:24:51.65
Well, then you should have
00:24:51.75\00:24:53.12
put my money on deposit
00:24:53.22\00:24:54.22
with the bankers
00:24:54.32\00:24:55.66
so that when I returned,
00:24:55.76\00:24:57.23
I would have received it back
00:24:57.33\00:24:58.29
with interest.
00:24:58.39\00:25:00.73
Take the talent from him
00:25:00.83\00:25:02.16
and give it to the one
00:25:02.26\00:25:03.53
who has the 10 talents,
00:25:03.63\00:25:05.67
for everyone who has will be
00:25:05.77\00:25:06.97
given more,
00:25:07.07\00:25:08.70
and he will have an abundance.
00:25:08.80\00:25:11.14
Whoever does not have
00:25:11.24\00:25:13.24
even what he has will be taken
00:25:13.34\00:25:14.94
from him.
00:25:15.04\00:25:16.68
And throw that worthless servant
00:25:16.78\00:25:18.91
outside into the darkness,
00:25:19.01\00:25:22.55
where there will be weeping
00:25:22.65\00:25:24.72
and gnashing of teeth.'"
00:25:24.82\00:25:27.06
It's quite a story, isn't it?
00:25:32.53\00:25:34.83
And for those of you
00:25:34.93\00:25:36.60
that have spent time studying
00:25:36.70\00:25:38.10
the meaning of the story, you
00:25:38.20\00:25:39.37
know that there are many lessons
00:25:39.47\00:25:40.90
that we can pull from this.
00:25:41.00\00:25:42.97
But I think it might be helpful
00:25:43.07\00:25:44.37
for us to focus specifically
00:25:44.47\00:25:46.64
on verse 27.
00:25:46.74\00:25:49.51
And this may seem a little bit
00:25:49.61\00:25:50.48
odd when you read it there,
00:25:50.58\00:25:51.48
but I think that verse 27
00:25:51.58\00:25:53.55
is the key to unlocking the core
00:25:53.65\00:25:55.92
meaning of this parable.
00:25:56.02\00:25:57.75
Let's read verse 26 to get
00:25:57.85\00:25:59.39
some context and then verse 27.
00:25:59.49\00:26:02.12
"His master replied,
00:26:02.22\00:26:03.46
'You wicked, lazy servant.
00:26:03.56\00:26:05.06
So you knew that I harvest
00:26:05.16\00:26:06.36
where I have not sown
00:26:06.46\00:26:07.50
and gather where I have not
00:26:07.60\00:26:08.40
scattered seed.'"
00:26:08.50\00:26:09.90
Verse 27, "'Well, then,
00:26:10.00\00:26:12.07
you should have put my money
00:26:12.17\00:26:13.94
on deposit with the bankers
00:26:14.04\00:26:16.71
so that when I returned,
00:26:16.81\00:26:18.57
I would have received it back
00:26:18.67\00:26:20.48
with,'" what? What's that word?
00:26:20.58\00:26:22.24
With interest. Huh.
00:26:22.34\00:26:25.35
Now, this is a fascinating
00:26:25.45\00:26:27.28
point here, and often,
00:26:27.38\00:26:29.05
we kind of gloss right over it.
00:26:29.15\00:26:30.05
We want to rush to the end here.
00:26:30.15\00:26:32.05
At today's average
00:26:32.15\00:26:33.72
interest rates
00:26:33.82\00:26:35.56
on a consumer saving account,
00:26:35.66\00:26:37.79
okay, average rate across the
00:26:37.89\00:26:38.66
United States...
00:26:38.76\00:26:39.89
I checked on this at the FDIC
00:26:40.00\00:26:40.80
website yesterday.
00:26:40.90\00:26:42.20
Over a period of, say, a year,
00:26:42.30\00:26:45.57
the average that you'll get
00:26:45.67\00:26:47.17
today is 0.46%.
00:26:47.27\00:26:51.31
That just gets your blood
00:26:51.41\00:26:53.44
running, doesn't it?
00:26:53.54\00:26:54.71
"Ooh, .46% interest."
00:26:54.81\00:26:57.11
Pretty weak, huh? Okay?
00:26:57.21\00:26:58.71
But let's see if we can bring
00:26:58.81\00:26:59.78
this into modern terms here.
00:26:59.88\00:27:01.38
If the first servant, with his
00:27:01.48\00:27:03.35
$300,000 in talent here,
00:27:03.45\00:27:06.25
given by the master to him,
00:27:06.35\00:27:07.82
if he had placed it for one year
00:27:07.92\00:27:10.33
with the bankers at .46%,
00:27:10.43\00:27:12.63
he would have earned about
00:27:12.73\00:27:13.73
$1,380 in interest.
00:27:13.83\00:27:16.53
That's it.
00:27:16.63\00:27:18.33
And furthermore,
00:27:18.43\00:27:20.47
let's imagine that the master
00:27:20.57\00:27:21.94
was gone for 10 years.
00:27:22.04\00:27:23.24
Now, just the master was gone
00:27:23.34\00:27:24.01
for a long time.
00:27:24.11\00:27:25.11
We don't know how long
00:27:25.21\00:27:25.94
he was gone, okay?
00:27:26.04\00:27:27.01
But 10 years, that's a good,
00:27:27.11\00:27:27.98
long time, so it's a round
00:27:28.08\00:27:28.91
number, let's use it.
00:27:29.01\00:27:30.28
This means that in 10 years'
00:27:30.38\00:27:31.75
time, the interest
00:27:31.85\00:27:34.02
that would have been earned by
00:27:34.12\00:27:36.69
that $300,000, that one talent
00:27:36.79\00:27:38.92
given to the unfaithful servant,
00:27:39.02\00:27:40.22
well, let's put it in the
00:27:40.32\00:27:41.29
context of the others, right?
00:27:41.39\00:27:42.89
The invested talents
00:27:42.99\00:27:44.06
during this time,
00:27:44.16\00:27:45.33
this imaginary 10-year time,
00:27:45.43\00:27:46.26
the first servant,
00:27:46.36\00:27:47.40
we know that he doubled.
00:27:47.50\00:27:48.43
He went from $1.5 million
00:27:48.53\00:27:49.80
to $3 million.
00:27:49.90\00:27:51.03
Wow! Doubled his investment.
00:27:51.13\00:27:52.63
The second service -- servant --
00:27:52.73\00:27:54.17
$600,000 to $1.2 million.
00:27:54.27\00:27:57.01
He doubles it, too.
00:27:57.11\00:27:58.71
The third servant with his one
00:27:58.81\00:28:00.21
talent, he goes from $300,000
00:28:00.31\00:28:02.31
to $314,089.
00:28:02.41\00:28:07.28
$314,089.
00:28:07.38\00:28:10.39
Now, I'll tell you what.
00:28:10.49\00:28:11.52
I wouldn't mind having $14,089
00:28:11.62\00:28:13.96
lying around free in my house.
00:28:14.06\00:28:15.56
That wouldn't be so bad.
00:28:15.66\00:28:16.76
I'm sure I could find a use
00:28:16.86\00:28:17.56
for that, right?
00:28:17.66\00:28:18.69
But when compared
00:28:18.79\00:28:19.83
to the first two servants,
00:28:19.93\00:28:21.00
I mean, that's peanuts.
00:28:21.10\00:28:22.66
It's nothing.
00:28:22.76\00:28:26.47
Now, I fully understand
00:28:26.57\00:28:28.84
that this parable of Christ
00:28:28.94\00:28:30.17
is not solely about money.
00:28:30.27\00:28:31.51
The talents are representative
00:28:31.61\00:28:32.77
of skills, abilities, resources,
00:28:32.87\00:28:33.74
et cetera that God has
00:28:33.84\00:28:35.04
put under our stewardship.
00:28:35.14\00:28:36.21
Fully accept and support that.
00:28:36.31\00:28:37.81
And this fact certainly does not
00:28:37.91\00:28:39.75
exclude money from the equation.
00:28:39.85\00:28:42.12
In fact, money is obviously
00:28:42.22\00:28:43.65
the primary vehicle
00:28:43.75\00:28:44.95
by which the points
00:28:45.05\00:28:46.02
of the parable are made,
00:28:46.12\00:28:47.86
which leads us to a potentially
00:28:47.96\00:28:49.52
eye-popping proposition.
00:28:49.62\00:28:51.69
Could it be -- Could it be that
00:28:51.79\00:28:54.03
the reason the master said,
00:28:54.13\00:28:55.73
"Why didn't you put money
00:28:55.83\00:28:56.80
on deposit," was not
00:28:56.90\00:28:58.60
because of the master's desire
00:28:58.70\00:29:00.44
to squeeze every last penny
00:29:00.54\00:29:01.90
out of his estate
00:29:02.00\00:29:03.34
but because of this fact --
00:29:03.44\00:29:05.07
money is one of God's tools
00:29:05.17\00:29:06.74
to prepare us for heaven?
00:29:06.84\00:29:09.44
Money is one of God's tools
00:29:09.54\00:29:11.75
to prepare us for heaven.
00:29:11.85\00:29:13.85
In other words -- follow me
00:29:13.95\00:29:15.88
carefully here -- the interest
00:29:15.98\00:29:17.59
that would have been earned
00:29:17.69\00:29:19.02
for the third servant
00:29:19.12\00:29:20.19
on the master's cash
00:29:20.29\00:29:21.66
was so comparatively puny
00:29:21.76\00:29:24.19
that we can immediately see
00:29:24.29\00:29:26.63
that the raw gaining of wealth
00:29:26.73\00:29:28.33
is clearly not
00:29:28.43\00:29:29.63
the point of the parable.
00:29:29.73\00:29:30.80
No, for the parable
00:29:30.90\00:29:33.17
was not about how much money
00:29:33.27\00:29:35.50
was earned for the master
00:29:35.60\00:29:37.94
but rather what that money
00:29:38.04\00:29:39.64
ultimately did for
00:29:39.74\00:29:41.81
and in the servant.
00:29:41.91\00:29:46.38
Let's unpack this
00:29:46.48\00:29:48.05
a little further.
00:29:48.15\00:29:51.05
In the parable of the talents,
00:29:51.15\00:29:53.15
the wicked servant is not thrown
00:29:53.25\00:29:54.59
out into darkness primarily
00:29:54.69\00:29:56.02
because of how he spent
00:29:56.12\00:29:57.03
his master's money
00:29:57.13\00:29:58.23
but of why he spent his money.
00:29:58.33\00:30:00.56
For, you see,
00:30:00.66\00:30:01.73
at the fundamental level,
00:30:01.83\00:30:03.03
the servant hid
00:30:03.13\00:30:04.47
the money in the ground,
00:30:04.57\00:30:05.97
because -- listen carefully --
00:30:06.07\00:30:07.30
he didn't share
00:30:07.40\00:30:08.94
his master's values.
00:30:09.04\00:30:12.31
That's why the servant did it.
00:30:12.41\00:30:14.61
You say, "How do you know?"
00:30:14.71\00:30:15.38
Because that's
00:30:15.48\00:30:16.48
what the text says.
00:30:16.58\00:30:17.88
It says there very clearly,
00:30:17.98\00:30:19.31
"I knew that you are a hard man,
00:30:19.41\00:30:21.75
harvesting where you have not
00:30:21.85\00:30:23.02
sown and gathering where
00:30:23.12\00:30:24.65
you have not scattered seed."
00:30:24.75\00:30:26.49
In other words, he's calling
00:30:26.59\00:30:28.12
his servant a thief.
00:30:28.22\00:30:29.89
I mean, this is a bold
00:30:29.99\00:30:31.99
accusation right in your face.
00:30:32.09\00:30:34.30
And the servant therefore had
00:30:34.36\00:30:35.80
completely misjudged his master,
00:30:35.90\00:30:37.67
because in the parable,
00:30:37.77\00:30:38.90
who is the master representing?
00:30:39.00\00:30:41.87
Jesus. Yeah, this is Jesus.
00:30:41.97\00:30:44.84
And Jesus is our Savior.
00:30:44.94\00:30:46.41
He's our Lord, our Savior,
00:30:46.51\00:30:47.54
our friend, the one who died
00:30:47.64\00:30:48.51
for our sins,
00:30:48.61\00:30:49.68
who loves us so much
00:30:49.78\00:30:50.91
that He gave His life for us.
00:30:51.01\00:30:52.45
And the wicked servant
00:30:52.55\00:30:54.02
does not share that love
00:30:54.12\00:30:56.02
and sacrificial spirit,
00:30:56.12\00:30:57.39
apparently, at all.
00:30:57.49\00:31:00.86
And in the eyes of the master,
00:31:00.96\00:31:02.32
concerning that servant,
00:31:02.42\00:31:03.66
this was the overarching point.
00:31:03.76\00:31:06.49
And he even addresses it
00:31:06.59\00:31:07.40
specifically.
00:31:07.50\00:31:08.93
"So you knew," the master says,
00:31:09.03\00:31:11.03
"that I was a hard man."
00:31:11.13\00:31:13.80
And thus the master addresses
00:31:13.90\00:31:15.54
this directly in his sentencing
00:31:15.64\00:31:16.77
of the wicked servant.
00:31:16.87\00:31:17.87
In other words, the master
00:31:17.97\00:31:19.67
had been looking for something.
00:31:19.77\00:31:21.61
While he was away, he had been
00:31:21.71\00:31:23.51
looking for the servant to adopt
00:31:23.61\00:31:25.65
his values, his mission,
00:31:25.75\00:31:27.65
his priorities as his own.
00:31:27.75\00:31:30.22
And the money was simply
00:31:30.32\00:31:31.65
the tool the master used
00:31:31.75\00:31:32.99
to attempt to do this.
00:31:33.09\00:31:35.59
You see, as it turns out,
00:31:35.69\00:31:37.73
God is ultimately not looking
00:31:37.83\00:31:39.83
for cash but for character.
00:31:39.93\00:31:42.90
God is not ultimately looking
00:31:43.00\00:31:45.10
for money but for a mind that
00:31:45.20\00:31:47.37
is motivated by His mission.
00:31:47.47\00:31:50.11
God is not ultimately
00:31:50.21\00:31:51.61
looking for interest
00:31:51.71\00:31:52.81
earned on His economic assets
00:31:52.91\00:31:54.21
but rather for the development
00:31:54.31\00:31:55.78
of devotion in the daily lives
00:31:55.88\00:31:57.35
of His disciples.
00:31:57.45\00:31:59.18
And, yes,
00:31:59.28\00:32:00.48
for all of these things,
00:32:00.58\00:32:01.42
God very often uses
00:32:01.52\00:32:02.95
the tool of money to bring
00:32:03.05\00:32:05.15
these results about in us.
00:32:05.25\00:32:08.19
Now, based on this understanding
00:32:08.29\00:32:09.76
of this parable,
00:32:09.86\00:32:11.19
we can now identify at least
00:32:11.29\00:32:12.53
two key truths about money.
00:32:12.63\00:32:14.30
And the first one, I don't think
00:32:14.40\00:32:15.10
you'll argue with.
00:32:15.20\00:32:16.33
First truth -- How we spend
00:32:16.43\00:32:18.00
money expresses our values.
00:32:18.10\00:32:20.27
That's pretty basic, right?
00:32:20.37\00:32:21.50
I mean, if you want to know
00:32:21.60\00:32:22.44
what somebody believes,
00:32:22.54\00:32:23.57
take a look at how they spent
00:32:23.67\00:32:24.51
their money for the month.
00:32:24.61\00:32:25.67
We spend money to buy things
00:32:25.77\00:32:26.64
that we approve of.
00:32:26.74\00:32:28.18
We spend money to stop things
00:32:28.28\00:32:29.31
that we don't approve of.
00:32:29.41\00:32:30.95
How we spend our money
00:32:31.05\00:32:32.18
expresses our values.
00:32:32.28\00:32:33.65
But there is a second truth,
00:32:33.75\00:32:35.22
and it is not often recognized.
00:32:35.32\00:32:37.05
And it's this -- How we spend
00:32:37.15\00:32:38.55
money shapes our values.
00:32:38.65\00:32:43.36
It doesn't just express them,
00:32:43.46\00:32:45.63
but it also shapes them.
00:32:45.73\00:32:48.53
When we participate
00:32:48.63\00:32:49.90
financially in something,
00:32:50.00\00:32:51.50
something comes back to us.
00:32:51.60\00:32:53.77
We experience something
00:32:53.87\00:32:55.07
as a result of that investment,
00:32:55.17\00:32:56.81
either for good or for bad.
00:32:56.91\00:32:58.24
Now again,
00:32:58.34\00:32:59.64
we see this in the parable
00:32:59.74\00:33:00.84
with the unfaithful servant.
00:33:00.94\00:33:03.11
This servant starts out
00:33:03.21\00:33:05.08
sharing at least some
00:33:05.18\00:33:06.98
of his master's values.
00:33:07.08\00:33:08.72
Did you see that in the story?
00:33:08.82\00:33:09.98
Remember what the master does.
00:33:10.09\00:33:12.29
He calls his servants in,
00:33:12.39\00:33:13.96
and he gives them these talents
00:33:14.06\00:33:15.76
according to their --
00:33:15.86\00:33:17.36
what was the word -- ability.
00:33:17.46\00:33:19.53
According to their ability.
00:33:19.63\00:33:20.53
Now some people say, "Well,
00:33:20.63\00:33:21.30
that just means
00:33:21.40\00:33:22.33
they were good with money."
00:33:22.43\00:33:23.40
No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.
00:33:23.50\00:33:24.67
The devil is good with money,
00:33:24.77\00:33:26.84
but don't give him your wallet.
00:33:26.94\00:33:29.60
Because he doesn't share
00:33:29.70\00:33:30.74
your values, right?
00:33:30.84\00:33:32.74
So when he says
00:33:32.84\00:33:34.18
according to their ability,
00:33:34.28\00:33:35.94
he's not just talking about,
00:33:36.04\00:33:36.98
you know, calculating savvy.
00:33:37.08\00:33:39.05
He's talking about, "Do they
00:33:39.15\00:33:39.85
share my values?
00:33:39.95\00:33:40.88
Can I trust them?"
00:33:40.98\00:33:43.15
The first servant comes in, and
00:33:43.25\00:33:44.82
apparently this servant has had,
00:33:44.92\00:33:46.25
you know, maturity in his
00:33:46.35\00:33:48.49
relationship with the master.
00:33:48.59\00:33:50.19
He shares the master's value,
00:33:50.29\00:33:51.96
and the master recognizes that
00:33:52.06\00:33:53.53
by giving him five talents,
00:33:53.63\00:33:54.73
1.5 million bucks.
00:33:54.83\00:33:57.47
Second servant comes in.
00:33:57.57\00:33:59.03
Not as much experience
00:33:59.13\00:34:00.30
as the first servant, shares
00:34:00.40\00:34:01.94
much of his master's values
00:34:02.04\00:34:03.61
but not all of them,
00:34:03.71\00:34:04.81
and he says, "You know what?
00:34:04.91\00:34:05.87
You're not quite ready for five,
00:34:05.97\00:34:07.34
but I'm going to give you two."
00:34:07.44\00:34:08.88
And then the third servant
00:34:08.98\00:34:09.94
comes in, and the seeds
00:34:10.05\00:34:11.85
of the master's values
00:34:11.95\00:34:13.15
undoubtedly have sprung up
00:34:13.25\00:34:14.45
in this servant's heart.
00:34:14.55\00:34:16.58
The servant has somehow made
00:34:16.69\00:34:17.99
at least a portion
00:34:18.09\00:34:19.39
of the master's values his own.
00:34:19.49\00:34:21.29
But the master looks and sees
00:34:21.39\00:34:22.12
and says, "You know,
00:34:22.22\00:34:23.19
the measure of maturity,
00:34:23.29\00:34:24.23
you're not ready
00:34:24.33\00:34:25.26
for five talents.
00:34:25.36\00:34:26.43
You're not ready for two.
00:34:26.53\00:34:27.86
But I'm going to give you one.
00:34:27.96\00:34:29.40
Now, go to it. Go to it."
00:34:29.50\00:34:32.40
So the servant starts out
00:34:32.50\00:34:34.54
with at least a measure
00:34:34.64\00:34:35.70
of sharing his master's values.
00:34:35.80\00:34:36.87
But something happens
00:34:36.97\00:34:38.64
over the time of the journey.
00:34:38.74\00:34:41.41
Obviously, we don't know from
00:34:41.51\00:34:42.34
the parable when exactly
00:34:42.44\00:34:43.18
this happened.
00:34:43.28\00:34:44.31
Maybe the servant,
00:34:44.41\00:34:45.55
you know, buried it right away.
00:34:45.65\00:34:47.25
Maybe he waited a little while.
00:34:47.35\00:34:48.88
You know, what must have gone
00:34:48.98\00:34:49.95
through that servant's mind when
00:34:50.05\00:34:51.55
he saw the other two servants
00:34:51.65\00:34:53.62
multiplying the master's money?
00:34:53.72\00:34:55.89
"Oh, maybe I should go dig it
00:34:55.99\00:34:57.39
up, maybe I should bring it out
00:34:57.49\00:34:58.49
to put it -- Maybe --
00:34:58.59\00:34:59.93
Maybe I should even take it
00:35:00.10\00:35:00.86
to the bankers.
00:35:00.96\00:35:01.96
Maybe interest would be
00:35:02.06\00:35:03.10
fitting."
00:35:03.20\00:35:05.33
But for whatever reason,
00:35:05.43\00:35:06.30
he doesn't do it.
00:35:06.40\00:35:08.07
He continues to quote,
00:35:08.17\00:35:09.57
"Spend the master's money,"
00:35:09.67\00:35:12.17
by burying it in the ground.
00:35:12.27\00:35:14.58
And it affects him.
00:35:14.68\00:35:17.25
It shapes him.
00:35:17.35\00:35:19.25
You see, the longer you say
00:35:19.35\00:35:20.65
no to Jesus, the colder
00:35:20.75\00:35:22.28
your heart can become.
00:35:22.38\00:35:25.05
And somewhere along the line,
00:35:25.15\00:35:26.96
this servant went from being
00:35:27.06\00:35:28.36
a candidate to receive part
00:35:28.46\00:35:29.76
of the master's estate
00:35:29.86\00:35:31.56
to someone who is cold
00:35:31.66\00:35:33.53
and hard and cynical,
00:35:33.63\00:35:35.80
to the place where he even
00:35:35.90\00:35:37.53
mistakes the Savior for a thief.
00:35:37.63\00:35:42.50
How we spend money
00:35:42.60\00:35:44.97
both expresses our values
00:35:45.07\00:35:47.48
and shapes them, as well,
00:35:47.58\00:35:52.01
all of which leads to
00:35:52.11\00:35:53.35
what I think
00:35:53.45\00:35:56.45
is a fascinating conclusion.
00:35:56.55\00:35:59.92
If these two things are true,
00:36:00.09\00:36:03.09
then how we spend our money
00:36:03.19\00:36:06.06
reveals not only who we are
00:36:06.16\00:36:08.70
but also who we will become.
00:36:08.80\00:36:11.97
Wow.
00:36:12.07\00:36:14.70
How we spend our money
00:36:14.80\00:36:16.14
reveals not only who we are
00:36:16.24\00:36:17.71
but also who we will become.
00:36:17.81\00:36:20.01
So I want to encourage you to do
00:36:20.11\00:36:21.34
a little thought experiment
00:36:21.44\00:36:22.34
just between you and Jesus,
00:36:22.44\00:36:23.28
right in the quietness
00:36:23.38\00:36:24.25
of your own cranium.
00:36:24.35\00:36:25.75
I want you to imagine that
00:36:25.85\00:36:27.52
Jesus, not me or a church leader
00:36:27.62\00:36:29.52
or anybody else,
00:36:29.62\00:36:30.95
no financial planners,
00:36:31.05\00:36:32.32
just you and Jesus met tomorrow
00:36:32.42\00:36:35.72
and you sat down at the table
00:36:35.82\00:36:37.13
and all of your receipts,
00:36:37.23\00:36:39.66
your credit card bills, your
00:36:39.76\00:36:41.96
online receipts for everything
00:36:42.06\00:36:44.07
that you purchased for the month
00:36:44.17\00:36:45.50
or for the year and Jesus sees
00:36:45.60\00:36:46.84
all of these things.
00:36:46.94\00:36:48.30
What kind of person would Jesus
00:36:48.40\00:36:50.31
say you currently are?
00:36:50.41\00:36:53.68
And what kind of person would
00:36:53.78\00:36:55.24
Jesus say you are becoming?
00:36:55.34\00:36:57.11
For some of you, that may be
00:37:01.88\00:37:03.35
a joyful thought experiment.
00:37:03.45\00:37:06.92
Perhaps for others, it might be
00:37:07.02\00:37:08.99
a little more sobering.
00:37:09.09\00:37:12.46
And does Jesus have
00:37:12.56\00:37:14.03
an idea of the person
00:37:14.13\00:37:16.26
He'd like us to become?
00:37:16.36\00:37:17.93
Yes.
00:37:18.03\00:37:20.07
That's an easy question, right?
00:37:20.17\00:37:21.30
Yes, He does. Yes, He does.
00:37:21.40\00:37:22.97
You know, when I read in my
00:37:23.07\00:37:24.64
Bible, Fruits of the Spirit
00:37:24.74\00:37:26.07
found in Galatians 5:22-23,
00:37:26.17\00:37:28.04
I think it is safe to say
00:37:28.14\00:37:29.48
that Jesus wants each of us
00:37:29.58\00:37:30.91
to become people who are loving
00:37:31.01\00:37:33.15
and joyful and peaceful
00:37:33.25\00:37:34.88
and patient and kind and good
00:37:34.98\00:37:36.58
and faithful and gentle
00:37:36.69\00:37:38.25
and self-controlled.
00:37:38.35\00:37:39.12
Amen? Amen.
00:37:39.22\00:37:41.22
So let's spend money
00:37:41.32\00:37:43.49
so that we and others
00:37:43.59\00:37:45.03
can become those kind of people.
00:37:45.13\00:37:47.66
I think Jesus also wants
00:37:47.76\00:37:49.80
each of us to become like what's
00:37:49.90\00:37:51.60
described in Philippians 4:8.
00:37:51.70\00:37:54.00
People that are true and noble
00:37:54.10\00:37:55.74
and right and pure and lovely
00:37:55.84\00:37:57.34
and admirable and excellent
00:37:57.44\00:37:58.41
and praiseworthy.
00:37:58.51\00:37:59.37
Amen? Amen, yes.
00:37:59.47\00:38:01.71
So let's spend money
00:38:01.81\00:38:03.81
so that we and others
00:38:03.91\00:38:05.28
can become those kind of people.
00:38:05.38\00:38:07.58
And there's a little book called
00:38:07.68\00:38:08.95
education on page 57.
00:38:09.05\00:38:11.22
And it makes me think that
00:38:11.32\00:38:12.72
Jesus also wants us to satisfy
00:38:12.82\00:38:15.06
the greatest want of the world
00:38:15.16\00:38:17.69
by becoming people who cannot be
00:38:17.79\00:38:19.76
bought or sold, people who,
00:38:19.86\00:38:21.33
in their inmost souls,
00:38:21.43\00:38:22.36
are true and honest,
00:38:22.46\00:38:23.87
people who do not fear
00:38:23.97\00:38:25.07
to call sin by its right name,
00:38:25.17\00:38:26.63
people whose conscience is
00:38:26.74\00:38:27.87
as true to duty as the compass
00:38:27.97\00:38:29.37
needle is to the North Pole,
00:38:29.47\00:38:30.94
people who will stand for the
00:38:31.04\00:38:32.27
right though the heavens fall.
00:38:32.37\00:38:33.64
Amen?
00:38:33.74\00:38:34.68
>> Amen.
00:38:34.78\00:38:36.98
>> Let's spend money, therefore,
00:38:37.08\00:38:39.11
so that we and others
00:38:39.21\00:38:40.82
can become those kind of people.
00:38:40.92\00:38:46.49
Now, there's probably a thousand
00:38:46.59\00:38:48.02
ways that the Lord could guide
00:38:48.12\00:38:50.03
each of us individually to spend
00:38:50.13\00:38:51.53
money towards those goals,
00:38:51.63\00:38:52.99
to help us become
00:38:53.09\00:38:54.40
the kind of people
00:38:54.50\00:38:55.63
that God dreams we can be.
00:38:55.73\00:38:57.30
I just want to share with you
00:38:57.40\00:38:58.97
two of them, two ways
00:38:59.07\00:39:01.60
that this process can happen.
00:39:01.70\00:39:03.20
And I can sum it up in a single
00:39:03.30\00:39:04.21
sentence.
00:39:04.31\00:39:05.51
When it comes to money,
00:39:05.61\00:39:07.04
if you want to become
00:39:07.14\00:39:08.48
the kind of person
00:39:08.58\00:39:09.68
Jesus wants you to become,
00:39:09.78\00:39:11.38
regularly return tithe
00:39:11.48\00:39:12.71
and offerings.
00:39:12.81\00:39:15.22
If you want to become --
00:39:15.32\00:39:16.48
When it comes to money, if you
00:39:16.58\00:39:17.75
want to become the kind of
00:39:17.85\00:39:18.75
person Jesus wants you to
00:39:18.85\00:39:19.99
become, regularly return
00:39:20.09\00:39:21.79
tithe and offerings.
00:39:21.89\00:39:24.43
Now, what I'm going to say next,
00:39:24.53\00:39:25.76
I need to have a little caveat
00:39:25.86\00:39:27.13
before I say it.
00:39:27.23\00:39:28.73
I do not earn a penny more
00:39:28.83\00:39:31.03
if you do or don't pay tithe
00:39:31.13\00:39:32.40
or offerings.
00:39:32.50\00:39:34.17
This is part of the genius
00:39:34.27\00:39:35.27
of the Adventist system, okay?
00:39:35.37\00:39:36.71
In the Adventist system,
00:39:36.81\00:39:38.34
generally speaking, every pastor
00:39:38.44\00:39:39.24
makes essentially the same
00:39:39.34\00:39:39.91
thing.
00:39:40.01\00:39:40.98
There's some adjustments for
00:39:41.08\00:39:41.88
cost of living, but that's
00:39:41.98\00:39:42.54
about it.
00:39:42.64\00:39:44.01
And so, a pastor gets paid
00:39:44.11\00:39:45.68
the same whether he has
00:39:45.78\00:39:46.65
3 members or 3,000.
00:39:46.75\00:39:49.58
And that is part of the genius
00:39:49.68\00:39:50.99
of this whole thing,
00:39:51.09\00:39:52.32
because we can send a pastor
00:39:52.42\00:39:53.79
to an unentered area
00:39:53.89\00:39:55.22
where there is no church.
00:39:55.32\00:39:56.26
He can have zero members
00:39:56.36\00:39:58.63
and still have money to put food
00:39:58.73\00:40:00.13
on the table and clothes
00:40:00.23\00:40:01.23
on his back and gas in the tank.
00:40:01.33\00:40:02.70
I think that's a great thing,
00:40:02.80\00:40:03.40
right?
00:40:03.50\00:40:04.73
Translation --
00:40:04.83\00:40:06.47
If you give more money,
00:40:06.57\00:40:08.20
I don't see any of it.
00:40:08.30\00:40:09.57
I will still receive
00:40:09.67\00:40:10.81
the same meager paycheck
00:40:10.91\00:40:12.41
that I got before, okay?
00:40:12.51\00:40:15.08
That in mind,
00:40:15.18\00:40:17.38
you tell me, how much is tithe?
00:40:17.48\00:40:19.11
Simple question. 10%, right?
00:40:19.21\00:40:20.85
The Bible is real clear
00:40:20.95\00:40:21.75
about that -- 10%,
00:40:21.85\00:40:22.72
this is tithe.
00:40:22.82\00:40:23.95
God asks us to return that.
00:40:24.05\00:40:25.05
So if I make $100
00:40:25.15\00:40:27.29
in some sort of work that I do,
00:40:27.39\00:40:28.49
then $10 of that
00:40:28.59\00:40:29.82
God asked me to return to Him.
00:40:29.92\00:40:31.26
Now, in the Seventh-day
00:40:31.36\00:40:32.33
Adventist Church, where does
00:40:32.43\00:40:33.26
this tithe go for?
00:40:33.36\00:40:35.00
What does it go for?
00:40:35.10\00:40:36.33
Well, it goes for the sharing
00:40:36.43\00:40:37.57
of the gospel of Jesus Christ
00:40:37.67\00:40:38.97
all over the world.
00:40:39.07\00:40:40.14
And again, to me, this is part
00:40:40.24\00:40:41.10
of the genius of the
00:40:41.20\00:40:42.07
Adventist system.
00:40:42.17\00:40:42.97
I love this.
00:40:43.07\00:40:44.11
When I write out
00:40:44.21\00:40:45.71
a check or pay online,
00:40:45.81\00:40:46.71
Advent is giving
00:40:46.81\00:40:48.04
for tithe, for our family.
00:40:48.14\00:40:49.78
When that comes in,
00:40:49.88\00:40:51.08
let's say the plate comes by
00:40:51.18\00:40:52.11
and I drop my envelope
00:40:52.21\00:40:53.45
in the plate with my tithe check
00:40:53.55\00:40:54.48
and all the tithe that's here,
00:40:54.58\00:40:56.02
not a dime of that stays here.
00:40:56.12\00:40:58.55
Every Adventist church in the
00:40:58.65\00:40:59.82
world, this is how it works.
00:40:59.92\00:41:00.92
None of that tithe stays here
00:41:01.02\00:41:02.46
because we are a global
00:41:02.56\00:41:03.73
worldwide movement,
00:41:03.83\00:41:04.76
not just here locally.
00:41:04.86\00:41:05.73
And so, we send that
00:41:05.83\00:41:06.63
up the chain.
00:41:06.73\00:41:07.60
We send it to our conference
00:41:07.73\00:41:08.43
office in Lansing.
00:41:08.53\00:41:09.66
It then goes to the union office
00:41:09.76\00:41:10.50
just down the street.
00:41:10.60\00:41:11.67
It goes to the division office.
00:41:11.77\00:41:12.50
It goes to the general
00:41:12.60\00:41:13.57
conference eventually.
00:41:13.67\00:41:14.70
Each one of those places will
00:41:14.80\00:41:15.74
take a little bit to sustain
00:41:15.84\00:41:16.71
their operations,
00:41:16.81\00:41:18.21
but the bulk of it then goes out
00:41:18.31\00:41:19.87
to the worldwide field,
00:41:19.97\00:41:21.38
which means, quite literally,
00:41:21.48\00:41:23.11
there are pastors
00:41:23.21\00:41:25.55
in parts of the world right now
00:41:25.65\00:41:27.08
that have a bicycle to ride
00:41:27.18\00:41:28.58
or a car to drive
00:41:28.68\00:41:30.95
and a roof over their head
00:41:31.05\00:41:32.49
so they can preach the Gospel
00:41:32.59\00:41:33.69
in an area that is poor
00:41:33.79\00:41:34.76
and not lavishly endowed
00:41:34.86\00:41:36.16
like America is.
00:41:36.26\00:41:37.59
And it happened because people
00:41:37.69\00:41:39.19
like me put their tithe envelope
00:41:39.29\00:41:40.50
in the plate right here.
00:41:40.60\00:41:42.06
That's awesome.
00:41:42.16\00:41:43.37
Someone say amen.
00:41:43.47\00:41:45.37
That's a great, great thing.
00:41:45.47\00:41:47.20
And I'll tell you what.
00:41:47.30\00:41:49.44
Adventist are traditionally
00:41:49.54\00:41:50.67
very faithful tithe returners.
00:41:50.77\00:41:52.24
This is one of the reasons why,
00:41:52.34\00:41:53.54
while the rest of Christianity
00:41:53.64\00:41:55.34
is tending to have very negative
00:41:55.44\00:41:57.15
downward trending membership,
00:41:57.25\00:41:58.65
Adventism continues to move
00:41:58.75\00:42:00.82
upward because we believe
00:42:00.92\00:42:02.68
that Jesus has called us
00:42:02.78\00:42:03.82
for such a time as this,
00:42:03.92\00:42:04.82
and we're willing to put
00:42:04.92\00:42:05.95
our money where our mouth is.
00:42:06.05\00:42:07.29
It's a tremendous thing.
00:42:07.39\00:42:11.33
When my daughter was about
00:42:11.43\00:42:12.36
6 years old, maybe 5,
00:42:12.46\00:42:14.63
6 years old, she had been --
00:42:14.73\00:42:17.43
We set up a little tithe system
00:42:17.53\00:42:18.53
for our girls.
00:42:18.63\00:42:19.23
It was just a little
00:42:19.33\00:42:20.87
plastic jar there on the side in
00:42:20.97\00:42:22.80
their room.
00:42:22.90\00:42:23.61
And when we would give
00:42:23.71\00:42:24.51
them money, which of course,
00:42:24.61\00:42:25.57
to them was a fortune --
00:42:25.67\00:42:26.51
you know, give them a quarter,
00:42:26.61\00:42:27.54
"Oh!" you know, this kind of --
00:42:27.64\00:42:28.81
we would say,
00:42:28.91\00:42:29.91
"Well, you know, we need to pay
00:42:30.01\00:42:30.65
tithe on that."
00:42:30.75\00:42:31.85
So we put some pennies in, okay?
00:42:31.95\00:42:33.55
And they'd be watching this,
00:42:33.65\00:42:34.05
right?
00:42:34.15\00:42:35.08
And the first Sabbath,
00:42:35.18\00:42:36.79
when my youngest,
00:42:36.89\00:42:37.99
Ellie, was going to pay
00:42:38.09\00:42:38.72
tithe, came up.
00:42:38.82\00:42:40.62
And we had an envelope there,
00:42:40.72\00:42:41.79
and we sat down
00:42:41.89\00:42:43.43
and we were making out --
00:42:43.53\00:42:44.36
I made out a tithe check,
00:42:44.46\00:42:45.86
and she's getting together
00:42:45.96\00:42:46.80
her pennies, put them in there.
00:42:46.90\00:42:48.33
She put 10 pennies in that
00:42:48.43\00:42:49.83
tithe.
00:42:49.93\00:42:50.53
She made a dollar, okay?
00:42:50.63\00:42:52.10
And she was excited.
00:42:52.20\00:42:53.30
And she looked
00:42:53.40\00:42:54.04
at all these coins in there.
00:42:54.14\00:42:55.20
And she looked at me,
00:42:55.30\00:42:56.44
and I was just putting
00:42:56.54\00:42:58.31
a piece of paper in my envelope.
00:42:58.41\00:43:00.78
Doesn't look very valuable.
00:43:00.88\00:43:01.94
"I mean, look, I've got all
00:43:02.04\00:43:02.78
these coins over here.
00:43:02.88\00:43:04.01
They clank and they make sound,
00:43:04.11\00:43:05.18
and these are" -- You know.
00:43:05.28\00:43:06.75
Anyway, she seals it up
00:43:06.85\00:43:07.58
and she's very proud.
00:43:07.68\00:43:08.52
And later on, she goes to my
00:43:08.62\00:43:09.88
wife, and they're snuggling up
00:43:09.98\00:43:11.42
there and talking about this.
00:43:11.52\00:43:12.32
And Ellie is all chatter,
00:43:12.42\00:43:13.42
"Oh, I'm going to pay tithe, I'm
00:43:13.52\00:43:14.52
going to pay tithe tomorrow."
00:43:14.62\00:43:15.49
And she smiles
00:43:15.59\00:43:16.89
and she leans in and she says,
00:43:16.99\00:43:19.63
"I think I paid more
00:43:19.73\00:43:20.50
than daddy did."
00:43:20.60\00:43:21.93
[ Laughter ]
00:43:22.03\00:43:24.87
She was so excited to be able
00:43:24.97\00:43:27.50
to participate in the worldwide
00:43:27.60\00:43:29.24
work of Jesus Christ.
00:43:29.34\00:43:31.81
And I'll tell you what,
00:43:31.91\00:43:32.57
when we return our tithe
00:43:32.67\00:43:34.18
and our offering
00:43:34.28\00:43:35.38
with that type of attitude,
00:43:35.48\00:43:36.88
great things can happen.
00:43:36.98\00:43:38.78
Not just somewhere out there,
00:43:38.88\00:43:40.58
but in here.
00:43:40.68\00:43:41.92
Because when we are
00:43:42.02\00:43:43.59
paying attention,
00:43:43.69\00:43:44.89
when we do this in a thoughtful
00:43:44.99\00:43:46.42
way, when we return our tithe,
00:43:46.52\00:43:47.99
we become more and more
00:43:48.09\00:43:49.02
the person
00:43:49.12\00:43:50.06
that Jesus wants us to be
00:43:50.16\00:43:51.69
as we help others
00:43:51.79\00:43:53.26
become more and more the people
00:43:53.36\00:43:55.00
that Jesus wants them to be.
00:43:55.10\00:43:59.17
And one last thing with tithe.
00:43:59.27\00:44:02.00
Don't just return tithe
00:44:02.10\00:44:03.77
when you're flush.
00:44:03.87\00:44:06.27
Return it when money is tight.
00:44:06.37\00:44:08.41
And some are saying,
00:44:08.51\00:44:09.38
"Pastor Shane, you don't
00:44:09.48\00:44:10.25
understand.
00:44:10.35\00:44:11.15
I got way more month than money.
00:44:11.25\00:44:12.21
I can't afford to pay tithe."
00:44:12.31\00:44:13.78
All things being equal,
00:44:13.88\00:44:15.38
maybe the reason why you don't
00:44:15.48\00:44:16.48
have enough money is
00:44:16.58\00:44:17.39
because you're not paying tithe.
00:44:17.49\00:44:19.29
You say,
00:44:19.39\00:44:20.46
how could that possibly be?
00:44:20.56\00:44:21.22
Because according
00:44:21.32\00:44:22.06
to Heaven's math, 90%
00:44:22.16\00:44:23.59
goes just as far or further
00:44:23.69\00:44:24.66
than 100%.
00:44:24.76\00:44:26.53
You cannot out-give God.
00:44:26.63\00:44:28.43
In fact, if you begin to pay
00:44:28.53\00:44:30.20
tithe, God has a promise for
00:44:30.30\00:44:31.27
you.
00:44:31.37\00:44:32.33
Let me just put it up here
00:44:32.43\00:44:32.97
on the screen.
00:44:33.07\00:44:33.80
This is from Malachi chapter 3.
00:44:33.90\00:44:35.40
God is speaking here
00:44:35.50\00:44:36.10
to his people.
00:44:36.20\00:44:36.91
He says, "Will a man rob God?"
00:44:37.01\00:44:39.41
And he said, "Yet you rob me.
00:44:39.51\00:44:41.24
But you ask,
00:44:41.34\00:44:42.24
'How do we rob rob you?'"
00:44:42.34\00:44:43.91
And God responds, "In tithes
00:44:44.01\00:44:45.41
and offerings.
00:44:45.51\00:44:46.51
You are under a curse,
00:44:46.61\00:44:47.48
the whole nation of you,
00:44:47.58\00:44:48.58
because you are robbing me.
00:44:48.68\00:44:50.32
Bring the whole tithe
00:44:50.42\00:44:52.02
into the storehouse."
00:44:52.12\00:44:53.46
And then he says this.
00:44:53.56\00:44:54.56
"Test me in this."
00:44:54.66\00:44:56.52
This is rare. This doesn't
00:44:56.62\00:44:57.73
happen very often in the Bible,
00:44:57.83\00:44:58.89
but here God says it.
00:44:58.99\00:45:00.23
"Test me in this,
00:45:00.33\00:45:01.10
says the Lord Almighty,
00:45:01.20\00:45:02.40
and see if I will not throw open
00:45:02.50\00:45:04.17
the floodgates of Heaven
00:45:04.27\00:45:05.30
and pour out so much blessing
00:45:05.40\00:45:06.87
that you will not have room
00:45:06.97\00:45:08.10
enough for it."
00:45:08.20\00:45:09.77
>> Amen.
00:45:09.87\00:45:11.51
>> All right. That was pretty
00:45:11.61\00:45:12.44
slow on the amen,
00:45:12.54\00:45:13.21
ladies and gentlemen.
00:45:13.31\00:45:14.24
Do I need to read that all over
00:45:14.34\00:45:14.98
again?
00:45:15.08\00:45:15.54
Someone say amen.
00:45:15.64\00:45:16.11
>> Amen.
00:45:16.21\00:45:16.68
>> God promises
00:45:16.78\00:45:18.01
you cannot out-give Him.
00:45:18.11\00:45:20.28
And if you return a faithful
00:45:20.38\00:45:21.65
tithe to Him, He says,
00:45:21.75\00:45:22.78
"I'm going to take care of you.
00:45:22.88\00:45:24.12
I'm going to take care of you."
00:45:24.22\00:45:25.02
90% will go just as far
00:45:25.12\00:45:26.92
or further than 100%.
00:45:27.02\00:45:28.22
Test Him, test Him and see.
00:45:28.32\00:45:31.99
And what about offering?
00:45:32.09\00:45:33.53
You know, the Bible doesn't
00:45:33.63\00:45:34.56
tell us explicitly how
00:45:34.63\00:45:35.56
much offering we are to return.
00:45:35.66\00:45:36.73
That we give an offering
00:45:36.83\00:45:37.97
regularly to the Lord,
00:45:38.07\00:45:39.07
that is commanded in Scripture.
00:45:39.17\00:45:40.34
But how much?
00:45:40.44\00:45:41.50
That's between you and the Lord.
00:45:41.60\00:45:43.20
You know, I am so grateful
00:45:43.30\00:45:45.37
for those of you
00:45:45.47\00:45:46.17
that have been faithfully giving
00:45:46.27\00:45:48.14
to Renovate 2.0.
00:45:48.24\00:45:49.94
Those of you who don't know what
00:45:50.05\00:45:51.18
that is, Renovate is a series of
00:45:51.28\00:45:52.28
initiatives that have been
00:45:52.38\00:45:53.25
done here at Pioneer.
00:45:53.35\00:45:54.15
This beautiful sanctuary
00:45:54.25\00:45:55.38
is the result of earlier phases
00:45:55.48\00:45:56.38
of that.
00:45:56.48\00:45:56.92
Other additions
00:45:57.02\00:45:58.19
and upgrades have been going on.
00:45:58.29\00:45:59.39
Thank you for your
00:45:59.49\00:46:00.86
faithfulness to that.
00:46:00.96\00:46:02.36
Let's knock it out in the next
00:46:02.46\00:46:03.26
few months.
00:46:03.36\00:46:04.06
Let's get this thing done.
00:46:04.16\00:46:05.19
This is a good thing.
00:46:05.29\00:46:06.76
And -- And...
00:46:06.86\00:46:09.86
I would strongly encourage
00:46:09.96\00:46:11.33
each of us each month
00:46:11.43\00:46:14.24
to give to local church budget.
00:46:14.34\00:46:20.51
Doesn't that just sound
00:46:20.61\00:46:21.74
so romantic?
00:46:21.84\00:46:23.11
I mean, you just --
00:46:23.21\00:46:24.68
Your blood pressure
00:46:24.78\00:46:25.41
takes a little skip and your
00:46:25.51\00:46:26.35
heart flutters when you hear
00:46:26.45\00:46:27.38
the words church budget, right?
00:46:27.48\00:46:28.62
You know, just, it's exciting.
00:46:28.72\00:46:29.48
All right. Maybe not.
00:46:29.58\00:46:31.62
But let me see if I can sweeten
00:46:31.72\00:46:32.99
the deal here a little bit.
00:46:33.09\00:46:34.09
If you're watching at home
00:46:34.19\00:46:35.16
right now and you're a part
00:46:35.26\00:46:36.16
of a local church,
00:46:36.26\00:46:36.79
wherever it is,
00:46:36.89\00:46:37.43
whatever flavor it is,
00:46:37.53\00:46:38.56
I want to encourage you
00:46:38.66\00:46:39.39
to regularly give
00:46:39.49\00:46:40.86
to your local church budget,
00:46:40.96\00:46:41.96
because local church budget
00:46:42.06\00:46:43.20
is the financial engine
00:46:43.30\00:46:44.90
for ministry
00:46:45.00\00:46:46.07
in your local congregation.
00:46:46.17\00:46:48.04
And if you're here, if you're
00:46:48.14\00:46:48.84
part of our Pioneer family,
00:46:48.94\00:46:50.34
I want to encourage you, too.
00:46:50.44\00:46:51.54
Regularly give to our church
00:46:51.64\00:46:53.41
operating -- to local church
00:46:53.51\00:46:55.04
budget.
00:46:55.14\00:46:55.98
Let me tell you why.
00:46:56.08\00:46:57.25
Every year, Pioneer,
00:46:57.35\00:46:59.31
our church family, churns out
00:46:59.41\00:47:01.05
hundreds of thousands of dollars
00:47:01.15\00:47:02.75
to support students
00:47:02.85\00:47:03.95
who need a quality education.
00:47:04.05\00:47:07.06
We provide food for the hungry,
00:47:07.16\00:47:08.49
clothing for those who need it.
00:47:08.59\00:47:09.99
Hundreds of people who
00:47:10.09\00:47:11.26
experience emergencies, both
00:47:11.36\00:47:12.96
inside our church membership
00:47:13.06\00:47:14.20
and outside of it, are assisted
00:47:14.30\00:47:15.73
by our congregation every year.
00:47:15.83\00:47:18.23
Furthermore, every Sabbath,
00:47:18.33\00:47:19.80
our children are educated in our
00:47:19.90\00:47:21.20
Sabbath schools downstairs.
00:47:21.30\00:47:22.30
There are hundreds
00:47:22.40\00:47:23.47
of our kids that are down there,
00:47:23.57\00:47:24.41
taught with
00:47:24.51\00:47:25.24
these wonderful resources
00:47:25.34\00:47:26.84
and teachers and materials
00:47:26.94\00:47:27.88
that we have available.
00:47:27.98\00:47:29.14
Every Sabbath morning,
00:47:29.24\00:47:30.45
our students are fed breakfast
00:47:30.55\00:47:31.95
down in the commons
00:47:32.05\00:47:32.81
by the hundreds,
00:47:32.91\00:47:34.08
and a fair slice of the world
00:47:34.18\00:47:35.62
worships with us
00:47:35.72\00:47:36.79
during our worship services
00:47:36.89\00:47:37.99
on Sabbath morning.
00:47:38.09\00:47:39.42
And all of this -- all of
00:47:39.52\00:47:41.36
this -- is funded in full or in
00:47:41.46\00:47:43.29
part from what?
00:47:43.39\00:47:45.19
Church budget, exactly.
00:47:45.29\00:47:47.96
And we praise the Lord
00:47:48.06\00:47:49.06
for your faithfulness in making
00:47:49.16\00:47:50.33
all of these things happen.
00:47:50.43\00:47:51.73
Thank you, thank you.
00:47:51.83\00:47:53.47
And yet, there is much more
00:47:58.07\00:48:01.84
that we could be doing.
00:48:01.94\00:48:04.51
The opportunities are out there.
00:48:04.61\00:48:07.98
There are still hundreds more of
00:48:08.08\00:48:09.78
our students that cannot afford
00:48:09.88\00:48:11.29
to attend our schools.
00:48:11.39\00:48:13.39
This weighs on me daily.
00:48:13.49\00:48:15.02
I am troubled by this fact.
00:48:15.12\00:48:16.76
I think we can do more.
00:48:16.86\00:48:18.49
There are untold numbers
00:48:18.59\00:48:19.19
of people
00:48:19.29\00:48:19.86
in the surrounding area
00:48:19.96\00:48:20.93
that need assistance still with
00:48:21.00\00:48:22.36
food and clothing and shelter,
00:48:22.46\00:48:23.67
including through our various
00:48:23.77\00:48:24.63
ministries to Benton Harbor.
00:48:24.73\00:48:26.63
There are mechanical needs
00:48:26.74\00:48:27.54
in this hallowed
00:48:27.64\00:48:28.34
but increasingly experienced
00:48:28.44\00:48:29.90
building that need attention.
00:48:30.01\00:48:31.31
There are media opportunities
00:48:31.41\00:48:32.54
to share the gospel that are
00:48:32.64\00:48:33.71
just waiting to be utilized.
00:48:33.81\00:48:35.44
There are untold opportunities
00:48:35.54\00:48:37.25
right here on our campus
00:48:37.35\00:48:38.95
for sharing Jesus.
00:48:39.05\00:48:41.65
Yet we cannot fully address
00:48:41.75\00:48:43.39
these things because we do
00:48:43.49\00:48:44.69
not have sufficient funds yet
00:48:44.79\00:48:48.49
to do so.
00:48:48.59\00:48:51.69
So I just want to invite you
00:48:51.79\00:48:55.43
to make maximum use of what God
00:48:55.53\00:48:57.87
has entrusted to you.
00:48:57.97\00:49:00.50
You know, whether we are older
00:49:00.60\00:49:02.24
or younger or in between,
00:49:02.34\00:49:03.34
let us put the money
00:49:03.44\00:49:04.51
that God has entrusted us
00:49:04.61\00:49:05.84
to very good use.
00:49:05.94\00:49:08.44
You know, there are some
00:49:08.54\00:49:09.74
churches that I know of -- not
00:49:09.84\00:49:11.08
very many, but there are some --
00:49:11.18\00:49:12.28
that have such robust
00:49:12.38\00:49:13.28
giving to church budget
00:49:13.38\00:49:15.22
that they never make special
00:49:15.32\00:49:16.52
appeals for anything else.
00:49:16.62\00:49:18.55
It's astonishing. One church
00:49:18.65\00:49:19.95
I'm thinking of in particular,
00:49:20.06\00:49:20.92
when there was a major
00:49:21.02\00:49:22.69
HVAC failure in the church,
00:49:22.79\00:49:24.29
they paid cash for it.
00:49:24.39\00:49:26.09
There was a major ministry
00:49:26.19\00:49:27.46
opportunity that was in the tens
00:49:27.56\00:49:28.76
of thousands of dollars that
00:49:28.86\00:49:29.96
would cost them. No problem.
00:49:30.07\00:49:31.37
The money was saved up.
00:49:31.47\00:49:32.10
Off they went.
00:49:32.20\00:49:33.64
Now, we're not there yet at
00:49:33.74\00:49:34.90
Pioneer, but we could be.
00:49:35.00\00:49:35.90
We could be.
00:49:36.00\00:49:37.81
And I want to invite you to join
00:49:37.91\00:49:39.74
Darlene and me in every month
00:49:39.84\00:49:42.14
making just a regular
00:49:42.24\00:49:43.11
contribution,
00:49:43.21\00:49:43.81
whatever it might be.
00:49:43.91\00:49:44.55
Between you and the Lord,
00:49:44.65\00:49:45.28
that's up to you.
00:49:45.38\00:49:46.28
A regular contribution
00:49:46.38\00:49:47.95
to the work here
00:49:48.05\00:49:48.98
in the local church budget
00:49:49.08\00:49:50.09
of Pioneer Memorial Church.
00:49:50.19\00:49:51.82
There are great things
00:49:51.92\00:49:53.15
that can happen.
00:49:53.25\00:49:54.26
More people's lives will be
00:49:54.36\00:49:56.16
changed in Jesus Christ
00:49:56.26\00:49:57.63
when we do this.
00:49:57.73\00:49:59.09
And, yes, if we do it
00:49:59.19\00:50:01.03
thoughtfully and intentionally,
00:50:01.13\00:50:02.86
we will be changed, as well,
00:50:02.96\00:50:06.13
more and more as
00:50:06.23\00:50:07.47
we partner with Jesus
00:50:07.57\00:50:08.90
in how we spend our money.
00:50:09.00\00:50:11.51
[ Chuckles ]
00:50:11.61\00:50:13.04
Because the funny thing,
00:50:13.14\00:50:15.38
as it turns out, the net worth
00:50:15.48\00:50:18.48
of a Washington, a $1 bill,
00:50:18.58\00:50:20.45
or a Wilson, a $100,000 bill,
00:50:20.55\00:50:22.72
is not measured in cars
00:50:22.82\00:50:25.15
or houses or land or prestige
00:50:25.25\00:50:26.72
or status or what have you.
00:50:26.82\00:50:27.99
But the real net worth
00:50:28.09\00:50:29.59
of a Washington or a Wilson
00:50:29.69\00:50:31.29
is measured in the glory
00:50:31.39\00:50:32.59
given to God
00:50:32.69\00:50:33.80
by life transformation
00:50:33.90\00:50:35.76
by and for Jesus Christ
00:50:35.86\00:50:37.80
in others' hearts and in ours.
00:50:37.90\00:50:41.84
And by that measurement,
00:50:41.94\00:50:44.04
may Jesus return soon
00:50:44.14\00:50:46.17
and find us very rich indeed.
00:50:46.27\00:50:49.88
>> Amen. Amen.
00:50:49.98\00:50:51.71
Amen.
00:50:51.81\00:50:53.05
[ Band plays ]
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[ Cheers and applause ]
00:56:45.93\00:56:49.04
>> I'm Shane Anderson,
00:56:52.47\00:56:53.74
the lead pastor here at
00:56:53.84\00:56:55.08
Pioneer Memorial Church.
00:56:55.18\00:56:57.31
At Pioneer Media, we have been
00:56:57.41\00:56:58.95
blessed by the financial support
00:56:59.05\00:57:00.85
that comes from our viewers
00:57:00.95\00:57:02.05
like you that enable us
00:57:02.15\00:57:03.85
to continue this ministry.
00:57:03.95\00:57:06.25
We've made a conscious decision
00:57:06.35\00:57:07.69
not to continually appeal to you
00:57:07.79\00:57:09.12
for that support.
00:57:09.22\00:57:10.86
However, keeping this ministry
00:57:10.96\00:57:12.06
going takes money to support
00:57:12.16\00:57:13.86
our staff and technology needs.
00:57:13.96\00:57:16.50
If God has blessed you
00:57:16.60\00:57:18.13
and you would like to further
00:57:18.23\00:57:19.07
the work of this ministry, we
00:57:19.17\00:57:20.84
invite you to partner with us.
00:57:20.94\00:57:23.34
You can donate on our web site,
00:57:23.44\00:57:24.71
pmchurch.org,
00:57:24.81\00:57:27.11
then click "giving" at the top,
00:57:27.21\00:57:29.41
then select "media ministry,"
00:57:29.51\00:57:32.38
or call the number 877-HIS-WILL.
00:57:32.48\00:57:36.12
Again, that number is
00:57:36.22\00:57:37.22
877-the two words HIS-WILL.
00:57:37.32\00:57:41.22
My prayer is that the God
00:57:41.32\00:57:42.96
who has blessed you will
00:57:43.06\00:57:44.63
continue to pour into your life
00:57:44.73\00:57:45.96
the gifts of His joy
00:57:46.06\00:57:47.36
and His hope.
00:57:47.46\00:57:48.73
Thank you.
00:57:48.83\00:57:50.20
And I'm looking forward to
00:57:50.30\00:57:51.47
seeing you right here again next
00:57:51.57\00:57:52.43
time.
00:57:52.53\00:57:53.37
¤
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¤
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¤
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