Participants:
Series Code: SSP
Program Code: SSP180008A
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00:01 The Bible tells us, "In the beginning was the Word,
00:03 and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." 00:07 It says, "To receive with meekness 00:10 the implanted Word, 00:11 which is able to save your souls. 00:13 And to be diligent to present yourself approved to God 00:17 rightly dividing the Word of truth." 00:20 Join us now for the 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:25 Our study today is Stewardship, Motives of the Heart. 00:32 Hello, and welcome to 3ABN Sabbath School Panel. 00:35 We're so glad you could join us. 00:37 And again, we're very, very grateful and thankful 00:39 that you do on a consistent basis. 00:41 I think it's very, very important 00:42 as we study this lesson. 00:44 I like this lesson and I pray that each one of the panel, 00:46 you've got a very important piece of this puzzle 00:49 as we put them together today, 00:50 and we pray for the Holy Spirit's blessing 00:53 and for each one of you, we're glad. 00:55 Get your pencil and paper. 00:56 I know you're gonna jot down some things 00:57 that will be a blessing. 00:59 Lot of things what we said you'll need to go back 01:01 and do a lot more study on 01:02 so that you make sure you can get centered on this subject. 01:04 It's so, so very important. 01:05 That's the impact of tithing. 01:08 I thought about the word impact, 01:10 and I thought about it almost like a collision. 01:11 I may be wrong on this. 01:14 But when you have a collision as it were, 01:16 it's a bad sense, collision, 01:17 but this is a good sense that it brings us together. 01:21 The impact of something that squeezes us together 01:23 for a common mission 01:26 getting this Word out to the whole world. 01:28 So impact of tithing is very good. 01:30 And those who, you know, don't have your study guides, 01:33 I'm going to encourage you to do that. 01:35 You can download those 01:37 by going to ABSG.Adventist.org. 01:42 And if you do that and download those lessons, 01:44 you'll have them. 01:45 And I think it's important to have the lessons 01:47 because there's so much that's covered sometime 01:48 that sometime we miss some things. 01:51 And I'm thrilled with the panel today. 01:53 Sister Mollie, it's good to have you as usual. 01:55 Thank you. Thank you. 01:56 Yeah. Who do you have on your left? 01:57 To my left, Pastor John Lomacang 01:59 which is always a joy to minister with you, Pastor. 02:02 Praise the Lord. And to my left, Jill Morikone. 02:05 Good to have you here, Jill, as always. 02:06 Thank you, Pastor John. 02:08 And to my left is Shelley Quinn 02:09 and it's a joy to have you here too. 02:10 Well, it's just a joy to join you 02:12 and to open up the Word of God together. 02:14 I look forward to hearing what each of you had studied 02:17 what God has given you. 02:19 Amen. 02:20 Well, you know, always before we study, 02:21 we know from the Word, we need to pray. 02:24 I mean, that's so important to invite the Holy Spirit. 02:26 So I pray that you at home, you're doing that also. 02:29 And again, we can talk about different things here about... 02:32 Remember, if you miss the lessons, 02:33 you can go and you can set your DVR, you're not home. 02:35 Some people say, "Well, we're a church, so we can't..." 02:38 You ever heard that? 02:39 "We're a church. We can't do it." 02:40 Set your DVR, tape those things. 02:42 And here I mentioned YouTube, lot of things you can go over 02:45 and learn these beautiful truths. 02:46 But before we get in and delve into this lesson 02:49 that I think it's really, really good lesson. 02:52 But, Pastor John, would you pray for us. 02:54 We need the power of the Holy Spirit. 02:55 Yes. 02:57 Loving Father in heaven, 02:58 we thank You that You entrust to us 03:01 the stewardship of communicating 03:03 on behalf of the kingdom. 03:04 Father, we want to be found faithful. 03:06 And so as we've jotted down words and thoughts, 03:09 we pray that Your Holy Spirit will now govern our minds. 03:12 And may our words be flavored with a mission that is divine, 03:18 not an act that is human. 03:20 May the message of this lesson find fertile soil, 03:24 and may those hearts that are turned in 03:26 in a covenant relationship with you 03:27 be moved to draw closer by the act of sacrifice, 03:32 so that when You return, 03:34 our hearts will be prepared to meet You. 03:37 Guide as we pray through the study of this Word, 03:39 we ask in Jesus' name, amen. 03:42 Amen. Amen. 03:43 So as we mentioned, 03:45 the title of this lesson is the impact of tithing. 03:47 And I like the memory text. 03:51 I don't know how many spent much time on it 03:53 but it's always good. 03:54 And you could dissect it, 03:56 and probably we can spend our whole time 03:57 we have together just on this. 03:58 But shall we just read it together. 04:00 We pray those of you at home will have to read it with us. 04:03 Found in 1 Corinthians 9:13 and 14. 04:06 Let's read. 04:07 "Do you not know that those who minister in holy things 04:13 eat of the things of the temple, 04:15 and those who serve at the altar 04:18 partake of the offerings of the altar? 04:21 Even so the Lord has commanded 04:24 that those who preach the gospel 04:27 should live from the gospel." 04:30 That's a beautiful, powerful passage of scripture. 04:32 I think in the King James, 04:34 here it says the New King James, "commanded", 04:36 and I think it's ordained 04:38 what we can look as the same. 04:39 That simply means God has arranged it. 04:42 God has arranged, this is the way to take care 04:44 of those who are laboring in the field for Him. 04:48 That's a good safe side to stand on 04:50 as far as I'm concerned. 04:52 At the days of the Jews, 04:55 it was a common knowledge for them to realize 04:58 that the priest and the Levi were to be paid from tithe. 05:03 But why? 05:04 Well, the simple reason is 05:05 because God wanted them to focus 05:08 on what they were doing rather than be, 05:11 you know, entertained with a lot of other things, 05:13 even though good within themselves, 05:15 it pulls us away from doing what God would have us to do. 05:19 So God's plan, and I know it's a best plan. 05:21 And sometimes I've been on the other side of it 05:23 and involved in things. 05:25 And pretty soon, you say, "Oh my! 05:26 I have nothing left to give to God. 05:28 I'm tired, I'm worn out." 05:29 So God had a wonderful nigh plan 05:31 that those who preach the gospel 05:33 should live from the gospel. 05:36 Israel gave just this kind of background, we realize, 05:38 and each one will go in it a little bit farther 05:40 but each Israelite gave a tenth, didn't it? 05:43 We realize some scriptures, 05:44 so hopefully, we'll talk more about that 05:47 to the priest. 05:48 And again, so they wouldn't have to worry 05:49 about their physical needs and so on. 05:51 And the beautiful part I like it is that Jesus came 05:55 and what did He do in Matthew 23:23? 05:58 He simply endorsed the plan. 06:01 Yes. 06:02 Think about how wonderful that is, 06:04 'cause I hear a lot of times people will say, 06:05 and somebody is saying, "Well, this is Old Testament stuff." 06:07 You ever heard that? Yes. 06:08 So Jesus endorsed the plan of giving, 06:12 see, it's just for the gospel ministry in Matthew 23:23. 06:16 If we had time we could read all of those things. 06:18 But rightly understood, 06:19 we realize this serves when we give to the cause of Christ. 06:23 It's kind of like, to me, it's like a thermometer, 06:24 maybe, just kind of a measuring device 06:26 as our relationship and our love for God. 06:29 So as we delve into this lesson, 06:31 look at it little closer. 06:33 We'll go to Monday's lesson, or Sunday's, I'm sorry, lesson. 06:36 And it says together, we fund the mission. 06:39 I always like the word together. 06:40 I don't know about you what it means to you, 06:42 together we do it. 06:43 I realize in doing other things of the world, 06:45 it's always nice to have somebody there to help you. 06:48 There's been time I wish, all day, 06:50 all I needed was one person just for, 06:53 maybe five seconds to do something that it would take, 06:55 and then you could go ahead about other things. 06:57 But here, God is saying together 06:59 that we're going to fund this mission. 07:01 So God wants us to be involved in the most important... 07:04 It's what I've got out of Sunday's lesson. 07:06 He wants us to be involved in the most important thing 07:10 from man to do on this earth is soul winning. 07:13 I think we agree, don't we on that? 07:15 Soul winning is the most important thing on earth. 07:18 Jesus command us to do that the lesson brings out there 07:21 in Mark 16:15. 07:23 And just condense it down because of our time. 07:26 He said what? He said, preach what? 07:28 Preach the gospel, 07:30 and then He said, make disciples. 07:31 Yes. That's right. 07:32 You go into all the world. So this is interesting. 07:34 In Adventism, we believe in a message 07:37 that goes into the whole world. 07:39 We believe that it must go to the whole world, 07:41 that's part of identifying mark of God's last-day people. 07:44 So as we look at this, we realize 07:45 it's gonna take a combined effort 07:47 all of us doing the part that God has asked us to do, 07:50 to make sure everyone has a chance to hear the gospel. 07:53 So go preach and then do what? 07:55 Make disciples, it says. 07:57 When Jesus was making this statement, 08:00 He was talking to about 500 people, 08:02 and that's a pretty good little crowd, isn't it? 08:04 And so he was talking to this group, 08:06 and He spoke these words. 08:08 And it included not just the ones He was talking to, 08:11 but this included all people in all ages 08:14 down till Jesus comes in the clouds of glory. 08:17 We go, and then we preach the gospel, 08:20 and then we make disciples. 08:21 Now where do we go when we teach, Mark 3:14. 08:25 This passage, you want to jot down quickly, Mark 3:14. 08:29 After He educated, He taught the disciples, 08:33 then what did He say to disciples? 08:35 He said, you need to go doing what? 08:37 You go, preach the Word, go teach, right. 08:40 Mark 3:14 says "That He might send them forth to preach." 08:45 I like this, send them forth to preach. 08:46 So that's good example for us, I believe today. 08:50 We have the responsibility to share the faith. 08:53 If we're talking about impact of tithing, 08:56 if we're talking about coming together to fund a mission. 08:59 We have to do this together. 09:01 One person can't do it, ten people can't do it. 09:03 God doesn't want it. 09:04 And I find that tithing system 09:06 is one way to help to defeat selfishness. 09:09 Don't you... 09:10 It really is something that God's given 09:11 to help us defeat it and there's purpose in that. 09:13 So we have responsibility then to show our faith, 09:17 Luke 24:47 and 48. 09:22 Luke 24:47 and 48. 09:26 Someone have that, maybe, like to read that. 09:28 You have it? Luke 24:47 and 48. 09:33 "And that repentance and remission of sin 09:35 should be preached in His name to all nations, 09:37 beginning at Jerusalem. 09:39 And you are witnesses of these things." 09:41 Okay, so it's laid out pretty close, 09:43 what is our message, 09:44 to repeat with repentance 09:46 and remission of sins to get ready. 09:49 Preach, notice it says to, how far? 09:52 All nations, you notice that. 09:54 And it says... There's always a beginning. 09:56 When you begin to do something, there's a beginning. 09:58 There's a starting point somewhere. 10:00 You start maybe here, 10:01 and then God may have it you to go to all He will, 10:03 to all the world to preach and to teach the gospel 10:07 as His witnesses. 10:08 I like that. 10:10 And then the great promise of Matthew 24:14 says, 10:13 and this gospel shall be what? 10:15 Preached into all the world 10:17 as a witness to how many nations? 10:20 To all nations. 10:21 And notice it, then it says, and then shall the end come. 10:25 So mine, at least, in my thinking, I'm saying, 10:28 "Please, Lord, have mercy." 10:30 Let's get this message preached into the world. 10:32 Let's get this gospel message out, why? 10:35 So that You can come back. Amen. 10:37 Who wants to continue on 10:38 and think about in this world that we're living in? 10:41 So while we're here, we're to be witnesses. 10:43 I've heard it said many times, "Whoo! 10:45 The gospel is free." 10:46 How many of you heard that? 10:48 Praise God. The gospel is free. 10:49 Well, praise God, the Bible does say it's a free gift, 10:52 isn't that wonderful? 10:53 But it cost, what did it cost? 10:55 The life of Christ. 10:57 The life of Christ, you know, the highest thing 10:58 that could be paid. 11:00 It's a gift, but man, there was a prize. 11:01 And I'm gonna read just quickly 3 testimonies, 251 on this. 11:06 It says, Christ will keep the names of all who count 11:09 no sacrifice too costly to be offered to Him 11:13 upon the altar of faith and love. 11:15 His sacrifice... 11:17 He sacrificed all for fallen humanity 11:20 in order to be happy. 11:21 We all want to be happy ourselves. 11:23 We must live to make others happy. 11:26 Makes sense. 11:27 Is well for us to yield our possessions, 11:31 notice this, and our talents and our affections 11:34 and gratitude devotion... 11:35 grateful devotion to Christ. 11:37 And in that way, find happiness here 11:39 and immortal glory hereafter. 11:42 How wonderful. 11:43 You want to be happy, then work for others, 11:45 work for salvation of souls. 11:47 This makes heaven happy. 11:48 This does makes us happy. 11:50 So the tithing system, 11:51 we realize was set up by heaven. 11:54 It's a means of funding the gospel commission 11:58 to go into all the whole world. 12:00 Our commission as Adventist... 12:02 It should be the whole world, but Adventist, 12:04 as Revelation 14 as in our lesson brings out, 12:06 verse 6 and 7. 12:08 It just simply talks about the everlasting gospel, 12:11 it's talking about going to every kindred, nation, 12:14 tongue, and people, 12:15 it's talking about fear God, give glory to Him, 12:17 there is a judgment hour, we're to give glory to him. 12:21 We're to go back and worship, whom? 12:22 The creator which always brings us back to, 12:26 certainly, the Seventh-day Sabbath. 12:28 So what is God's approved financial plan 12:32 for accompanying this mission? 12:34 What does it? 12:36 What does it mean to pay a full tithe? 12:38 Our lesson brings that out, a full tithe. 12:41 Well, it's simply a whole tithe, isn't it? 12:43 In Malachi's day, 12:45 and some of you have a little more to say about that. 12:47 In Malachi's day, there were people, 12:48 be careful, that were cheating God. 12:50 They were robbing God, 12:52 they were embezzling the funds that's owed to God. 12:56 So they weren't paying a full tithe, and God says, 12:58 "Because you're not paying it full, 13:00 because you may be just giving a partial, or none at all..." 13:03 And realize, there's people in the church today that say, 13:07 "Well, we believe and Jesus is coming, 13:08 we want the gospel to be preached," 13:10 is not paying any tithe. 13:12 I have statistics on that, we don't have to go into that. 13:14 But here, the admonishing is we're robbing God 13:18 if we're not paying a whole tithe. 13:20 And so we want to make sure we do that. 13:23 Bring all the tithes, where? 13:25 It says into the storehouse is what it says there. 13:27 So praise God. 13:29 He calls upon His people to prove Him, doesn't He? 13:32 And then He tells them, He's gonna reward the obedient. 13:35 I think that's in our lesson 13:37 that comes out very clear for us today 13:39 is that we need to be obedient 13:40 to what God has said in His Word. 13:44 Sabbath School Worker, page two... 13:46 Yeah, February, 21st, 1905, 13:49 just in a few seconds I have left, 13:50 notice what it says, the Sabbath School Worker. 13:53 "That which should have been devoted 13:54 to the advancement of His work and cause, 13:58 but which has been withheld," 14:00 notice this, "may in various ways be taken away." 14:05 God has His ways of scattering things, doesn't He? 14:07 We think we keep it, we're going to have more, 14:09 that's not true according to scripture. 14:12 You know, so we want to make sure we pay a faithful, 14:15 give a faithful tithe because we love Him, 14:18 and we want to see this message go to the whole world. 14:21 This is the way that supports 14:22 the ministers and gospel workers 14:25 to make sure this work is done. 14:27 And I think God, that He has a plan, 14:29 He is putting that plan into effect. 14:31 And I believe in it, and I'm supporting that plan, 14:33 and we need to work together. 14:34 Mollie? Amen. Amen. 14:36 And that plan effects every one of us, 14:37 doesn't it, Pastor Kenny? 14:38 Amen. It does. 14:40 Well again, the impact of tithing, 14:41 how tithing or not tithing impacts your life personally. 14:48 Well, Monday, I got... 14:51 I was honored to get this day. 14:54 It's the blessings of God. 14:56 Now Kenny has already looked at Malachi 3:10, 15:02 and told us about it. 15:04 But I want to read it to you. 15:06 Remember, I'm looking at the blessings of God. 15:09 So Malachi 3:10, bring how much of you tithe? 15:12 "All of your tithe into the storehouse, 15:15 that there may be food to eat in My house, 15:16 and try Me now in this, says the Lord of hosts. 15:21 If I will not open the windows of heaven 15:23 and pour out for you such blessings 15:29 there will not be room enough to receive it." 15:32 So how many of you want to receive 15:34 the blessings of the Lord? 15:35 Amen. We all do. 15:37 Do you know that God has laid out 15:39 in His Word the way for us... 15:43 You know, God takes great pleasure 15:47 in blessing His children. 15:49 He has made a means whereby the blessings of the Lord 15:55 come into our life. 15:56 All we have to do 15:58 is be obedient to His instructions. 16:01 Now I'm starting out talking about obedience. 16:05 Pastor Kenny, you mentioned obedience, 16:08 and I want us to end today with obedience, 16:11 because the promises in God's Word, 16:16 there are many promises. 16:18 And it's all promises to us that will bless us. 16:22 But with every promise, there is a condition, 16:28 and that condition is obedience. 16:31 Okay, now let me read this scripture to you. 16:34 It's Psalms 24:1, 16:37 and again, we're talking about tithing. 16:40 Psalms 24:1, 16:43 "The earth is the Lord's, and the fullness thereof, 16:48 the world and they that dwell therein." 16:51 So you know what this is telling us? 16:54 It is telling us that God owns 100%. 16:59 And there are so many scriptures 17:01 that we've gone over previously that tell us repeatedly. 17:05 God owns it all. 17:06 Do you know what, in tithing, He lets us keep 90%, 17:13 He has only sanctified 17:16 and made holy unto Himself 10%. 17:21 We only need to return 10% of all of these blessings 17:26 that He has given to us. 17:28 Okay. 17:30 God promises a blessing 17:32 to those faithful in their tithing, 17:35 not just temporal blessings. 17:38 Now we being so temporal minded 17:41 that we tend to think temporarily. 17:43 But spiritual blessings as well, there is salvation, 17:48 happiness, peace of mind. 17:51 God watches out for us. 17:54 He never leaves us, He never forsakes us. 17:57 However when we are blessed by God, 18:01 we are obligated to share those blessings with others. 18:06 We have been blessed in order to be a blessing. 18:11 Through us God is able to extend 18:14 His blessing to others. 18:16 Now I'm gonna call this doubly blessed. 18:18 I'm gonna move my water over 18:20 because Shelley spilled hers the other day. 18:23 Telling on me. I'm telling on her. 18:26 Okay, we are blessed by God 18:30 in order for us to be a blessing. 18:33 That's 1 Peter 3:8 and 9. 18:36 "Finally, all of you be of one mind, 18:39 having compassion for one another, 18:42 love as brothers, be tenderhearted, 18:45 be courteous, 18:46 not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, 18:50 but on the contrary blessing, 18:54 knowing that you were called to this, 18:57 that you may inherit a blessing." 18:59 So I'm gonna doubly bless, this is the double blessing. 19:04 Remember, the other day, Shelley, in your teaching, 19:06 you talked about triad temptations? 19:08 Well, there is a thing called a double blessing. 19:11 You are blessed of God 19:14 that you may be a blessing to others. 19:16 Well, you know what? 19:17 Others are blessed of God 19:19 that they may be a blessing to you. 19:22 The tither receives a double blessing. 19:25 First, we are blessed 19:26 because of the promises of Malachi 3:10. 19:30 What was that? 19:32 He rebukes the devour on our behalf. 19:35 He pours us out a blessing 19:37 that we don't even have room to contain it. 19:40 When Malachi 3:10 is activated in our lives, 19:44 and then we are a blessing to others. 19:46 And the promises of 1 Peter 3:10 are activated in our life, 19:52 and we inherit a blessing. 19:55 Okay, Luke 6:38. 19:57 We all like this scripture, we can quote this scripture. 20:01 Luke 6:38, "Give, and it will be given to you, 20:06 good measure, pressed down, shaken together, 20:10 and running over will be put into your bosom. 20:17 For with the same measure that you use, 20:20 it will be measured back to you." 20:23 We are blessed 20:24 and we are blessings to others with the same measure, 20:28 with the same generous heart 20:31 that we allow God to flow through us to bless others. 20:37 It's the same measure that will come back to you. 20:40 You get little blessings, 20:41 see if you want a little blessing. 20:43 You want great blessings, 20:45 then give yourself to God 20:46 and say, "Oh, God, here I am. 20:48 I know that it all belongs to You 20:51 and You allow me to be a blessing to others. 20:55 So, God, here I am. 20:56 You give me direction, You prompt my heart." 20:59 God ever done this to you, 21:00 prompted your heart to be a blessing to others. 21:04 You know, Easter, the Lord would prompt me 21:07 to give my clothes away. 21:09 And there were just... 21:11 I was so tall and so thin way back then 21:14 that my clothes didn't fit many people 21:16 but those if they did... 21:17 If somebody even said they liked something, 21:20 it was theirs. 21:23 But you know the result of that, clothes? 21:27 God blessed me with clothes. 21:29 One of the ways God blessed me with clothes 21:31 because I was so tall and thin, 21:34 but nobody else could wear the clothes. 21:37 So I would find in the stores 21:39 some of the most beautiful expensive clothes, 21:41 mark down to 25% off of the mark down price. 21:45 And God blessed me with a measure that... 21:49 He blessed back to me. 21:50 Okay. 21:52 The greatest blessing tithing teaches us is to trust God. 21:56 I think many have said that. 21:58 Sister White tells us, "The special system of tithing 22:02 was founded up on a principle 22:05 which is as enduring as the law of God. 22:08 This system of tithing was a blessing to the Jews, 22:12 or else God would not have given it to them. 22:15 So also will it be a blessing 22:17 to those who carry it out to the end of time. 22:20 Our heavenly Father did not originate the plan 22:24 of systematic benevolence to enrich Himself, 22:28 but to be a great blessing to man. 22:30 He saw that this system of beneficence 22:35 was just what we needed." 22:39 Concerning our giving, 22:41 the Apostle Paul exhorts in Acts 20:35. 22:45 "I have shown you in everyway 22:49 by laboring like this that you must support the weak. 22:53 And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, 22:56 that He said, 'It is more blessed to give 23:00 than to receive.'" 23:01 Jeremiah 17:7, 23:03 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, 23:06 and whose hope is in the Lord." 23:07 Now it all boils down to obedience. 23:12 And I'm going to read this to you 23:14 out of Deuteronomy chapter 28, 23:16 I'm gonna start in verse 1, just go through verse 6. 23:19 Although, I want you to read Deuteronomy chapter 28. 23:23 It talks about the blessings and the cursings, 23:26 but let's just read the beginning part. 23:28 "Now it shall come to pass, 23:29 if you diligently obey 23:32 the voice of the Lord your God." 23:33 What do you have to do? 23:35 Step number one, be obedient, 23:37 "To observe carefully all His commandments 23:40 which I command you today, 23:42 that the Lord your God will set you 23:44 high above all the nations of the earth. 23:47 And all these blessings shall come upon you 23:50 and overtake you, 23:51 because you obey the voice of the Lord your God. 23:55 'Blessed shall you be in the city, 23:57 and blessed shall you be in the country. 23:59 Blessed shall you be in the fruit of your body, 24:01 and the produce of your ground, and the increase of your herds, 24:05 the increase of your cattle 24:06 and the offspring of your flocks. 24:08 Blessed shall be you be in the basket 24:10 and your kneading bowl. 24:12 Blessed shall you be when you come in, 24:14 and blessed shall you be when you go out." 24:17 And what was the foundation or the basis of this? 24:20 You are obedient to God. 24:22 Now if you go and read there in chapter 28 of Deuteronomy, 24:26 it says, "And if you're not obedient, 24:29 all these curses will come upon you." 24:32 We are blessed. 24:33 God takes great pleasure in blessing us. 24:36 What we take great pleasure in 24:38 is being obedient to the Lord our God. 24:40 Amen. That's right. 24:41 That's good. Amen. 24:43 Thank you, Mollie. 24:45 I'm sitting here and my mind is just going all over 24:49 which is not an unusual thing for me 24:50 because I like to think sometimes to the cellular level 24:55 of what this message is. 24:57 And on that note, I was thinking about 24:59 how the body works. 25:00 And the Lord gave me this... 25:03 'Cause mine is Tuesday purpose of the tithe, 25:05 I'm gonna talk about that in a moment. 25:07 But I want to just lay a foundation 25:08 just to pull your imagination in for a brief moment. 25:11 Something that keeps all of us alive 25:13 is the blood in our veins. 25:15 That's right. 25:17 And our heart. 25:18 Now I'm sure that maybe many of you watching this program 25:22 have donated blood before. 25:24 And we often donate blood not in gallons 25:27 but in pints, and one pint at a time. 25:31 And we have to be of a sufficient weight 25:33 in order to be able to qualify to give blood. 25:36 I think it's, you have to be 120 pounds and above, 25:39 or 107 pounds and above. 25:40 If you're below a certain weight, 25:41 you cannot give blood because you will not... 25:44 The body does not recognize 25:45 its efficiency to sustain itself 25:49 beyond a certain point of blood loss. 25:52 A tithing to the church, follow me carefully, 25:58 is what the circulatory system is to the heart. 26:01 The heart pumps blood to it and from it. 26:06 It goes into one, 26:07 and I'm not a doctor but it goes in and it comes out. 26:10 And it goes through a channel, heart to arteries, 26:13 arteries to veins, veins to cells 26:16 so that the blood could reach to the extremities of the body, 26:21 all functioning parts. 26:23 Anytime that blood doesn't get to a particular area, 26:26 that parts begins to die. 26:29 In the same way, all the organs that function, 26:33 function only if the heart is able to get blood to it. 26:37 If the heart is not able to get blood to it, 26:38 that organ begins to die. 26:40 In the very same way, the organization, 26:44 organ, organization cannot function 26:47 if the church does not supply the financial need 26:51 that each of these organizations 26:53 throughout the world need 26:54 in order to continue to function. 26:56 So in the very same way, 26:58 the blood that is being sent 27:00 from the heart to all the arteries, 27:03 the North American division, 27:04 the veins, the Lake Union Conference, 27:09 the extremities, the smaller areas, 27:11 the Illinois Conference. 27:13 It goes from the source, heart, to the second larger area, 27:17 the arteries, the next smaller area... 27:19 It's good analogy. Good analogy. 27:22 The local conference, 27:24 then to the extremities, Thompsonville. 27:28 If the heart stops functioning, the world church, 27:32 and cannot send finances 27:33 to all the extremities of the work. 27:36 The farthest person, 27:38 the farthest functioning aspect from the heart will die, 27:42 even if it's the tip of your toe, 27:44 it begins to die. 27:46 And they'll say, "What's happening?" 27:47 And they'll say... 27:48 Give me your hand. 27:50 They'll go like this, I've seen doctors do this, 27:51 and I said, "Why do you do that?" 27:52 They see if the tip of your finger... 27:54 They said, "Okay, your blood is circulating, you're fine." 27:57 They do to the tips of your toes, 27:59 and I said, "Why are you doing it?" 28:00 "To see if blood is getting to the tip of your toe." 28:02 If it's not, that toe is in danger 28:04 or that finger is in danger 28:05 because it's not going from the center 28:07 all the way to the very end. 28:10 When God gives us finances, 28:13 God wants us 28:15 to be able to stimulate the body's ability. 28:19 And I'm going to use these analogies, 28:20 I might not even get to the topic 28:22 but this is vitally important. 28:24 In order for the body to replace the blood 28:26 that was donated, 28:28 something has to happen. 28:30 And I've looked into this. 28:32 And there's a special cell in the kidney 28:36 that senses that the oxygen level in the body has dropped 28:40 due to the blood you just gave. 28:43 And it stimulates a cell called the peritubular cells. 28:47 That's what senses the drop in the oxygen, 28:50 then it secretes a protein 28:53 that passes through the blood stream 28:55 and it gets to the bone marrow 28:57 and says to the bone marrow, "We need more blood." 29:00 And the bone marrow now begins to produce that blood. 29:04 When the Holy Spirit senses a drop 29:06 in the finances of the church, 29:10 he sends a protein to the heart of the Christian 29:16 that is stimulated spiritually to pass through the veins, 29:21 all the different avenues of giving so that the blood, 29:24 so that the finances 29:27 that were lost can be replenished, 29:31 and the organ 29:32 and the organization can survive. 29:36 Praise God. 29:37 So when we decide at the extremities 29:40 that we're not gonna give, the blood... 29:44 When the kidney decides it's no longer gonna function, 29:47 that's why when the kidney stops functioning, 29:49 we are getting closer and closer to death 29:51 because the kidney's function is numerical. 29:54 It has number of functions. 29:56 I'm not a doctor but I'm getting this, 29:58 the kidney has more than just the function to filter. 30:01 The kidney has the function to stimulate 30:04 the continual production of the blood cells, 30:08 but it sends the secreting, 30:12 this enzyme to say to the bone marrow, 30:15 "We need more red blood cells." 30:17 And when you look at the bone marrow, 30:20 what the bone marrow does, it maintains the balance 30:22 between the white blood cell and the red blood cell. 30:26 So the bone marrow, 30:27 if you start losing bone marrow, 30:28 that's why you have these stem cell transplants. 30:33 So the bone marrow now can be healthy, 30:36 produce the blood, fight off the disease, 30:38 and the body in and of itself remains healthy. 30:41 Here's the point of the tithe. 30:43 The tithing system God has given to us. 30:46 The tithing is to the church, 30:48 what the circulatory system is to the heart. 30:51 When the heart pumps blood, it pumps it to and from it. 30:54 If we stop giving what God has given to us, 30:57 the organization will die because we represent 31:01 those parts that are stimulated by the Holy Spirit 31:04 to produce more 31:06 so that the organization will not die. 31:08 So in the same way, the body does not die. 31:11 What's the purpose of tithing? 31:12 To keep the church alive. 31:14 Yes. 31:16 If the kidney says, "We don't need more blood. 31:21 I'm not sending any signals to the bone marrow 31:23 'cause I think we have enough. 31:25 We lost a pint, but we could do without it." 31:27 You give another pint, "Well, we're two pints down." 31:31 We give another pint, "We're three pints down." 31:34 And the body starts sensing that 31:36 it doesn't have enough blood to function. 31:38 In the very same way, when the church begins to give 31:41 to all of its departments 31:44 and it's not being replenished, 31:45 it's just a matter of time before the organization dies. 31:49 What's the purpose of tithing? 31:50 To keep the church alive. 31:53 What's the purpose of offering? 31:54 To keep the church alive. 31:55 And as God has designed the body 31:58 in all of its function for all of the parts. 32:01 You know the gifts, Shelley. 32:03 Every gift is given... Excuse me. 32:05 Every gift is given not for the purpose 32:07 of the person's personal benefit 32:09 but for the benefit of the entire body. 32:12 Finances are given to us by the Lord 32:15 not for our personal aggrandizement, 32:18 for the benefit of the entire body. 32:20 When we become selfish bone marrow 32:25 and we refuse to produce what the organization needs, 32:29 what the organs need to continue to survive, 32:32 the church is going to die. 32:34 God has not called you just to be a member, 32:37 He's called you to be a part of the body. 32:40 Okay. 32:41 So when Paul uses the phrase body, 32:43 he's getting that from the body 32:45 that God has designed so beautifully. 32:47 And we say the body fights off disease. 32:51 We are fearfully and wonderfully made. 32:53 And when the body senses that something's wrong, 32:56 the immune system kicks in. 33:00 When we see our church beginning to die financially, 33:05 I'm praying that the Holy Spirit kicks in, 33:08 and the spiritual immune system says to you, 33:10 "Hey, you got to step up." 33:13 We've got to become stronger in our giving 33:16 so that these little departments don't die. 33:18 And when the departments die, the church begins to die. 33:21 When the church begins... Let's go back to the heart now. 33:23 When the church begins to die, the conference begins to die, 33:28 the division begins to die. 33:30 I mean, the union begins to die, 33:32 the division begins to die, 33:33 and the church in the whole world begins to die. 33:36 It all comes down to the cells. 33:38 And here we are, the cells. 33:40 We're the cells. 33:42 When the Spirit of God produces in us 33:45 the desire to keep the body alive, 33:46 these cells will be found all over the body. 33:50 So God has given to you what He knows each of us needs 33:55 to keep the heart alive. 33:56 And the heart has to stay alive for the preaching of the gospel 34:02 to go to the entire world. 34:04 What's the purpose of the tithe? 34:06 As the body needs blood, 34:09 the church needs its individual members. 34:12 If the cells die, the body will die. 34:15 And if we stop giving to the cause of God, 34:17 the church will die. 34:19 Do not rob the work of God 34:22 by withholding what God has rightfully given to you 34:25 knowing that the church needs everyone of us 34:28 as the body needs every blood cell. 34:31 What's the purpose of tithe? 34:32 Simply to carry God's work to the entire world. 34:35 And you are a significant part of it 34:38 as every blood cell is needed for the body to survive. 34:42 May the Lord move your heart to do your part. 34:45 For the furthering of the gospel. 34:47 Amen. Thank you, Pastor John. 34:48 I love the analogy of the body, and the heart, 34:50 and the members that we are all part of the body. 34:53 And praise the Lord for that. 34:55 My day is Wednesday, the storehouse. 34:58 Where should I send my tithe? 35:00 And you know, God has an organizational structure. 35:03 You see that in the Old Testament 35:04 and in the New Testament. 35:07 The early church, you think of the 12 apostles 35:10 and after Judas sinned and whatever, 35:13 then they pulled in a new apostle 35:15 to complete that circle of 12. 35:17 They ordained deacons and elders. 35:19 And women serve functions as well. 35:22 So they called the church, the body together to function 35:26 and to help spread the gospel message. 35:29 The same with tithe, 35:31 with the tithe and the offerings. 35:33 There was order 35:34 and there was function in that. 35:36 I want to take a look at storehouses throughout history. 35:39 So we're going all the way back to the first time 35:41 where tithe was recorded. 35:43 We won't look at that scripture, 35:44 we have looked at it 35:45 at previous Sabbath School lesson studies. 35:49 That is Genesis 14, 35:51 and we see Abraham bringing his tithe to Melchizedek, 35:55 that's the first recorded instance in the Bible 35:57 where we see that tithe, 35:59 the returning of the tithe to God. 36:02 And in that case, you could say, 36:03 what was the storehouse? 36:04 He brought it to the priest which was Melchizedek. 36:08 Let's look at Israel before they cross the Jordan River. 36:12 Remember, they came through the Red Sea. 36:13 They wandered for 40 years in the wilderness. 36:17 Where was the storehouse at that time? 36:19 Let's look at Numbers. 36:20 We're gonna do several Old Testament scriptures here. 36:23 Numbers chapter 18... 36:26 And some of these Old Testament books are little hard to find. 36:28 Numbers 18:20 and 21. 36:32 In verse 20, "The Lord said to Aaron: 36:33 'You shall have no inheritance in their land, 36:36 nor shall you have any portion among them, 36:38 I am your portion and your inheritance 36:41 among the children of Israel.'" 36:43 Then verse 21, ''Behold, I have given the children of Levi 36:46 all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance 36:50 in return for the work which they perform, 36:53 the work of the tabernacle of meeting." 36:56 They were called as priests, as Levites. 37:01 We would say in today's vernacular 37:03 as ministers of the gospel. 37:05 And Israel, God called Israel to return their tithes to them 37:10 in order that they could 37:12 continue the spread of the gospel work. 37:14 So where is the storehouse in that time? 37:18 It is simply the Levites who served in the tabernacle. 37:21 The storehouse was the Levites who served there. 37:24 Let's look after they crossed the Jordan River 37:27 and they came into Canaan, 37:29 the Israel after the conquest of Canaan. 37:32 We're gonna turn over to Deuteronomy, 37:34 Deuteronomy 12 37:37 5 and 6. 37:41 Deuteronomy 12:5 and 6, 37:44 now this is at the end of verse... 37:47 Chapter 11, it talks about when you cross over the Jordan. 37:50 So this is, kind of, he's giving prophetic, 37:53 "This is what is going to take place." 37:55 So we continue in 12:5, "You shall seek the place," 37:59 this is once they arrived in the land of Canaan 38:03 where the promise land where God had led them to. 38:06 Verse 5, "You shall seek the place 38:08 where the Lord your God chooses." 38:10 So God Himself would choose 38:12 where the tabernacle was to be placed. 38:14 "Out of all your tribes, 38:15 to put His name for His dwelling place, 38:18 and there you shall go. 38:19 There you shall take your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, 38:22 your tithes, the heave offerings of your hands, 38:24 and the freewill offerings." 38:26 They were to take their tithes, their freewill offerings 38:29 wherever the tabernacle was pitched. 38:33 There were different places 38:34 where the tabernacle was pitched. 38:35 We know it was at Gilgal, 38:37 it was at Shechem, Shiloh, Nob, and Gibeon, different places. 38:41 But they were to take their tithe 38:43 and their offerings there. 38:45 Now there's another scripture we won't turn to there 38:48 but that's in Deuteronomy 14. 38:50 And if the distance was too far for them 38:53 to make it all the way to that central location, 38:57 it also talked about the Levite 38:59 within their gates that they could help 39:01 and they could support there as well 39:03 because there was a great distance 39:05 to travel to the tabernacle. 39:07 Now let's look at Israel under the monarchy. 39:09 We know we had Saul, we had David. 39:11 David moved the ark back to Jerusalem. 39:15 And Solomon, we know, 39:16 constructed the beautiful temple there in Jerusalem. 39:19 Let's turn to 2 Chronicles 31. 39:21 And I know, Shelley, 39:22 you referred to this on a previous lesson. 39:25 2 Chronicles 31, this is several generations, 39:29 several kings have come and gone. 39:31 Now we're all the way down to the time of Hezekiah 39:34 and there was a reformation that took place. 39:36 In 2 Chronicles 31:4, "Moreover he," 39:41 meaning Hezekiah, "commanded the people 39:43 who dwelt in Jerusalem to contribute to support 39:46 for the priests and the Levites, 39:49 that they might devote themselves 39:50 to the Law of the Lord." 39:52 And so when I read that, 39:54 I almost feel like the Israelites had slacked off. 39:55 Do you get that? 39:57 They had no longer been giving their tithes and offerings. 40:00 And Hezekiah said, "Bring your tithes and offerings." 40:03 So they did. 40:05 And verse 6, "The children of Israel and of Judah, 40:07 who dwelt in the cities of Judah." 40:09 So they came from all over the land. 40:11 They brought in their tithes. 40:14 And it says in verse 7, "In the third month 40:16 they began laying them in heaps," these offerings, 40:19 "and they finished in the seventh month." 40:21 Now that's four months worth of people coming in, 40:25 bringing their tithes and their offerings. 40:29 In this place you can see 40:30 that they were not keeping it at the designated, 40:33 the different cities like before. 40:35 You can see all the tithe was brought to the storehouse 40:38 there in Jerusalem. 40:40 Now what about after the Babylonian captivity? 40:43 They were taken away the 70 years in the Babylon, 40:45 they came back. 40:46 Let's look at Nehemiah. 40:49 Nehemiah was greatly involved in the rebuilding of that. 40:53 Nehemiah chapter 10, 40:58 Nehemiah calls the people again in verse 35, 41:02 "We made ordinances to bring the firstfruits of the ground 41:05 and the firstfruits of the fruit of the trees, 41:07 year by year, to the house of the Lord." 41:09 So he's calling the people 41:10 to bring that back to the house of the Lord. 41:13 Verse 38, "The priest, the descendants of Aaron, 41:16 shall be with the Levites 41:18 when the Levites receive the tithes." 41:20 So they were called to bring their tithe back again. 41:23 Now Israel fell into apostasy 41:25 and then when Nehemiah became the governor again, 41:28 he reintroduced this system of tithing again. 41:33 And Nehemiah 13, we won't turn there because of time, 41:36 but you can look it up verses 10 through 12. 41:39 It talks about Nehemiah realizing that the portion 41:41 for the Levites had not been giving them 41:44 because they were going back to their land. 41:46 They were trying to earn their living from doing that. 41:50 And Nehemiah said, "No, you need to send your tithe 41:53 to the storehouse 41:54 so that the Levites can continue 41:56 the work of the gospel ministry." 41:59 Now what about the New Testament time? 42:01 Now to be honest with you, we know that tithing continues, 42:04 you brought that out very well, Pastor Kenny, 42:06 with that verse in Matthew 23. 42:08 Because Jesus did not say tithing is done away with 42:12 but we need to consider the motives of the heart. 42:15 We need to give... 42:16 I think of the Old Testament, you say, 42:17 talks about the system of tithing. 42:19 The New Testament to me brings it to a whole another level. 42:24 We're not talking just about giving 10%. 42:29 God calls for sacrificial giving for the cause of God. 42:34 This is way more than 10% 42:36 than what's talked about in New Testament. 42:38 Now there's not a percentage given 42:40 but I think God calls us to give 42:42 as we are able to support the work of the gospel. 42:46 In the New Testament time, specifically, 42:49 the money was supposed to go to the gospel minister. 42:52 We know that from 1 Corinthians 9:14, 42:55 the Lord has commanded 42:56 that those who preach the gospel 42:58 should live from the gospel. 43:00 Also you see in the New Testament, 43:02 a large percentage went to help the poor. 43:04 You notice that. 43:06 Churches giving beyond what they're able to give 43:10 to help other churches, to help other members. 43:14 In New Testament times, 43:17 the money collected went for the needy in Jerusalem, 43:20 we see that in Acts 11. 43:21 It went... 43:23 The sale of the properties, 43:24 think about Ananias and Sapphira, 43:26 and they brought their money, 43:29 or they're supposed to... 43:30 They didn't all that they were supposed to 43:32 but they were supposed to bring their money. 43:33 And they put it, remember, at the apostle's feet 43:36 so that then it could be distributed 43:39 throughout the work of the church. 43:41 So in a special way, God calls us to return our tithe 43:47 and our offerings, that's another lesson, 43:49 but we're talking this week about returning our tithe 43:52 to help support the work of the gospel ministry 43:56 all over the world. 43:58 Now we started with the storehouse 43:59 and where should I send my tithes. 44:01 I can't speak for you at home, 44:03 because God speaks to each one of our hearts individually. 44:06 But I can tell you for Greg and myself, 44:08 we choose to send our tithe 44:10 to our local Seventh-day Adventist church. 44:13 That in turn is distributed throughout the world church 44:16 in order to support the work of the gospel, 44:18 the spreading of the gospel around the world. 44:21 But at the same time, 44:23 we choose to give offerings to support ministries, 44:26 to support the work of God going on throughout the world. 44:32 Amen. Thank you, Jill. 44:37 This is... 44:42 As I said on a previous lesson, 44:44 tithe is not an invention of man, 44:46 it's a commandment of God. 44:49 But my day is Thursday, 44:51 and I'm so glad that they included this lesson 44:55 in this particular week to make certain 45:00 that we don't get our eyes unto works 45:07 but we keep our eyes on grace. 45:08 So mine is tithe and salvation by faith. 45:12 Let's look at Romans 3:19. 45:18 This is a central truth that is crucial to our faith. 45:25 Romans 3:19, Paul writes, 45:28 "Now we know that whatever the law says, 45:30 it says to those who are under the law, 45:32 that every mouth may be stopped, 45:34 and all the world may become guilty before God. 45:38 Therefore by the deeds of the law 45:41 no flesh will be justified in His sight, 45:44 for by the law is," what? 45:46 "The knowledge of sin." 45:48 So the law and obedience 45:50 to the law can never justify us. 45:52 But now in verse 21, 45:55 "But now the righteousness of God 45:57 apart from the law is revealed, 46:00 being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets," 46:03 any time you see the law and the prophets, 46:04 that's the whole Old Testament, 46:08 "even the righteousness of God," 46:10 this is verse 22, "through faith in Jesus Christ, 46:15 to all and on all who believe, for there is no difference." 46:21 Verse 23, "For all have sinned 46:24 and fallen short of the glory of God, 46:28 being justified freely by His grace 46:34 through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus." 46:39 Paul is coming to the conclusion 46:41 of the first main section of his letter to the Romans. 46:46 And he concludes four things. 46:50 First, that we're all accountable to God 46:53 for what we have done. 46:56 Two, that we're guilty 46:59 of having done countless wrong things. 47:03 Three, that we will never be justified by God 47:07 on the basis of any supposed good works. 47:11 And four, that we've all sinned, 47:14 none of us are deserving of redemption. 47:19 If we deserved it, it would be by merit or works. 47:23 And that's totally contrary to scripture. 47:26 But now let's turn back or turn to the next chapter, 47:30 Romans chapter 4. 47:33 We want to look at grace versus meriting something. 47:38 Romans 4:1 through 5. 47:42 "What then shall we say that Abraham our father 47:48 has found according to the flesh?" 47:50 Let me just say this. 47:51 Abraham was the patriarch. 47:53 He was the head of the nation of Israel. 47:56 He was a friend of God. 47:58 He was the father of all who believe 48:01 in whose seed that all the world, 48:05 all the nations would be blessed. 48:07 Abraham, the Jews looked at him 48:10 and they held him up as a model of obedience. 48:14 Even when God renewed the covenant 48:18 with Abraham's son, Isaac, 48:20 he told Isaac, "I'm renewing this covenant with you 48:24 because your father, Abraham obeyed all my commandments. 48:28 So this is how the Jewish people looked to Abraham 48:32 that he was the model of obedience. 48:36 But then Paul goes on and says, 48:38 "If Abraham was justified by works, 48:42 he has something to boast about, 48:45 but not before God. 48:47 For what does the Scripture say? 48:51 "Abraham believed God, 48:53 and it was accounted to him for righteousness." 48:59 Abraham was not justified by any of his works. 49:03 It was only by the righteousness 49:06 that God imputed to him. 49:09 The righteousness of Jesus Christ that was imputed... 49:16 And imputed just simply means 49:17 that it was deposited in Abraham's account. 49:20 Abraham, all of our accounts are overdrawn because of sin. 49:24 I mean, we're bankrupt, you know, we're in the red. 49:27 And there's nothing we can do to be justified, 49:32 to be declared not guilty. 49:34 All have sinned and fall short of His glory, 49:36 keep falling short. 49:37 So what God does is 49:39 He takes the righteousness of Jesus Christ 49:42 and He fills that bank account of ours. 49:45 It's called imputing it. 49:46 He credits it to our account 49:49 so we no longer have that deficit. 49:51 And that He can justify us. 49:56 But he says, "Now to him who works, 49:59 the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. 50:02 But to him who does not work 50:05 but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, 50:09 his faith is accounted for righteousness." 50:13 I'm gonna tell you something. 50:15 Only pride, only man's pride, 50:18 only man's vanity could ever believe 50:22 that we could be saved by works. 50:24 There is absolutely nothing you can do to save yourself. 50:29 The Old Testament and the New Testament are really clear, 50:31 salvation belongs to the Lord. 50:35 And the Bible tells us in Ephesians 2:8 and 9, 50:39 "It is by grace that we had been saved, through faith, 50:43 not by works that any man should boast." 50:46 So salvation is a gift 50:49 that is given to the undeserving. 50:50 And I want to quote this from the quarterly. 50:53 I can't put it any better than they said it. 50:55 So let me just read this. 50:57 It says, "As for the matter of tithe, 51:00 there is no credit obtained from God by returning it. 51:05 After all, if the tithe is God's to begin with, 51:09 what merit could there possibly be in giving it back to Him?" 51:13 It's His. 51:15 "Tithing is not an act that saves us any more 51:18 than any of the other good deeds 51:21 that we have been created to do as Christians." 51:23 You know, we're saved by grace through faith. 51:26 Ephesians 2:8, 9 says not of works, 51:29 but Ephesians 2:10 says, 51:31 we are God's work of art. 51:35 And we were created in Christ Jesus 51:38 to do the good works that God prepared beforehand 51:42 that we should walk in them. 51:45 So it goes on and then, and it says, nevertheless... 51:50 And wait, I have to say one thing. 51:52 What does Isaiah 64:6 say? 51:55 "All of our righteousness is as filthy rags before Him." 52:00 So what He's saying is the very best 52:03 that you can do... 52:04 There's someone out there, you may be struggling right now 52:06 saying, "I'm not worthy to be saved, 52:09 they don't know what I've done." 52:10 You don't know what we've done, right, only God does. 52:15 And the point is that for that person who is struggling, 52:21 please know, there's nothing you could do to get right 52:24 with God except to say, 52:26 "Lord, I receive Jesus Christ as my savior." 52:30 That's what will make, 52:31 only Christ's righteousness can make you righteous. 52:35 And then it goes on in the quarterly and says, 52:37 "Nevertheless, the returning of tithe 52:40 does reveal an attitude 52:42 that is either humble and submissive 52:44 or opinionated and defiant 52:46 regarding what God has asked us to do. 52:48 If we love God, we're going to obey Him. 52:51 Tithe is an outward expression of our realization 52:54 that we, indeed, are just stewards here, 52:57 that we owe God everything. 52:59 Just as the Sabbath is a weekly reminder 53:04 that God is our Creator and Redeemer, 53:08 the returning of tithe functions in the similar way. 53:11 It reminds us that we are not our own, 53:13 that our life and salvation are gifts from God." 53:17 And then it says, "As a result, we can recognize that reality 53:21 and live a life of faith, 53:23 acknowledge that the returning of the tithe 53:25 is a very tangible expression of that faith." 53:30 Oh, I only have a minute and half left. 53:32 I have to tell you a story. 53:36 Let me see. 53:39 I want to tell you the story of RG LeTourneau. 53:43 Are you familiar with him? 53:45 This is man, he was a businessman, 53:47 who was doing very poorly. 53:49 He was about to go into bankruptcy. 53:52 And he lived in the late... 53:56 early 1900s, excuse me. 53:58 He was broke, he was in debt. 54:00 He felt God tugging into his heart to do more. 54:02 So he goes to his pastor and he says, 54:05 "You know, I'm thinking about becoming a missionary." 54:07 And the pastor says to him, "God needs businessmen too." 54:11 Well, LeTourneau prayed about that 54:13 and he decided that was true. 54:15 God needed men who could earn money 54:18 and pay into the church. 54:22 So he committed, "Okay, Lord, 54:24 I am gonna return an honest tithe." 54:27 And then he made a large pledge. 54:30 And we want to be careful when you pledge 54:33 because just like Ananias and Sapphira, 54:36 they pledged something they didn't have to, 54:39 and they didn't keep their vow to God 54:41 and God destroyed them for it. 54:43 But he pledged more than he could possibly have paid. 54:48 By faith, he pledged this. 54:50 And God increased his business 54:52 so that he was able to meet that pledge. 54:55 Then guess what? 54:57 He decided he was gonna give 90% of his income 55:02 and live off 10%. 55:04 Instead of giving God 10% and keeping 90%, 55:08 he gave 90% of his business income to God, 55:11 he lived off 10%. 55:13 The man became a multimillionaire 55:16 and he is famous for saying this. 55:19 "It's not how much of my money I give to God, 55:23 but how much of God's money I keep for myself." 55:26 That's good. Amen. 55:28 That's good. 55:29 Excellent. Oh, what food for thought. 55:32 And so we pray there's been, 55:34 you know, thoughtful process for you 55:35 even jotting these things down 55:37 and we'll go back and look into, you know, 55:39 and prayerfully say, "Lord, I really want to know," 55:42 because I know, and I've talked to a lot of people as you have 55:45 that are kind of confused on the issues. 55:48 And we pray that this has helped today 55:49 to kind of put their thoughts and their views 55:51 in a little different direction possibly. 55:53 It's been good. 55:55 So how about, let's just give a final, final thought? 55:57 Shall we as we go around the table, 55:59 we have a minute and a half left so. 56:01 Okay, you think, you say, "I can't afford to tithe." 56:03 And I say, "According to God's Word, 56:05 you can't afford not to tithe." 56:07 Right. 56:09 Tithing is a sign of our covenant to God, 56:13 and when we follow that covenant, 56:15 God will bless us abundantly. 56:17 Amen. Amen. 56:19 I think the peace and joy that comes from 56:21 when you know you are walking in God's will. 56:24 You know that you are walking in obedience 56:27 to what He has asked you to do, 56:29 and the blessings that are poured back into your life. 56:31 When you do that, it's out of this world. 56:33 Amen. 56:34 When we were flat broke 56:36 and couldn't afford to even groceries, 56:39 we decided that we were putting God to the test 56:42 and He is proved Himself over and over. 56:45 All of God's promises are yes and amen in Christ Jesus. 56:48 Amen. That just reminds me of the Acts 17:28. 56:52 It says, "For in Him we live 56:55 and we move and we have our being," 56:57 which is brought out plainly here. 56:59 And so remember, we owe back to God, we owe. 57:01 He owns everything, we're just simply giving back 57:04 because to show our love for Him. 57:06 We thank you for joining us. 57:07 What a treat this has been for me. 57:10 We pray it's been a blessing 57:11 for each one of you there at home. 57:13 And you can join us this time on this place every week 57:16 the Sabbath School Panel 57:18 as it brings some exciting things 57:19 that I believe that we need to be learning, 57:22 because we believe Jesus is coming. 57:23 Amen. 57:24 We want to be ready for His coming, 57:26 so we want you to be ready too. 57:27 We thank you. God bless you. 57:28 You have a good day and we'll see you next time. 57:30 Amen. |
Revised 2018-02-22