A few thoughts about a great day at NewSpring Church…
- Had an absolute BLAST preaching on giving today…and LOVED the fact that we saw people receive Jesus after the message, that’s AWESOME! (And never gets old!)
- We continued “Practical Atheist” today—last week we defined a “PA” as someone who says they believe in God but then live their lives as if He does not exist, and the area people struggle with this the most is in the area of money and personal finances.
- Money is the number one competitor when it comes to our hearts and our following of Jesus Christ! If we don’t nail this issue down it will impact every area of our lives.
- I love teaching what God’s Word says about money because…if we handle money the way God’s Word says to handle it then it is IMPOSSIBLE for us to screw up financially!
- A man who claims he walks with God but has not surrendered his finances will always walk with a limp.
- The only people who really get upset when you speak on money are those who are robbing God…just like the only ones who get mad when you preach on adultery are…well…you get the picture.
- According to Jesus and the Scriptures…it is IMPOSSIBLE for us to say we are fully devoted followers of Jesus and NOT give!
- I received Christ in 1990…but robbed Him of the tithe until the fall of 1999…it was then I decided to test Him and HE DID NOT FAIL! (See Malachi 3:6-12!)
- You CANNOT out give God—period!
- I shared the statistic that only 9% of the membership of NewSpring Church tithed last year…and 26% of the members didn’t give a dime…both of these stats are heartbreaking but needed to be shared. (Here is a link to our annual report we gave out at every campus at the end of every service.)
- I also made it clear that we will not hire someone who does not tithe…it always gets tense when I say that but JESUS said in Matthew 6:21 that if someone’s heart is there then you have their treasure…why in the world would we ever hire someone whose heart is not at the church?
- Proverbs 3:9-10 tells us to honor God with our wealth…some push back and claim they are not wealthy…so, go HERE and put in your salary and see where you rank in regards to the world and your wealth!
- America is the ONLY NATION in the world where someone can “struggle” with poverty and obesity!!!
- It’s not a sin to be blessed and have nice things…it’s a sin for nice things to have you!
- Greed is a sign of a heart that has not been regenerated! (Ephesians 5:5)
- Personally, I refuse to stand in the shadow of a blood stained cross and offer God any less than the bare minimum of what He has commanded me to give.
- Some people should have a bumper sticker that says, “I drive my tithe!”
- It is BECAUSE OF HIS MERCY and GRACE that I even have anything to give in the first place. (See I Chronicles 29:10-14)
- God doesn’t need our money—we need His blessings!
- We get to go to heaven because God is an extravagant giver (see II Corinthians 9:15 and John 3:16), if we are going to be followers of Him then we cannot claim that He has all of us and refuse to offer Him our best in this area of our lives.
- If God’s never asked you to give an extravagant gift then I would say you probably haven’t been listening for it!
- Jesus said we cannot serve both God and money (Matthew 6:24) - who/what are you serving? It can’t be both…and if it is Jesus then we must submit ourselves to the teachings of Scripture.
- It’s amazing to me how many “Christians” will receive the salvation passages but then want to complain about the giving passages.
- And, for the record, I did eat at Grits and Groceries yesterday…some of the best food I’ve ever put in my mouth…and yes, it is a legit place, I did not make it up…here is the website!
I could go on and on about this…but…the bottom line is that giving is NOT a money issue, it’s a heart issue. When our hearts are right with God then giving isn’t a problem (this is according to the Scriptures and 20 years of ministry!) IF you struggle with this I would challenge you to do three things.
#1 - TRUST GOD - Hebrews 11:1 and Hebrews 11:6 talk about faith and trusting God…and it takes faith to trust Him with our finances. Many of us want Him to bless us and then we say we will follow…but He says follow first and then He will bless. Like I said today…it’s not that I can’t afford to give…I can’t afford not to!
#2 - Get Your Financial House In Order - SERIOUSLY, we should all know how to set up a budget, how much debt we have and how long it will take for us to get out of financial bondage (see Proverbs 22:7) - we are providing a FREE SEMINAR this week at every campus…and not only that, but we will provide dinner AND childcare IF you will sign up!!! (Here is the link)
#3 - Get Ready To Have Your Mind Blown! God always brings a return far greater than anything we could ever imagine (Malachi 3:10-12, Proverbs 3:9-10, II Corinthians 9:6-8)...these are PROMISES from Scripture that should be obeyed, celebrated and anticipated! I can’t WAIT to see all that He does with those who choose to take Him at His Word and follow through with obedience!