What are you holding on to?

John 6: 9 – 10

"Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?" Jesus said, "Have the people sit down."

 

This story is one of the most recognizable accounts in the Bible, but we often miss its significance.

Here was a boy who came to church one day, prepared.

 

I wonder what might have happened, had this young man been unwilling to share his afternoon lunch?

We might have missed out on one of the greatest miracles ever recorded in the Gospels.

 

We also know that it’s recorded, that Jesus repeated this event just a few days later—using someone else’s bagged lunch.

Funny things is, Jesus overheard the disciples chatting about this event to themselves, and they wanted to know who brought all that bread and fish.

 

They missed the power, and so do we sometimes, when we’re tight fisted with the things Jesus could use to display His power.

What are you holding onto, that Jesus could use?

 

If I’m allowed to paraphrase just a bit, I wonder if the dialog between Jesus and His followers could’ve been something like this;

“Don t you get who I am?” – “Don’t you understand the abundant generosity of God?” – Don’t you understand that I’ll take care of all of your needs?”

 

The key to the story, was that this young boy was willing to surrender his meager gifts to Jesus.

We would be amazed at what God can do in and through us, when we bring our meager gifts to Him.

 

Have you surrendered your meagerness to Jesus, yet?

We might be overwhelmed at the miracles Jesus could render, if we just opened up our hands, and our heart

First Priority!

Mark 14: 9

“I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her."

 

Do you know what extravagant worship looks like?

It looks like this—that we give everything we have, with no regard to cost, that in turn richly blesses the Lord.

 

With some of the statistics I shared last week, that kind of worship is not seen very often in the church anymore.

Jesus said that this woman’s testimony, would be shared in her memory—and so it is today.

 

Mary knew of no other way to repay Jesus, for the forgiveness of her sins.

All she had to give—she rendered to the Lord Jesus.

A bottle of perfume, that was worth a full years wages.

 

Jesus should always be our first priority, when we come before Him in worship.

Without Him, we have nothing and are nothing.

 

How I long to worship Jesus, just as Mary did—but something always seems to get in the way.

Maybe it’s my pride…

 

“Father God…Forgive us for not giving you our whole hearts and our whole lives.  Our intentions sometimes seem good, but our lives and our actions often fail our intentions.  

You are our all in all.  Help us to worship You more fully and completely, and help us to realize what it really meant to give Your life for us.  

Take our lives and sacrifices, to be a sweet fragrance to You.  In Jesus Name.  Amen.”

Temple Treasury

Mark 12: 43 – 44

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.

They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on."

What kind of relationship do you want with Jesus?

Are we looking for a comfortable relationship with the Christ of God—that just gives us warm fuzzies?

This precious lady, put everything she had to live on, into  God’s treasury.

What was she doing? She was loving God with every bit of her being—and fulfilling Luke 10: 27.

Do we do this?

Or do some of us, spend more money at McDonald’s or at Dollar General, than we put into the treasury of God?

My prayer, is that everyone within the receipt of this daily devotional, has the heart of this poor widow woman.

Many of you do.

Jesus calls over His disciples, and He uses this lady as an object lesson.

I often wonder, if God could ever use me, for a simple object lesson of faithfulness?

The Temple treasury, was used as a covenant to God, to provide for the least of these.

There was a time in U.S. history, when we didn’t have to rely on the government, to help the weak.

Oh, how times have changed… 

Sacrifice

I Timothy 6: 10

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many grief’s.

 

Do you know people who have lots of money, but it seems they still haven’t found happiness?

Folks who are protective of their money, in many cases, have wandered from the faith.

 

I love the old bumper sticker that says… “If you love Jesus—HONK!”

But there’s another good bumper sticker that says… “TITHE If you love Jesus—any fool can honk”

 

The purpose of our walk of faith, is to love God.

The Bible says that we should love God with all of our heart soul, mind and strength.

I think that also means with our wallets and purses.

 

We have been created to worship and love God.

We have not been created, to love what’s at the bottom of our bank statement.

 

When we understand all that we have been given to us by God—the only response there is, is sacrifice.

God so honors that, and He actually saves us from a world filled with grief when we do sacrifice.

 

Why people keep needlessly piercing themselves, is really beyond my ability to reason.

 

So if we miss a Sunday or two or three or four, does our deep sense of love for God, prompt us to write a check for all time that we missed?

That would be true love…

Do you know God?

Isaiah 43: 10

"You are my witnesses," declares the LORD, "and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he.

Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.”

The Barna research group suggests, that most people don’t tithe, because they don’t really know God or His Word.

People don’t really know what God has to say about earning money—saving money—spending money, or investing money.

Anything we need to understand about these financial areas, are all found in the Bible.

Currently, there is a failure in the church, to teach it’s people the truth about giving.

Some people have formed opinions, from churches they used to attend, that did not teach on the principal of stewardship.

Do you know God?

If we do, then we’ll know what He says about how to use our money.

One small group in a church in Clearview Tennessee, decided to test God in this area.

In one year, this small group took God to task, and ended up paying off $150,000.00 of their local churches debt.

There are some conspiracy theories in the flock, that suggest some of the churches money, goes to pay for the Pastor’s retirement home in Aruba.

Make no mistake about that—I have never been to Aruba—and don’t plan on going there anytime soon.

Folks will forever look for excuses, not to do what God has called us to do.

It’s most likely because, we might not know Him as well as we should…

To Tithe or not to Tithe..That is the question!

Proverbs 14: 8

The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception.

I think people in the church, would be a lot better off, if we spent more time watching the older, wiser people, in the flock.

In the 1990’s, people over 65 years of age, accounted for over 70% of all giving in the church.

Today, when a senior member of the church dies, it normally takes as many as 8 – 10 people under the age of 35, to account for their overall contribution and production.

All signs suggest, that maybe our older members, were not so senile after all.

Churches who actually teach on tithing and Biblical giving, report that giving in the church, increases at an average of 62% over other churches.

It’s also reported that churches who are not afraid of teaching about Biblical giving, have members who actually reduce their debt load by as much as $20,000.00 in the first year.

Most churches don’t teach this stuff, because it’s not popular with the its members.

Yet that should not surprise us.

When we approach our giving to God, with a consumer like mentality, it almost never works out very well for that person.

When we begin to rely on ourselves, and selfishness takes over, God allows those people to have their way, until they come back begging.

What’s your testimony of joy, regarding tithing?

If you don’t tithe, then you can’t possibly have a testimony of joy, like someone who does tithe.

Stewardship of God’s property, is so much a part of our overall spiritual growth.

Some people just haven’t figured that out as of yet…

Give!

Luke 6: 38

“Give, and it will be given to you.”

 

So I have to wonder, that if one doesn’t give anything, it is possible, that nothing then, will be given to them?

That seems to make sense, but the Bible says that God gives rain to the righteous and the unrighteous.

 

Actually, only 3% of all confessed Christians even tithe. That’s down 8% from 2008.

It’s also suggested that 50% of all church members, give no measurable income.

 

Most church attendees, would hold fast to the Biblical statement, that says… “it’s better to give than to receive.”

Well at least 50% of all Christians believe that to a degree.

 

Those who don’t give, are like people who grab 3 shopping carts at Walmart—fill them to the full—and then leave without paying.

They want all the benefits of “church”, but don’t want it to cost them anything.

 

It actually cost our local church, over $1,000.00, just to have our snow plowed in December 2013.

Let’s be sure of this, there’s no free lunch these days—not even in the church.

 

People who don’t give, may not even notice the things that aren’t given to them, while they live here on earth.

What a surprise though, when the eternal, Heavenly ledger suggests, they’ve been ripping God off all along.

 

But thanks be to God for His great mercy, because there’s still time to make, Heavenly portfolio changes