Lesson Four                                                                                                                   October 11,

Tucson                                                           GIVING                                                             1998

 

1.      God has given local churches of Christ works to do as local churches. 1 Timothy 5:3-16; etc. The collective works of a local church of Christ include:

A.     Providing for the place, time, means, and order for worship in the assembly of the church. Hebrews 10:24-25; 1 Corinthians 11:33, 23-26; 14:40. The authorized acts of worship in the assembly of the church include eating the Lord’s Supper, praying, singing, listening to the word of God, and giving. 1 Corinthians 11:17-34; 14:1-40; 16:1-2.

B.      Providing for the safekeeping, disbursement, and disposal of congregational assets. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2.

C.     Selecting elders and deacons. Titus 1:5; Acts 6:3.

D.     Supporting the preaching the gospel. 2 Corinthians 11:8; Philippians 4:15-16.

E.      Meeting the benevolent needs of certain saints. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2; 1 Timothy 5:3-16.

F.      Accepting new members into the fellowship of the local church. Acts 9:26-28.

G.     Withdrawing fellowship from unfaithful members of the local church in hopes of moving them to repentance. 1 Corinthians 5:1-13.

2.      To do many of these works, local churches of Christ need money.

A.      A local church of Christ collects funds for these purposes through free will offerings which its members give to the local church treasury on the first day of the week. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2. Except in certain rare and exceptional circumstances, this is, as far as I know, the only authorized means by which a local church of Christ may enrich itself financially.

B.      Sadly, however, more and more local churches of Christ are enriching themselves financially through other means.

C.      Some might say that since Jesus financially enriched Himself through other means, so a local church of Christ may enrich itself through other means. Admittedly, Jesus nobly provided for Himself and those for whom he was responsible through carpentry (Mark 6:3). However, we must remember that Jesus was never a member of a local church of Christ. Therefore, His example gives no guidance to a local church of Christ as to how it may enrich itself financially. Further, we must remember that while on earth, Jesus taught very little about the collective works of a local church. Therefore, we must look elsewhere than the earthly conduct of Jesus for guidance on how local churches of Christ should financially enrich their church treasuries. Jesus, after He ascended to heaven and sent the Holy Spirit, provided such guidance in the epistles.

D.      Others might say that since some letters addressed to churches condone financial enrichment through buying and selling goods and services, so a local church may enrich itself through these means. For example, see 2 Thessalonians 1:1; 3:7-12. However, those who make this argument miss the point that letters to churches address both individual and collective responsibilities of the church. To determine which type of responsibilities the writer has in view, we simply need to examine the context. 1 Corinthians 1:1-2; 7:1-5; 14:26-40.

E.      This is not legalism. Rather, it is simply an honest attempt to apply the principles we learn when we study about the authority of Jesus Christ. We must be very careful whenever we do anything in the name of the Lord. We must be careful that we are absolutely sure we are speaking where the Bible speaks and are being silent where the Bible is silent. We must be very careful that we are doing all we possibly can to maintain unity among believers. We must be very careful lest in defending one practice we use the very same arguments which others use to justify practices we condemn.

 

3.      The scriptures instruct Christians how they should go about giving to the local church treasury on the first day of the week. Given 1 Corinthians 16:1-4, 2 Corinthians 8-9 clearly applies to giving as an act of worship. Giving as an act of worship should be done:

A.      Joyfully. 2 Corinthians 8:1-3; 9:5, 7; Acts 20:35B.

B.      Liberally. 2 Corinthians 8:2-3, 7; 9:6. We should give from our lack, not only our abundance. Mark 12:41-44.

C.      According to ability. 2 Corinthians 8:12. Luke 19:2, 8; Romans 12:6-8.

D.      Thankfully. 2 Corinthians 8:4 NASB, “Begging us with much entreaty for the favor of participation in the support of the saints.” 1 Chronicles 29:13-14.

E.      In the beauty of holiness. 2 Corinthians 8:5.

F.      Graciously. 2 Corinthians 8:6, 9; Luke 14:12-14.

G.      Purposefully. 2 Corinthians 9:7A.

H.      As purposed. 2 Corinthians 8:10-11.

I.       Anticipatorily. 2 Corinthians 8:13-14; Proverbs 19:17; Luke 6:38.

J.       In faith. 2 Corinthians 9:8-9; Proverbs 11:24-26.

K.     Prayerfully. 2 Corinthians 9:10-11.

L.      As prospered. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2.

M.     Regularly. 1 Corinthians 16:1-2.