Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5
“We run our life schedules and aspirations around acquiring wealth…We continue to look to money to sustain us…In the garden, man and woman crossed a boundary line that God had given because their hearts set upon more than God had provided for them, believing that he would withhold some good things. This desire for acquisition has plagued us ever since…Sin has caused a great imbalance, where the constant dissatisfaction of the flesh causes those who have to amass more wealth for themselves, while those that have not remain in need…
How then do we serve God and not money? What do we still have to learn to make this a reality? By looking through the Old Testament, the Gospels, and the life of the early church [in the rest of the New Testament] the message of God is clear. I am your Provider; I will bless you so that you can be a blessing to others, so take care of those around you who have little with the abundance you have; imitate my Son in order to reveal my love, and in so doing store up for yourselves treasure in heaven…
We do not give tithes or offerings to the Lord to profess our allegiance to Him. Nor do we give dues to show that we are part of the Christian “guild.” Rather, we give out of gratitude and love because Christ has already paid our dues to be members of his body and sons in the family of God. We give out of an overflow of His love, to share and demonstrate the same love to others.”
Emily Tregelles, student at Torch Trinity Graduate University, in her Philosophy of Biblical Stewardship Paper dated 2 July 2017. Over the next few days I plan to share excerpts from my students’ papers. They blessed me and I pray they are a blessing to you too. And these thoughts are fitting for me and my family today as we fly to New York City, a place where the love of money is evident in so many ways.
What strikes you in reading Emily’s thoughts? Or perhaps more pointedly, what motivates your giving? And what measure do you use? She passionately believes that you and I are the answer to the great imbalance in the world, between those with plenty and those in need. We get to bless others with all Christ has given us motivated by love. And we no longer measure it out by percentage like we are paying dues, for as she keenly notes, “Christ has already paid our dues” for us. As we are blessed we get to bless others in proportion.