John R.W. Stott: Seek to develop

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. 1 Timothy 6:17-18

“Timothy is not only to warn the rich of the perils they face, but also to alert them to the duties they have… Timothy must seek to develop in the rich a sense of responsibility… Command those who are rich… to be rich in good deeds. Let them add one kind of wealth to another. This is a necessary admonition. Wealth can make people lazy. Since they already have everything they want, they have no need to exert themselves for their living.

It is not for nothing that some people refer to ‘the idle rich’. Timothy is to command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share, using their wealth to relieve want and to promote good causes. In so doing, they will be imitating God. For He is rich, yet out of His riches, richly provides us with everything we need.

Since God is such a generous giver, His people should be generous too, no only in imitation of His generosity, but also because of the colossal needs of the world around us. Many Christian enterprises are hampered for lack of funds. And all the time our conscience nags us as we remember the one fifth of the world’s population who are destitute. If wealthy people are really and sacrificially generous, it goes without saying that they will no longer be wealthy as they were. They may not become poor, but neither will they remain rich.”

John R.W. Stott in The Message of 1 Timothy and Titus (TBST; Downers Grove: IVP, 1996) 161.

Today I head to Omaha to speak multiple times at a conference in the next three days invited by my friend Jon Wiebe at MB Foundation. The theme is “Salt and Light: Faithful Living in a Secular Culture.”

I will speak on four topics: Faithful Stewardship, Faithful Leadership, Faithful Governance, and Faithful Accountability. I appreciate your prayers for me. My aim matches these words of Stott.

I “seek to develop” the Christian workers I will serve to model and promote these topics to multiply good and faithful stewards and help the ministries they serve to thrive with standards.

And I pray the same for you. I pray your ministry in the lives of rich people causes them to neither be rich nor poor but having obeyed the command from Scripture to be two things.

I want each of us and the rich among us to be obedient to God and dependent on God. If the rich reflect those those two traits, needs will be met, ministries will have resources, and the gospel will spread.

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. 1 Timothy 6:17

“The first danger to which the wealthy are exposed is pride. Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant. The Old Testament clearly warned people of this [Deuteronomy 8:14; Ezekiel 28:5]. Wealth often gives birth to vanity. It tends to make people feel self-important, and so contemptuous of others. Wealthy people frequently boast of their house, furniture, car, yacht, or other possessions.

The second danger to which the rich are exposed is a false security. Command those who are rich in this present world not … to put their hope in wealth. To do so is foolishly short-sighted. For one thing, wealth is uncertain. Jesus warned us of the ravages of moth, rust, and burglars [Matthew 6:19; Proverbs 23:5] and we would want to add fire and inflation as further hazards. Many people have gone to bed rich and woken up poor.

For another thing, the proper object of our human trust is not a thing but a Person; not wealth but God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. This is an important addition. We are not to exchange materialism for asceticism. On the contrary, our God is a generous Creator, who wants us to appreciate the good gifts of creation. If we consider it right to adopt an economic lifestyle lower than we could command, it will be out of solidarity with the poor, and not because we judge the possession of material things to be wrong in itself.

The two dangers, then, to which the rich are exposed area false pride (looking down on people less fortunate than themselves) and a false security (trusting in the gift instead of the Giver). In this way wealth can spoil life’s two paramount relationships, causing us to forget God and despise our neighbor.”

John R.W. Stott in The Message of 1 Timothy and Titus (TBST; Downers Grove: IVP, 1996) 161.

What stands out afresh to me today as I look at these two dangers — false pride and false security — is the impact they have on our relationship with God and our neighbor.

And if we think about it further, God’s command is for us to use the resources He supplies. People ask me how to avoid the dangers of wealth, and I often recount the childhood game, hot potato.

We lose if we hold on to or drop the ball or whatever else represents the potato. That means that when God blesses us with resources, we need to use them wisely (enjoyment and sharing) and not hold on to them.

Notice the only way to avoid the false pride and false security is to put the wealth to work. If you have wealth. See it as a hot potato. We only lose if we drop it or are found holding it.

And the loss is great. It impacts our walk with God and our journey with others. Remember, the way to avoid this is to enjoy and share God’s blessings. No wonder it comes as a command.

But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 1 Timothy 6:8

“What then, should be our attitude to material things? Paul replies: But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. He thus reverts to the topic of Christian contentment. Luxuries are not essential to it but necessities are. These he calls food and clothing, the ‘what to eat’ and ‘what to wear’ which Jesus forbade us to worry about, because He promised that our Heavenly Father would give them to us. Paul’s word for ‘clothing’ is skepasma, which means chiefly ‘clothing … but also house’. So probably the couplet ‘food and clothing’ should be extended to include shelter, for these three are clearly essential to our journey.”

John R.W. Stott in The Message of 1 Timothy and Titus (TBST; Downers Grove: IVP, 1996) 150.

Hear Stott’s pointed words.

Food and clothing represent “the ‘what to eat’ and ‘what to wear’ which Jesus forbade us to worry about.” So why do most people worry about these things?

People worry about them because they represent the things that everyone needs. And yet, that explains why Jesus tells us not to worry about these things.

When we depend on Him for our most basic needs, we show where we place our trust and we show the world that He is worthy of their trust too.

What witness does your trust encourage. Do people who see you know that you trust God for ‘what to eat’ or ‘what to wear’ or would they say you aim to sort those needs.

The core issue here links not to the present but to the future. He promises to sort our daily bread and current covering or clothing.

The test comes when we get blessed with more than enough. Do we store it up for ourself or live, give, serve, and love generously, and trust the future to him.

You know where you place your trust for the things that are essential for your journey. Make sure you choose wisely because God knows too.

“Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.” Job 1:21

“How then does the apostle argue the Christian case for contentment and against covetousness? He reminds us of a fundamental (though often ignored) fact of our human experience, relating to our birth and death. It is that we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it. It seems probable that Paul is alluding to a salutary truth on which Israel’s wise men reflected.

Here is Job’s version of it: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall depart.’ That is, we are born naked and penniless, and when we die and are buried we are naked and penniless again. In respect of earthly possessions, our entry and our exit are identical. So our life on earth is a brief pilgrimage between two moments of nakedness.

As the officiating minister said at the funeral of a wealthy lady, when asked by the curious how much she had left, ‘She left everything.’ It is a perspective which should influence our economic lifestyle. For possession are only the traveling luggage of time; they are not the stuff of eternity. It would be sensible therefore to travel light and, as Jesus Himself commanded us, not to store up for ourselves (that is, to accumulate selfishly) treasures on earth.”

John R.W. Stott in The Message of 1 Timothy and Titus (TBST; Downers Grove: IVP, 1996) 150.

This bit from wisdom Stott stuck with me today as I type in my hotel room on a weekend of rest in the mountains (Mount Holy Cross wilderness pictured above): “So our life on earth is a brief pilgrimage between two moments of nakedness.”

This means that our “economic lifestyle” as Stott puts it, should reflect radical obedience to the teachings of Jesus. He traveled light and used possessions with a missional focus. So should we.

And notice the illustration from the funeral. Stott rightly reminds us through the words of the minister that the wealthy woman left everything. But, imagine her meeting the Lord and having to give account for her stewardship!

She had the capacity to bless others and advance the gospel, but she didn’t do it. The time to live, give, serve, and love is whilst you are on the “brief pilgrimage between two moments of nakedness.”

Look at your bank accounts today. List any assets you have. Make a decision today to store them up in heaven through giving. The time to do this is now. You came from nakedness and will return there shortly.

Two things I ask of you, Lord; do not refuse me before I die: Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God. Proverbs 30:7-9

“The Old Testament is full of admonitions against covetousness, especially the wisdom literature. We are warned that money is addictive, since ‘whoever loves money never has enough money’ (Ecclesiastes 5:10). We are taught not to be ‘overawed’ by the wealthy, but to remember that they will leave their wealth behind them (Psalm 49:10, 16-20). It is also explicitly stated that ‘one eager to get rich will not go unpunished’ (Proverbs 28:20), So we should pray to be given ‘neither poverty [i.e. destitution] nor riches’, but only our ‘daily bread’ [i.e. the necessities] (Proverbs 30:7-9).”

John R.W. Stott in The Message of 1 Timothy and Titus (TBST; Downers Grove: IVP, 1996) 151.

I marvel how the Old Testament texts on possessions radically match the New Testament teachings. In this case how the wisdom literature matches the Lord’s prayer.

The word ‘necessities’ implies that as we trust God, He will sort what we need. And this marks the wise path for us as it keeps us in a posture of perpetual dependence.

This weekend, I am thankful God provided margin for Jenni and me to rest and celebrate our anniversary. His ways are good but only realized when chosen.

And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. 2 Corinthians 8:1

“The highest use of wealth is in the acknowledgement that God has given it that, through it, we may earn larger spiritual dividends. It affords us opportunities to be rich in good works. Money can be used to relieve the distressed, to feed the starving, to alleviate pain and provide medical care and, best of all, it can provide for the proclamation of the gospel of God’s manifold love and redeeming grace. The Christian who has allowed the grace of God to take hold on his [or her] heart is thereby made gracious. He is liberal and generous and ready to distribute his wealth for the glory of God and the uplift of humanity.”

Charles A. Trentham in Studies in Timothy (Nashville: Convention Press, 1959) 81.

God’s grace moves us to grow in giving and when we do, in the words of Trentham, we earn “larger spiritual dividends” than any possible earthly returns.

I am taking today and tomorrow off to rest and observe 32 years of marriage to Jenni. We will invest some of the resources God has supplied along with hotel points to celebrate.

When we pour God’s resources into mission and memories we show love. We say that you matter and that you are important to me and to God.

How might you use some of the resources you have today to communicate to someone that they are special, that they are not forgotten, that God loves them and you do too?

This use of money reaps “larger spiritual disciplines” because God designed money to be put to work as our slave. When we hold on to it, we become a slave to money.

Embracing this perspective is only possible when God’s grace is at work on our hearts. May God’s grace help each of us grow as generous distributors.

You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16:11

“The Christian man of wealth must not allow his wealth to make him haughty nor must he trust in his riches for his eternal well-being. His only ground of confidence must be in the living God who abides though all else vanishes. The Christian must look above his wealth and put his trust in the God who gave him everything which he enjoys. There is nothing wrong with a man’s enjoying his wealth. In truth, it is given to him by a gracious God to enjoy. No man, however, can truly enjoy wealth who is more devoted to wealth (to the acquiring of it and the selfish use of it) than he is to God. God is the true fountain of abiding joy.”

Charles A. Trentham in Studies in Timothy (Nashville: Convention Press, 1959) 80.

There’s a mindset of some in the generosity space that we cannot enjoy God’s material blessings. Many try to affix this on me, but the shoe does not fit.

I love to enjoy and share God’s blessings. That’s the command to us. When we follow it, we take hold of life. Anyone who knows me knows I urge everyone to follow the biblical instructions to pour God’s resources into memories (enjoyment) and mission (sharing).

Where I have issue, and Trentham points this out, is the people who think that generosity or sharing can happen along with aiming at acquiring treasures for oneself. Jesus called this trying to serve God and mammon. It can’t be done.

Where do you see yourself in all this? Or maybe the better question is what does God see when he looks and you and your decisions linked to money?

My desire for myself and everyone else is to enjoy and share God’s blessings. When we do this it is a fountain of abiding joy. But when water sits stagnant, it gets gross. The same with money. Don’t let it stay with you. Obedience keeps us in a place of perpetual dependence on God.

Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide purses for yourselves that will not wear out, a treasure in heaven that will never fail, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. Luke 12:33

“Earthly riches must be regarded by Christians as having only one purpose. They represent the potential which one has for gaining abiding riches.”

Charles A. Trentham in Studies in Timothy (Nashville: Convention Press, 1959) 80.

Sometimes the shortest quotes are the best ones. Potential. That’s what money is. It’s the potential we have for gaining abiding riches.

That begs the question. What are you doing with your potential?

Today’s Tuesday in Denver. If you are in town and free between 6:30-8pm, come to my home. Reply to get the address. Jenni and I will host a Meet & Greet with Paula Mendoza, GTP Global Administrator from Guatemala.

She facilitates the global orchestration of our GTP work and leads our Spanish team.

In plain terms, that means that she serves to help Spanish speakers everywhere maximize this potential for our Lord Jesus Christ and to gain abiding riches in the process.

Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life. 1 Timothy 6:17-19

“Money in the long ago, even as today, was not merely money. It was wholesome food to eat and warm clothes and shelter for the children. It represented the ability to care for aging parents who could no longer care for themselves. It was the ability to provide books and music and good teachers for children. It was the ability to help others in distress. It was the prospect of an old age free from haunting fear and anxiety. Just because there are many things that money cannot buy, the New Testament never closes its eyes to the things that money can buy.

Anyone who has ever visited a slum knows what a horrible effect the lack of money has upon the moral and spiritual lives of its inhabitants. The Christian church must remember the positive words of the Master and of the Apostles concerning the high spiritual uses of our material substance. Christian pastors are unforgivably dilatory if they do not assist the wealthy members of their congregations to use their money to advance the kingdom.”

Charles A. Trentham in Studies in Timothy (Nashville: Convention Press, 1959) 79-80.

In the days in which we live, ministry workers must not be “dilatory” to rally people with resources to put them to kingdom use. Such behavior is truly unforgivably.

It motivates me every day to get up, read, and post something that will hopefully inspire someone, somewhere to give their lives with me in spreading the message of Christian generosity.

I shot the new header photo in Bremerton, Washington. My friend, John Frank, lives on one of those boats in the harbor. He loves Jesus deeply and our dinner together encouraged each other.

Then I spent Sunday then with my GTP colleagues and Rob and Bev Martin. It was priceless time together thinking about ways to mobilize people all over the world to put money to use for God.

Rob’s book, When Money Goes on Mission: Fundraising and Giving in the 21st Century, has become a GTP on demand course and a tool for rallying God’s people to “use their money to advance the kingdom.”

The focus of our discussions centered, at least in part, to discussing ways to mobilize language teams, starting with Spanish and Chinese, to encourage money to go on mission among their people.

Our work is in the proverbial harbor right not. Soon we will leave port and move to the deep water in this work. But not yet. We are going slow to go fast by praying, sharing, and discerning the way forward together.

For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 1 Timothy 6:7-8

“Wealth is not essential to man’s ultimate well-being. “He did not have it,” says Paul, “before he came into this world, nor will he have it in the world to come.” The abiding treasure must, therefore, be seen in terms of Christlikeness. Whatever else we may have in eternity, of this we may be most certain, we shall have ourselves there. The goal toward which we should strive in life, should, therefore, be in terms of those qualities of the soul which make us Christlike. “For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out” (1 Timothy 6:7). Mere wealth is not ultimately essential to the well-being of the soul; why then should we center all of life around its accumulation or regard it as an end in itself? It is far, far better to major on cultivating the enlargement of the soul that we may ultimately receive the fullness of the blessing of Christ.”

Charles A. Trentham quoting Francis Peabody in Studies in Timothy (Nashville: Convention Press, 1959) 73.

I got to meet up with GTP staff (Paula Mendoza, Trevor Lui and his wife, Frances) and see a long-time friend yesterday, John Frank. It was so special. It reminded me of the priceless value of kingdom friendships.

So many people spend themselves to acquire things or accumulate financial resources. Do let that be you. Pursue the wealth of godly character and kingdom relationships.

Ironically, the pathway to such wealth is living, giving, serving, and loving generously coupled with contentment with having Christ who has promised to supply our needs.

I spend today with Rob and Bev Martin. I can’t wait to see them this morning. I will be priceless. I pray the wealth of wisdom in their minds and hearts fill ours richly.