I was listening again this morning to my favorite song writer and worship leader, Dave Bilbrough. Every time I hear him sing this song, "I've Found A Home," it brings tears to my eyes. In the turbulent circumstances of this world, it is so comforting to know that our home is in Him and nothing can touch us there.
(This recording was done at our "Living In Heaven's Embrace Conference" last year.)
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
"You Will Be Blessed Because You Tithe" - One of the 52 Lies Heard In Church Every Sunday
This is one of the chapters from my book, 52 Lies Heard in Church Every Sunday. I'm asked about this subject often so I decided to go ahead and post it here. (The book will be released by Harvest House Publishers in January, 2011)
Here’s a serious hot potato! There are few more guaranteed ways to get people upset than to talk about their money. Even questioning the validity of tithing can get you into trouble in a hurry. But you and I are interested in truth as it is taught in God’s Word, and we can’t be afraid to question anything people say or do. Because of the sensitivity and confusion about this issue, I’m going to take more space and time to answer it.
Tithing is taught in churches all over the world. It is almost taken for granted as truth, which is one of the reasons why people react so strongly when it is challenged. I’m sure most pastors teach it because they sincerely believe that’s what the Bible teaches. But I also think we’d be less than honest if we didn’t acknowledge that we Christian leaders have a vested interest in interpreting the Bible that way. Our need for money to support the work of ministry is a constant reality and can be a daily concern. Most of us went into the ministry to preach and teach God’s Word and to serve in the advancement of His kingdom. Raising funds is, for most of us, a necessary but distasteful duty we often think we have to perform. So anything that makes it easier to do can be really tempting. I read once that when a person’s income depends on him not seeing something, it will be very hard for him to see it.
I’m not saying anybody is being intellectually dishonest or has ulterior motives in what they teach. I’m just saying that we all look at the Bible through our own lenses, and there’s sometimes a reason why we tend to see Scripture in certain ways. Certainly when it comes to the matter of what’s called “storehouse tithing” — tithing to the local church — there’s reason to question our own motives and thinking to be sure that our viewpoint isn’t influenced by our circumstances.
Let’s make sure we know what the issue is. The word “tithe” means a tenth of something. Therefore it would be redundant to say, “I tithe ten percent.” The real issue is not whether people will benefit from giving a tenth of their income away in ministry, or if it is a meaningful practice for them. The question is whether or not we have to. The teaching I’m challenging is whether God commands believers to tithe. If He does, then those who don’t tithe are living in disobedience to God.
Where tithing is taught as a command, this is the passage almost always used in support:
Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you! Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the LORD of hosts. “All the nations will call you blessed, for you shall be a delightful land,” says the LORD of hosts (Malachi 3:8-12).
The context is God rebuking the nation of Israel for her unfaithfulness to the Old Covenant. The Lord spoke this message through Malachi, one of the last Old Testament prophets, around 400 B.C.
Let’s take a moment to recall how Israel was to live. God separated one tribe, Levi, out of the nation to serve as priests and teachers of the people. From the Levites came the line of High Priests who descended from Aaron. They were responsible for the formal worship at the Tabernacle and Temple. Unlike the other tribes, all of whom received a portion of the land, the Levites were distributed in cities throughout the nation, and were forbidden to work as the others did, such as farming. How were the continuous worship system and Levites to be supported? It was through the tithes of the rest of the people.
That’s why the Law of Moses commands the Israelites to bring tithes of all their blessings to “the storehouse.” The storehouses were literally places to receive the people’s tithes of grain, fruit, wine, sheep, cattle, and so on, for distribution to the Levites and priests — to support the worship and sacrifices at the Sanctuary and for the support of the priests and Levitical families. It was a very practical system. But get this clearly: This was a feature of the Law of Moses, the Old Covenant. And notice, there was nothing voluntary about it. The tithe for Old Testament Israel was no more optional than what you or I must give to the Internal Revenue Service when we pay our taxes. The tithe from Israel was mandatory, not an option.
As we have seen so many times in this book, we do not live under the Law. We live in the age of the New Covenant, and the New Testament after the cross and resurrection is where we learn principles of living that apply directly to us.
I know somebody is going to say, “Now wait a minute, Steve! You’re saying tithing is Old Covenant, but they tithed even before the law was given.” Well, that’s true. Tithing was fairly common in the ancient world for the support of one’s religion and to recognize one’s sovereign. There is a well-known example of Abraham giving a tithe to the priest-king Melchizedek following his military victory in Genesis 14:17-20. This is how some teachers argue that, since this was before the Law of Moses, the principle continues after the Law of Moses.
But may I point out a few things? They also sacrificed animals before the Law was given. I don’t hear anybody at church on Sunday insisting that we ought to be sacrificing animals today. God gave Abraham the practice of circumcision centuries before the Law, but I don’t hear preachers demanding that today. Also before the Law were the practices of polygamy and Levirite marriage (where a surviving brother must marry his dead brother’s wife). So the fact that something was practiced before the Law means nothing in regard to whether the principle continues after the Law.
And one more thing: Did you know that according to the Bible, the tithe actually was not just ten percent? There were additional tithes throughout the year. So if you add up all the tithes that they gave, it amounted to around 22 percent! So, if they only gave ten percent, they were still robbing God, according to Malachi 3:10. Is there any verse in the Scripture that’s been used to beat people over the head more about money than that?
The idea that we will be blessed because we tithe, or punished if we don’t, is solidly an Old Covenant teaching. You will find nothing about tithing in the New Testament. Does that mean we are left without guidance for Christian giving? Far from it! The New Testament teachings on giving go far beyond tithing. Let me summarize them in the following points:
1. New Covenant giving is responsive. Just as the whole Christian life is motivated, we freely and gratefully give because we have first received from the Lord. “We love because He first loved us,” says 1 John 4:19. You could also say, “We give because He first gave to us.” Those whose hearts have been touched by the amazing grace of Jesus Christ find themselves stirred with the desire to give.
2. New Covenant giving is gracious. Unlike the law of tithing, which was mandatory and specific, Christian giving is voluntary and comes from the heart. It is absolutely not a command, which the Scriptures make clear. As Paul was urging the Corinthians to join him in giving to support the poor at Jerusalem, he writes:
Just as you abound in everything, in faith and utterance and knowledge and in all earnestness and in the love we inspired in you, see that you abound in this gracious work also. I am not speaking this as a command, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity of your love also (2 Corinthians 8:7-8).
Paul said that, when it came to this matter of giving, he had no “command.” The motivation for the Corinthians to give would be “the sincerity of [their] love.” He even called the act of giving a “gracious work.” It is a work of God’s grace operating in us that motivates us to give, not an external demand to tithe. He wrote, “Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
As you can see, this is totally different from the command to tithe, with curses or blessings tied to disobedience or obedience. And there is no specific amount Christians are told to give. Paul says, “as he has purposed in his heart.” It’s between you and God.
3. New Covenant giving is purposeful. That means it is thoughtful and intelligent, and is aimed at specific objectives, chiefly two: (1) To advance the cause of the gospel, through supporting people and ministries, and (2) To meet the needs of people, the poor, hungry and needy.
To the first point, Paul says, “The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him” (Galatians 6:6). To the second, Paul explains some of the positive results that happen when God’s people give generously:
For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God. Because of the proof given by this ministry, they will glorify God for your obedience to your confession of the gospel of Christ and for the liberality of your contribution to them and to all, while they also, by prayer on your behalf, yearn for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you (2 Corinthians 9:12-14).
Genuine grace giving meets the need of people, motivates the receivers to honor God and give thanks, proves the reality of our faith, advances the work of the gospel, and builds unity and love in the body of Christ. What more reasons do we need? Well, if you need one more, the Lord Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
The Old Testament tithe was a tax, not a gift. A lot of times today, people have that same legalistic attitude about giving. They think they have to give ten percent of their income. They believe that if you don’t tithe, your refrigerator will tear up, or your car is going to need repair, or your kids are going to need braces. You know the kind of thing. They’re really paying insurance more than anything when they give that way. I’ve said that sometimes the way people pay their tithes, you would think they’re being held hostage by God. They better pay up that ransom or God’s going to allow some bad thing to happen to them. What nonsense.
Others have said that the matter of tithing is a “revelation” that must come to you. If by that, it is meant that God’s Spirit will reveal that everybody needs to give ten percent, I strongly disagree. The Holy Spirit won’t reveal something that contradicts what the Bible teaches and the Scripture teaches grace giving, not tithing.
Are we blessed when we give? Yes, it is a blessing to give, if you are giving out of faith and love for the Lord, and from a desire to do good for others in Jesus’ name. But if you understand tithing to be a set amount you must give to be obedient to God, the answer is no. There is no blessing to be found in obeying a demand to give a tenth. The blessing comes from giving itself, just as Jesus said. The amount depends on what the Holy Spirit leads you to give. If you are giving in faith and love, you will be blessed for giving 5% or 8% or 15%. We give according to our ability. For some, 10% is currently impossible. Some may consider giving much more because of the abundance the Lord has granted them. “For if the readiness is present, it acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have,” is the way Paul described it in 2 Corinthians 8:12.
We live in a day of grace and we practice grace giving. Do I believe in giving? Yes. Do I believe that we are to be generous in what we give? Yes. I can’t imagine that grace will ever cause you to do less than legalism will. We live in a time of grace where we’re motivated to give because we love. We love the Lord Jesus Christ and we want to give. We want to give to the work of the kingdom. We give because we’ve received the love of the Father, we have the nature of Jesus Christ, and it is our nature to give. I can assure you that grace will cause us to be more generous and to be cheerful givers, as opposed to giving grudgingly from a heart that is locked into the Old Covenant teaching of tithing. We give because we love and because we want to, not because we have to.
Here’s a serious hot potato! There are few more guaranteed ways to get people upset than to talk about their money. Even questioning the validity of tithing can get you into trouble in a hurry. But you and I are interested in truth as it is taught in God’s Word, and we can’t be afraid to question anything people say or do. Because of the sensitivity and confusion about this issue, I’m going to take more space and time to answer it.
Tithing is taught in churches all over the world. It is almost taken for granted as truth, which is one of the reasons why people react so strongly when it is challenged. I’m sure most pastors teach it because they sincerely believe that’s what the Bible teaches. But I also think we’d be less than honest if we didn’t acknowledge that we Christian leaders have a vested interest in interpreting the Bible that way. Our need for money to support the work of ministry is a constant reality and can be a daily concern. Most of us went into the ministry to preach and teach God’s Word and to serve in the advancement of His kingdom. Raising funds is, for most of us, a necessary but distasteful duty we often think we have to perform. So anything that makes it easier to do can be really tempting. I read once that when a person’s income depends on him not seeing something, it will be very hard for him to see it.
I’m not saying anybody is being intellectually dishonest or has ulterior motives in what they teach. I’m just saying that we all look at the Bible through our own lenses, and there’s sometimes a reason why we tend to see Scripture in certain ways. Certainly when it comes to the matter of what’s called “storehouse tithing” — tithing to the local church — there’s reason to question our own motives and thinking to be sure that our viewpoint isn’t influenced by our circumstances.
Let’s make sure we know what the issue is. The word “tithe” means a tenth of something. Therefore it would be redundant to say, “I tithe ten percent.” The real issue is not whether people will benefit from giving a tenth of their income away in ministry, or if it is a meaningful practice for them. The question is whether or not we have to. The teaching I’m challenging is whether God commands believers to tithe. If He does, then those who don’t tithe are living in disobedience to God.
Where tithing is taught as a command, this is the passage almost always used in support:
Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you! Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the LORD of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the LORD of hosts. “All the nations will call you blessed, for you shall be a delightful land,” says the LORD of hosts (Malachi 3:8-12).
The context is God rebuking the nation of Israel for her unfaithfulness to the Old Covenant. The Lord spoke this message through Malachi, one of the last Old Testament prophets, around 400 B.C.
Let’s take a moment to recall how Israel was to live. God separated one tribe, Levi, out of the nation to serve as priests and teachers of the people. From the Levites came the line of High Priests who descended from Aaron. They were responsible for the formal worship at the Tabernacle and Temple. Unlike the other tribes, all of whom received a portion of the land, the Levites were distributed in cities throughout the nation, and were forbidden to work as the others did, such as farming. How were the continuous worship system and Levites to be supported? It was through the tithes of the rest of the people.
That’s why the Law of Moses commands the Israelites to bring tithes of all their blessings to “the storehouse.” The storehouses were literally places to receive the people’s tithes of grain, fruit, wine, sheep, cattle, and so on, for distribution to the Levites and priests — to support the worship and sacrifices at the Sanctuary and for the support of the priests and Levitical families. It was a very practical system. But get this clearly: This was a feature of the Law of Moses, the Old Covenant. And notice, there was nothing voluntary about it. The tithe for Old Testament Israel was no more optional than what you or I must give to the Internal Revenue Service when we pay our taxes. The tithe from Israel was mandatory, not an option.
As we have seen so many times in this book, we do not live under the Law. We live in the age of the New Covenant, and the New Testament after the cross and resurrection is where we learn principles of living that apply directly to us.
I know somebody is going to say, “Now wait a minute, Steve! You’re saying tithing is Old Covenant, but they tithed even before the law was given.” Well, that’s true. Tithing was fairly common in the ancient world for the support of one’s religion and to recognize one’s sovereign. There is a well-known example of Abraham giving a tithe to the priest-king Melchizedek following his military victory in Genesis 14:17-20. This is how some teachers argue that, since this was before the Law of Moses, the principle continues after the Law of Moses.
But may I point out a few things? They also sacrificed animals before the Law was given. I don’t hear anybody at church on Sunday insisting that we ought to be sacrificing animals today. God gave Abraham the practice of circumcision centuries before the Law, but I don’t hear preachers demanding that today. Also before the Law were the practices of polygamy and Levirite marriage (where a surviving brother must marry his dead brother’s wife). So the fact that something was practiced before the Law means nothing in regard to whether the principle continues after the Law.
And one more thing: Did you know that according to the Bible, the tithe actually was not just ten percent? There were additional tithes throughout the year. So if you add up all the tithes that they gave, it amounted to around 22 percent! So, if they only gave ten percent, they were still robbing God, according to Malachi 3:10. Is there any verse in the Scripture that’s been used to beat people over the head more about money than that?
The idea that we will be blessed because we tithe, or punished if we don’t, is solidly an Old Covenant teaching. You will find nothing about tithing in the New Testament. Does that mean we are left without guidance for Christian giving? Far from it! The New Testament teachings on giving go far beyond tithing. Let me summarize them in the following points:
1. New Covenant giving is responsive. Just as the whole Christian life is motivated, we freely and gratefully give because we have first received from the Lord. “We love because He first loved us,” says 1 John 4:19. You could also say, “We give because He first gave to us.” Those whose hearts have been touched by the amazing grace of Jesus Christ find themselves stirred with the desire to give.
2. New Covenant giving is gracious. Unlike the law of tithing, which was mandatory and specific, Christian giving is voluntary and comes from the heart. It is absolutely not a command, which the Scriptures make clear. As Paul was urging the Corinthians to join him in giving to support the poor at Jerusalem, he writes:
Just as you abound in everything, in faith and utterance and knowledge and in all earnestness and in the love we inspired in you, see that you abound in this gracious work also. I am not speaking this as a command, but as proving through the earnestness of others the sincerity of your love also (2 Corinthians 8:7-8).
Paul said that, when it came to this matter of giving, he had no “command.” The motivation for the Corinthians to give would be “the sincerity of [their] love.” He even called the act of giving a “gracious work.” It is a work of God’s grace operating in us that motivates us to give, not an external demand to tithe. He wrote, “Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
As you can see, this is totally different from the command to tithe, with curses or blessings tied to disobedience or obedience. And there is no specific amount Christians are told to give. Paul says, “as he has purposed in his heart.” It’s between you and God.
3. New Covenant giving is purposeful. That means it is thoughtful and intelligent, and is aimed at specific objectives, chiefly two: (1) To advance the cause of the gospel, through supporting people and ministries, and (2) To meet the needs of people, the poor, hungry and needy.
To the first point, Paul says, “The one who is taught the word is to share all good things with the one who teaches him” (Galatians 6:6). To the second, Paul explains some of the positive results that happen when God’s people give generously:
For the ministry of this service is not only fully supplying the needs of the saints, but is also overflowing through many thanksgivings to God. Because of the proof given by this ministry, they will glorify God for your obedience to your confession of the gospel of Christ and for the liberality of your contribution to them and to all, while they also, by prayer on your behalf, yearn for you because of the surpassing grace of God in you (2 Corinthians 9:12-14).
Genuine grace giving meets the need of people, motivates the receivers to honor God and give thanks, proves the reality of our faith, advances the work of the gospel, and builds unity and love in the body of Christ. What more reasons do we need? Well, if you need one more, the Lord Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
The Old Testament tithe was a tax, not a gift. A lot of times today, people have that same legalistic attitude about giving. They think they have to give ten percent of their income. They believe that if you don’t tithe, your refrigerator will tear up, or your car is going to need repair, or your kids are going to need braces. You know the kind of thing. They’re really paying insurance more than anything when they give that way. I’ve said that sometimes the way people pay their tithes, you would think they’re being held hostage by God. They better pay up that ransom or God’s going to allow some bad thing to happen to them. What nonsense.
Others have said that the matter of tithing is a “revelation” that must come to you. If by that, it is meant that God’s Spirit will reveal that everybody needs to give ten percent, I strongly disagree. The Holy Spirit won’t reveal something that contradicts what the Bible teaches and the Scripture teaches grace giving, not tithing.
Are we blessed when we give? Yes, it is a blessing to give, if you are giving out of faith and love for the Lord, and from a desire to do good for others in Jesus’ name. But if you understand tithing to be a set amount you must give to be obedient to God, the answer is no. There is no blessing to be found in obeying a demand to give a tenth. The blessing comes from giving itself, just as Jesus said. The amount depends on what the Holy Spirit leads you to give. If you are giving in faith and love, you will be blessed for giving 5% or 8% or 15%. We give according to our ability. For some, 10% is currently impossible. Some may consider giving much more because of the abundance the Lord has granted them. “For if the readiness is present, it acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have,” is the way Paul described it in 2 Corinthians 8:12.
We live in a day of grace and we practice grace giving. Do I believe in giving? Yes. Do I believe that we are to be generous in what we give? Yes. I can’t imagine that grace will ever cause you to do less than legalism will. We live in a time of grace where we’re motivated to give because we love. We love the Lord Jesus Christ and we want to give. We want to give to the work of the kingdom. We give because we’ve received the love of the Father, we have the nature of Jesus Christ, and it is our nature to give. I can assure you that grace will cause us to be more generous and to be cheerful givers, as opposed to giving grudgingly from a heart that is locked into the Old Covenant teaching of tithing. We give because we love and because we want to, not because we have to.
Do We Proclaim A Potential Gospel or a Finished Gospel?
For many years I proclaimed what I now believe was only a "potential gospel." I taught that if a person believed on Jesus Christ, then God would forgive his sin and reconcile that person to Himself. Studying the Scripture over the past few years, I've come to see how misguided, albeit sincere, my approach to the gospel was. I didn't preach a finished gospel. The word "gospel" means good news and the good news of the work of Christ is that it is a finished work. Jesus said from the cross, "It is finished" and He meant it. In fact, when our High Priest ascended back to His Father He did something no other priest of God had ever done in the Holy of Holies. He sat down. Jesus didn't sit down by the right hand of the Father because He was tired. He sat down because He was finished. All that the Father, Son and Spirit had planned to do for mankind had been accomplished at the cross. The first Adam had brought humanity down into the darkness of sin, but the Last Adam remedied what the first Adam had done. He gathered us all up into Himself, took us to the cross with Him, and then and there the Adamic race died. Out from the tomb walked a new humanity - one reconciled to God because in Jesus we were forgiven and justified.
The gospel is the fantastic news that because of what Jesus has done, we can now live in freedom. Freedom from our religious attempts to justify ourselves before God. Freedom from guilt and condemnation. Freedom from fearing God. Freedom to be who we are - a new creation in Christ Jesus.
What Jesus has done, He has done and nobody's unbelief is big enough to negate it. Unbelief simply causes a person to continue to stand in his own personal darkness, with all of its implications and subjective consequences, despite the fact that the Light of the World has come and taken care of the need of every one us without asking so much as an opinion on the matter from us. Our faith doesn't make it true. Faith simply allows us to walk in what was already true before there was an inkling of belief stirring inside us. God showed mankind just how much He loved in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (See Romans 5:8)
The Bible doesn't present a potential gospel - what can happen. It presents a complete gospel of what has happened in Jesus Christ. Theologian Thomas Torrance summarized the gospel well:
God loves you so utterly and completely that he has given himself for you in Jesus Christ his beloved Son, and has thereby pledged his very being as God for your salvation. In Jesus Christ God has actualised his unconditional love for you in your human nature in such a once for all way, that he cannot go back upon it without undoing the Incarnation and the Cross and thereby denying himself. Jesus Christ died for you precisely because you are sinful and utterly unworthy of him, and has thereby already made you his own before and apart from your ever believing in him. He has bound you to himself by his love in a way that he will never let you go, for even if you refuse him and damn yourself in hell his love will never cease. Therefore, repent and believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Saviour. (T. F. Torrance, “The Mediation of Christ,” 94)
Let's make sure when we share the gospel that we offer the finished work of Christ as the answer. Anything less is a watered down version of the gospel and a watered down gospel is no gospel at all.
Monday, August 16, 2010
God's Not Who You Think
Here are two more interviews I recently did with my friend, Greg Albrecht, of Plain Truth Ministries in Pasadena, California.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
He Lives In You
"The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, the firmament and they that dwell therein" (Psalm 24:1).
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
A Personal Prayer Request
Dear friends,As those who've been reading my blog through the years know, I said from the start that this blog would include personal matters as well as public issues in my life. This one is personal. I'm writing this blog to ask you to pray for my wife, Melanie, tomorrow.
A couple of years ago, Melanie was diagnosed with a degenerative spinal disease that has become progressively worse over time. She has been through therapy, medication, neurologists, pain management treatment, and exercise to address the situation. As we have prayed and trusted our Father for healing throughout the process, we have sought to be sensitive to His leadership in how to proceed. Her pain and degree of debilitation has reached a level at which we have been advised that surgery is the best route to address the situation.
After prayer and doing our due diligence with a particular surgeon, Melanie decided to move forward with the operation. That surgery will take place in Atlanta tomorrow morning at 8:00 EST. She will spend several nights in the hospital afterward and will come home in a back brace they tell us she will wear for four months. They plan for her to have two months of physical therapy and believe this will both restore some normalcy to her lifestyle and eliminate pain in that part of her back.
Because we believe those who read this blog sincerely care, not only about my ministry, but about us as people, I am posting this to ask for your prayers. We don't need anything other than the knowledge that you are praying with us about this.
For the record, we believe in Jehovah-Rapha - the LORD our Healer. I didn't grow up in a charismatic environment but have learned much from my charismatic friends. So you guys go ahead and name it, claim it and proclaim it from the bottom of your hearts. To those who grew up like I did, please utter a prayer for me to have peace and cross your fingers, will you? (Okay, I'm just having some fun here. Don't take those last two sentences seriously! :)
But I am serious about wanting you all to pray for us. We trust our Abba but at the same time feel nervous. The Doc says these first few days for her won't be fun, to put it mildly. So would you pray with us that her recovery would be easier than they project? And pray that it will be sooner rather than later? And pray that the surgery will have the desired result?
Do I think prayer manipulates what God will do? No, I don't. But, if you are so moved, it is a great way for you to join Him and us in what He is doing in our lives. We know that, in the grand scheme of things, this isn't a biggie - but it sure feels that way right now. So we ask that our friends share this experience with us through your prayers.
I thank God that we have wonderful children who are committed to attend to specific, practical needs after the operation. Now, I'm finally finding it was worth those teen-age years after all! :)
Thank you, my friends. Our Father's grace is sufficient. I don't just teach this stuff. I believe it. For many years, Melanie and I have regularly declared to each other out loud, in these words, "God is God...and God is good." We believe that, no matter what life's circumstances may bring.
I'll update you on her progress as I'm able.
Steve
Monday, August 9, 2010
New Covenant Evangelism
Here's a note I received in response to last week's "Sunday Preaching." This is New Covenant evangelism . . .
From Rob:
"I was called to the home of a dying elderly man to sing and pray with him. A few folks from church came with me. At the house the man had lots of family around, inside and outside the house. Many were smoking outside and wouldn’t come inside with us, so I asked everyone to come outside for a moment. I told them all “I want to share great, great news. The gospel is not understood by most but the message of the gospel is our sins are already forgiven and I can tell each one here, your sins are forgiven. You don’t need to be forgiven, you already are. The gospel is not to make us ashamed and guilty but to take those things away. All you have to do is acknowledge that, believe it because it is true.” I used the thief on the cross as the example. Many of them wept and it was so easy and exciting to share the gospel this way. We had a great time with the old man and we shared it all with him as well. It felt as natural as when Jesus looked at people and told them their sins were forgiven."
From Rob:
"I was called to the home of a dying elderly man to sing and pray with him. A few folks from church came with me. At the house the man had lots of family around, inside and outside the house. Many were smoking outside and wouldn’t come inside with us, so I asked everyone to come outside for a moment. I told them all “I want to share great, great news. The gospel is not understood by most but the message of the gospel is our sins are already forgiven and I can tell each one here, your sins are forgiven. You don’t need to be forgiven, you already are. The gospel is not to make us ashamed and guilty but to take those things away. All you have to do is acknowledge that, believe it because it is true.” I used the thief on the cross as the example. Many of them wept and it was so easy and exciting to share the gospel this way. We had a great time with the old man and we shared it all with him as well. It felt as natural as when Jesus looked at people and told them their sins were forgiven."
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