If pastors ever want to ensure low attendance some Sunday,
all they have to do is announce the week preceding that they’ll be preaching on
tithing. Messages about money attract congregants like vinegar attracts honeybees.
“All they want is money,” is a common complaint uttered by some about the
contemporary church.
We don’t like being told how to handle our money, whether by
the clergy, parents, friends, or sometimes, even our spouse. After all, it’s
“my money,” isn’t it? I have every right to do with it as I choose, don’t I?
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| Whose money is it, anyway? |
I don’t intend to explore the concept of tithing, but one
principle has helped me over the years in not maintaining such a tight grip on
my wallet. As a friend explained, from a biblical perspective it’s not “our”
money. We are not “owners” of our possessions, including our cash and bank
accounts, but stewards – or managers.
In His so-called Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30),
Jesus told of a wealthy man who, before leaving on a journey, entrusted talents
(some money) to his servants. He asked them to manage the money in an
appropriate way during his absence, and upon his return, they would give an
account of what they had done with it.
Two of the servants invested the talents wisely, doubling
the amounts that had been entrusted to them. Both were commended for their
stewardship and then informed they would be given even greater
responsibilities: “Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful
over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master”
(Matthew 25:21.23).
The third servant, however, did nothing with the money
entrusted to him, choosing instead to hide it until the rich owner returned.
His explanation? “Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did
not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went
and hid your talent in the ground” (Matthew 25:24).
None of these servants owned the money in their possession,
but still were expected to put it to good, productive use. In a similar way, we
might work hard to earn our paychecks, but ultimately the money is not ours,
but God’s. Our skills, abilities and gifts come from Him. He simply asks us to
be wise in how we manage or use our financial resources. And if He asks us to
give a portion of that directly to help in advancing His eternal kingdom, is
that too much to ask?
This principle reminds me of how “our money” – the taxes we
pay to the Federal government – are being used. We often hear, from both
Democrats and Republicans, about the “government” funding various projects,
ranging from education to highways. Our elected officials, from the President
to members of Congress to those who serve at the local government level, seem
to view themselves as owners of tax revenues, authorized to use the funds as
they choose.
But lately there’s been a strong pushback, taxpayers
complaining that in reality the government – Federal, state and local – has no
money of its own. They note that in a real sense, government leaders are basically
managers – stewards – asked to use the funds entrusted to them with wisdom and
frugality.
Government seems to have stepped into the role
of the wealthy man in the Bible, described by one of his servants as “a hard
man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed.”
This isn’t advocating non-payment of taxes. In fact, I
believe all U.S. citizens have a responsibility to pay their fair share to
support functions of government, ranging from law enforcement and emergency
responders who come in times of need to road crews that pave our streets and
fill in potholes. If God has prospered us financially, we have an obligation to
help in supporting not only His work, but also the public works from which we
all benefit.
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