PUTTING YOUR MONEY TO WORK IN THE BODY OF CHRIST
Pastor Tim P. Blaisure – 02/26/23 – Message #5 “The Foundation”
(Info from: “Money with a Mission” by Dr. Leroy Thompson, SR.)
INTRO:
Being Money Missionaries consist of:
- MONEY FOR SOULS
- THIS WORLD IS NOT OUR HOME
- NOT WASTING GOODS
- WHY WE HAVEN’T HAD OUR BREAKTHROUGH YET
- REPENT AND BE SENSITIVE
- CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD STEWARD
- YOUR MONEY IS SOUL WINNING MONEY
- HOLDING TO TIGHT TO MONEY
- NO MORE “DIGGING DUTY”
We are making life decisions every day. The problem with poor stewardship is that eventually you will find yourself on your own and without what you need to live on.
We must evaluate our situation and repent of our poor stewardship practices. We also need to make it our goal to make adjustments so that we don’t fall back into poor stewardship practices. We must remain sensitive to God’s leading and to be willing and obedient to His instructions.
FOUNDATION SCRIPTURES:
Luke 16:3-6 NKJV
3 “Then the steward said within himself, ‘What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg.
4 I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.’
5 “So he called every one of his master’s debtors to him, and said to the first, ‘How much do you owe my master?’
6 And he said, ‘A hundred measures of oil.’ So, he said to him, ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’
Philippians 2:12
Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling;
Galatians 3:28
There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Matthew 6:24
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon (money)
I. THE FOUNDATION FOR STEWARDSHIP – TITHING:
Malachi 3:10-11
“Bring all the tithes into the storehouse (Church you attend),
That there may be food in My house,
And try (Test) Me now in this (Tithes),”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“If I will not open for you the windows of heaven
And pour out for you such blessing
That there will not be room enough to receive it.”
“And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes (Thieves), So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground (destroy harvest), Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,(increase will not stop)” Says the Lord of hosts;
Example:
1. House built on the sand (no foundation)
2. House built on the Rock (Jesus is the Rock of our Salvation – Foundation)
· Many believe that tithing is their stewardship.
· You have not even begun as a steward until you are tithing on all your increase. (it is as alms – God will give you back what you have given.)
· There is no covenant in being a Alms giver.
· The Covenant comes after you lay the foundation with tithes.
· When you are determined to see results in your finances God’s way, you are first to be obedient to His Word.
· The answer is not get another job, but to make sure you are maintaining your stewardship.
· Stewardship is simple. As a money Missionary’s your assignment is to pass that money on the behalf of God.
· The more money you pass out, the more He’s going to give you to pass out.
II. YOUR MONEY PAYS THE WAY FOR THE GOSPEL TO BE PREACHED:
· This is the way sinners hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
· God wants to use your money to call sinners to the Kingdom of God.
· The message of the Gospel is to tell debtors that their debt has been cancelled, that through the blood of Jesus Christ, they need no longer be under Satan’s dominion.
· They have been purchased, bought with a price, and that price was the blood of Jesus.
· Through that blood, they have been delivered from the power of darkness.
· That is what money is for – to pave the way for sinners to hear that their debt of sin has been cancelled.
· When we get a hold of this revelation, we will never think the same again about money.
· When we get a hold of faith and of having a right attitude, or motive, about money, it will be easy to have plenty of it.
· Our giving can change the whole world.
· By having the Gospel preached to the ends of the earth.
· But it can also change our world as we switch financial systems from the natural to the supernatural, from our way of doing things to God’s way of doing things.
· Giving can bring such joy to your heart, because you know your prosperity is not coming from your job or by the struggle, but by the Spirit of the Living God.
· It is by knowing the Covenant – Keeping God.
· With God, you can get alone with Him and hear the orders of the day and distribute to whom He directs.
· You don’t have to be concerned about bills any more because your help is on its way, and you are boldly declaring it.
· Your money emphasis will be on giving instead of receiving.
· The wisdom of God will tell you how to handle money and it will go further than you could ever imagine.
· We are to be representatives of Heaven and Ambassadors of Christ.
· When you are led by the flesh you live a selfish life.
· When you are led by the Holy Spirit you live a selfless life, a productive life, and a meaningful life.
· The Holy Spirit will make sure you are at the right place, at the right time, with the right people, to produce the right results.
· We are on a mission with our money each day to reach the lost at any cost because the price of a soul cost Jesus His life.
· We need to make our money available to Jesus for the news of this to reach everyone.
Conclusion:
The Lord wants us to live extraordinary lives not just ordinary.
He wants us to make our money available to Him.
This gives the Lord the opportunity to pour the blessings and finances through us to others and take care of us at the same time.