LET…. MY…. PEOPLE…. GO !!

Chapter seventeen

The collection every sunday morning gathers more than the people’s money, much more. I will explain….

Jesus: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The Amplified says it this way: “For where your treasure is, there your heart [your wishes, your desires, that on which your life centers] will be also.”

One’s income is one’s treasure, not fully but certainly significantly. It costs much of our lives to earn that precious paycheck or profit. It is indeed a treasure, for most of us more than it should be. Jesus taught us our hearts follow after that treasure; where it goes we go.

Christians depositing ten percent (or whatever) of their income sunday mornings are depositing a piece of their heart. Since it is you who receives their money, it is you and the religion you represent that occupies a large portion of their heart. Every sunday there is a small loyalty shift from Lord Jesus to you. Small times 52 equals significant. Significant times, say, 5 years equals substantial.

Capturing their hearts is capturing their loyalty. That’s how you got your power. First their money, then their loyalty, then their obedience to your “commandments of men”. You have become their little Moses. They are not handcuffed; they are spirit-cuffed.

They do not serve Jesus Christ. Jesus has long ago become a fanciful Lord only. He has been dethroned. Seated in His rightful place is you!

You call the shots. You make the decisions. Your acquired authority does not diminish when your people drive out of the parking lot but accompanies them at home, at the workplace, while on vacation.

Your power cannot be exaggerated. Your people fear you. Without your approval and permission they won’t do anything that has resemblance to spiritual ministry. They don’t preach, they rarely finance Christ’s Great Commission, their social media postings are irrelevant.

You have created a bunch, you control the bunch and you have enormous leverage over the bunch. (If the word bunch sounds unflattering it is because it is so intended.) No one dares challenge your (supposed) authority because that would threaten their hard-earned social acceptance. Because you are (obviously) God-appointed, obeying you is obeying God.

The following scenario has taken place thousands of times in your evangelical assemblies…..

A new convert, upon invitation, visits your church for the first time. You have trained your people to shower newcomers with warmth and enthusiasm, and the newbie is delighted. What does he do? He looks around, trying to discern how to fit in. Being the novice, he assumes everyone knows more than he does and is so much closer to God. But he assumes incorrectly….

Have you ever, when a little kid, put a flashlight in your mouth in a dark room to see your skin glows? Spiritually speaking, christians glow, some brightly and some dimly. (Jesus: “You are the light of the world.”) Christians are the moon reflecting the light of the sun, Jesus. (Jesus: “I am the light of the world.”) It is the wealth of our relationship with Jesus that determines our brightness. If the new convert could somehow see the glow of everyone in the church would he be impressed or depressed?

He wouldn’t understand why the light of most is so faint. Only a few, very few, shine brightly. And what about you, preaching at the pulpit? He would be shocked that you, the one every calls Pastor, emanate a light dimmer than most. He wouldn’t realize that your commitment to “commandments of men” has caused your light to be seriously weakened. And there are a few other surprises….

Some in the congregation have no light whatsoever, even though they sing reverential songs and shout an occasional Amen! These are the unsaved, common to every evangelical assembly, that everyone assumes are saved. But the biggest surprise is his own light his light is the brightest!!

A typical new convert, he can’t stop talking about Jesus. Jesus touched me! Jesus saved me! And Jesus loves you and everybody! Hey, I want you to read this tract about Jesus! He assumes people attending church have a similar enthusiasm for Christ. Surely they will go forth from sunday service telling others about the heaven that awaits them and the awful hell from which Jesus saved them.

And he would be startled to discover that you want his money, not just an occasional donation but a regular and substantial cut of any wage he earns or profit he makes. Yes, you certainly want to be his guide and teacher and mentor. but you also want his money. Church affairs, especially your (Bible-plus) salary, are enormous. And then there’s the vision for your church that you have convinced the congregation is God- given. Also, you know that a pastor’s salary is usually proportional to money collected, so you exploit every possible potential; new converts are no exception.

“Now it’s time to collect tithes and offerings” you dutifully announce. “Ushers, please pass out the envelopes.” Tithes and offerings? What’s that? In time he would be educated in the evangelical way. He would learn his financial responsibility, and reminded of it quite often. He senses the only way to maintain his welcome and approval is to do what the bunch does, say what they say, and don’t do what they don’t do.

Okay, okay! If God wants my ten percent He can have it. “Remember”, you add insult to injury, “God loves a cheerful giver.”

It’s hard to stand alone, to foster convictions that don’t have the endorsement of most. The influence the majority has over the individual is potent, both in secularism and christianity. To get along you must go along. Unity is good, dissension is bad. Agree, submit, be cheerful – this is the ways and means of every religion.

As the sundays pass, your new convert doesn’t notice his light dimming, his enthusiasm lessening, his conversations less Christ-centered. And he doesn’t notice his loyalty being redirected from Jesus to you and the religion you fondly embrace. In just a few months he stopped following Jesus and became a follower of christians. That’s how you got your power. That’s how christians became evangelicals.

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A while back I had a small brochure delivered throughout Kelowna via the Kelowna Daily Courier, our city newspaper. The title: DOES JESUS WANT US TO TITHE? A Challenge to Evangelical Christians. (It’s almost impossible to communicate with christians in one’s city. Pastors are never going to give anyone access to their beloved and prized pulpits except, very occasionally, to one of their own. So the secular media is the only means of access.)

First, I compared the mosaic tithe (imposed upon the Israelites) to the evangelical tithe (imposed by evangelicals on evangelicals): mosaic tithe evangelical tithe directed to Israelites only established by God Israelites never tithed income only farm produce was tithed money was not acceptable instantly enforced by God used to support priesthood never used to build well-documented in Bible And then a few questions…. directed to evangelicals established by evangelicals only incomes are tithed only money is acceptable evolved over time used to cover pastor’s salary used to build and maintain no Bible support whatsoever.

Did Jesus endorse the evangelical tithe?

Jesus must loathe the evangelical tithe. Evangelicals have done what all religion do and what God strictly forbids: add to (i.e. alter, modify) God’s Word.

Does Jesus want us to give generously?

Jesus is generous and He wants us, as His ambassadors, to mirror Him. We cannot be too liberal. But generosity must be guided by wisdom and obedience. Billions are invested weekly, by evangelicals, in religious works that actually stifle the purposes of Christ Jesus expects us to give in a manner conducive with NT teaching. This would include, especially, financing His Great Commission.

But who covers the pastor’s salary?

No NT person was salaried. Although Jesus did say, “the laborer is worthy of His wages”, He was referring to “eating and drinking such things as they give” – contributions. All preachers, including Lord Jesus, depended on contributions.

Don’t we need to work together?

A church signboard read: “We can do more together.” It should have read: “We can waste more together.” Every religion and government testifies to this ugly reality. One man submitting to the governance of the Spirit will accomplish much more than ten submitted to the governance of man.

How do we give to Jesus?

We give to Jesus by submitting to the Holy Spirit whom He has sent to us. Jesus promised, “When He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth.” All truth includes guidance in giving. The Spirit governs only those asking to be governed.

What will the “JS of Christ” be like?

Looking around (it’s okay to look around), we can see most are not prepared to meet their Judge. The Bible teaches the disobedient and careless will “suffer loss”, loss of eternal rewards. For most, it seems, christianity is merely a collection of real estate and things, “treasures on earth”, a compilation of “wood, hay, straw”.

Financially, how can I prepare for the JS?

Start over Repent of surrendering your donations to man. Consider opening a special bank account. Call it a JESUS ACCOUNT Be alert that His primary concern is the proliferation of His gospel. A JESUS ACCOUNT, responsibly managed, will assure “treasures in heaven”.