We're talking about tithing. It's the fourth in a series. That is very important.
It are giving effects all of our life. So I don't want to dwell on that too much
because it's repetitive, but I want to keep repeating it because what we repeat, we remember.
One of the things that many Christians don't understand, and this is some review from last week,
is God uses money or worldly wealth as a test of our heart. Many Christians think,
well it's just my choice if I should or I shouldn't do or don't or whatever.
No, actually God is watching to see those two items. He's testing our heart.
Now, something happened last Sunday that, again, we got a couple of hiccups
and I don't know if we need to turn our computer into a football and just boot it to the wind
and get a new one or what, but we dropped audio for about five minutes.
So if any of you watch the service or the live stream, you folks watching the live stream especially,
there was like five and a half minutes. There was no audio. There was picture, but there was no audio.
So I want to go back and just recover a couple of things I said because people have been asking,
well what did you say during that time? So it's like, okay, so let me go back and I'll hit it more briefly.
But I had just finished the story of the guy who had confronted me about owning ATVs
and yet he smoked two packs of cigarettes a day and his wife about one.
And I was comparing costs there and how that over their lifetime from age 20 to retirement 65
and that wasn't their whole lifetime, but I just took those years.
How much they had been spending on smoking, but yet they didn't think it was right for me
who does not smoke to be able to afford an ATV.
So we had just talked about that and then we lost sound and we missed the next application
which I want to point this out because many times we don't understand it's the small things
that over time accumulate and we're not paying attention to the accumulation.
Life is an accumulation process, either for good or bad. It can go either way.
But something, you know, when I was growing up the big thing was smoking.
Now the big thing is not smoking. The big thing now on a daily basis is coffee, coffee.
So I took one while I was talking and there was no sound.
I took the smoking principle and I applied it to coffee every day.
So now just think about this. I want you to understand because there's...
It is, I will admit this according to statistics, it's more difficult for the generation coming into adulthood now
to be financially solvent than it was for mine.
And it was more difficult for us than it was for my parents
because of the way the government likes to keep us slaves. Let me just say it that way.
However, there are some decisions that can be made to help remedy some of that.
Like for instance, if you spend $5 a day on coffee, if you Starbucks, Caribou, whatever
and you usually can't get in there and out for $5, but if you do it one time a day
and some people do it two times, I've had people say, well, you know, like I said last Sunday
I don't want to go to work so I got to grab my coffee to get going.
And at the end of the day I feel so good I'm done with work, I got to grab a coffee
as a reward on the way home. It's like, okay, so now you're up to two.
But let's just go with one. If you do it and your wife does it, that's $10 a day.
It doesn't sound like much. Over 45 years, you have any idea what you're going to spend on coffee?
$3,650 a year if both are drinking $1, $5 coffee a day.
You're spending $3,600 a year. In 10 years, that's $36,500.
In 40 years, that's $146,000. If you start at 20 and end at when you're 65,
it's $164,000 you gave to Caribou or Starbucks.
See, it might seem small, but it's that repetitive.
The first church I was at, I had told you this before, the guy who invented the barn cleaner
and so he would talk to me about his business and so I'd ask him things,
well, how much are you making off of an item and how does it work and et cetera?
Because I was young, I didn't understand business, so he'd explain it all.
And he said, I'd much rather be in the grocery business. I said, really?
He said, yeah, the whole key to business is you make a little bit off each item
and the key is to sell a lot of items. He said, I sell a few things
and he was very well to do. He said, but become paired to a grocery store
that might make ten cents off of an item, but sell thousands of them.
He said it accumulates way faster.
Well, that works on the positive, but it also works on the negative.
Affordability is tied to what we spend our money on.
You can have all the money in the world and find a way to waste it.
It's what we spend it on and you can be a tither and God can be blessing you
and you're still broke.
Not because you don't have the income, but because you're not watching the outgoal.
Where it's going to.
So you've got 164,000 being spent on coffee.
There's something else that's new that just, I know it's part of our world now,
it's part of our culture, but just grinds on me.
It's subscriptions. Subscriptions.
What a stink and waste of money.
Every month.
And if you're not careful, it'll be hundreds of dollars a month
going out on subscriptions.
How in the world is this worth a thousand bucks every few years?
We had one hanging on the wall that is still hanging on the wall in my parents' house.
They got it when I was in grade school.
It still works fine.
And we're so much more technological and we can't figure out how to make these last.
That's a game.
They're made to break.
So in the whole process of, well, God wants to bless me.
He does.
But there is another side of the coin.
God also wants you to watch how you spend your money.
There is another side to it.
And this I touched last Sunday during that part.
Just a reminder, if God would ask you for some of your money,
would you give it to him?
See, it's a trick question.
If God would ask you for some of your money, would you give it to him?
It's not our money.
And I went through the list.
I won't do it this morning because I got other things I want to cover.
But I went through the list of everything that God considers his.
It's not ours. Money's not ours.
Our home is not ours.
Our clothes are not ours.
Everything is God's.
And He's given it to us to use, and we need to steward it.
So when He asks for something, He's asking for what is already His.
And He names a number of things.
Scripture, the tithe, the world and everything in it,
silver and gold, the heavens, the secret things, the mountain peaks.
I mean, there's some things that are just specifically named.
But when He said the world and everything in it is mine,
well, that kind of covers everything else.
It's not ours.
So it's like when God asks you for it, in covenant,
we don't have a right to say no,
because it's actually His and we're exchanging with Him.
So I hit this, I believe, while the quiet part was
and then it came on after this.
So how do we view money?
How do we view wealth?
Here's three questions to help us answer that.
Coming from the concept of we're stewards, it all belongs to God.
And He's asking us to take care of it and oversee it
and work with it in that whole process.
How do we view it?
Well, when you buy something, especially something a little larger,
do you get God's permission to spend the money on that?
Did you ask God, should I buy this?
Because you're not spending your money, you're spending His.
But see, that helps us understand how we're looking at it.
Is this mine or is this His?
When we break something that He did say,
yeah, go ahead and go ahead and buy that car.
And then we get careless, sloppy, whatever.
And we pile it into the ditch and we ruin it.
Do we ever apologize to Him and say,
sorry, God, I messed up.
Sorry, I broke your car.
See, I just asked these questions to point out
the average American does not look at money as being
or finances or buildings or property or anything as being God's.
We actually look at it as being ours.
And that's unscriptural.
But it's our society.
We make a bad decision with money. Do we apologize?
We're playing stock market or whatever.
We're trying to earn some money there.
We make some bad decisions. We lose money.
Do we ever say, God, sorry, I missed that one.
Or when we make money, God, thank you for helping me make that good decision.
See, these are all whose money is this?
Whose finances is this? Whose house really is it?
If our attitude is right, and that's what we're going to talk about this morning,
is the attitude of how we're supposed to view this.
But if our attitude is right, our whole approach is, this is not mine.
This is God's. And someday I will answer for how I took care of it.
If he can't trust me with worldly wealth, isn't that what he said?
Why would he trust me with worldly wealth? Because it's his.
Not ours. If we can't be trusted with worldly wealth, how can he trust us with true riches?
So it's, it's, I know we're, we're in a series where the Americans come from the perspective of
show us how God just wants to give us more, more, more, more.
Well, there is a part to this whole thing in Scripture where God wants our attitude right.
So I thought, well, before we're totally done with this, we need to talk about this.
So I think that was the end of, of where it, where it came, when the sound came back
and then from there you got it. So that filled that in.
I want to have, and you can get the video clips ready.
The, the, we've got two video clips, a short one, they're going to show that first.
And then there's one like two and a half minutes.
And I want to show something here because I've had so many people come to me and say,
Andrew Womack does not believe in tithing.
Andrew Womack says we don't have to tithe.
Andrew Womack, Andrew Womack.
Okay. Now, number one, last I checked, Andrew Womack's not God.
Do you know that he could actually be wrong?
Number two. Oh, okay. So, but he has such a large ministry.
If you're going to go by large ministry for the confirmation that they're right,
we really need to quit Christianity and get on the Muslim side.
Because they're doing a lot better.
When they set up mosques, they put hundreds of millions into them.
So, if bigger is better, we're on the wrong side.
Now, let me just point this out.
To God, bigger is never better in Scripture.
How many spies went into the Promised Land?
The bigger number was the wrong number.
How many troops were going to go with Gideon to take down the Philistines?
Anybody remember?
Around 30,000.
And God didn't like that.
Bigger's not better.
We got to get this down to 300.
But for whatever reason, again, I don't know if it's a worldwide thing or an American thing,
we think bigger proves it's better.
Okay? That doesn't mean nothing to God.
Nothing.
And number two, for those of you that say,
well, Andrew Womack doesn't believe in tithing,
it's amazing to me how people hear what they want to hear.
That is not true.
And I thought, well, I'm going to lay this thing to rest,
because apparently there's Andrew Womack followers in Minnesota.
And they're not liking what I'm saying.
So let's play these two short videos.
Pay attention to what the man actually has to say.
I'll let him speak for himself.
The tithe was not just Old Testament.
The tithe was in place before the Old Testament law, Genesis chapter 14.
But the law placed a curse on you,
punishment on you if you didn't tithe.
But in the New Covenant, we are redeemed from the curse.
Galatians chapter three, let me turn over here and read this.
Galatians chapter three, and in verse 13,
Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law,
being made a curse for us for it is written,
cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree,
that the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ
that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
We are redeemed from the curse.
There's all kinds of curses that were given
under the Old Testament law, but Malachi chapter three,
verse eight is a curse of the Old Testament law.
You're redeemed from that.
You are not cursed if you don't tithe or give offerings.
Christ redeemed us from the curse.
Does this mean that we no longer tithe and give offerings?
Wait, you aren't cursed anymore if you don't do it.
You're just stupid.
You're just stupid if you don't tithe and give offerings.
But you aren't cursed, stupid.
God's not mad at you.
You're free to not do it, but God gives us all of these things.
Everything that we have comes from God,
and it's just like if somebody gave you all of this seed
and you can plant this seed and you could get a harvest
and then go sell it and become a millionaire off of it.
But if you eat all of that seed and never plant any of it,
you're going to be hungry in the future.
You need to use enough discipline
to take a portion of what you get and plant it
and prepare for your future.
God gives us all of these resources
and you still should be tithing
and you still should be giving,
even though you aren't cursed,
even though the motivation has changed.
Okay, so while they prepare the second one,
let me say this. I agree with everything you said.
I've said it over and over.
We're not under a curse if we don't tithe.
However, tithing brings the blessing.
Amen.
So if you don't...
It's like...
I won't go side-track.
If you don't tithe,
you're just losing out on the blessing.
So when you don't have enough money, quit whining
because you made that choice.
You chose not to
get in on the blessing.
But I agree with everything he said.
Now the next video clip, he's going to say
what I've said about the exchange
and the tithe is the exchange
for the covenant with Abraham
that was set up and so forth.
He's going to come from a little bit different direction
but he's saying the exact same thing.
Go ahead with that one.
You don't give to get,
but when you give, you need to believe
that you are going to get it back
so that you can continue to give
and even give more.
So there is a balance here
and even though I have spent four and a half weeks
or so just emphasizing
the proper motivation
in trying to discredit
or not discredit but
devalue
the personal benefit that giving does to you
you also need to know
that it will bless you and benefit you.
Let me use some scriptures here
in Proverbs chapter 3
and I want to
get down to verse 9 and 10
but let me start in verse 5.
This is a verse that we often use
and totally disconnected
from finances but in context
it's also applying to
finances. It says in Proverbs 3
5, trust in the Lord with all
thine heart and lean not
unto thine own understanding in all
thy ways acknowledge him and he
shall direct thy paths.
And see we use those verses and talk about
finding the will of God, going into what
vocation, what mate you're going to get
your just daily decisions
you just trust in the Lord.
But if you continue reading in verse 7
it says be not wise in thine own eyes
fear the Lord and depart from evil
so shall it be health to thy navel
and moral to thy bones. And then in verse
9 he says honor the Lord with all
thy substance and with
the first fruits of all thine
increase so shall thy barns be filled
with plenty and thy presses
shall burst out with new wine.
Did you know that that's
in the same context as trust in the
Lord with all the heart and lean not
unto your own understanding?
You know I'm saying this in love
but there's people watching this program
that you say you love God
and I'm not saying that you don't
but I'm saying your love
isn't complete it hasn't
reached the depth or the dimension
that it should
if you aren't giving
and honoring the Lord. It says
that it's honoring to the Lord
when you give.
I believe by extension you could say
it's dishonoring the Lord
when you don't give. And I know there's
people watching this program that says
well no I'm not dishonoring him I just don't
have anything to give. No you have
something to give. Everybody
if you're watching this you're watching
it on television. They don't
just give away televisions.
You know it costs money. Most of you
that are watching this are watching it on
satellite or something where you had to
pay for that feed to come in.
You've got money. It's just
an allocation of how you use it.
And you
need to honor the Lord
with your first fruits.
Look at this. Honor the Lord with
thy substance and with the first
fruits of all that increase.
Not the leftover fruits. Not
if I have something to spare
fruits. The first
fruits. The very first thing you need
to do you need to give. And if you aren't
doing that you aren't honoring
the Lord. I know
that there's many of you that aren't
giving like this and you haven't ever thought
well I'm not dishonoring the Lord. I just
don't have it. No, the Lord has promised
you and I'll be getting to some of these
other scriptures but Luke 6 38. Give
and it shall be given unto you. Good
measure. Press down. Shaking together and
running over shall man give into your
bosom. And so the Lord says
when you give it's going to be
given back unto you. And when you
don't do that it's because
you don't honor
what the Lord said. If you really
honored it you would give.
So
can we lay that to rest
now? Andrew
Ohmack actually believes
in tithing. You
don't have to
but you're not overly intelligent
if you don't.
That's what he believes.
See tithing
to us is a bill.
It's not an option. It's a bill.
It's like the house payment.
And it's the first
bill that gets paid.
Not the last. It's the first bill.
And if you will honor what
God asked for it that way
your bills will always be paid.
If you make it first
first fruits first
and first fruits goes a
different direction but that was
his point. Make it first.
Now the one thing I want
to point out is I 100% agree with
them. We have been redeemed from
the curse of the law.
However, that comes by
faith.
Everything we receive from God
comes by faith. Do you know
that sickness and disease
are part of the curse?
Then why are we struggling with
it if we've been redeemed from it?
You know I had someone
tell me, well
the demonic thing in Christians
that's part of the curse in the Old Testament.
Yes, but everything
comes by faith.
Just because God
bought something for us
and is offering it
doesn't mean it's automatic
in our life. We have to
apply it and make it operate
by faith.
So
if being free from
sickness and disease
is not automatic
it's a part of the curse.
Then you can look at the rest
of the curses.
They're not automatic either. Are we
bought back from them? Absolutely.
But we have to go after
them by faith.
Before Jesus' sacrifice
we weren't redeemed from them.
They would rule in our life, there's
nothing we could do about it. Since Jesus
now he said, hey I
took care of that for you.
Appropriate it by faith and go after it.
So I just wanted to point that out.
So now let's jump into what we want
to talk about this morning.
Let's see if I can get to
there.
What do we need to watch out for?
Today we're going to look at the passage
that I was playing with last Sunday on
the love of money. We're going to go to
1 Timothy 6 and we're going to actually
look at it and walk our way through it
because it's dealing with attitudes.
We have to recognize
whether we're serving money,
loving money, because Paul
specifically by the Holy Spirit warned
against that 1 Timothy 6
10. Are we serving
and loving it or is it serving
us? There is
a huge difference.
And he gives us some clues
to that and we're going to look at
them today. One is what we talked about
last Sunday. The insatiable
desire for more.
That's what the word love means.
So let's look at some things
we need to watch out for.
If anyone teaches false
doctrines and does not agree with the
sound instruction of our Lord Jesus
Christ and the godly teaching,
he is conceited and understands
nothing.
You know,
it's... and I'm not Paul.
But if a minister would get up and say
that today.
In other words, if you don't agree
with what I'm saying, you're conceited
and know nothing.
That would be interesting. Let's
see. I'm messing here
and I messed it up.
He has an unhealthy interest
in controversies and quarrels about
words that result in envy, strife,
malicious talk, evil suspicions.
Okay.
So he's laying the groundwork.
I'm going to deal with some attitudes now.
And that's what he does in first
time of these six. He deals with
attitudes. So I want you, I'm going
to say what I'm going to... I'm going to
state where I'm going this morning
and that way, if I run out of time
and I've got to cut it off, at least
you know what I'm trying to say here.
Money is not
the problem.
It's our attitude towards it.
It's the love of it.
That is the road of all evil.
We'll see that scripture here in a bit as we
go through this.
God wants us to
have wealth
but not for the reason that
we think in America.
And much of the time, most of the
people, I'm getting
far enough down the road and I've been
able to watch this for a few years.
Most of the people in America
we do the opposite
in our attitude towards money than
God wants us to do.
We're opposite. We're actually
upside down.
And our spiritual health is more
important to him than us having wealth.
So he's going to hit some attitudes.
Do you know that
according to what Jesus said, the thing we
many times worry about the most, we're
not even... King James says take no thought.
NIV says don't worry.
Matthew 6.
Don't worry about your food,
your clothes, or your basic needs
in other words.
Don't even take a thought for him.
You know what the average person worries the most about?
House payment.
Food. How am I going to buy
clothes for the kids?
So already our
attitude is off.
Why would Jesus say that?
So we don't seek
money.
Your father knows what you have
need of before you even ask him.
Don't start seeking it.
And see that's what
the Holy Spirit is pressing on in
1 Timothy 6 here.
He wants us
financially wealthy
but how we pursue
what he wants for us
makes all the difference.
And he's going to lay out the
attitude of
and I'll just say what it is.
Until we
learn to be content
with where we're at.
This is, I'm fine.
If I'd stay like this the rest of my life
I'm fine with this.
That is the correct
attitude.
That's the foundation
that everything else gets built on.
Because if you take
that foundation out of the way
and lay the foundation of
we've got to get ahead. We've got to
get more. We've got to
now you're
chasing the wrong God.
You say, well doesn't he want us to have wealth?
Absolutely.
Do you know why?
And I'll show you the scriptures.
Do you know why he wants you rich?
The scripture
specifically says
God wants us rich.
Why?
1 Corinthians 9.
I believe it is.
We'll find
the exact reference. God wants
you rich so you can give.
God wants you rich so you can give.
And the only guy that I
know of who did this right
was Laternal.
Remember Laternal? He's the guy who
invented the earth mover.
Made
boohoo
millions of dollars.
Kept 10%
for himself
and gave 90% away.
That is God.
That's God's attitude.
And he'll make you rich
to do that.
If we don't do that
even if we get wealth
and according to the rest of the world
we are all wealthy here.
Even if we get wealth
if we're not doing it God's way
we are totally mishandling
his property.
I'm going to show that to you this morning.
So he wants to lay the foundation
of don't
chase money.
Chase God.
And in chasing God
and putting
him first he will give
you money.
Figure out how much
you need.
So you can give the rest away.
Let me show it to you.
So I mean you can pick your jaws up
off the floor.
Let me show it to you.
Can you bring...
Lord gave me some scriptures this morning.
Can you bring James 4 up for me in the
NIV?
He gave me some scriptures and I didn't get them in the
PowerPoint obviously. So I want
you to see this.
Here is the American family.
Here is the American person.
James chapter 4 start
at verse 1.
NIV.
I'll wait for you because this is important.
What causes fights and quarrels
among you? Do you know the biggest cause
for divorce in America is
money, finances.
Don't they come from your desires
that battle within you? Yeah, you got
turmoil inside. You want something
but don't get it.
How come we can't have?
You kill, you
kill, Jesus said
our words are
can equal killing. You kill and covet
but you cannot have what you want.
You quarrel
and fight. Welcome to the
American home.
You do not have because you do not
ask God. Verse 3
Attitude check.
When you ask, you do not receive.
Why have I asked God? Well, you're not getting it.
Why? Because you ask
with the wrong motives
you want to spend your
money on your own
pleasures.
We want more money because
we need all the things
you want. Verse 4
look what he compares
that to.
You adulterous, this is spiritual
adultery. People
don't you know that friendship with the world
is hatred towards God. Anyone
who chooses to be a friend of the world
becomes an enemy of God. Not only
is it spiritual adultery, it's
friendship with the world to think that way
and it puts you an enemy status
with God. I want more money
so I can spend on myself.
I want
I want I want. Have you ever
asked what he wants?
And a lot of times
we don't because we don't trust
him.
And Paul hits that
in 1st Timothy 6.
But we don't trust
them. So
we become spiritually adulterous.
We become known
as friends of the world rather than
friends of God.
And it puts us an enemy
status with God.
Typical American attitude.
Take me back to the PowerPoint if you would
please. 1st Timothy 6
verse number 5. We'll jump in there.
You can find that. Excellent.
Constant friction between men
of corrupt mind who have robbed the truth
and who think godliness is a
means to financial gain.
Okay, so don't mix this up
with financial giving.
Don't turn your financial
giving into a business.
Godliness
is a means to financial gain.
So God told me to give. So I'm
going to give so I can get more
for myself.
It's God's
property.
Ask Him
what He wants you to give.
This is not about
us working the system.
This is about us pleasing
God.
He says
this causes corruption.
This comes from corrupt minds, causes friction.
You're robbed of the truth
when you think that godliness
actually will make you rich.
That's your motive.
But yet I can go to
a different scripture that Paul
also wrote that says
godliness will make you rich.
Was the man confused?
No, he's hitting attitudes
here in 1 Timothy 6.
You can't view
God as
I'm going to play the system
and get rich.
You learn to be content
right where you're at, not chasing
money, serving God
give Him what He asked for
and He will make you rich.
It's God who gives us the power
to get wealth.
We're not supposed to take
that on ourselves.
So read on.
This is how the Amplified says it.
People who imagine godliness
or righteousness is a source of
profit, a money making
business, a means of
livelihood. He says back away
from those kind of people.
Let me throw an American twist
into that because I've had
people use
that scripture to say
this.
I know I'm doing well
spiritually because I'm
prospering.
Look at all the things
that God has given me. I know I'm doing well
spiritually.
Right in there with the drug
pushers in the cartel, are you?
They're doing well financially.
A whole lot better than anybody
sitting here.
Does that mean they're godly?
No.
Don't twist the scripture
to make it say something it doesn't
say.
Well, I had one guy tell
me this.
He was playing with sin
in and out, in and out, in and out.
Playing with sin.
And I wasn't asking
the questions, but I was there
when somebody was.
And they said, aren't you concerned
for your spiritual well-being?
Because you're playing a game here. This isn't
honesty.
That's what he said.
He said, as long as I can speak
in tongues, I know I'm still saved.
Really?
As long as I can speak
in tongues, I know I'm still saved.
And the person
was wise enough to give a good answer.
Because this is the first thought that went
through my mind too. They said it.
I thought, good, you said it, I don't have to.
They said, do you realize
that godly tongues
under disobedience can turn into
demonic tongues?
The imitation.
Just because you're speaking in tongues
don't mean it's god.
By looking
some of your faces, that's news
to you.
Casey and I got to give you an answer
for that. That's what always takes me time
is because I get this feedback and then
it's like, okay, I better address that.
The guy who taught me in deliverance
went to one service
or seance
with Anton Lebes.
Everybody know who Anton Lebes was?
He was the first high priest
of the satanic church. He wrote
the satanic bible, blah, blah, blah.
He was in LA
and he went to one service with him
and he told me this. He came
from a Baptist background.
He said, you know,
I know that
speaking in tongues is correct
and is of god
even though he says I was taught
otherwise. He said
I know it is of god for this reason.
When I went
to that service or that
seance with Anton Lebes
they had a whole section
of their service
let's call it a service, where they
all spoke in tongues.
I said, really?
He said, yep.
He says, and this is the thing
you have to remember about Satan.
He does not
come up with anything new.
He is a copy cat.
He is an imitator.
He says, just
the very fact
they were speaking
in demonic tongues
shows
there is a genuine
because
they are trying to mock
the genuine with the demonic.
He said, so I am a full believer
he said I never used to be
but after that service it is like
yep, evidently it is of god
or they wouldn't waste their time
messing with it. But they are trying to mock
him.
So they did that.
So yes, there is such a thing
as demonic tongues.
So don't measure how
spiritual you are, whether you can still
speak in tongues or not. It is not a test.
You know what the test of how well
you are doing?
Obedience.
It is not prophesying
over people, it is not getting words.
All that can be corrupted
and go demonic. It is
obedience.
If you love me,
you will obey me.
So let's go on.
You got me sidetracked there for a second.
We don't live for god
because it is a way to get rich
and make money.
It says, seek ye first the kingdom of god.
It didn't say seek ye first money
and riches.
Seek ye first the kingdom
of god. Then all these things
will be added unto you.
But,
so let's go back
to verse 5.
Don't
make getting money
a business.
I'll get godly enough that
God will prosper me.
That's the wrong motive in.
Godliness with
contentment
is great gain.
We brought nothing into the world.
We can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing,
which is an indication in Scripture
when it says food and clothing, it's talking about our needs.
God knows what we need.
Jesus referred to food and clothing
in Matthew 6. And then at the end
he said, the father knows what you need.
So when they state food and clothing,
it doesn't mean you have to live outside
in the winter. It doesn't mean you can't own a car.
It doesn't mean it means needs.
The father knows what you need.
He says, if we're content
with our needs
being met,
we should be content with that.
People who want to get rich.
People who make
the goal to get rich.
It's the wrong motive
for a Christian.
You said, but I thought God wants me there.
Yes, but he does not want
you motivated
to find a way for you
to get there.
That's the American church.
That's not God.
People who want to get rich
fall into temptation
and a trap into many foolish
and harmful desires
that plunge men into ruin
and destruction.
So if we're chasing
after riches,
we're wrong.
We chase
after God.
And as he learns to trust
us, he gives us riches.
But he has to
learn to trust us
that when he gives us riches
we give it away.
He learns
to trust us
over here when we don't have much
and we're faithful
to honor God financially
like Andrew O. Maxa.
Problem is a lot of people don't do
this, but they want that
so rather than chasing God
they end up chasing
money.
Best paying job, best paying
career.
Why are you doing it? Good money.
Wrong reason.
You'll get before God
and your reward will burn up
like woodhands stubble.
There was no substance to it
whatsoever.
It was all about me, me, me.
So we must
learn to be content with our needs
being met. Contentment.
Here's the definition. Self-satisfaction.
Contentedness.
Sufficiency.
In other words, feel good
about what you have and where
you're at, not driven
to get more.
Back up to the Scripture.
Godliness with contentment
is great gain. Brought nothing
in, blah, blah, blah. People who
want to get rich. So we have to
learn to be content.
The New King James says that.
So let me
content.
Here's the definition for that.
To avail,
be satisfied
or satisfactory. Be content.
Be enough.
Be sufficient.
Godliness with contentment.
Let me go back to verse 6
here.
Godliness with contentment
is great gain. Verse 7
or verse 8. But if we have
food and clothing, our needs met,
we need to learn to be
satisfied with that.
See, you'll never get ahead
if you do that.
Well, that's the American
twist to it.
You mean I should be satisfied
with my needs being met?
Yes. God's watching
to see if you are.
Do you know why
Leterno could give 90% away
and keep 10% and he probably still had millions?
But do you know why he could do that?
Because over here when he was chasing God
he learned to be satisfied
with his needs being met.
He didn't have to have
all the money to be satisfied.
That's the attitude check.
Do you know who gave?
It makes no sense
in the human mind when you look at it.
The big earth movers.
They got two wheels in the front with the engine hanging out
and then they got this big hook thing
back to the big box
where they dragged the dirt with two wheels in the back.
Do you know who gave
him that invention?
God did.
Showed him in a night vision
how to build it.
He drew it all out
took it to engineers and they said
you're nuts. It'll never
work.
You can't put that much stress
on that center pivot point.
It's going to break continually.
He said I believe God showed me this.
You're nuts.
Guess who was right?
They've used it
for decades.
It's still the big earth mover.
Who gave that to him?
God, when he was over here
learning to be content
and God said you know what?
This guy's actually content with where he's at.
So once we make him
billionaire over there
he will live
within his contented means
and give the rest away.
So God gave him the invention.
That's God's
way.
That's the attitude check
that God's trying to bring across through Paul
here in
1 Timothy 6.
We must learn to be content.
Learn to
this is good.
I'm good with where I'm at.
With my needs being met.
Verse number 8
Learn
to be content with that.
You say was that where God's going to keep me?
Well what if he does?
Because see if you say well I'll be content for a while
but then a better change. You're not content.
You're trying to play the system.
Learn, we have to learn
to be content with that.
But most of us in America
have it so ingrained in us
that
the next things
that Paul says here
which we touched last Sunday
I want to make sure I don't lose you.
So let me give you a forewarning coming in.
There's a process
that Paul's going to lay out now
for
how to build the foundation
so that God
can bless you in it.
Let me not
lose you in the process
because the American culture
teaches the opposite
of what Paul is about to say.
What God is about to say.
Okay, ready?
Here's last Sunday Scripture.
For the love of money
is the root of all kinds of evil.
Some people eager for money.
The two words you have to look at
we looked at love. Last Sunday we're going to look
at eager a little more this Sunday.
Love is the word you have to look at
and eager is the word you have to look at.
So
I want you to notice something.
Love
and I'll give you the definition here in a bit
means an excessive
or insatiable desire
for wealth or profit.
In other words, insatiable means
you never have
enough.
That is
the root of all evils.
That's why the foundation
has to be you got to learn to be content
be insatiable towards
God. I never have enough of
God.
Don't be insatiable towards money.
You can't serve two masters.
If you're insatiable for money
you're not insatiable for God. You're serving it.
Got to get it back. Right attitude.
The question that we ask there
well what is excessive?
What's insatiable? And that's going to vary
by person.
But the question is, when do we
have enough
for us?
How much do I need
until I have enough?
Have you ever
set
that goal, that limit?
Because the American
mindset is you never have enough.
That is exactly
what God says
don't do that.
For the love
the insatiable desire
for more
of money.
Americans say
well I'll just keep going
after it.
Well how much do you need?
Well it doesn't make any difference. If there's more available
I'm going to get more.
That is the insatiable desire
for money.
And it will bring every kind of
evil into your life.
Didn't expect to hear
that in a tithing series did you?
We got to get
the balance of what
Scripture is trying to tell us.
When do we have enough?
What is enough?
Because the American culture says
you never have enough.
If there's more on the table, grab it.
Heard someone say this
everything in the world
then they listed three things
lots of the eyes
lots of the flesh, pride of life.
Everything in the world
is not of my father.
What is big in the American world
European world
Australian world
Russian world
just countries that I
watched.
When do we have enough?
You never have enough. You never quit.
More
more more more more
That is the love
of money.
The insatiable desire
in other words I'm never full
I'm always hungry for more.
That is totally
ungodly.
Don't shout me down.
So let's go back to the next
word. Eager
for money. Some people
eager for money have wandered from the faith
caused all kinds of trouble
in their life. Eager
it's when we
stretch ourselves to reach out
after or long for something
with covetousness
or huge desire
could go either way.
To stretch for
reach out after
long for
more.
I'm not going to take the time
to make applications for stretching
but stretching
to long for
to go after
is that word
eager.
Work to no limit
why? Because I want
more. I'm
stretching for it.
That is an ungodly attitude.
That's the American
attitude.
Isn't this good?
I got to get you to say
something because you're all sitting there blinkin' like
really?
That's what I've been doing all my life.
I know.
Love of money.
The excessive or insatiable
desire for wealth or profit.
That's the Greek definition to the word
love there for money.
The excessive or the insatiable
desire
for wealth or money.
And then Paul
he's going to describe it. He already
hit a couple of pieces on it.
So what does that mean?
We're never content.
Lack of contentment financially. We're never content.
We always have
to have more.
How much
more? And you can apply it to houses, you can
apply it to cars, you can apply it to land,
you can apply it to your bank account, you can
apply it to anything, your clothes. How much
more do you have to have before it's
like, there, now I'm good.
Well, if I got the money,
I'm going to just upgrade it.
See, that's the love of money.
The insatiable
desire.
I'm just never satisfied.
Never content.
Or...
The tithe was not just Old Testament.
The tithe was inflated before
the Old Testament law.
But the law
placed a curse on...
I'll leave my finger off that part.
It's down a little ways
if you can find it. Otherwise I got
to scroll through them. Love of money.
Lack of contentment.
Verse number six.
There we go.
And
wanting or desiring
to get rich.
Ha!
You said, did he actually
say that?
He did.
If I can get back there, I want
to read it to you again.
It's way back.
Did I pass it?
Did I pass it? I must have.
Thank you.
People who want
to get rich.
People who want to get rich.
Now let's go back to that other slide.
Wanting or desiring
to get rich. Verse nine.
Shows we have
the love of money.
As believers, what should we
want the most?
Relationship with God.
Paul said I consider everything
else garbage, but that I
might know him.
A more
and more and more
intimate relationship with God
should be our insatiable desire.
Not money.
That's why Jesus said
in Matthew six.
Just learn to be content
with your needs being met.
The father knows what you need.
Just learn that first.
Because that is the foundation
that God can bless you out of.
That's the warning of first Timothy
six. So let's go on.
Eager for money. We can't have
these qualities and love
and serve God. Verse number ten.
We can't have the qualities
of where we want more
of God. We want the best of God.
We can't serve God. Luke
16 verse 13.
You're either going to serve money
or you're going to serve God. You can't serve
them both.
One of the greatest things to watch
for is the blessing
doesn't become the love
of money.
Oh, God's blessed us.
We want more of that blessing.
Well, that's okay, but make sure
you're not chasing the money aspect
of it, but you're chasing God.
Because God is watching.
You say, why do you repeat
everything that's right on the screen?
Because the percentage
of us retaining
verbal and sight combined
almost doubles.
If you
read it and hear me say it, you'll remember
it much better.
So the big question is, does money or wealth
have you? Or do we have it?
Which one is really
in control of our motives,
of our thinking, of what we want to do?
Who is really in charge here?
Now watch the process that Paul
is going to take us through here.
But you, O man of God,
flee these things and pursue righteousness.
Flee what things?
The love of money. Pursuing money.
Wanting to get rich.
Flee that. Run from that.
Pursue righteousness. Godliness. Faith. Love.
Patience. Gentleness.
Fight the good fight of faith.
Lay hold to eternal life, to which
you were called and have confessed the good
confession in the presence of many witnesses.
I urge you in the sight of God who gives
life to all things and before Christ Jesus
who witnessed
who witnessed the good confession before
Pontius Pilate, that you
keep this commandment. What commandment?
Flee
these things and pursue
the right things.
That's the commandment.
Keep
this commandment without
spot blameless unto the Lord
Jesus Christ appearing
which he will manifest in his own time
and who is blessed and goes
on talking about him.
Command those who are rich
in this present age not to be haughty
nor to trust
in uncertain riches or wealth
but in the living
God who gives
us richly
copiously
abundantly
all things
to enjoy.
You say I thought God didn't want
us having more than we need. I never said
that.
God wants us to have way more
than we need.
And I'll tell you why. I'll show you
in a bit. So we can
give what we don't need.
That's the Scripture
way.
He wants us
to have
things to enjoy.
And see this is where the guy who
was after me for the ATVs years ago
he missed that part.
Well you don't need ATVs
probably.
But if I set the foundation
right
and I'm content
and I'll live in contentment
and I'll seek him and seek him first
obey him, honor him
with my wealth, honor him
with what he gives me
he wants to reward me
and give me what I enjoy.
But don't
seek what you enjoy
first and then God
gets the leftovers.
That's friendship with this world
that makes you an enemy status with God
and puts you into spiritual adultery
which is the church of America.
We are upside down
from Scripture.
God wants you to copiously
abundantly
have things that you can enjoy.
But the attitude
needs to stay in the right order.
That's his whole point.
Let them do good.
God
that they be rich
the word Greek in there
is actually wealthy
that they be rich
in good works, ready to give
willing to share, storing up for themselves
a good foundation for the time to come
that they may lay hold
on eternal life.
So in other words, once you're rich
be ready
to give.
Lay up for yourselves.
What did Jesus say?
Lay up for yourself
treasures in heaven where
moth and rust cannot corrupt
and thieves can't break in a seal.
How do you do that? He just told us.
Be ready to give
storing up for themselves.
Our giving
is what lays it up in heaven
for us.
As for the rich, the wealthy
actually means wealthy
in the Greek.
As for the rich in this world
charge them not to be proud
and arrogant, contemptuous of others
nor to set their hopes on uncertain riches
but on God
who richly, copiously, abundantly
gives us everything we want
for our enjoyment.
Charge them, the rich in this world
to do good works, to be rich.
This is
reading on to be liberal
and generous of heart
ready to share with others.
God wants us wealthy
He wants us to have more than
we need.
Why?
He tells us in His word
He tells us
why.
You will be
made rich in
every way
so that you can be generous
on every occasion.
In other words, so that you can give.
And through your giving
Thanksgiving
will be made to God.
Here is God's perspective
of why we work.
Let Him who stole
steal no longer but rather let Him
labor working in His hands
what is good
that He may have something to give
Him who has need.
You know why we work?
Well, I got to pay the bills.
See, you already violated
Matthew 6 where Jesus said
don't worry about your bills, your needs.
You just do what I tell you to do.
We'll make sure your needs are met.
Most Americans labor
why are you going to work?
Well, somebody got to pay the bills.
How many times have I heard that?
See, we're upside down.
You know why I'm going to work?
Because God told me
to.
He who doesn't provide for His family
is worse than an
infidel.
A non-believer. A pagan.
God says go to work
earn some money
but the attitude is
the Father knows what I have need of
before I ask Him so I'm not going to worry
about this.
Well then why are you going to work?
So I can end up in a position
where I have more than enough
El Shaddai
God of more than enough
so I can give it
not live the American dream
when is enough
enough?
I think it's
good thinking.
Say how do we get it?
Scripturally you plant seed
you follow His Spirit
you work. He wants to see you faithful
to what He asks you to do.
However our goal is not to be rich
seek wealth.
When do we have enough for our uses?
So Mary said this
I said well I'm saying the same thing you did
I just haven't gotten to this spot yet
she said well I
I'd want as much as I could get
I said why?
She said you know how much good
I could do around the world?
Ah see now that's
God's heart.
And He will just give it in more and more
and more if He sees someone who's willing
to give it away
that's God's heart.
Would you move to a bigger house?
No I don't want a bigger house
too much to clean.
Well we could hire a maid
I don't want him digging around in my drawers.
See so having
more more more more
to give give give give
that is God
having more
more more more so I can do
nothing nothing nothing nothing
and have a yacht and go vacationing
half of the year and have my winter home
and my summer home and it's all about me
thank you God for blessing me
that's the American version of God
and God despises it because
that is the insatiable desire
for money.
And it does
vary by person
you know
the part that God wants you to have
the American culture says
the exact opposite. Here's Jesus
do not lay up for yourselves
treasures on earth
for where your treasure is there your heart
will be also. See God wants
our heart
we should be insatiable
about God I can never get enough
but if
we turn our heart
after money he gets
leftovers at best
and we're insatiable
about making money
and that to him we already read the scriptures
in James. That's spiritual
adultery.
You're sleeping with someone else
in God's mind
and he's going to set you
up as his enemy
we read the scripture
our determining question is
when is
enough for my uses
who's getting the most you your children
or God
this is another big
thing in the American culture
the more I can give to my
children the better person I am
that's American
thinking
God said
a good man
stores up or lays up
offers an inheritance to his children
One. When is enough? How much do they need? Well, the more the better. See, that's that insatiable
desire for money. And God despises that. How much do they need? Give them too much, you
can actually ruin them. How much have you ever contemplated? I'm not going to try to give
you an answer for that. You got to figure it out. But how much do they need? Maybe you
haven't gotten there yet and you're still waiting on God to get you to that point. Well, stay
faithful to your tithing. Stay faithful to your giving. When he says you need to give something,
you need to give it. Because he's still testing you whether he can get you over here and
pile it on. So stay faithful to what you're doing. Then again, he might be looking at
your children and your grandchildren and saying, I can't give them much because if I give them
much through mom and dad, they're going to turn their back on me. Their heart's going to
go a different direction and they're worth way more to me than their physical wealth.
He knows. But there's like this unwritten rule in America that says the bigger inheritance
you give to your kids, the better Christian you were. That is not scriptural. It is not
scriptural. And if you've got questions about it, talk to me. So let's bring this
to a close. This is the fourth series that we did, Prosperity, Spirit of Incre, Seed,
Time and Harvest. And this is the last one. Once this message posts, not in the
live stream, posts to the message online, this PowerPoint is there. You can
download it. And I've got all kinds of questions, all kinds of points underneath
this that I won't read to you. You can read them and it'll make sense to you.
Like for instance, do you believe God wants his people to struggle and ultimately
fail at most everything in life? Or does he want us to have success, grow,
accomplish things and move forward in life? Which one? Well, it'll go through
four or five questions and then it's going to give the answer to these four
or five. Because for whatever reason, especially the next generation, they
watch these 30-second, two-minute reels or shorts and they come up with
theological doctrinal positions. And many of the 20s absolutely do not
believe in prosperity. Prosperity and Kenneth Copeland are co-equal in
their mind. And he's a swindler, he's all this stuff, so therefore prosperity
has got to be wrong. You need to get your head out of the sand and actually
do some research other than your 30-second reels. Does God want you as
a Christian to struggle and ultimately fail at most everything in life? No,
that is not in Scripture at all. He wants us to have success, grow,
accomplish things, move forward in life. You know what? If you believe that,
you're a prosperity person. It's that easy to figure out. So there's a lot of
questions, there's a lot of things. You go through the PowerPoint, it'll help
you. There's a review questions and stuff. My whole point this morning
is God's checking our attitudes. Checking our attitudes of what we serve first,
what are we insatiably after? We just can't get enough. Now, I'm not talking
the physical side, I'm talking the attitude, because there's only one
thing we should be insatiably after, and that's him. Everything else we
consider loss and rubbish. But the problem is when we're insatiably
after him, he's going to give us a bunch of the other stuff, because he wants
us to handle it a certain way. Once we determine what's enough, we're supposed
to give the rest away. He said, he makes us rich so we can give. You say,
I'm going to give it to my kids. Yeah, that's still you. That's still you.
Well, how can that be? That's my kids. Give it to my kids. No, I'm giving it to
your kids. That's right, because it's still all about you. Give it to
somebody else's kids. Oh, no, it's going to be for my kids. Yeah, because it's
still all about you. I have done this. I don't know who that was for. That
was for somebody. Let's pray. Lord, thank you for the attitude, correction,
and check. And we're living in the middle of a culture that has told us the
opposite of what your word says. The opposite. Thank you for the attitude,
check. Now help us integrate it into our lives and into our thinking in
Jesus' name. Amen?