Questioner: Deborah
Subject: Money and HeavenQuestion:
- Where in the bible does it reference rewards in heaven and monies contributed to the church... other than tything? Specifically is there reference to greater rewards, or the excusing of sin based upon
money given to the church.
John of AllFaith's reply
Hi Deborah,Great question!
This is the question that sparked the Protestant Reformation! Could the buying of indulgences bring spiritual rewards. Martin Luther and the other Reformers said no.
The two most telling statements in the Bible about this are as follows:
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I Tim 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain.
7 For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.
8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.
9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.
10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
11 But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.
"...Flee these things!" If we are blessed by giving money etc. then we would first have to pursue and acquire it would we not? But what says the scripture? "...Flee these things!"
And again,
Matthew 19:21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
22 But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
23 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven.
24 And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.
25 When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly amazed, saying, Who then can be saved?
26 But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible
Was this man to be blessed for giving away what he had or for finding freedom from his possessions and devoting his efforts to the Kingdom?
Clearly its the former. Jesus doesn't say, give it away and then get more to give away! No, he says that material possessions are spiritually dangerous! Get rid of them and follow me...
There are people who preach what is known as the Prosperity Gospel. This is not, in my opinion, a biblical doctrine. Indeed by its very nature it stands in direct opposition to the Gospel.
Jesus himself, through the Apostle John, ridicules this doctrine:
Rev. 3:17 Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:
18 I counsel thee to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear; and anoint thine eyes with eyesalve, that thou mayest see.
God is not a banker! Spiritual wealth has nothing to do with financial wealth and yet some of these preachers have actually said that Jesus was a first century billionair!
Matt 8:20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head.
The camel through the eye of the needle is also indicative here. This eye of the needle refers to special side gates in walled cities. When one approached these cities late at night one had to dismount the camel, unload it, drop the animals to its knees in many cases and carefully coax it through the small opening under the watchful eye of the town protectors. The point in this parable is not that rich people can not be saved, but that they must get off their camel (their show of wealth and sense of success), unload their "stuff" and crawl through the gates of heaven like a begger! For a poor person, they have simply to accept the authority of the gate keeper and walk through. It a wonderful parable that few seem to understand.
In this world wealth is very helpful in many ways, but in the spiritual sense, it can be a major hindrance. Jesus told us that healthy people have no need of doctors, the ill do. We can likewise understand that the poor typically have less need of humility than the wealthy (there are of course exceptions!). There are no material qualifiers for entrance to the Kingdom of God.
How did the early Christians live? How did they view personal wealth?
- Acts 2:44 And all that believed were together, and had all things common;
45 And sold their possessions and goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need.
46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,
47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
And the Spirit of God was with these people! Even the world respected their gentleness, their love, their humility.
As for receiving greater rewards or forgiveness of sin for giving:
Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
We are saved and kept solely by God's grace and mercy, not of ANY works lest we might boast. "I am holy because I gave a lot of money..." Look how that belief worked out for Ananias and his wife (Acts 5)! No, giving to the church etc. are "works," NO WORKS of this sort effects out salvation, our righteousness, our receipt of forgiveness and so on in any way.
So then, should we do good works? Should we give? Of course we should!
We are created anew in Christ "unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them." These good works however are simply our "reasonable service" responses to God's mercy to us. Don't expect rewards (even if they come your way).
- Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
There are references to rewards in heaven of course. For instance,
Matt. 5:12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.
But such rewards have nothing to do with giving money etc. Consider the widows mite,
- Matt 12:42 And there came a certain poor widow, and she threw in two mites, which make a farthing.
43 And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
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44 For all they did cast in of their abundance; but she of her want did cast in all that she had, even all her living.
God looks at our hearts, not at our pocketbook! Of course one should support the ministry that feeds us spiritually, that does the work of the kingdom, but this is done BECAUSE we are saved, not to be saved, not to BE blessed, but to bless others... again, our reasonable service as Believers.
Hope this helps.
Checks can be sent to.... hehe just kidding!
Maranatha my sister!
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John of AllFaith
Follow-up Question:
Thank you for your response. Does the bible specifically address using money as power...to do harm to others by withholding it from family...but ultimately giving it all to the church? And is there a place where the bible says that men will be judged by what is in their hearts?Reply by John of AllFaith:
Hi Deborah,In the New Testament sense, the word "church" refers to the people of God rather than to buildings and organized groups. One would therefore accurately say, the church meets in this building rather than this building is the church.
As I mentioned before, the Bible says: For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.
Clearly one who uses money for powers that are opposed to godly principles would be in the wrong.
- Eph. 5:21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.
22 Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord.
23 For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body.
24 Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing.
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
These verses have at times been misused to promote male domination, but they actually teach something quite different. "....Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God...." Teamwork! Everything Christians do are to be done for the glory of God. When wives submit to their husbands AND husbands love their wives "even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it" together they serve God as a unity and everyone is happy and fulfilled. Therefore, wives serve God through being good wives and mothers AND faithful Christians. Husbands serve God through being good husbands and fathers AND faithful Christians.
There is an important point here: Those men who wish to serve God as bishops must meet certain family criteria, among these is, "...For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?..." This is discussed I Timothy chapter 3.
If I understand your question correctly, to withhold needed finances from one's family in order to give it to a church would be a serious violation of the Scriptures. FIRST one must take care of one's family, THEN one can give to the work of God. "...Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well..."
Those who would serve God and who are married must FIRST properly manage their families, caring for household finances, the needs of spouse and children... and then they may serve God.
I believe I addressed the question of serving God from the heart in my previous reply. If this point is not clear please back. But in short:
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Micah 6:6 Wherewith shall I come before the LORD, and bow myself before the high God? shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves of a year old?
7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?
8 He hath showed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?
The heart is what God cares about.
Write back any time,
Blessings of love and light,
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~John of AllFaith
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