Posted on 06/29/2015 3:49:49 PM PDT by Laissez-faire capitalist
While the Supreme Court of the United States ruled Friday that same-sex marriage is legal in all 50 states, several religious leaders in Corsicana said Monday they will not hold a same-sex wedding service in their churches. ...
Pastors of several churches cited Biblical teachings for their stance. ...
(Excerpt) Read more at corsicanadailysun.com ...
Tithes are an ill understood (to my perception) feature of Old Testament practice.
What corresponds to the offering plate passed at churches is not tithes. It is (duh...) offerings.
Tithes would be something like a Christmas club account which you then spent every year on your family... on a party!
The Lord will furnish what is needed. Maybe church buildings as we know them will prove to be overkill, and more intimate settings will work better.
That is what I basically said in my last post. If God cannot supply enough, then who can?
If God cannot supply enough if tax exempt status is done away with, then what does that say about God not being able to provide and not being more powerful than the govt?
Who is more powerful?
We know that God is, right?
Why should deductions be an issue if they are paying tithes and donations (and the church is recording what the members give) if the members are giving to be blessed by God?
If they truly believe that God’s blessing is more than enough (according to Malachi 3:10 and other scriptures) then why do they need the blessing from the “state” they will get from no longer get based upon deductions?
If the amount of tithes and offerings (charitable deductions) drops in churches, then they were giving for the wrong reason in the first place.
Oh... and a pastor I knew sometimes said that if tithes and offerings were added up that would come out to something like 24%.
But the tithe was actually a “selfish” offering. If it was practical for you to gather your own produce and go to the site of the celebration you were expected to do so, but otherwise you could sell and buy.
And that is why the bible talks about storehouses for tithes.
Maybe we ought to bring back the God party, not as in political but as in celebration. What, it isn’t altruistic? That’s not the point.
I agree, as long as we have our theology right (and the Christian model, I am convinced, is the total free will offering).
Why should donations drop? If Christians are giving tithes, offerings and donations based upon the scriptural belief that God will bless them for doing this, then why would they stop donating?
I know of many churches that have volunteers for Sunday Schools, church nurseries and so on. Christians who expect to get paid for teaching Sunday School and so on will have to put God before Mammon.
I agree that God provides but why are you advocating a tax increase for Christians? Why does a liberal who donates to planned parenthood while I contribute to God have lower taxes than me?
“If Christians are giving tithes, offerings and donations based upon the scriptural belief that God will bless them for doing this, then why would they stop donating?”
I admire your faith in peoples’ fundamental goodness and ability to see beyond their own self-interest, but I think it’s a bit too optimistic.
“Christians who expect to get paid for teaching Sunday School and so on will have to put God before Mammon.”
It won’t matter whether they expect it or not. If you are a business, you have to pay your employees, and if people are doing work for you, they are your employees whether you call them that or not. That’s the law.
In a worldly view it is “unfair” and in fact the world probably crows about it.
The joke is on the unrepentant world in the end (some of its people will repent, though, and God is merciful to them just as He is to you).
Grasping the big picture is crucial to living God’s intent for the Christian. Let the world have its self gratifying pleasure. That’s all the good things it will get.
It appears that you took what I said the wrong way.
I am not advocating a tax increase for Christians.
Christians who believe what the Bible says about being blessed by God (according to Malachi) and gave expecting a deduction were giving for the wrong reason in the first place. Getting God’s blessing for donating money, paying tithes, offering and so on (which churches keep a record of for deductions) should have been the only reason they were giving to the church.
I hope it doesn’t come down to churches losing tax exempt status, but if it does happen and donations drop then we will see the Mammon-serving Christians being exposed for the rest of the church to see: the ones who gave not wanting any tax deductions, but only gave being convinced that God’s blessing was more than enough...
Well, remember what made the churches in the early New Testament days?
They saw acts of God all over the place, that is what.
If the church is only a place you go to WISH you could meet God, then sure it is going to be fragile.
Like I said on another thread: "I expect the SCOTUS to declare the Second Amendment overturned, and there’s not even a case before them on the issue."
Normal procedure and law no longer matters. I expect SCOTUS to simply declare this so.
People must understand that the Constitution doesn’t apply any more.
It has nothing to do with my supposed goodness and so on.
People either believe what the Bible says about God blessing those who give or they don’t. If they gave expecting a tax deduction, then they didn’t believe that God’s promised blessing was enough.
You don’t have to pay volunteers, btw.
In abstraction, this kind of behavior is what the impeachment provision was supposed to prevent.
In practice, as long as what transpires can masquerade as “law” then everyone seems intimidated not to act.
But the bible does... whether or not people refuse it
“People either believe what the Bible says about God blessing those who give or they don’t. If they gave expecting a tax deduction, then they didn’t believe that God’s promised blessing was enough.”
Indeed, and that is exactly why donations will drop. Not everyone is only donating to a church based on the purest motives. Some are donating more to get the tax exemption than they would otherwise. That’s why I said you must have a lot of faith in peoples’ inherent goodness if you think that nobody is donating (or donating extra) in order to get the tax benefits.
“You don’t have to pay volunteers, btw.”
Businesses don’t have volunteers, they have employees. Some employees might be “exempt employees” for minimum wage purposes, but there is no such thing as “volunteers”, as far as the government is concerned, if it is a business.
And I would say that yes. As soon as what a court was dealing out didn’t even rise to the level of being wrong, but being nonsense... it ought to be impeached for that.
Money amounts might fall; the effectiveness of the spending could well rise.
“Religion” will get elbowed out in favor of “faith.”
And I don’t understand your cavil about volunteers.
I played piano at a church for 20 years and it did not pay me a dime for it.
Did they list me as employee? Did anyone ask them to list me as employee?
You tell me that. I know the answer.
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