Posted on 04/01/2011 6:53:44 PM PDT by Davidlion
Matthew 6:1 “Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven.
2 “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 3 But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, 4 so that your giving may be in secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Prayer
5 “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. 6 But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward" !!
(Excerpt) Read more at antinomianism-salvation.blogspot.com ...
This is a beautiful reminder—thanks for posting it.
Thanks. We are very misled in our giving and our prayer life. Those in the Spirit are very much aware of the correct scriptural admonitions but “professional Christians” try to confuse us into giving to them for their personal gain. Did you know the word “tithe” is not in the New testament?
What exactly is a “professional Christian?” Are you speaking of giving to pastors so they can live well, pay their mortgages and car payments?
Asking because I’ve felt very un-compelled to give to our church because it seems that very little money is going for the poor. I don’t even see any money going to bring people to the Lord. Lately it seems we are giving to ourselves and to those who work for the church.
What do you think?
That's not true. The Greek word for tithe - "apodekatóō" or it's derivitives "dekátē" and "dekatóō" appear at least 7 times in the NT, but never in a prescriptive context. Most are historical allusions to the OT custom under the law (See: Hebrews 7:5,6,8,9) or Gospel references by Jesus to the tithing practices of the Jews.(Matt 22:23, Luke 11:42, 18:12).
I am bothered by the amount of money we give to our Pastors. It exceeds the average income of those in our congregation. We also pay for schooling toward the Pastors doctorate degree which is is finishing off, and he admonishes us that he is soooo very busy with his schooling and his family - I hesitate to call him at all. I just received a letter that after six years of being a Pastor, our lead Pastor is going on a three month sabbatical.
Perhaps I am covetous. I haven’t had even a week long vacation in that same time period - he takes at least six weeks every year.
IMHO it’s either time for a group/congregation conscious meeting to replace the pastor or it’s time for you to find a new church.
I love bringing new people to my church because they’re always amazed that we don’t pass the basket. There are baskets at the exits and our pastor trusts in God that our church’s needs will be met.
Thank you. I am looking.
Huh. That doesn't sound very "antinomian" to me.
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