This is a fully accepted statement: Those of us who are involved in the ministry of Jesus need to be careful with money. Some misuse of funds over the last years by ministers, pastors and church groups -- and their punishments by various church boards and governments -- has only served to increase our realization that this is so.
In response, many churches and ministries have been setting up financial accountability programs, based on accounting and governmental principles of the world. While using such guidelines is good and will help us avoid being punished by our current government, what about abiding by the principles that Jesus set up for His disciples to follow? Shouldn't we, as believers, church workers, pastors, and ministry leaders be just as concerned – in fact, more so— with Jesus' instructions on the subject, to say nothing of the punishments that await those who fail to obey His Word?
Below are five Biblical principles of financial responsibility for disciples. All of these are given to disciples in general, two of them specifically to disciples involved in ministry. Yet, if we as individuals are commanded by Jesus to follow these principles, how much more so should groups of believers, be they congregations or ministries, apply these principles as well!
A. "Beware of all forms of greed!" (Luke 12:15)
Jesus warns that no disciple should focus on greed. The word "greed" in the original Greek has a number of different forms that it takes, and Jesus mentions this in his statement. A disciple, He tells us, is not to take part in any of these forms. They include:
• Keeping excess for oneself (Matthew 6:19)
• Keeping for yourself when another has greater need (Luke 3: 11; I John 3:17)
• Seeking to gain what another has (Luke 12:13-15)
• Increasing wealth for one's future enjoyment (Luke 12:16-21)
• Focusing on the wealth of this world, as opposed to the wealth of God's kingdom (Luke 12:15, 21, 33-34)
For a ministry or church, this means that the gathering of wealth or possessions for the sake of the wealth itself is unacceptable. That means a ministry needs to avoid seeking to make a profit geared only to be spent on itself or its leaders. Paul and Peter both agree that any teacher who is seeking wealth for his own gain is a false teacher (I Timothy 6:5; II Peter 2:3). Only receiving money for the sake of assisting others -- as the apostles did in Acts 4:34-35 -- is permissible. Instead of constantly seeking wealth, we should be content with what God has given us (I Timothy 6:6).
B. "Seek God's kingdom and all this will be added to you." (Matthew 6:33)
A disciple of Jesus should seek God, rather than the strength of their own arm, for provision of their daily needs and that of their family. If we try to meet our needs any other way than through God, Jesus says, we are acting like an unbeliever (Matthew 6:32).
The focus of every disciple should be to build God's authority and will into his life and the lives of those around him, and trust the provision of their basic needs to Him. To do so will likely mean great sacrifice --economically and otherwise. Sometimes we might lose our jobs, our friends. Even our family may turn against us. Yet there are times when God asks us to give up what wealth and security we have for the sake of others. Should any of this happen, we must look to God to gain what we need to live, rather than struggle and strain in our flesh to obtain financial and material wealth. We must ask God and trust that he will give us what we need.
Moreover, the sole focus of every church and ministry should be to establish God's kingdom, and leave the meeting of needs to Him. If we are low on funds, our first response should not be to send out a letter pleading for financial support, but to set our needs and the needs of those among us before God.
We need to trust that God will provide our every need (Philippians 4:19). Our first response to need should not be to put our hand out, but our hands up.
C. "Sell your possessions and give to the poor." (Luke 12:33)
A disciple of Jesus should give those in need. Any excess we have, beyond our own personal needs, should be given to the poor. If we have possessions we do not need -- excess clothes, food, books, CD's, whatever -- we should make them available to those who truly need them.
Moreover, at least one part of every church or ministry s work should include meeting the needs of the needy among them. This could be done in various ways: through a generous benevolence ministry, working hands on with the poor, or assisting organizations or churches who work in impoverished areas.
Finally, if a church or ministry has finances which exceed their basic needs, they should think of ways they can use those funds to meet the needs of the poor (Acts 4:32-37), not on building bigger churches or office complexes (Luke 12:16-21). The poor will always be with us, so we will always have an opportunity to help them.
D. "Freely you have received, freely give." (Matthew 10:8)
A declarer of God's message should give God's word without charge. Jesus' message was, and is, free. He gave it away to anyone who followed him. Moreover, we can still obtain the word of God without cost, if necessary. The Spirit of God is free -- healings and exorcisms cost us no money. For the same reason, the one who declares God's word, heals, casts out demons or does any kind of ministry using the power and authority of God should not charge for it.
If you wish to grant the gospel to people, do not sell it, but offer it freely. If you wish people to have a book, tape or video of what you learned from the Lord, offer it without charge, do not sell it. Christian publishers, bookstores and ministries act in opposition to Jesus' word anytime they take money for giving out His Word or life. Jesus said that those who take money from the poor for the sake of ministry will receive greater condemnation than other sinners (Mark 12:40). And again, if any minister is out for their own profit, the Scripture calls them false teachers (I Timothy 6:5; II Peter 2:3). A true profit in ministry is a false prophet!
E. "The laborer is worthy of his wages." (Luke 10:7)
This is a principle given to those who minister, but really it applies for those who receive the message of God. A declarer of God's message should be given their basic needs by those who receive the message. Although the minister does not ask for money, they can expect that their basic needs would be met by those who hear his message. Jesus established that a messenger of His Word would declare His message and do healings and, while he was doing the work, he would be housed and fed by a local believer. Even so, the basic needs of ministers and their families should be met by those who are growing through their message. In fact, Jesus said, whoever provides for a minister of Jesus in even the smallest way will gain their reward in heaven (Matthew 10:42)! Paul also applies this principle in different church contexts (Galatians 6:6; I Timothy 5: 17-18).
These principles are not given us to condemn each other with, but to allow our ministries to grow in faith and love and holiness, without which no one will see God (Galatians 5:6; Hebrews 12:14). I pray that the Lord will grant us wisdom to apply these principles to our homes, our churches and to everything we do in the Lord's name.
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