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HOUSMAIL
HM037
18 September 1999 GIVING WITHOUT PAY (Matthew 10:8) "Ho,
everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy
and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price." (Isaiah 55:1
RSV) "Preach as
you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' Heal the sick, raise the
dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying, give
without pay. Take no gold, nor silver, nor copper in your belts, no bag for
your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor a staff;" (Matthew 10:7 - 10
RSV) First, let me say clearly that in what follows, this paper is
not discussing the question of totally unsolicited donations received without
publicity of any kind! And before anyone attempts to lay down a "smoke
screen" by asking the "clever" question ..... I don't believe
this subject has anything at all to do with using Proverbs 23:23 to contradict the
verses quoted above! Nor am I talking about buying a Bible for personal use!
The things mentioned below are what happens when people become too lazy, or
apathetic, to read for themselves, the TRUTH in the Bible they own! The issue discussed here is whether or not we are obedient to a
very specific commandment from Jesus about GIVING THE GOSPEL WITHOUT COST. Also, at stake is whether or not we believe the promise made by
Jesus in Matthew 6:5-6.
Do we know how to ask God alone, in the secret place where GOD ALONE hears?
And can we be content to live, and work, and GIVE WITHOUT PAY, within the
limits of what is provided when we pray that way? When Jesus sent the twelve out for their "hands on"
training exercise, He gave them some very clear and simple instructions about
the goal of their mission. One of the clearest and simplest of those instructions is the
question of cost to the hearers. Along the way, the disciples were to expect
NOTHING more than FOOD and LODGING. (and then only if it was freely offered!) What a contrast to much of what passes for "gospel
preaching" in the Church of the 1990s! At every turn we are confronted
with "ministries" who have something to sell! Consider carefully whether any of the following practices can
TRUTHFULLY be described as "freely giving": *
sale of books and
tapes. (even when SOLD at cost price!) *
asking up front
"fees" as a condition of attendance. *
soliciting "love
offerings". *
charging
"admission" to services. *
placing copyright
restrictions on availability of materials. *
dropping subtle
"hints" about "ministry needs". Of
course, we are regularly offered all sorts of "spiritual" sounding
"justifications" for those practices. But the bottom line is that if we have to pay to get it ..... Or
if we ask anything for it ..... It isn't really freely given! .... Is it? Perhaps the most serious personal implications for each of us
are these: *
If the REAL GOSPEL OF
THE KINGDOM can be found at no cost ..... and if we are asked to pay for what
we receive ..... Maybe we should think and pray really hard about whether we are
being offered the real gospel of the kingdom. *
If we justify selling
what we claim to have from Jesus ..... Maybe we need to think and pray carefully about whether what we
are selling is the real thing! If we SELL any of those "spiritual goods" listed above
..... We are not freely giving! The only licence I can find anywhere in scripture for the
selling of "spiritual goods" comes from the man whose name is
numbered at 666! (Revelation 13:17-18) Allon |