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Introduction:
Introduction:
Joke:
On the Sunday that a church was supposed to make their giving commitments, the pianist got sick so a substitute was brought in. The pastor gave her a schedule of the service and asked her to think of something to play during the commitment time. At the scheduled time in the service, the pastor said, “I want anyone who is committing $1,000 to the building fund to stand up.” The organist immediately began playing the “Star Spangled Banner.” And that is how the substitute pianist became the regular pianist.
And he said also unto his disciples, There was a certain rich man, which had a steward; and the same was accused unto him that he had wasted his goods. And he called him, and said unto him, How is it that I hear this of thee? give an account of thy stewardship; for thou mayest be no longer steward. Then the steward said within himself, What shall I do? for my lord taketh away from me the stewardship: I cannot dig; to beg I am ashamed. I am resolved what to do, that, when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses. So he called every one of his lord’s debtors unto him, and said unto the first, How much owest thou unto my lord? And he said, An hundred measures of oil. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and sit down quickly, and write fifty. Then said he to another, And how much owest thou? And he said, An hundred measures of wheat. And he said unto him, Take thy bill, and write fourscore. And the lord commended the unjust steward, because he had done wisely: for the children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light. And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations. He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you,
Financial Trust
Financial Trust
“Money is loaned, not owned.”
And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.
Financial Transfer
Financial Transfer
And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.
And I say unto you, Make to yourselves friends of the mammon of unrighteousness; that, when ye fail, they may receive you into everlasting habitations.
Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
Matth
Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you. Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten. Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days. Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
ILLUSTRATION:
Suppose the United States decided to convert all its currency into British pounds. After that took place, all US currency would be worthless. Nobody would know when this changeover would happen, so what would be the wise thing to do? Turn your money into pounds and keep only enough to live on day by day. One day all of our treasures that we have left when we die will be lost—all that we have spent on our luxuries will be lost. Only that which we have converted to heavenly treasure will be left.
ILLUSTRATION:
I heard about a very rich man who lost a great deal of money in the recent downturn. He made a remark to a preacher, “I wish I had given what I lost to missions and to the Lord’s cause. Now I have lost it.”
Not because I desire a gift: but I desire fruit that may abound to your account.
Financial Testing
Financial Testing
He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.
If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man’s, who shall give you that which is your own?
luke
ILLUSTRATION: What are you willing to do for ten million dollars?
This was a question asked in a poll back in 1991. ($19M in today’s money) The people were given several options and then instructed to indicate all that they would be willing to do. Here were the results:
25% would abandon their entire family.
25% would abandon their church.
23% would become prostitutes for a week or more.
16% would give up their American citizenship.
16% would leave their spouse.
10% would withhold testimony and let a murderer go free.
7% would kill a stranger.
3% would put their children up for adoption.
This poll revealed that two-thirds (66%) agreed to at least one of these, and some to several.
(James Patterson and Peter Kim, The Day America Told the Truth, 1991)
If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches?
What does He mean by “true riches”? I believe He’s talking about the Gospel. As a disciple—a follower—if you and I are going to squander our resources on ourselves and our pleasures, why would the Lord entrust us to “the pearl of great price”?
The test of money reveals two things:
1. It reveals our faith.
Do we really believe all this? Do I really believe that God can take care of me when I am old? Or is my Christianity an ace in the hole, just in case.
True faith is believing God! It is walking by His Word, not by what we can see!
What is the test of true faith? Well, there are many, but one sure one is where we are investing our money!
2. It is a test of our true wisdom.
The days of our years are threescore years and ten;
And if by reason of strength they be fourscore years,
Yet is their strength labour and sorrow;
For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.
So teach us to number our days,
That we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.
I recently read the biography of Dr. Lee Roberson. Highland Park Baptist Church was an aristocratic church when he went there in 1942. But people began to be saved. There were people there who had money who began to invest their money in that great work. Preachers began to be sent out, missionaries were called and sent out, and BIMI was started. Buildings were built, and the work multiplied.
Somebody says, “Oh, what a reward Lee Roberson will get in Heaven.” Yes, but what a reward all those people who did not have the gifts and calling of Lee Roberson will have because they were wise enough to invest in what God was doing in this world to prepare men and women for the other side.
Financial Testimony
Financial Testimony
No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
You can’t serve both money and God. There cannot be divided allegiance. A man cannot live for two worlds. Jesus knew that a man cannot have everything he wants in this life and serve the God who said, “For what shall it profit a man if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” ()
People say, “You cannot take it with you.” Oh yes, you can—if you invest it in eternal dividends.
Why did Jesus commend this unjust steward? Because he invested in his future. That was all the future he had. But we who are Christians have an eternal future. When we get to Heaven, what friends will we have made?
Only those we have helped to lead to Christ!
Are you seeking to win souls to Christ? Do you spend any time praying and actively seeking to lead someone else to Christ? Suppose you were offered a thousand dollars for every soul you led to Christ. Would you work at it? Would you attend a soulwinning class and then begin to practice it? Would you come out on a Saturday?
Obviously, from what Jesus said in verse 13, every person has to choose whether they will serve God, or serve themselves by serving money. To determine how much you are serving money, ask yourself what weight money has in the decisions you make. When deciding whether to do something, is money the main thing you consider?
Would you turn down a more lucrative job offer unless you believed God was leading you to accept that job? Or, would you make an automatic, no-brainer decision simply because the job offered more money?
Money is a false god.
Money is a false god.
Money is a false provider.
Money is a false provider.
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
ILLUSTRATION:
In 1995 the nation was stunned when news broke that an elderly woman named Oseola McCarty had donated $150,000 to the University of Southern Mississippi for their scholarship fund. This eighty-seven-year-old woman had been forced to drop out of school in the sixth grade to care for her family. For more than sixty years she made a living washing clothes in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, saving as much as she could from her meager pay. She wanted others to have the opportunity for the education she never received, so she gave away the money she had saved for so many years.
Quote — “Our society values how much a person has; God values how much a person gives.”
For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? For ye are our glory and joy.