The Scriptures on Finances - To whom much is given, more is required

Psalm 112:1-3 Praise the Lord. Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in His commands. His children will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever.

Last week I said that we would look at whether or not it is OK for believers to have wealth and riches. Perhaps an additional insight into this question is whether or not it is possible for wealth and riches to have possession of a believer.

The answer to both of the above questions is yes. We are currently training to reign. One of the major indicators of our heart condition is shown by our attitude and belief about money. It is rare to hear a Christian mention that he has a problem with greed. Yet Jesus clearly talked about greed in Luke 12:13-15. The Word says, “Someone in the crowd said to him, ‘Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.’ Jesus replied, ‘Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?’ Then He said to them, ‘Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.’”

If we are faithful with little then more shall be given. When we are given more we need to remember that to whom much has been given much will be required. I remind people to be careful about what they pray for because when God blesses us with more we then have to give a greater account of our stewardship.

It is OK for Christians to be blessed financially. It is not OK for Christians to be greedy. Michael Douglas may have said that greed is good in one of his movies but God did not say that.

I encourage people to position themselves to be blessed. Having a real relationship with Jesus is the foundation of our spiritual walk. God can use our financial situations to teach us more about who He is and just how much He cares for us. I challenge you to accept God’s invitation to test Him with tithing.

A tithe is a tenth. Before the law, during the law, and when Jesus walked the earth the Bible talks about the tithe. A practical way to implement tithing is to set aside the first ten percent of your income each week, month, or year and give it to your storehouse. Your storehouse is where you get fed. For most of us our storehouse would probably be our local church.

When we tithe we should believe that God will throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I have encouraged others to believe for more than they have ever believed God for thus far.

The tithe is not protection from ever having any bad thing happen in your life. Job was faithful and he went through all kinds of bad situations and trials. A tithe reminds me that everything good thing I have comes from God and belongs to Him. I can then learn how to be a happy generous giver but my financial foundation is built first with my relationship with Jesus and then with my declaring that He is my source.

We need to recognize that each of us has been given resources that we are stewarding for King Jesus. The Holy Spirit leads us and guides us along our spiritual and financial journey.

Rather than ask God for huge amounts of money I would suggest that we ask for wisdom and the level of provision that we would be faithful with. We should trust that God will show us how to keep away from being greedy and jealous.

My grandma always said, “You can’t have more until you are thankful for what you have.” This week let’s thank God for His blessings and His revelation so that we can learn to be better stewards of His resources.

May God bless you big!

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This is the second column in a series by Kevin Barsotti, pastor at Ark Church in Havre, about financial matters and their treatment in the Christian faith.