Topic: IN CONTINUATION OF THE EFFECTS OF MONEY INSIDE THE CHURCH – Faithwheel.com – 4 July 2021
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IN CONTINUATION OF THE EFFECTS OF MONEY INSIDE THE CHURCH
- Low esteem of God: Most of the dirty things done in the Churches are done in ignorance of what the Church ought to be, some are done deliberately, some are done by conscientious stupidity, and others because of people uncrucified minds and their sincere ignorance. Too much emphasis on money and verses such as Malachi 3:8-10; Ecclesiastes 10:19; and others by Pastors’ are greatly damaging things they are doing because of money. There is a place where emphasis on money is to be done and that is the school of business, banks or nation’s stock markets, not in Churches. Emphasizing too much on money inside the Church with the quote, “Money answereth all things” has given money a greater attention than God in many people’s lives. And after getting the money by any means they will want to compensate God or blind His eyes with their money. Things such as holiness, righteousness, godliness, genuine repentance, heaven, and others have little or no emphasis in-spite of their importance to our souls eternally and earthly, are ignored by many Pastors’ and they love emphasizing on money because of their personal interests. You hardly hear many Pastors’ emphasizing on repentance, obedience, salvation, eternal destinies, on God, purity and chastity. But their emphasis is mainly on money. People lowly esteem God because of nothing but money, because money can answer their earthly lusts for them. They seek money not God and many Pastors’ love it so, because the money is coming into their pockets as the fear and love of God.
People give much attention to what will yield them money and not what will increase the knowledge of God in them. Many Pastors’ can’t emphasize on Hosea 6:6, because they love sacrifice and burnt offerings. They made the church to do their own pleasures for them rather than God’s pleasures. And many have believe that if they do the pleasures of their Pastors’ that they have done God’s will and pleasures, this is the precept of men and money is the root of low esteem of God. You can say, it is a lie with your mouth but the evidence is there, people feel satisfied after paying man-made money tithe and offerings, simply because Pastors’ uncanny emphasis on these precepts of men, make people see it as the most important thing to God. Their emphasis on Malachi 3:8-9, is to give Christians guilty conscience because they don’t know the truth, and when they start doing Pastors’ will of paying man-made tithes and offerings, they will feel satisfied and justified, and they will look unto God through these man-made rituals for their acceptance. Many Christians confidence towards God is not on the fact that the blood of Jesus Christ gave us acceptance to God (See Ephesians 2:13), but that they pay their man-made tithe and offering. Many Christians lowly esteem God and His knowledge because what Pastors’ prioritized is the paying of money tithe and offerings, not their ending up in heaven, living in holiness, godliness, righteousness, sanctification from worldliness, its loves and pleasures. Pastors’ are responsible for many Christians ignorance about God.
- Money is needed for justification and acceptance before God: Above all the virulent and detrimental effects of money inside the Church, this is the most dangerous and damaging effect that raises a cause for alarm before God in Heaven. For this purpose Jesus Christ wept, saying, “My people no longer trust in my blood for their justification and acceptance before My Father. They look to their money to justify them and cover their sins. My servants many of them have made them believe their money is important to me than their souls.” On saying this, He wept, “My people are now believing their money can cleanse their unrighteousness, uncleanness, and ungodliness, they see money as a cloak to cover their filthiness and sins not my blood. They trust in their money to answer all things for them. And many are rendering their garments (money) instead of their hearts. My Father desired mercy (love) and His knowledge, but many of my servants desire sacrifices and burnt offerings and have made my people believed that I am hungry for their money.” He wept, and said, “My people are giving money to find acceptance before My Father mostly the rich ones in the Church, money is a god inside the Church, but its days are numbered.” He was talking about the time money will have no power over His Church. Many different things are going on inside the Church of God and except God open our eyes, religion and denominationalism will blind our eyes to the truth.
Tithes and offerings inside the Church are man-made works, even as works of the law God never has any intention to mingle it with the Church of Grace and Truth. Where grace and truth which came by the Lord Jesus Christ (See John 1:17) abound, the name, word, and the blood of Jesus Christ are the only things we are to trust for our justification. The weakness of the law and its works is that it made people sin and sin more than they could have wished. It gives them self-righteousness after doing rituals and ordinances of the law. It takes away God’s picture from His frame and put man’s picture, making man to believe that except he do certain things or play a part in their justification before God, they won’t be justify. This is one of the weakness and unprofitable work of the law. Many Pastors’ will argue it’s a lie because of their personal interests, they will say God never put the Levitical Priesthood away. But they are overlooking the damaging effects of the works of the law. In grace, everything is done by Christ blood and His Spirit not by works of any man (See Ephesians 2:8-9). Our salvation, redemption, deliverance, forgiveness, acceptance, sanctification, access, and boldness are done by Christ blood not our works. Partial submission of our lives to Jesus Christ is due to our desire to play a part in only what our acknowledgement and submission is needed for Christ or God to help us. We are longing for our parts that we may have something to glory in, but God hates such, He only want any glorying to be of His works not ours, of His knowledge not ours (See Jeremiah 9:24; 1 Corinthians 1:29-31).
The scripture made it clear we play no part in these things but to believe in God through Jesus Christ whose Spirit can do these works in us (See Romans 8:11). We play no part and these were proven in Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-9; Colossians 1:13-14; 2:14-15. God by our works will not called us the righteous but the blood of Jesus Christ justify us before God and God see righteousness in place of our sinfulness or erring and whoring (See Colossians 1:21-22; Romans 5:9; 3:25; Ephesians 2:13; Hebrews 9:14; 1 John 1:9). After reading the verses, tell me where you contributed or where any of us play any part for what God has done for us, in us, and with us through Jesus Christ. Money can’t speak anything for us before God, and God doesn’t need your money but your heart. I know well that Pastors’ are dying or lusting for your money and your giving or paying of money in everything inside Church can’t justify you before God (See Galatians 2:16; 3:10-13), and they are not the fear and love of God. Too much emphasis on money has caused these confusions in many Christians lives, they now believe that money is so important to God, as many Pastors’ highly emphasized on it. Then for giving it God should justify them, too much emphasis birthed this assumption, and many Pastors’ will be held responsible for it by God, for many are trusting in their money for justification and acceptance before God.
Nothing draw us near God like the blood of Jesus Christ (See Hebrews 10:19; 9:8,12) and faith in the blood of Jesus Christ gives us boldness and confidence towards God like nothing else (See Romans 5:2; Ephesians 2:18; 3:12). Money can’t do any of these for any man. Many Church leaders and Christians are living, swimming, and wallowing in sins after all on Sunday or Saturday service they will give God money for their forgiveness, acceptance, and justification. I pray that God deliver his Churches and elected ones even as He will do, before the love of money and its thought pluck off our feet.
- The poor are overlooked: Money is damaging the Church seriously but many will never acknowledged this truth for these two reasons; (a). because they are benefitting from the money generated from the Church or, (b). blinded by the tradition or religious dogmas of their Church or denomination, and nothing more than these. Just as the poor in the societies are ignored or overlooked by the government of the nation and states because of their personal interests, so also many Churches are doing. The poor in the Churches are not important people even though they have spiritual gift that can lift up the Church, but because they don’t have money and don’t contribute financially to the Church, they are ignored and overlooked by their Pastors’ and their leaders. The rich inside the Church are well known and respected given greater attention and cares by the Pastors’ and Churches.
Whenever any of the rich in the Church are sick or absent, Pastors’ will always want to know the cause of their being absent, they get preferential treatment from Pastors’ because of their money, and because they always give fat offerings and tithes to match their financial reputations. Many Pastors’ love them so much, some trembled before them, and they will do anything to see they are not offended so that they might leave the Church, but who cares about the poor in the Church? The poor inside the Church are the most underrated people, they are ignored or overlooked to their own confusion that some of them begin to question the love and faithfulness of God. They are consumed with feelings of being unloved, unworthiness, and ashes of self-condemnation. Psychologically, they are discomfited because of the treatment they are rendered because of the ways they are ignored, and they are not identified or reckon with by many Pastors’ and their brethren.
Jesus Christ is never happy with the disparity inside the Church or the segregation of the rich from the poor inside the Churches. Humans are always longing for sense of validation and Christ always give us freely through His mercies and compassions, and this is what He want us to do to the less privilege among us. The poor leave the Church easily than the rich, but they are not needed like the rich who because of their money are highly valid. Jesus Christ said, the giving done by many Christians in the Church are selfish giving because it is for their personal interests and only very few give as unto God, but the problem with the Christians is that they don’t love one another and they are not giving to the poor among them. But this is what makes God commanded us to be giving (See Deuteronomy 15:11), not for any reason but because of the poor among us. Jesus Christ made it clear in Matthew 25:31-41, the giving that will take us to heaven or that will justify us before The Righteous God is that we give unto the poor among us as unto the LORD. But many Christians don’t give for the purpose giving was instituted by God but rather for their acceptance and justification they assumed money will give them by reasons of many Pastors’ uncanny emphasis on money.
Jesus Christ speak about the poor being overlooked in the Church are the works of the Pastors’, their love for money made it so, but that the present day Church is very far in words and deeds from the apostolic Churches who know the truth and live in it and have their being in it. He speaks about the negligence of the poor, how it is distorting their mentality about God as a loving and compassionate God. What Pastors’ are collecting from the Churches in terms of money that is not used for the poor, but rather for only the Pastors’. The poor in the Church are disperse because they are not cared for, and they are not loved. Some are made rich to help the poor but when they become rich some forget the poor. Pastors’ love the rich more than the poor because of money. The flocks of Christ are poorly treated by the Church and their Pastors’. See Ezekiel 34:1-10, and hear God’s Word for the Pastors’. These and other innumerable effects of money are found in the Churches.
IN CONTINUATION
Dearly beloved, the Lord Jesus Christ said in Matthew 26:41, “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation.” We all have sinned in one way or another because of money and the commonest means was by telling lies to get money. Don’t do any ungodly thing to get money, we know we can’t eat and drink without money, but don’t sin to have. Repent from all secret sins and works of darkness and yield completely to the Lord Jesus Christ. Share with your friends. Shalom!
Writer: EDOBOR AUSTIN EDOBA