"17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.
20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge”— 21 which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you."
Good Morning my beloved brothers and sisters,
Welcome
to all of those from all around the world, who
have been lead to join us today. We are grateful to have you here with
us today! For those of you joining us for the first time, I do
not believe in coincidence. I believe that Almighty God, Who has lead you here.
In our culture today, as Christians, we need to understand how to handle the money God has blessed us with for His glory
and our good. No where else are we going to get God’s take on wealth and
how we are to handle it. This passage is for all of us and is God’s
Word of peace to each of us today. God is protecting us from the
pitfalls that can come with mismanaging money. The reality here is that
God wants us to use all the money we have in a godly way, not just the
10 percent that makes up our tithe.
When we spend wisely, give generously, and share with others, our affections transfer from the money and what we can buy for ourselves to God, the One Who has left us a portion of His wealth to oversee. Therefore, our heart is free to treasure Jesus Christ, because there is a dynamic that connects our heart to our treasure. When we release some of our wealth, we can do it joyfully, because we have released our heart to find it’s true treasure , which is Jesus Christ. The first thing I'd like to say, is if you have been abundantly blessed, money had ought not make you feel that you are better than someone else. And, if you are someone who has not been blessed with as much as some else, you should not cause you to feel than anyone else. We have all heard the old expression, "Money does make the man," however, if inappropriately handled, it can keep him from entering the kingdom of God.
I believe that the Christian’s use of money shows where their true love and affections lie. Give me five minutes with your checkbook, or credit card statement, and I can tell you what's important to you!
Let us bow our heads in prayer.
Heavenly Father,
Father, we pray that You would open our eyes and give us ears to hear and minds to grasp Your Word for us today. Lord, I pray that if there is any love of money in me, remove it fro me. I need all my life, every area and I give You everything I own, all my resources to be used by You for Your glory. Father, help me to discern my needs from my wants. You have given me so much, all that I have comes from You. I pray for the souls those who do not understand this command and those who are not obedient to it, that You would call them into obedience. Lord, help us all who are a believing people to care for one another, to supply needs, to meet needs,
not that we may receive worldly gain but so that we may gain in eternity. Reveal to each of us where our heart is.
In Jesus' name
Amen
Today's Message: Rich: The Right Way
Most of us, at one time or another, has likely had the opportunity to handle something valuable that belonged to someone else. For many of us, it was probably work related, perhaps a bank deposit, or maybe it was the ring to be used at a wedding or an aging family members assets. I remember the day they placed each of my sons in my arms, the fragile little life, that would be dependent upon me to handle it with love and great care. When we are given something so valuable, there comes with it a great sense of responsibility for what we have.
That is the sense of responsibility we must have, when we are handling the riches which belong to God.
I feel that same sense of great responsibility in handling God's Word, His truth, and the flock that He has entrusted me with, placing it in my care.
Open with me your Bibles, to the Book of First Timothy, as we come to this final section, if this wonderful epistle, we come to the verses 17 to 21. Today, we will examine verses 17-19, then verses 20 and 21 in our next message. We're working our way towards II Timothy, however, we have these final verses to cover first.
I would like to encourage you to follow along with me as I read to you our text. I Timothy 6:17-21.
"17 Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. 18 Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, 19 storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed.
20 O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called "knowledge"— 21 which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you."
In verse 17, The Apostle Paul begins by identifying two very real dangers to which the wealthy are exposed.The first, is the danger of pride. "Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy." Paul is warning us that riches have the tendency to make the possessor look down on those who are less fortunate than themselves. Second, he warns of us of the danger of a false sense of security.
Many of us today, would not consider ourselves to be well off or wealthy! However, when compared to most of those who are living in the rest of the world, we are tremendously wealthy. In our nation, even the majority of our poor have automobiles, microwave ovens, flat screen televisions, computers and cellphones. Much of the inhabitants of this fallen world, do not
enjoy basic needs like clean water, safe living quarters, sufficient food to eat, much less such extravagant luxuries.
We may not be wealthy when comparing ourselves to other Americans; however, when
we compare ourselves to the majority of people living in this world, we
are very wealthy. In light of this great truth, these statements Paul makes about wealth are
worthy of our sincere attention and serious consideration. Allow me to be clear, these are not accusations! They are
instructions to be obeyed. Should we simply allow what the Apostle Paul has written to caution us, we will surely miss a wonderful opportunity to discover what pleases God. However, in contrast, we will one day what has displeased Him.
In our society, there will always be some disagreement as to the amounts that qualify an
individual as being rich, however, I believe, if we can focus in our minds, the conditions necessary for
richness, we can perhaps view this from God’s perspective. Rich, in biblical terms, is a spiritual condition.
If we can for a moment take a look at previous verses, 6 through 10, and I believe that in will prove to be a beneficial reminder to us now. "But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs."
These stark words are a very grave warning to its readers. The Greek word "autarkeias" translated as contentment, meaning self-sufficiency, describes the state of which one supports himself. Further, it speaks of being satisfied in one’s circumstance in life. Beloved, this is true wealth! We should count our monetary riches as a measure to determine our true wealth, for money can disappear overnight. Therefore, we must find our sufficiency, our contentment in Christ. Many wealthy Americans have elaborate million dollar homes, which were destroy in the wildfires in California. And, those in the State of Washington, who had beautiful cabins and homes around the foot of Mt. St. Helen's, which was buried under some twenty feet of ash. And, should San Andreas fault one day let loose, we will quickly see, just how many will retain the riches we've been given.
Jesus tells us in Matthew 6:19-21, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
The Apostle Paul tells us to remember that it is "God who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy." God is the giver. I believe that many Christians today, forget that very important fact! Rather, they would prefer to believe the lies their own heart tells them, that it is they, who are responsible for earning their own wealth, they worked for it, therefore, they "deserve it." However, it is God Who is the ultimate Giver, which allows that wealth to come!
Then, in verse 18, Paul writes "Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share," Here, Paul shares three important principals concerning wealth: The first, is to do good; in other words, use your money in such a way that helps people. This means use your money wisely to help people, not to necessarily to become personally involved. However, we are not to just talk about doing good, we are to do it!
This also has a personal element to it, it implies that wealthier people are to be
personally involved in things that are good and helpful to those in need. They are not
merely to give their money to good causes, but to personally do
something to encourage the spread of the gospel.
I do not believe that there is any worse testimony than a Christian who has the means and ability, to be stingy, flint-hearted, and merciless, grasping at every penny so tightly that Lincoln begins to scream!
In Matthew chapter 10. at the end of verse 8, our Lord said it best of all, "Freely you received, freely give."
Consider this: What can survive this life and carry over into the next? There is only one, the souls of men. When we do good with what we have been given, we are laying up for ourselves treasures in heaven and when we get there, the Lord will be there to meet us.
This brings us to the next verse in our text, verse 19, which says "storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed." The end of this verse, is speaking in the present, that is using wealth in such a way that you are satisfied with doing good, filled with
adventure, excitement, gratitude and joy right now. That is "life indeed," means, the abundant
life. There is nothing more satisfying, more fulfilling than helping those who are in need, now, when they need it. And, in doing so, you are building the return you will receive later in heaven, storing up treasures. A high return on your investment in today's vernacular. This is what the Apostle Paul is talking about. Obviously, he is addressing only Christians here, for it is only they who "may take hold of that which is life indeed."
In Closing...
Not everyone has the same capability, however, everyone has the ability, to freely give of what God has freely given to you. Each of us have the ability to make a difference, to impact the lives of others, to richly bless the lives of others, is to experience fullness of the abundant the life that Jesus Christ has come to give each of us.
Though these instructions, are simply and practical, it is up to each of us to apply them to our own lives. Each of us is called to "work out our own salvation," therefore, we cannot sit in judgement of others for their choices and decisions. However, we can all be assured, one day, we will all leave this earth, and when we do, we will take nothing from it with us. And, only that which we have given away, freely, will we have in eternity.
It is my prayer for each of you, that you take heed to the words of our message today, that you will not only impact the lives of others, but transform your own lives in the process, one that will last, throughout eternity...
May it be so...
And now may the Lord bless you and keep you;
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
the Lord make His face shine upon you,
And be gracious to you;
The Lord lift up His countenance upon you,
And give you peace.
Now and forever, in Jesus' name
Amen
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