Category: Money

1 Timothy 6:17-18 (NIV)
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share.

1 Timothy 6:10 (NIV)
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Ephesians 4:28 (NIV)
Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.

“So we view our money not primarily through the lens of personal provision, but through the lens of God’s generosity and mission on earth. The money he provides for us is a means of making his invisible generosity visible.”
(Paul David Tripp, Sex and Money )

Money can be and is a  blessing from God as part of his wonderful and rich provision for us and through us to others. (Love of money is not.)

Prayer: Father God, may your provision for Agape Churches be even more bountiful, including in the area of money, and may our hope be in you and our lives be lived out in faithfulness to you and generosity towards others, including in how we use money. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Let’s worship to the song “You Hold It All Together” by Maverick City Music (click here).

-BW

Proverbs 3:5-10 (NIV)
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.
8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.
9 Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;
10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

“There are three conversions necessary: the conversion of the heart, the conversion of the mind, and the conversion of the purse.”
Martin Luther

One area in particular that God has blessed our churches in is giving.  Biblical giving is with the totality of heart and life, but also with our finances.  We have learned and been blessed to give thankfully and generously of the firstfruits (i.e., the best and first consideration, not the leftovers or last consideration).  May that continue and increase even more so in the years to come.

Prayer: Lord, may we continue to experience the blessing of giving with all of who we are as well as the firstfruits of our wealth and possessions to you.  We also ask that friends and guests of our church and our children would be brought in to experience likewise!  In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Let’s worship to the song “King Jesus” by Matt Redman (click here).

-BW

Proverbs 3:5-10 (NIV)
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.
8 This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.
9 Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;
10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

The volume and diversity of how the Bible overall speaks about money is as if to say: don’t ignore it, don’t assume how you do it is fine, don’t use the world around you as your standard or comparison point, hear the Lord in this, work it out in each season as part of God’s people.  Verses 5 and 6 we hear and apply in many different arenas (legitimately so) – the direct application here is in the area of wealth and money, with what we do and how we do it affecting even our health (physical, relational, mental, spiritual, etc.)!

Prayer: Lord, we let go of the idea that money is a private, personal matter for us to figure out on our own.  In each season, in questions of acquiring money or using money, we submit our ways to you and lean not on our own understanding.  We trust you and follow you, Lord!  In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Let’s worship to the song “Fill This Place” by Red Rocks Worship (click here).

.-BW

Matthew 6:21-25 (NIV)
21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
22 “The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are healthy, your whole body will be full of light. 23 But if your eyes are unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!
24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear.

“In a pointed moment of practical teaching, Jesus says in Matthew 6:19-33 that we are all treasure hunters. We name things as important to us, and we all live to get and experience what we have named as important…And our lives follow the trail of choices, decisions, and actions that have been magnetized by what we hold dear.” (Paul David Tripp, Sex and Money, p.159)

Jesus’s teaching shows us dealing with money is not primarily about budgets and proper management and something practical to figure out, but first and foremost a heart issue, a spirituality issue.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for your loving care and providence over our lives. Help us experience the treasure beyond all worth, the immeasurable value of being in your presence, and being joined into your people. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.

Let’s worship to the song “Fresh Fire” by Maverick City Music (click here).

-BW

Let’s read aloud together the following scripture, confession and prayer:

Isaiah 55:1-3 (NIV)
1 “Come, all you who are thirsty,
    come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
    come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
    without money and without cost.
2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
    and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
    and you will delight in the richest of fare.
3 Give ear and come to me;
    listen, that you may live.
I will make an everlasting covenant with you,
    my faithful love promised to David.

Q 26: What do you believe when you say: “I believe in God
the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth?”
A: That the eternal Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who out
of nothing created heaven and earth and all that is in them,
and who still upholds and governs them by His eternal counsel
and providence, is… my God and my Father.
(Heidelberg Catechism)

Let’s pray aloud together: Father God, thank you for your generous invitation to come to you regardless of what we have or do not have, to partake of you, to expend ourselves on what truly satisfies.  We listen to you, we feast upon your word, we live in the reality of your everlasting covenant with us today! In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Let’s worship to the song “By The Grace of God” by Bethel Music (click here).

-BW