By Bob Vaughn - uca@uncommonanswers.com
"Contending for the faith once delivered to the saints"
Uncommon Answers Home Page
FINANCIAL
DIFFICULTIES
Some people, even in this land of plenty, seem to
stay in financial trouble. Financial troubles often are an indicator of
our need to reset our priorities. Often, foolish spending brings
troubles.
Many people bring financial problems from
their old life when they become a Christian. Trying to find
satisfaction in worldly things, as lost people seem to always do,
normally leads to tremendous debts. God has a unique plan for each of
these individuals to gain financial freedom. Prayer and counsel from
godly people will usually reveal steps in the right direction. These
steps will often include patience, self-denial, and hard work. These
are traits Christians should practice anyway.
I think it is good advice for Christians to
seldom purchase anything on time payments. Buying on time payments
without knowing God's will, is like the presumptuous man spoken of in
James 4:13-16. Avoiding time payments is a giant step in the right
direction.
Often,another giant step is to modify your
life-style. Let your life-style imitate the life-style taught in the
scriptures. After all, we are disciples of Jesus.
Christians are not bound by any law, except
the law of love--love for God and love for others. The scriptures do
not teach Christians a law of giving. Love will control their giving,
and their giving will reflect their love. God's reason for Christians
giving is not that His kingdom is suffering financially, but that they
might be shown to be reighteous.
Consider the following scriptures. I believe
if you let them be guidelines for your financial activites you will
always have your needs and an offering to give to every good work.
Proverbs
3:9-10:
Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all
your increase; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats
will overflow with new wine.
Matthew 6:31-33: Do not
worry saying, "What shall we eat?" or "What shall we drink?" or "What
shall we wear?"..............But seek first the Kingdom of God and His
righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.
Mark
12:41-44: ..........And many who
were rich put in much. Then one poor widow cane and threw in two
mites.........He called his disciples to Himself and said to
them,..........this poor widow has put in more than all those who have
given.....they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her
poverty put in all that she has, her whole livelihood.
Luke 6:38: Give,
and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken
together, and running over will be put into your bosom.
Luke
12:15-21:
And he said to them, take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's
life does not consist in the abundance of things he possesses.
Then he spoke a parable to them, saying: "The ground of a certain rich
man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, "What
shall I do, since I have no room tostore my crops?" So he said, "I will
do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there will I
store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you
have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink and
be merry." But God said to him, " Fool! This night your soul willll be
required of you: then whose willll those things be which you have
provided?" "So is he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich
toward God."
Luke
9:23:
"...If anyone desires come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up
his cross daily, and follow me...For what profit is it to a man if he
gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?"
II
Corinthians 8:13-15:
For I do not mean that others should be eased and you are burdened; but
by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their
lack, that their abundance may supply your lack -- that there may be
equality. As it is written, "He who gathered much had nothing over, and
he who gathered little had no lack."
II
Corinthians 9:6-8:
But this I say; He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he
who sows bountifully, will also reap bountifully. So let each one give
as he purposes in his heart, bot grudgingly or of necessity; for God
loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward
you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an
abundance for every good work. As it is written: "He has dispersed
abroad, he has given to the poor, his righteousness ebdures forever."
My prayer-
"Lord help me to live this truth!"
Bob Vaughn