OPENING PRAYER
The devastation is breathtaking, Lord.
The images from the Southeast -
from Tampa to Ashville,
from Florida’s coastline to Appalachia -
show many of our friends, neighbors, sisters,
and brothers amidst such destruction.
We pray for those who were lost and their families
as they begin the recovery process amidst power outages
and lack of basic services.
When we are a nation in need,
Help to unite us amid turmoil
And help mobilize us amid chaos.
In hope and comfort, we pray.
Amen.
SERMON
How much is enough?
Tension Point: Money is a spiritual issue.
Leviticus 19:9-10 NLT - What is ‘enough’?
When you harvest the crops of your land, do not harvest the grain along the edges of your fields, and do not pick up what the harvesters drop. It is the same with your grape crop—do not strip every last bunch of grapes from the vines, and do not pick up the grapes that fall to the ground. Leave them for the poor and the foreigners living among you. I am the Lord your God.
Deuteronomy 14:22-29 NLT
You must set aside a tithe of your crops—one-tenth of all the crops you harvest each year. Bring this tithe to the designated place of worship—the place the Lord your God chooses for his name to be honored—and eat it there in his presence. This applies to your tithes of grain, new wine, olive oil, and the firstborn males of your flocks and herds. Doing this will teach you always to fear the Lord your God.
Now, when the Lord your God blesses you with a good harvest, the place of worship he chooses for his name to be honored might be too far for you to bring the tithe. If so, you may sell the tithe portion of your crops and herds, put the money in a pouch, and go to the place the Lord your God has chosen. When you arrive, you may use the money to buy any kind of food you want—cattle, sheep, goats, wine, or other alcoholic drink. Then feast there in the presence of the Lord your God and celebrate with your household. And do not neglect the Levites in your town, for they will receive no allotment of land among you.
At the end of every third year, bring the entire tithe of that year’s harvest and store it in the nearest town. Give it to the Levites, who will receive no allotment of land among you, as well as to the foreigners living among you, the orphans, and the widows in your towns, so they can eat and be satisfied. Then the Lord your God will bless you in all your work.
POINT: Money is a
Tension Point: Money can be an idol.
1 Timothy 6:10 CEB- The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some have wandered away from the faith and have impaled themselves with a lot of pain because they made money their goal.
A way to combat idols: Ask why.
Tension Point: Money is necessary for the Church to carry out its work.
Tension Point: Generosity is an essential path to becoming more like Christ.