Building Project

‘Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”’ (Matt 19:21)

“I do not see how it is possible, in the nature of things, for any revival of true religion to continue long. For religion must necessarily produce both industry and frugality, and these cannot but produce riches. But as riches increase, so will pride, anger, and love of the world in all its branches.” - John Wesley

In Romans chapter 7 the Apostle Paul describes in graphic terms the struggle between our fallen human nature and the mind regenerated by Christ. There can hardly be a clearer contemporary illustration of this than our relationship to our checkbook. Pastor Ed Wilde has noted that “We want money because it makes us feel at home here.” Our wealth lies to us and human nature wants to believe those lies. This led Wesley to conclude that the byproducts of salvation (“industry,” “frugality” and “wealth”) would tend to undermine the very source which produced them. Scripture affirms this danger when the writer requests of God “neither poverty nor riches,” since he feared that riches would make him forget God. America is full of dead churches and universities that were killed by the misuse of the byproducts of God’s grace.

But such an end does not have to be. The same Scripture which extols industry provides the antidote to its potentially deceptive fruits. We are told that this world is not our home. The parable of the Rich Fool teaches that hoarding what God has entrusted to us can have disastrous consequences. Paul says that the purpose of industry is to provide for oneself and have something to share with others. Moreover, there are eternal rewards for those who are generous with the things they cannot keep anyway.

Most of our homes are full of things we neither need nor use and it would be a mercy if someone would come and steal them. But that would be a cop-out. We are told, like the Rich Young Ruler, to give it away and trust Christ. Matthew records that the young man went away, saddened, because he owned great wealth. More accurately, great wealth owned him.

Giving breaks the hold that things have on us. It shows who’s the boss: God. Let us take to heart what scripture so clearly teaches and give generously to His work. Give to the Building Fund.