History has shown us that over the centuries people have used God’s word and twisted it for their gain and other’s losses. Without a believer knowing the heart of God, people can pervert the word of God as a sword against the family of God. Remember when David had an opportunity to kill Saul, the men around David reminded him of God’s prophetic word for David.
‘Behold, I will give your enemy into
your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem good to you.’-1 Samuel 24:4
Wasn’t Saul an enemy of David because the king wanted to murder him? Interestingly enough, David didn’t see King Saul as an enemy but recognized him as God’s anointed. David knew the heart of God and recognized Saul as the family of God when the 400 men of Israel around him couldn’t.
6 He said to his men, “The Lord forbid that I should do this thing to my lord,
the Lord’s anointed, to put out my hand against him, seeing he is the Lord’s anointed.”
7 So David persuaded his men with these words and did not permit them to attack Saul.
And Saul rose up and left the cave and went on his way.
You might be thinking….”Hang on, ain’t nobody trying to hurt God’s anointed and I’m not trying to hurt God’s anointed…..So we good like David, right?” Well under the new covenant of grace we get to understand that every believer is now carrying the anointing (Jesus) and are called the family of God. Jesus always empowers us to love way richer and deeper under grace than the old covenant law…….
Old Covenant Law: “Don’t commit adultery (unless you give your wife a certificate of divorce)”,
New Covenant Grace: “Husbands lay your life down for your wife (she’s anointed) as Christ for the church (they are anointed).”
Old Covenant Law: “Set your tithe aside for His blessing/ anointing (unless you want to be cursed)”
New Covenant Grace: “You are already anointed and blessed from Jesus so be content and generous with His money”
Old Covenant Law: “Do not murder (unless they are your enemies)”
New Covenant Grace: “People are not your enemy. Do good to everyone, especially to those of the household of faith (the carriers of the Anointed One).”
Old Covenant Law: “You can be generous to God and have financial gain”
New Covenant Grace: “You are free to choose generosity to God’s (anointed) household so they have financial gain”
I’m going to say something that may shock you, “Giving to the household of faith (gathering of the anointed) financially is godly but it is not godly or love to give for our personal financial gain.” Believers are deprived of truth when they imagine that godliness is a means of gain. When believers discover they don’t gain financially from generosity to the church, sadly many are disobedient with generosity and stop giving and their heart is no longer for the local church because there is no longer a promise of gain. Jesus promised wherever our treasure is there our heart is. The greatest treasure in Heaven is always God’s people. And if in the past we have been giving to the local church for financial gain, we can ask Him to help us learn to give from a place of love and cheerfulness for His anointed people because we have contentment from the head of the church, Jesus.
3 If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, 4 he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy craving for controversy and for quarrels about words, which produce envy, dissension, slander, evil suspicions, 5 and constant friction among people who are depraved in mind and deprived of the truth, imagining that godliness is a means of gain. 6 But godliness with contentment is great gain, 7 for we brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. 8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be content. 9 But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 1 Timothy 6:3-9
brandonpollard 