Freely Give

I am constantly stuck by how Christianity has become a giant business in the 21st century. Anybody that has read the Scriptures knows that the Lord was not a proponent of doing things for people and receiving money. Chapter 10 of Matthew makes this abundantly clear:

These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them: "Do not go in the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter any city of the Samaritans;but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as you go, preach, saying, ' The kingdom of heaven is at hand.' "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. "Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts;" (Matthew 10:5-9)

Freely you received, freely give. Do not acquire money when you are out in the world using His powers to heal, cast out demons, etc. They are, after all, His powers, not yours.

Christianity has, like many other things, become corrupted by money as well as power. Somehow the Lord's teaching got lost. It's a crying shame.

Next time you see a Christian asking to get paid for his/her work (oh, how Christians love their titheing!), ask them if they have read the Bible. Chances are they have not meditated on Matthew, Chapter 10, verse 5-9.

Now, there is nothing wrong with receiving offerings from people, as the Lord often did. But there is something profoundly wrong with demanding payment in return for something that Jesus is doing through you.

May you freely give to others and ask nothing and expect nothing in return.

Agape,

Steve