Deeper Wk 8- Finances

Do you believe that this morning do you honestly believe that it is? Well, with my soul. So I begin to ask you, what shall separate you from Christ? Is it famine or persecution or the loss of a job or a love of what was separate you from the love of Christ? But yet we sing it is well with my soul.
So every trial, every circumstance, I am saying it is well with my soul. Father in heaven we proclaim love your goodness and your mercy. We thank you, God for who you are.

Because we know that there's no one like you. Lord, we proclaim that your name is great and great need to be prayed because we know God, that your loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting So yes, Father, we sing Hallelujah, which is the highest praise and great is the Lord and greatly to be praise to Father in Heaven.

Holy is your name Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done.

On Earth as it is in heaven So, Father, we align our thoughts and our ways here on Earth with heavily ram So for the next few minutes, God, I just pray that you open up our hearts and minds to receive from you today that everything that's said from this pulpit is strictly from you.

Nothing more, nothing less.

Holy Spirit even know that we know that you are here. We invite you into this place. We set aside a special invitation for you.

And we will be sure to give you all the glory and the honor and let the church say A man, a man and a man. Let's give our worship team and musicians a round of applause. Yes, so before I said get started to our lesson today, I want to kind of just piggyback on what we talked about last week.

And so last week we talked about because it was Valentine's Day, we talked about going deeper into intimacy and we talked about not the type of Netflix and chill intimacy. We're talking about the intimacy with Christ And last week, I brought my wife up on stage and we begin to really just walk through what intimacy looks like in a couple in a relationship.

And there's two questions that was posed. And I did not have the scripture I had. I knew the scripture, but I didn't know the specific address. What I want to do today, just kind of how like scripturally, what we talked about last week on the pulpit. The question was asked in reference to what if there is you're in a relationship and there is a unbelieving spouse?

How do you govern and how do you begin to map through that relationship? So the scripture is this first Corinthians, chapter seven verses 12 through 17. And I wanted to make sure that we go back and highlight the scripture because I want you guys to know everything that we talk about should be biblically based. And so this is for you.

I want you to remember this first Corinthians chapter seven verses 12 through 17 the apostle Paul is writing and this is what he says to the rest I say this if any brother has a wife who is not a believer and she is willing to live to live with him, he must not divorce her next. There we go.

And if a woman has a husband who is not a believer and he is willing to them to live with her she must not divorce him. For the unbelieving husband who has been sanctified through his wife and the unbelieving wife has been sanctified through her believing husband, otherwise your children would be unclean. But as it is, they are holy but if an unbeliever leaves, let it be so the brother or sister is not bound in such a circumstance.

God has called us to live in peace How do you know a wife? Brother, you will say your husband or how do you know husband? Whether you will save your wife Nevertheless, each person should live as a believer in whatever situation the Lord has assigned to them. Just as God has called them. This is the rule I lay down in all of the churches.

This is what Apostle Paul is saying is this is pretty simple. If you aren't in a relationship and one a believer is a person is believe, the other person is a nonbeliever, then it says that you guys should continue, if at all possible in that marriage. Because Scripture says that God hates divorce, that he does not like divorce.

Divorce. Is that what God and Jesus Christ desires force, but in such a manner that you should live out your life in such a way that the unbelieving spouse because of the way that you are serving and worshiping God is possible that they may believe because of your faith? I must say this now, some rocky territory there because Scripture also tells us that we should not be unequally yoked.

This is the Second Corinthians chapter six verses 14 through 15 Scripture says that we shall not be unequally yoked, which means that we should not be yoked with a person who believes in Christianity. Another person who may believe in, let's say, Buddhism or or their Muslim or they may be even a Catholic and so Scripture tells us they stay together and prayerfully that I believe in spells will help to help convert or God will begin to do something new in their lives.

The second question was this What if the spouse walks out on you? Like, what if what if the spouse just leaves you? Matthew 19 verse nine says this. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife or husband, except for sexual immorality and marries another, commits adultery, and so if your husband or wife walks out of Scripture, tells us that there's really nothing we can do.

The only reason, the only way biblically that your call to divorce is through adultery. A man that was kind of weak, but his right is biblical. And that's difficult. Many of you may not know my story for foolishness as we begin to celebrate 20 years in June. 21st a man right the both of us was previously married before, and for both of our spouses, they walked out on us.

So what do you do? You level up, you get yourself a foolish amen. That's all I got to say.

Or get yourself a riot, right? But we're fresh out of both of my men. We don't have either one of them.

But I say that just to say this. You never know what life, how life is going to give you your cards.

But remain faithful. Remain faithful in their relationship. Remain faithful to God. Amen. All right. As we continue to walk in this new year, 20, 22 we're February the 1921 of the dates whatever's 20th and something I am reminded that better is available the better is available for us for you and I to achieve to acquire because the prophet Isaiah says this in 14th in chapter 43 verse 19 he says this Behold I am doing something new now is a spring forth.

Do you not see, do not perceive that I am doing something new that he is making a way in the wilderness and so if you are living in a season of wilderness, just know that God is doing something new. He wants you to have it He wants you to live it out because we serve a God of greater.

We suffer God with that has greater possibilities. We have a God that we serve that He can make a way out of. No way Growing up in a Baptist church in a dirt road in Texas, I remember going to church and I remember the mamas, the mothers of the church where we call, you know, those big mamas you ever had a big mama and your family.

Big Mama can correct everybody, even the pastor, I can tell you see, the big mama used to say, God, through with me. Yet another thing that she used to say, I plead the blood of Jesus. Those old church sayings that it's not over to God says it yes. Come on, y'all know what I'm talking about. I'm blessed. What highly favored.

Those are those old Baptists rituals that we see. All kinds of things that we can kind of dig deep in and believe in to now begin to remember the journey of the children of Israel as they begin to leave Egypt and then begin to think about how they wandered around for 40 years searching for what God had greater for them.

Then I begin to think about it. God, why did it take them 40 years why did they wonder for 40 years it was because they didn't believe in a God that was greater they had access to greater, but they never tapped into it. So you and I, we have access to the greater but you have to begin to tap into the greater.

In other words, the reason why the churches of Israel wonder around the world that region for 40 years is because God had to change their mindset and their belief a shift had to take place a shift had to take place for that generation.

The things that God has for us the things that God has for us in this New Year, you can't go into this year old and into last year's situation.

In other words, and we'll put it like this you can't achieve 20, 22 until you let go 20, 21 let me put it a different way. You can't ascertain what God was for you in the Promised Land, holding on to your Egypt you can't walk into what God has promised for you living in Egypt God wants you to shift and go deeper.

This past month and a half, we've been in a series that's been called Deeper What God Wants me to remind you today that there's more for you, but you have to go deeper where God is taking you that you have to begin to shift the way that you think, the way that you are doing life in such a way that He has caught us to go deeper into.

The Holy Spirit is calling us to go deeper a prayer. He has called us to go deeper and community. And yes, he has called us to go deeper in intimacy.

For the past four weeks we talked about going deeper into the Holy Spirit, using our gifts and our talents, using what God has given us. We have called to go deeper into community meaning that we don't we're not called to live and do church by ourselves. We are not called to live and do things, Barr said. But he said, No, I need a community.

I have developed a community for you to go deeper with because Batmen have Robin Wright, the Avengers man. They got everybody right now. My boy are not ready. If I don't know my Avengers fan, Transformers, all the action stuff, anything like that. But The Avengers had Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain, American Iron Man, Doctor, show me all of those individuals.

It's not biblical, but it's just a point, man.

So I'll ask you this question Am I living the life God wants to tell about me?

Craig Gross show, which is a pastor, he he poses this point. He says, Am I living the type of life that God wants to tell about Ryan so if you have your Bibles today, we're going to go to Malachi. Chapter three. Malachi is the last book of the Old Testament so if you flip to Matthew, go back one page or a couple of pages, you'll get to Malachi and I'll be reading chapter three verses one through 12 from the King, looking James version Scripture says, Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me.

And the lure whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. Even the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight behold, he is coming, says the Lord of Hosts, but who can endure the day of his coming and who can stand when he appears for he is like a refiners fire in like a laundry soap he will sit as a refiner and purify the silver.

You appear for the sins of Levi and purge them as gold and silver that they may have lived at. They may offer to the Lord in offering in righteousness then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to the Lord, as in the days of the old. As a former years and I will come near you for judgment, I will be swift, be a swift witness against sorcerers and against adulterers and against perjury.

Is against those who exploit wage earners and widows and orphans, and against those who turn away an alien translator, a foreigner translator, an immigrant, someone from Afghanistan or a person from Asia or South Africa. Colombia, Mexico or Guatemala, he said that he's talking to those who would turn away and immigrate says the lawyer, host for I Am the Lord and I do not change.

Therefore, you are not consume. Oh, Sons of Jacob gift from the days of your father. You have gone away from our ordinances and have not kept them returned to me, says the Lord. And I will return to you but you say, In which way shall we return will a man of God? Yet you have robbed me. But you say, In what ways have we robbed you?

He says, in ties. In offerings.

Your curse with the curse free you rob me. Even the whole nation bring all the ties into the storehouse. That there may be food in my house. He says, Try me in. This is the Lord of hosts. If I would not open up for you, windows of heaven pour out such a blessing that there will be no room to receive then he says this I will rebuke the devil for your sake so that he would not destroy the fruits of your ground.

Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit. For you are in the field, says the Lord of Hosts, that he says all nations will call you bless So from a title of my lesson today is For the love of money, for the love of Money. So I have the security to lock. The doors are quick. So don't walk out.

Don't run out. You don't be locked up for good. 20 minutes, maybe 30 and I want to apologize to our visitors that, you know, I haven't preached on. Ties are all free. I've never preached since we've been in this church about ties and often. But you won't hear about it today because we can't go deeper to regard his call us to go until we see in touch and talk about everything.

Yes, we can go deeper in our prayer. We can go deeper in our connections. We can go deeper in community. We can go deeper in our intimacy.

We can go deeper. But yes, we have to go deeper in our stewardship.

So back in 1983, there's this young lady by the name of Donna Summers. You may, you might know her. She might be somebody's cousin.

She had a hit in a top 20 billboard charts and a wit a little something like this.

All right. The song said that she works hard for her money. Right. Come on, y'all. We can have fun in church. I mean, let's come on. Let's keep it real. Because I promise, if I get in your car right now, y'all probably have some TV. Some radio stations don't. That's not godly. So don't. Don't fake the funk and a nasty dunk, right?

So let's just keep it real, right? The song says that she works hard for her money.

Okay, since you are not there with me, let me. Let me do this in I'm. I'ma. There's another song some of y'all may know about back in the 1970s. Oh, man, there was a group and they had yet another top 20 billboard hit as well and a song with a little something like this this is C they're talking about cash, money, dollar bills.

Yo, for the love of money people would steal from their mother, right? For the love of money people would rob their own brother. It says that for that lean, mean, mean green, people will lie with the Lord and cheat right? Then this says this. For the love of money, people don't care who they hurt or be God.

All right, all right. Yo, I'm gonna let you know right now that bassline is hot. Thanks to all right, guys. Just in case. Look. All right, thank you, guys. Think ticketing. Just to bring this in a biblical perspective, the apostles of Motown called the O'Jays. Wow.

Said the almighty dollar. I know money is the root of all evil. The apostles of Motown, even the O'Jays knew in the song they wrote that the almighty dollar is the root of all evil.

So many of you may know someone or personally know someone, or it may be you yourself that stop going to church. Because of the way the church mishandled money Right.

What about that building fund that they've been collecting for 60 years?

They haven't built one brick or black on a building What about those towns where people will come up and throw money down at the stage at the pastor's feet?

Right. I'm talking about church culture here.

How about this? If you want your blessing, bring $100 to the stage right now.

I need a hollowed out line right here. And if you want your blessing, are we take credit cards to Apple Pay people pay cash everything. What about you? Want a blessing? We'll have a $50 line over here.

We're in a world is a blessing connected to a line that's made up with men giving money to I remember my former church I used to ten years ago. I was at a was doing a host church and we were going to service in that very thing, having were the pastors started calling. I need 100 hour line right here.

And they worked their way down the denominations of money and one of our church members went and asks our senior pastor, he said, I want a blessing, but I don't have the money He equated the blessing from God with the money and he walked away disappointed knowing that he didn't have the money to receive the blessing We were never, never as an absolute.

We would never have $100 line in this church or $50 line in this church, or money line in his church.

Because your blessing is not connected to your finances. Your blessing is connected to the provider of your finances.

So giving in to God is my reasonable service because I know that everything belongs to God in Psalms. Chapter 24, verse one, it says, Yes, that's the Earth is the Lord and everything in it that the world and all His people bring belong to him. Hebrews Chapter three verse forces this for every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God.

First Chronicles Chapter 29 verse 12 says This wealth in honor comes from you alone. Oh God. Four You are the ruler over everything we see it throughout all Scripture that God is the Creator in the originator of everything. All that we have all that we own, all that He has given us. He has given out Him because He loves us.

And don't mistake. Because if you have lessons to me that God loves you less now what is the steward a steward by definition is just a manager. We have the call to manage our resources because God has been good to me. I desire to give to God. This simply put some answer a few questions I know that you guys may have some of the common questions about giving so what is the time?

What is a tithe tithing?

I must say that because this many of you made me have thought tithe is tied like the washing detergent and is not the time tithing, not tithing. Tithe in the Bible and goes, I'm just I'm just going to just really break it down because a lot of times for us who have been in church in a while, now we have this Christian language that we talk about.

We begin to walk around and we just, you know, we're used to it. But if you're a new believer and never heard the word tithing, I just want to make sure that we begin to break down or begin to teach what it looks like and what it is in the Greek tithing means 10% is the 10th, and then in Greek it means master.

And that's pretty much when it's the 10th. We see tithe being first mentioned in the book of Genesis chapter 14 verse 20. And this is what Abraham gave a 10th of everything. That's what Scripture tells us. Now, Abraham gave a 10th of everything. You see, there's a difference. Three Tithing and offering a tied is 10% and offering something that you do differently.

Biblically speaking, we see there's five different offerings that God talks about in the Bible. I'm not going to hit him. I'm just giving discount. I'm just going to run them down. There's a burnt offering there's a grain offering, there's a peace offering, there's a sin offering, there's a guilt offering that is set apart from everything else besides tithing.

So there's a difference. As I said before, there's a difference between tithing and offering question number two is tithing in Old Testament pretense or New Testament practice This is where we get tripped up with tithe is not listed in the New Testament. Why should we do it? We see it in the Old Testament. But even in tithing, we don't see the tithing in the New Testament.

And you're absolutely right. You're absolutely right because tithing is an Old Testament concept, but a New Testament practice we see in the Old Testament before the Leviticus Law, which is the book of Leviticus, we were in Genesis. Cain and Abel gave unto God they freely gave. And we see this even where Abel gave his very best, he gave the very, very best cut of the meat he really gave.

There was no Leviticus law. I said, You know, you have to give 10%. We see this in Genesis Chapter 27 with Abraham. We see this in Genesis chapter 28, where Jacob, Abraham's son, gives a 10th and we'll pass right there for a second period. Your children model what they see your children model what they see we see here.

Abraham gave in later one his son gave so if you're not giving and your kids don't see that you're giving to the kingdom of God through the church the nine times out of ten, they want to learn how to give pastor run. What is you know, I'm learning how to tie it and I'm giving it regularly, but I'm not giving readily in.

You know what if what if I miss a time? What if I miss a month? Because, you know, I'm trying to get this whole thing right.

With the Leviticus law in Leviticus chapter 27 versus 32, 31 would give you what you're supposed to do it says, if you want to redeem your tithes, if you want to redeem that 10%, it says you can do it. But, but because you let go God charges a little bit of interest and the interest is 20% so that 10% now is 30%.

So you think MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Discover learned it from, you know just the word no they got it from the Bible so when you see interest rates at 15 and 25 and 40% that's reason why you see because if we miss our time because God has called us to do our first fruits it's quite What about this.

What's the next question. A very popular question.

She she hit it on. Yes. Do I tithe off my gross or my net? So gross is before taxes and net is after taxes. So before I give you the biblical understanding of what you should do, let me just kind of just talk about what Uncle Sam does So the definition of net is basically is going to be after taxes.

So why in the world does Uncle Sam take their money out before you get your paycheck because you don't trust you he know that you're not going to be a steward over your money in such a way that you will have to pay your taxes before they give you your paycheck. Zylka Sam is saying I'm going to get my money right off the top before you do anything else.

Okay.

So what about those bonuses, those birthday gifts? Those scratch off that mega million, that pick three, pick five. What are you going to call it?

What do you do with that? Do we supposed to tithe off of it to you? Yes.

Because if you're budgeting a tie, which is anything that you make anything that you have planned for a bonus, a birthday gift, scratch all Caesar's Palace, do you want to call it, that's over and above what you had planned to bring into your house. So if there have been God has afforded you that opportunity to receive that extra income, then, yes, you should tide off that as well.

Well, the some of you may say like, well, Pastor Ryan, you know, we're not I'm not condoning that. You go out and gamble. I'm not saying that you should go out and buy a whole bunch of scratch off or play the lottery. No, but if you receive some extra income from a secondary source, then, yes, you should tie it off as well.

Well, I give my money to charitable organizations that should count as my tithe. Nope.

Hmm. Why is it Matthew chapter three, verse ten, tells us this it says, Bring all of your time into the storehouse.

That there may be food in my house. Translated food in the church. He says, to bring your tithe which is something that is set apart for God into God's house. Now, please. Now we support charitable organizations. We support nonprofit agencies. But because this is where I'm being fair, this is where God is called me to actually work, worship, and begin to walk and do life and people.

This is where you should be tithing into So will a man of God. Yes, he will.

He didn't say, Will a man steal from God? Because stealing and robbing is two different, two different concepts. Stealing is what you do in a secret right? Like, you know, when you go to your office and you run copies of that printer or you borrow you know, you borrow a read the paper or you take that pin as a whole and a pin that says Hampton in there stealing robbing is where you stand before somebody is taking what you have.

And I'm not giving it back to you.

So in other words, what you're doing when you're standing for God in Gaza, you tell me, God, I'm taking what you gave me in and not giving it back to you.

Because I believe this is beyond our ability to give God's possibilities it's beyond our ability to give God's possibilities. In other words, our ability is less than God. Possibilities if our production team go ahead and prep up and bring that table up for me real quick.

We have to begin to believe that we can get out. Give God. There's no way. Forget the Common Core math. Forget what you're learning in in second and third grade, one plus one. You know God's math. Trump means math any day of the week and twice on Sunday. Can I get a hallelujah Yes. Second Corinthians, Chapter nine versus 69 talks about that.

We need to give General generously like we should give generously now sarcasm. Many people don't really begin to understand because let me just read this scripture for you. It says, remember this whoever so sparingly will also read sparingly and who will so generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly, but under compulsion.

For God loves a cheerful giver and God is able to bless you abundantly. So then all things and at all times having all that you need, you will abound in every good work those who so sparingly will reap, but those who who so generously will also reap generously. Do you believe that is the one thing that God has been challenging me to do in our family is to make sure that we are tithing more than just 10% because we know the benefit of giving to the Kingdom of God So let me just begin to give you this example here.

We have nine red apples and one green apple, which is a total of ten apples So what God is saying out of the 100% that I give you I just want 10%, right? Yeah. Yeah. He He is saying, you have all of this right here.

But this is what I want. This is what I want you to get to your church.

So in all of this, 90%, you can buy a house, you can buy a car, you can buy a Jeep, you can repair Nissan, you can don't buy a Chevy only by Dodge Dodge if you want to check coming in one church at 17 01 you should take 10% and put it in savings. We call a rainy day account you can go on vacation for it.

You can do home improvements with it. You can start a five 29 college fund. But the problem is this when we go buy a house or car, what we do, we get it off the whole 100% versus the 90% we need a shift the way that we're there we're doing kingdom economics. So if you're buying a house or a car, whatever your salary may be budgeted off of the 90% and not the hundred percent because 100% is driving yours and God is.

God gave me this last night like Ryan, even when we, when we bought our house, we bought it, offered 100%, but we didn't max it out got to say, Ryan, any time that you're shopping or you prequalify for anything that's enslaving yours, budget off of the 99 but this is this will happen when we want to go and buy a house and we're trying to figure out how we do our budget we set this 10% aside and maybe you have a hot water go hot water heater go out because you're not saving 10% you say you know what?

Let me just trim a little bit off of God's tie because my car broke down You know what? That Netflix account Hulu Apple Music oh, yeah. I got to get my Starbucks this week.

You know, I got to stop by source readers to pick up a chai tea latte. No phone, no water extra pump, a chai I forgot. You know what? We got to go on vacation is this much. Let me just cut this out.

Oh, man, it's Christmas. So let me just Family vacation over the summer.

Man, a busted water pipe let's go to church on Sunday.

It's time for offering the 10% that we set aside.

Now. Looks like that because we overspend in our houses. We overspend in our cars. We overindulge into our personal satisfaction but God, I'm giving you something and so what happened is this. When we passed the offer and played around, it looks like that when it's time to give back to the kingdom it looks like what we have left over and God gave us 90%, but yet we still give 1% to the church.

Historical fact here, even for our church, historically speaking, churches, their congregation only 30% of the audience give. And it's true for one church as well.

30% oh, you know what? But we do have a few faithful givers so we have a few faithful givers.

Do we have others that gifts God's tithes and offering for his church looks like this but he wants it to look like this we give God our leftovers.

But He's called us to give him our first fruit now, guys, I get it. For those of you have no who who are not regular tithing, who don't do you understand the concept? Been there we were talking about in our connection group this past week. It's funny that Trey talked about it, man. I had a car repossessed to actually, I voluntarily gave my car back.

Does that count as a repossession not in my book. Oh, growing up, I was pushing an expedition. I was a manager of a Super Kmart my car payment is $460, like $0.13 a month. This is back and way back when. I'm not going to say, how old are you? $460 a month. I was in college and a manager of Super Kmart.

I didn't take an account for gas maintenance man. I parked that thing up over at Walmart of a battleground and left the keys in a car, said, Come and pick it up right because I didn't I didn't learn one how to manage or steward my 90% over spin which only left me 40% left and what God is asking you to do to begin to learn like I gave you 90, he only wants ten God also wants us to give globally What do you mean by globally?

Global means the whole of something. And so what God is saying that not only does He want your you to tie your money, but He wants you to tie your time and your talents or your spiritual gifts there's 24 hours in a day. Are you giving God 2.4 hours are you spending time with God 2.4 hours a day in reading and worshiping if he's giving you 24 hours in a day to live he's asking for 2.4, to pray, to worship, to serve 20% of our body, maybe 17% serves in the church last minute, at least as our worship team make their way to the stage.

And if our production team can grab the table what do we do with our money right as a church? How do we spend our money So in other words, I want you guys want me to show you the money right I love this picture that they're gonna throw up on the screen.

Show me the money. We are a super transparent church. Any time that our church body wants to kind of see what we do with our money, we're open to sit down with you and just begin to map it out.

35, actually, 43% of our of our money goes to staff is higher now because of the shortfall of where we are now. Making budget typically was right at 35% because when we're short in budget, then those numbers kind of offset itself typically when we did our budget for this year, we budgeted only 35% of salaries for the church and that's below the norm.

Most churches, most churches is on the way up to 45 to 60% to hire more than half their budget they spend on salaries. We would not do this at this church we have reduced and minimize our expenses by 50% or more. Sometimes we've eliminated expenses to make sure that we're good stewards over what God has given us. But what do we do with the money that we take inside the church, outside do ties on the outside of the, the staff and operational costs we make ministry happen.

We're we make things happen like leave our city. Well, we set aside a week in September to live in a city of high point where we begin to work with five different locations or five different businesses within a city. And everything that we do that week is free to the community. Taco trucks, gift cars, washing up room. You wash the laundry, giving away coffee shops and lattes and and whatever else.

Hot drinks you may want to drink at a coffee shop. Every coffee shop but most importantly, we impact our kids we impact our youth. And we impact our young adult that's where the bulk of our money. Our goal is to make sure that we match whatever we spend in our in our salaries for ministry. So if we're spending 40% on salaries, we're going to spend 40% in ministry.

That is our goal as a church ministry is the most important thing we do here.

We allow our kids to go to youth camp, and kids can, when we go out and outings for our babies or our kids, you know, they don't have to pay the full bill. If something cost $25, we say, You know what? Just put little skin in the game, just pay $10. The church would pick up the other 15 a couple of weeks ago when we had three food trucks out here and everybody had a great time just fellowship in, hanging out the church, pay for that we want ministry to take place and so when you ask what do we do with our money we believe that God is called a church to set the example My

challenge for you today is this is your cell phone bills more than your tithing? If your cable bills more than what your tithing cut it off, you have to get radical or realign the way that you're spending your money and give God what is his you have to get radical about this walk that you're walking with. God be so radical in such a way that whatever God is requiring of you do it and I'll say this every staff, person and leader inside this church tithe, that is a requirement as a pastor, I do not look at the giving statements out or look out what you give or who give, but at least twice a year I

would get with our county, our stewards and ask two questions. Our leaders tithing and are they tithing on a regular basis?

And it's a yes or no question. And if they're not, we'll sit down and have a conversation. So I want you guys to know that as a church leadership group, we hold we are held accountable to you because as leaders, we can expect you to tithe if our leadership is not tithing right some of wrap up this sermon, by the way, that I started with our with Scripture and it says this this is Man Malachi Chapter three verses seven through 11.

I read it in the message Bible. So that way it will kind of ring in just a little bit different. It says this return to me so I can return to you, says the God of the angel of armies you ask God, how do we return he says, By doing this. Just be honest. First he says, Do honest people rob God?

But you rob me day after day. You ask, How have a robbed you God? And God's response is this You rob me in your tithes and your offerings that tell it because you rob me of your ties and you are free. You are under a curse in other words, that you are missing out on the blessings that God has for your life.

Because you're trusting more so from what you can do then what God can do in your life.

So what God is saying, my child, come back home and trust. Trust me bring me your full tithe into the temple treasury so that there will be ample provisions in my temple. And I love this about what God says. He says, just, just test me he said, just destroy me. In other words, activate the faith that I have given you, the faith that I put in you.

He said, Just try me in such a way that would you trust me to give to my kingdom because you can't now give me he says, test me is see if I don't open up heaven. He said He will open up heaven itself and pour out a blessing that is beyond your wildest dreams.

For my part, I would defend you against anyone. He said I was standing in the gap, your father standing before your prosecutors, those who may have offenses against you, Salwa, stand before them and protect you.

I will protect your wheat of the fields, the vegetables in your garden as this people may come and try to steal and take what is mine away from you. But this he said no. This what you will experience will be a country of grace.

So church today our fifth concept of going deeper this year let's be better stewards let's give back to God. What is God and be consistent and disciplined in your giving and now, you know, I don't talk about money a lot but for where God wants you to go He wants you to test him and try this out I promise you, you can't.

I'll give God to let us stand there's a song that we're going to sing is called Breakthrough. And I believe that God was to break through those habits that you may have. The goal was to break through the generational of not giving. Will you be that first generation in your family? Will you continue to give if you have been giving for all of your life, because you're giving it your kids, see your grandbabies, see it God is saying, just try him he will pour out a blessing in my prayers that you will begin to live in the overflow a man, the father, heaven, God, we are so excited to know that you have the desire, God

to bless your children. Because we know God that you are a God of possibilities is the Father right now. God begin to pray for that individual God who has who has that disbelief? God who has that doubt, that God, that my money at the end of the month is shorted in my faith to God. I pray that that you begin to work on their unbelief.

God, as they do believe in God. This is not a get rich, quick type of sermon, God, but this is a sermon about discipline and about obedience. Father, we desire to go deeper in your ways.

Because we know that our ways are not your ways, that our thoughts are not your thoughts. God, but I know that God, you are a God of possibilities.

So, Father, I encourage that man, woman, child, son, or daughter. I encourage him today.

That you will increase their faith, thereby it may be that, believe me, spouse will go home and have a conversation with that husband or that wife and say, Honey, we're going to begin to do things differently. Father, I would just pray a prayer of blessing over this church. Everyone that's online and those who are at the sound of my voice Father, have your way today.

Break through that boundary of disbelief, that contentment shift the atmosphere for the father. It will give you all the glory. Honor of praise is given to you is in Christ. And we say.