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Overseer's Outlook - April 2009

God and the IRS

Matt 22:15-22 “Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him in His talk. And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians, saying, "Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men. Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?" But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, "Why do you test Me, you hypocrites? Show Me the tax money." So they brought Him a denarius. And He said to them, "Whose image and inscription is this?" They said to Him, "Caesar's." And He said to them, "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's." When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.” NKJV

No doubt you have preached and taught concerning our text many times. Subjects like: “What Belongs to God – Our Lives, Our Time, Our Talents and Our Money.”

Someone said it is bad enough that you tell me to give my money and pay my tithes, but now you have to bring up taxes and the IRS. People get real touchy when you get close to the heart or close to the pocketbook. Preach to me but don’t disturb me. People get offended when we talk about tithing and giving because they are usually not keeping the Lord’s commandment concerning tithing and giving. A good faithful tither and giver says, please remind me about tithing and giving, but please don’t remind me about the IRS. Actually April 15th is a notoriously wonderful day in world history; it is the day the Titanic sank. Let me give you a few quotes about taxes. Arthur Godfrey said, “I feel honored to pay taxes in America. The thing is, I could probably feel just as honored for about half the price.” One man said, “You may not agree with the President or Congress, but you really have to hand it to the IRS.” Another man said, “Death and taxes may always be with us, but at least death doesn’t get any worse.”

Let’s move on to our scripture lesson. The Pharisees were concerned about the growing popularity of Jesus. So they sought a way to expose Him as a fraud or revolutionary. With false flattery, the Pharisees tried to entrap Jesus to encourage disobedience to the Roman government or alienate Himself from His followers who despised the Roman government. But Jesus was “aware of their malice,” and asked the hypocrites who were putting Him to the test to show Him the money that was to be taxed. When they produced the likeness of Caesar, Jesus instructed them to render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar and unto God what belongs to God. You may be surprised to learn that we actually have a “voluntary tax system.” Right, try telling that to the IRS auditor. Actually most people don’t have a problem or in some cases a choice rendering unto Caesar. Caesar wants your house for a new highway, you start looking for another house. Caesar reinstates the draft, you find a duffel bag. What Caesar wants, Caesar usually gets. Most of us are proud to be an American and would not trade our form of government for any other. So, rendering unto Caesar to make America work properly and keep America free is usually not a problem. However, rendering unto God is probably the greatest spiritual test that most of us will ever face.

Tithing and Giving:

Tithing is the paying of one tenth of our increase into the treasury of the church where you are nurtured, fed, shepherded and endorsed. I will not deal with tithing on the gross or net gain. I will leave that up to the individual conscience. It began with Abraham, continued under the law and received the approval of Christ. Tithing is not fulfilled by giving to the poor or to a worthy cause. Giving differs from and is in addition to tithing. Both are part of God’s financial plan.

Malachi 3:8-10: "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings? You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this," Says the LORD of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.” NKJV

Gen 28:20-29 lets us know that tithing was scriptural before the law of Moses: “Then Jacob made a vow, saying, "If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, so that I come back to my father's house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God's house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.” NKJV Numbers 18 and Malachi 3 let us know that tithing is scriptural after the Law of Moses. Matthew 23 lets us know that tithing and giving was taught by Jesus and the writer of Hebrews 7 endorses tithing and giving. Tithing and giving continue from the Old Testament to the New Testament. It was before the Law and continued into the New Testament grace period. Proverbs says that we give of our substance and from the first fruits. We give our best and not from our leftovers. Paul writes in Romans and Corinthians to give with simplicity, willingly and not grudgingly. We give cheerfully according to the purpose of our heart. We understand that it is more blessed to give than to receive. I understand that it is hard to pay the bills that we have accumulated: house payment, vehicle payments, VISA, Master Card, Penny’s, Belk, insurances, utilities, groceries, clothing and oh yes, the IRS. Some folks are like the little boy who was given two dollars before he went to Sunday School – one dollar for Sunday School and one dollar for ice cream after Sunday School. The wind blew both dollars out of his hand. He was able to retrieve one dollar and lost the other one. He then looked upward and said, “Well God, I guess you lost your dollar.” It seems that the more some people have, the harder it is for them to give unto the Lord. This is exactly what Christ instructed when he said that we cannot worship God and mammon – money. Money is a drug. It enslaves. And all the time we are saying it will never happen to me. The more we have the more we want and feel we have to have. The more we own the greater the potential is for the things we own to own us. Jesus taught about the perils of great wealth. He was not saying it is bad to own things. He was simply warning about things owning us. The worship of money is probably the most practiced religion in the world. Even prominent religious leaders have fallen to the worship of money.

Steven Berglar wrote in his book entitled “The Success Syndrome,” that people who make $100,000 hunger to make $200,000 and then $300,000. Yet they never ask themselves why $100,000 was not enough to make them happy and why they think that $300,000 will finally satisfy. Most people never ask themselves what will I have to give up to make more money.

When John Wesley was winning the lower social economical strata of English society to Christ, he observed that when people were converted to Christ, they stopped spending their money on sinful indulgences. They became harder workers and spent their money more wisely. However, the further they climbed the economical ladder, the further they turned from Christ and their new way of living and thinking. In the movie “Oh God,” it was said that the reason Adam and Eve were not given clothes was because God knew that if they had clothes, they would want pockets. And then they would want something to go into the pockets. The scriptures do not say that money is the root of all evil. It is the love of money that is the root of evil. It is the worship of money that God is jealous over. God wants His people to prosper in all aspects of life. God just wants us to worship the giver of our prosperity and not the prosperity itself. He desires us to seek the Kingdom of God first. He wants Christ to be the Lord of all of our life. Once the decision has been made of who the Lord of our life is, then it is easier to make the decisions about our time, talents and money. Wise people understand that we are but temporary stewards of all that we own. Wise people realize that ultimately everything belongs to God and that someday it all must be returned to Him.

Scriptures teach that even we are not our own. We are bought with a great price – the precious blood of Jesus Christ. And this Christ says to render unto Caesar what belongs to Caesar and unto God what belongs to God.

God is not going to come and seize our holdings if we hold out on Him.

Tithing and giving is a part of our service to God. It really is voluntary.

Steve Gilmer
North Carolina State Bishop

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