refusing money
"They are accepting nothing from the pagans." —3 John 7
If a non-Christian presented your church with a thousand dollars, would you accept it? I don't know a church that wouldn't, except one: St. John's church.
When unbelievers don't get their donations accepted, what do they think? They're shocked. They've never seen anyone refuse money. They come to realize that Christians are different, possibly crazy. Then unbelievers would probably ask us questions. We would respond not by talking about money but about Jesus. Unbelievers may or may not agree with us, but they would have to take us seriously. Many of them would become Christians.
If your church didn't accept money from outsiders, what would the church's members have to do? They'd have to obey God by tithing and giving alms to the church. They'd have to be strongly committed to the church's mission. With such a high level of commitment, your church would have deeper worship, more extensive ministry, and closer fellowship.
If we turned down funds from outsiders and handled our business in-house, we would lead many people to Christ and raise the church's level of commitment. Do you have the faith to do this?
Prayer: Father, "give us today our daily bread" (Mt 6:11).
Promise: "Will not God then do justice to His chosen who call out to Him day and night? Will He delay long over them, do you suppose? I tell you, He will give them swift justice. But when the Son of Man comes, will He find any faith on the earth?" —Lk 18:7-8
Praise: St. Frances became the first American to be canonized in 1946. She obeyed her pontiff and worked 35 years in caring for the poor, the sick, and the abandoned.
Reference: (For a related teaching, order our leaflet, The Bible on Money, or our tape, Biblical Fund Raising, on audio AV 75-1 or video V-75.)
Rescript: †Reverend Joseph R. Binzer, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, April 6, 2010
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