Peddling the word of God

One of the things about technology today is the freedom that it gives us to get the message of the Cross out there into the hands of people on the street.

MP3 audio is able to be consumed by virtually every personal computer and most mobile phones and certainly all the various digital media players on the market today.  A single message recorded in text or MP3 can be distributed and shared by almost the entire western world and a reasonable proportion of the rest of the earths population (language barriers aside).

In addition, CD players are almost ubiquitous, and the ability to create new mediums is now cheap and easy compared to the past.

Not only this, but we live in an age where we have some very experienced and very powerful teachers and preachers and some incredible Christian thinkers.

In a world where western Christians have so much potential and content, you’d think that we’d have nothing holding us back – but we do.

It seems that the key thing holding believing Christians back is apathy, which is induced by modern journalism fueled by secular (at best – socialist more realistically) agendas. 

One of the side affects of this secular mind-set is that everything must be done for a dollar.  You cannot just give stuff away – you must charge for it.

I’ve just finished listening to an audio file by a thinking believer who is in a unique position to understand some of the affairs of the modern world – and what he says is bone jarringly chilling, and something that politicians, Christians and the average Joe on the street should know.  But when I visit the web site that hosts this content, I find that it is material that is copyright protected and distributed for a fee.

This is preposterous. Its like being warned that your neighbors house will be burned down tomorrow and rather than warning him to flee for his life or stay somewhere else, you go and tell him “I have something important to tell you – your life depends on it, but you have to pay me for it”.

If the message is critical (and isn’t any good Bible based teaching?), why do we charge for it? 

Isn’t there enough barriers to people getting into the word of God?  Do we need to introduce another one (money)?

I’ve asked big, well known and well respected ministries about this in the past and have had answers like – “we have more than 100 people working here – we have to support them”.  Maybe you do have lots of people in your ministry – but are they there for money or for Christ?  Is your ministry there for money or for Christ?  Have you set your ministry up for ultimate failure by paying staff a salary from earnings rather than depending on Christ to supply all your needs?  Ultimately these ministries will fail to reach the mass they could because they have limited the accessibility of the ministry to those with money – rather than limiting it to whosoever will.

Do those who preach the word not believe that God owns the world and that all the resources of the universe are at His disposal and he can direct them where he wills?  Do we not trust the Lord of the universe – whom we say and even preach that we trust?

I cannot see how any ministry can justify charging for the word of God or the teaching of the Word.  In fact, I’ll go as far to say that this approach (charging for ministry material) is the equivalent of peddling the word of God (2 Cor 2:17).  Jesus gave the disciples a principle to work by when he sent them out. He told them “You have received without paying; give without pay.”  In case you mistake this to mean that organizations should be non-profit – he continued “Acquire no gold nor silver nor copper for your belts, no bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals nor a staff, for the laborer deserves his food” (Matt 10:8-10).  The instruction was clearly to minister without imposing costs.

There has to be a better way that truly honors the Lord and aids (rather than hinders) the dissemination of the Word of God.

UPDATE: One thing I should point out is that I’m deliberately distinguishing between those calling themselves ministries and those calling themselves companies.  Companies charge – thats what they do – ministries shouldn’t.

Money – two over-arching principles

Now that we are at the end of our study of money, I wanted to isolate out two principles that underpin every discussion of money that we have had.

I believe that with regards to how we give and how we save and how we determine the rightness or wrongness of financial decisions – and even peripheral issues such as insurance, saving, retirement, etc we can understand all these things much more clearly if we understand these two principles.

The first principle is this: Value the Lord the most.

If we value God most of all, then everything else will fall into place.  But we can have a clearer understanding of this by looking at some of the scriptures that we’ve already examined.

The problem with the rich fool was that he valued possessions above God (Luke 12:13-21). If you want to dig further into this, you’ll find that his own pleasure and ease was more important that God.  This was also the problem with the rich young man (Mark 10:17-22).  Fundamentally these had their treasure on earth, and so their hearts were there too (cf Luke 12:34).

The second principle is this: Trust the Lord the most.

It is very easy to trust that our own resources will be enough to help us survive, but the problem with this is that we can become trapped into thinking that we need money to survive – when in actual fact we need the Lord to survive.  He owns the cattle on a thousand hills (Ps 50:10), he cares for the birds, how much more will he care for us (Luke 12:24).

This is the very point of Luke 12:22-34 - we are not to trust in the things of earth, but in the provider and sustainer of the universe (Col 2:17).

When we realize that our jobs are dependant on him, and our survival is no less dependant on him and that even without money we would survive as long as He provides for us, we are free to think outside the box with regards to what we can do.

I think its sad that many missionary agencies are now not allowing missionaries to go out to the field until they have financial resources behind them (in some cases up to 2 years salary are required).  This demonstrates a lack of trust in God to provide and limits the effectiveness of motivated believers.

So – if you weigh up your judgement of money based on these two principles you’ll keep yourself on track.  Remember that God is the most valuable thing in the universe, His glory is to be sought at every opportunity, and that by trusting him we give Him glory and demonstrate the sufficiency of the one who gives us life and keeps the atoms of the universe in cohesion.

Another way of thinking about it is in this little saying… “Put God in the center and everything comes together”.  Its all about Him.

What abundance and need means – part 2

In addition to being pure instruction on when and how widows are to be supported, 1 Tim 5:3-16 is also an insight into what happened to the church over time as it spread.

Compare for example passages in 1 Timothy – which was written about 62-64 AD with what was going on in Acts.  In Acts 2:44-45 and Acts 4:34-35 we see that the disciples had “all things in common” (Acts 2:44, Acts 3:34) which means that they sold their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all as any had need (Acts 2:45, Acts 3:35).  We see there the principle of abundance and need was actively working in the church.

Fast forward to the time of first Timothy and you have one of the apostles of the Lord giving instruction regarding how the principle is to be applied to a specific group.  What has happened that the church has gone from having “all things in common” to having scarce resources?  How can we as a church get back to this? 

In fact – many churches today are not even in a position to support widows, never mind the rest of the church.  Why is this? Why would Paul even give instruction like this when the principle of abundance and need is in effect?

These are far reaching questions and by no means can I offer an answer for them in completeness, however, we can observe a number of things from the scripture.

First up with regards to why Paul gave these instructions it is worth noting that the instruction in 1 Timothy is given not to individuals with regards to how they are to give (that is seen in 2 Cor 8:8-15), but to a pastor regarding how to distribute that which is given.  We have a responsibility to give, Pastors and church leaders have a responsibility to distribute that which is given.

There are a number of things that help us understand why these distinctions are necessary for a pastor to concern himself with.  Firstly there is the issue of the distribution of the apostles.  The Jerusalem church in Acts was a group of people who were under the instruction and the authority of the Lords apostles.  The apostles had the experience of three years with Jesus and in addition had special revelation from the Lord that they were able to impart to the early disciples. 

The believers devoted themselves to the apostles teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers (Acts 2:42), they spent most of their time together (Acts 2:46). 

The early church had the most knowledgeable teachers of the Bible that the world has ever seen, and as they were all together, they had all of these teachers together at once.  In addition these teachers were the most acutely aware of the spiritual battle they were in and were the best equipped to deal with adversity.  Finally the level of dedication and devotion of the early church has been unmatched since then.  The very early church in Jerusalem was essentially incubated by top grade mature apostles in a single location. 

As the church grew it became more dispersed and the protection and teaching of the apostles was not as accessible, and the church steadily came under attack.  In addition, the apostles influence was diminished over time as they were either martyred or exiled.

As the church became more exposed false teachers infiltrated the church and started leading churches astray by teaching lies.  In fact, in the previous chapter to the one we started with Paul explicitly warns Timothy that “in the latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons” (1 Tim 4:1-3).  The false teachers were already active in the church.

What did this do to the church?  Essentially false doctrine slows spiritual maturity, and even enables those who are not saved to be part of the church as if they are saved.  In addition some people make the appearance of being saved, but ultimately become apostate and leave the church (Matt 13:18-23, 1 John 2:18-19).

As the church apostasies, not only does it become necessary to be discerning about giving the proceeds of the saints giving to those who really need it as well as those who are worthy of it, but the amount that the church gives also reduces, which means that there is not as much to go around.

So how do we fix this?  How can we get back to the unity of the early church?

There are a couple of basic things that each of us are called to do and can do.  Firstly we must have a high view of God (i.e. love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind and strength) and also to view others as more important than ourselves (Matt 22:36-40). 

As we develop in these two areas, we will develop a greater concern for our brothers and sisters in Christ and this will be displayed as we take a greater interest in the welfare of other believers.  As our awareness of the needs of others grows, so we will begin to respond to those needs work to help our brothers and sisters.  This will have the affect of knitting our hearts together in love (Col 2:1-2) and increased giving will lead to greater affection between believers and consequently greater unity.

Another key factor is removal of wolves from among the flock.  One of the tasks of leaders is to be discerning and to remove the ungodly from among the church.  The affect of the ungodly on the church is quite profound.  Paul said that a little leaven leavens the whole lump – what he meant was that associating with the ungodly who claim to be believers affects the believers in the church, by leading them to consider sin as “normal” or something that can be accommodated.  Paul encouraged the Corinthian church to remove these people from the church.  See 1 Cor 5:1-13 for details.

In the western world we live in a culture that encourages diversity and accommodation, however, the church is not under any circumstances to accommodate sin.  The church should be the last bastion of right thinking and living in the world – not to say that it will be perfect – it is still filled with sinners, however each believer should have an ambition to drive sin from their lives and live for the glory of the Lord.

As we live in purity, our lives are focused on God and we look upon the worlds goods with less favor and we look upon the needs of our brothers and sisters in Christ as being as great as, if not greater than our own and we provide for their needs as we can.

We cannot fix the other people in our church, however, we are responsible for our own conduct.  It should be our goal to grow in Christ likeness and purity so that we care for other believers and become better connected with the needs of the church and provide for them as we can.

What abundance and need means – part 1

Paul gives Timothy some instructions regarding the care for elders, and particularly those who are widows in 1 Tim 5:3-16.

Social welfare systems are a relatively modern thing, in the days when Paul wrote this letter to Timothy, there was no welfare that would be offered to the elderly.  In addition women were not employed in work as men were, consequently, women were often entirely dependant on their husbands for their living.  In the case where the husband had died, the widow would often have nothing to live on and no way to earn a living. 

So when Paul writes to Timothy to tell him how to decide whether to support a widow or not, he’s giving instruction regarding how the widow will survive once their husbands are gone.

The first thing we see is that Paul mandates that children and grandchildren have a responsibility and indeed an obligation to care for their parents or grandparents.

The responsibility falls primarily to women to care for the elderly (1 Tim 5:16). The key word here is “care” which means “to aid or relieve” or “to hold up”.  This word means not only financial support (which is the given context) but also to actually perform the work of caring for the elderly. 

Part of Pauls rationale for this is back in 1 Tim 5:4 where he says “if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God”.

In other words believers are to show love to their parents by taking them into their care. James 1:27 helps us to understand this a little more – “religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction”  The word “visit” in this verse is not just about going to see them, but to go and see them with the intention of doing something - in other words pure religion before God is to be merciful to those who are afflicted – particularly (in this passage in James) those who do not have family. 

Paul further emphasizes this by saying “If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever”.

Paul further states that not only should we as believers want to show mercy toward the elderly, but children should “make some return to their parents” (1 Tim 5:4).  What does this mean?

Simply put it means that we are in this world through our parents, and parents carry the load of providing for children and raising them, and this takes time and effort.  It is therefore, pleasing to God for us to be willing to do the same back for our parents.  It shows that we value the sacrifices they made for us and the work and energy the expended on our behalf.  It also demonstrates humility as we are actively valuing them as equal to ourselves (as long as we are doing it in love and not begrudgingly).

As believers we should be about showing mercy to those who need it.  If we fail to do this for our own families we have not only denied the faith, but we have denied our own flesh and blood.  According to Paul such people are not believers – Paul said such people are “worse than an unbeliever”.  Simply because in those times this was expected behavior for believers and unbelievers alike. 

Today, however, we live in a different world and it is very easy for us to put our parents into a home and remove the burden from ourselves.  While this indicates a willingness to ensure they have the care they need, it fails to demonstrate a willingness to do for them what they did for us all those years ago.  In many cases people choose to put their parents into homes simply to ease the load upon themselves.  For couples earning two incomes today, this is simply a matter of selfishness, and elevation of ones self above their own parents which indicates a love of self and is no different to letting the church care for the elderly. 

In some cases, it is necessary to get specialized care for the elderly, however, we should be careful not to confuse specialized care with elderly care, and be clear before God about our responsibilities to our parents and to give back to them some of what they gave to us, while at the same time showing the godly love that as believers we should be showing.

Showing partiality and money

The problem with partiality is that it violates right values

In James 2:1-7 James is reinforcing that all people are created equal and should be given equal place in assembling before God. When we fail lo do this it indicates that we value ourselves more than (in this case) the poor.

It also indicates that we have failed to value money correctly and have used it as a differentiator between men.

The command to love your neighbor as yourself (James 2:8) is dependant on us living and understanding the principle of love the Lord your God with all your heart, as fulfilling this command means that our basic values are right which flows to the rest of our values.

According he the new testament there is only one differentiator in the way we one to treat people-are they in Christ or not (1 Cor 5:12)?

Giving – part 3

The last aspect of giving that is interesting is what it does to the people.

In 2 Cor 8:3-4 we read that the believers in Macedonia begged Paul to take part in the relief of the saints. What was it that led to this attitude?  What could possibly drive people to be so desperate to part with their money in exchange for no return?

The clue we get is in 2 Cor 9:2 where we read that the zeal of the Corinthians for the relief of the saints had stirred up most of the Macedonians. Enthusiasm is infectious, and when believers act with zeal for other believers this can be infectious too. 

What resulted from all this? Simple – churches from both these areas were united in cause.  While they had probably never met and never fellowshiped together, through the news of this one cause conveyed by Paul they were united.

The act of giving itself within the principle of abundance and need also unites.  It ensures that all believers have the same resources which removes barriers in the church to following hard after Christ.

In addition the party receiving the gift turns to give glory to God for the gift (see 2 Cor 9:13), while the party giving the gift ought to be doing it in recognition of the glory of God.

Finally, when we receive a gift from someone, it is natural that our affections for that person be increased.  Paul also indicated that this would be the case in 2 Cor 9:14 when he said that those in Jerusalem would long for them (i.e. desire to see them) and pray for them.

Again, we see that giving causes unity rather than division.  Even in the circumstances where the churches may have nothing else in common giving can break down the walls and draw them back to each other.  In 2 Cor 9:14 the reason for the unity is that the receiver rejoices in the grace of God toward the giver.  This unity transcends the differences these churches may have had.

Giving is a powerful way to break down walls between churches and believers. 

Giving – part 2

What about tithing?  Is tithing something that believers should be doing today? I believe that the Bible clearly teaches not.  Having said that, if you are pleased to give a tenth, there is nothing to condemn you for doing so.  Tithing is not wrong, but it is not necessary either.

Firstly, in the Old Testament the Israelites were told to tithe to support the Levites – who had no inheritance in the land (Numbers 18:20-24).  Secondly they were to tithe the produce of the land (Lev 27:30,32, Deut 14:22).  Why?  Because they were to give of the increase of the Land that the Lord had given to them (Lev 26:3-4, Lev 26:14-16,20) - not that which was gained through cunning or craft.  Since God had given the land to the Israelites, he was specifically interested in “the tithe of the land” (Lev 27:30). 

The tithe of the land was to be taken to where the Levite’s were and given to them where they were.  Interestingly if the way was too long, God gave a command to work around it.  If you were not able to go to the town due to distance and the size of the tithe, God directed the person to convert the tithe to money and take the money, but rather than give the money to the Levite’s he commanded the Israelite to put the money toward a feast to the Lord along with your household and any Levite’s who were around (Deut 14:22-27).

Today’s church is under attack from within with regards to money.  There is nothing wrong with living off the giving of the church.  Paul received gifts from the churches he visited and/or planted (see Phli 4:16), and scripture clearly says that those who labor are worthy to be paid (1 Tim 5:17-18).   Furthermore there is nothing wrong with asking for offerings for a specific need (including needs of pastors and leaders, but also any other needs) as people desire to give.

However, this is not the attitude of many “teachers”, “leaders” and “ministers”. Any pastor or leader who mandates giving to the church is just in the wrong to do so.  Sadly, I believe many church leaders simply have a problem with money.  We live in a world where people are heckled from the pulpit by leaders who know how much is given to the church compared to the amount of wealth in the congregation, where tithing is mandated and people are taught that failing to tithe brings judgement from God and where teaching ministries require money before letting teaching on the word go out the door.

The word deals with these in severe language.  Paul says that he is not like many who are “peddling the word of God” (2 Cor 2:17) – exchanging the word for money.  Peter said that one of the signs of false teachers is that follow their sensuality and exploit believers “in their greed” (2 Peter 2:1-3).  Paul also teaches that those who teach false doctrine imagine “that godliness is a means of gain” (1 Tim 6:5). 

Giving – part 1

The principle of abundance and need is apparent in the New Testament.  This principle tells us that in some places there is an abundance and in some places there is need.  It falls upon those in abundance to provide for those in need where necessary.

In 2 Cor 8:8-15 this principle is referred to by Paul as “fairness” (v14 ESV) or “equality” (v14 NASB).   During the time that Paul wrote Philippians and 2 Corinthians there was a famine that was severe in Judea at the time.  It is recorded by Josephus (Antiquities, Book 20, Chapter 2) and is predicted by Agabus in Acts 11:28.

In these days of course there were not the aid agencies we have today, so to support those in need in the day was often difficult.  In this case, Paul served as the link between churches, traveling often between churches and carrying news between them of each others news and needs. Later Paul would take the collected money to Jerusalem on the behalf of the gentile churches (Rom 15:25-27) as a trusted courier.

In this case the Corinthians had heard about the plight of the believers in Jerusalem and had been saving up their money for around 12 months (2 Cor 8:10, 2 Cor 9:2).  Paul had told this to the churches of Macedonia and they had responded by begging him to allow them to help in this collection (2 Cor 8:3-5). 

We get some interesting insights by comparing these two people groups.

The circumstances of the saints in Achaia and Macedonia were very different.  The Macedonians were in extreme poverty (2 Cor 8:2), where the Corinthians were in a state of abundance (2 Cor 8:14).  One had the means to put resources aside, where the other didn’t.  But both gave to the cause.

The methods they by which they gave were different.  The Macedonians seemed to simply take what they had and give it to Paul to give to the Jerusalem saints.  The saints in Achaia on the other hand saved their money for months – possibly even years – in order to have something for Paul to collect.

There are three lessons here as far as I see it (and there are bound to be others).  Firstly the amount we give is not important.  Second the way we give is not important and thirdly the purpose of our giving is important.  Lets start with the third point and then come back to the first two.

In both Macedonia and Achaia they responded to a real need.  Their hearts were moved and their pockets emptied in response to a need that fellow saints had.  It is likely they were saints that they had never met, but the condition of being in Christ was unifying in and of itself (I’ll go into why I think this is not the case in a future post).

If you compare this to the way many churches ask their congregations to give today, there is a distinct difference.  Sadly, in many evangelical churches people are cajoled and coerced and pressured into giving percentages or minimum amounts of money to the churches or even “ministers”.  Believers should never give under external compulsion or reluctantly (2 Cor 9:7) – if this describes you, stop giving.  God doesn’t need your money (see the first article in this series for more on why), and you are not doing yourself any favors by giving legalistically any more than you would be if you set your mind to do any specific good work each day. 

God wants our giving to be cheerful – the Macedonians offer a fantastic example of this.  They obviously found something more valuable than money and gave their money toward this cause - they gave themselves to the Lord first, and then to Paul and his work (2 Cor 8:5) – their hearts were upward focused, not inward or outward.  They gave themselves to Paul by the will of God (2 Cor 8:5), not by pressure or coercion.

Next, we see that the two groups had significantly different resources at their disposal and gave different amounts.  This reminds me of the old widow who put the two copper coins into the temple offering (Mark 12:41-44).  In this passage Christ indicates that it is not the amount that is contributed, but the amount relative to the resources available. Paul repeats this in 2 Cor 8:12 - “it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have”.

Nor is it a matter of giving until it hurts.  Paul was not expecting the saints at Macedonia to give as they did (2 Cor 8:5), and he explicitly told the Corinthians that it was not to make them burdened and the Jerusalem saints were eased, but as a matter of fairness (2 Cor 8:13) – that is – it was simply a matter of redistributing the excess resources that the Corinthians had that they wanted to contribute, not a matter of reversing the situation.

Finally the way the Corinthians gave was quite different.  Today most people give mechanically (that is regularly).  While there is nothing wrong with this, neither church did this in this case.  In Macedonia, they gave opportunistically – that is they came across an opportunity and gave themselves to it quickly and decisively.  In Corinth it was quite different – they saved their resources for a point in time collection.  My point here is dont be lured into thinking that you have to give something every week or month.  The regularity is not the point – the heart is the issue.

Contentment – part 3

So what are the signs of discontentment?  Here are some common ones – there may be others that I haven’t put down here.  Each of us should consider these before the Lord – he is the one who judges our intentions (Heb 4:12).

Constantly purchasing new things.  This is a weakness I have – shopping. This is a sign that we are looking for satisfaction in material possessions.  Even “window shopping” can be a symptom here.  We feel we want something more, and look to something other than Christ to fill that want.

Debt is another indicator, and I’m not talking so much about a debt for a house (i.e. a mortgage), however I would argue that a cycle of upgrading from one home to another with the accumulation of debt along the way is a symptom of discontentment.  Why not be content with the first/second home?  Why continually upgrade if not for discontentment?

 Whining and complaining is also an indication of discontentment.  These indicate a focus on my wants or felt needs rather than a focus on the glory of the Lord.  It also implies that we have a lack of reliance on the Lord to affect change both in ourselves and in the circumstances around us.

Worrying is also a sign of discontent as it focuses on us and our needs not on the Lord and his sufficiency and ability to provide.

Perfectionism can indicate a lack of contentment with things “the way they are”, and in many cases we fail to realize that things are what they are because that is the way the Lord has made them.

Depression can be caused by lack of contentment, again, this is generally self focused – the grieving for something we lack.

Self assertion or the tenancy to manipulate or control circumstances and people for your own end is also a sign of discontentment.

How do we resolve these issues?  In reality it is not likely that we will be free from these things while we are here on earth as our sin will constantly be dragging us back to the same old battle grounds time after time, but through these things we must develop a dependency on the sufficiency of God to make us righteous before him – we must trust the justification Christ finished for us on the cross.

We read in Ps 37:4 ”Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart”.  This verse is cyclical.  As we make the Lord the delight of our lives, he will give us the desires of our heart.  What will the desires of our heart be?  Him - he is our delight – and the only thing we will find desirable.

Only God satisfies – seeking him brings more joy than any other created thing – and He made us to enjoy him while giving him glory and honour.

Contentment – part 2

When we look at some of the passages that mention the word contentment in the New Testament we see something interesting. 

Take for instance the following two passages: Phil 4:11-13 and Heb 13:5.

Phil 4:11-13 says “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound.  In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.  I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

So what was the “secret” Paul talks about in this passage?  Whatever it was it was able to satisfy every need he had in his ministry, regardless of his status and financial circumstances.  The secret is verse 13 – “I can do all things through him who strengthens me”.  Paul was content because all the needs he had were taken care by Christ.  The underlying truth here is that Christ is the core and the backbone of the ministry of any believer.  Money is not the issue – faith in Christ is the issue.

We read something similar in Heb 13:5. Here we are exhorted to “Keep your life free from the love of money and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’”.  Again, the word “for” here means because.  The reason we are to be content is that we have something we can never lose in Christ – and not only is it just “something” we can never lose it is the most valuable something anyone could ever have – Christ.

Lets see why Christ is the most valuable thing we could have.

When Jesus died on the cross at Calvary, the last thing he said before He died was “It is finished” (John 19:30).  What was finished?  Heb 12:2 calls Jesus the “author and finisher” of our faith (in the NKJV – other versions read “perfecter” instead of finisher).  It was our faith that was perfected or finished by Christ – but how?  Heb 10:14 helps us understand this: “For by a single offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified”.  What Christ accomplished or finished at the cross was the justification of those who are being sanctified (or changed into His likeness).

What does this mean?  “Therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.” (Rom 5:9).  One would think that of all the things in the universe, something you’d want to be saved from would be the wrath of God. 

Surely this is the most terrifying prospect one can face – not to die, but to be suffer justly at the hands of the God of the universe for the rest of eternity.  Therefore to be saved from this is the best thing that can happen to any of us.  Christ is all we need for this.

Not only this but Christ is all we need for everything in life.  God has “blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing” (Eph 1:3).  Paul found that even though he had difficulties (in this case probably a physical problem, but we can’t be too sure), he was taught that “my grace is sufficient for you for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Cor 12:7-9).

Lets take a look at this in action.  Job was a God fearing man who had been given great wealth by God and was the “greatest of all the people of the east” (Job 1:1-5).

One day Satan was granted permission to take everything that he had, and on one day he lost all his livestock (totaling around 11,000 heads), all his servants but four (of which we are told there were “very many”) as well as his seven sons and three daughters (Job 1:13-19).

How would you react to losing everything in one day. Many could not bear to part with their wealth (see the story of the rich young ruler in Luke 18:18-27 as an example).  Some would ask “why has God done this?”, others might just blame God and feel unjustly treated. 

Jobs response is remarkable.  In Job 1:20-22 his response is recorded as “Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head and fell on the ground and worshiped. And he said ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return.  The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away, blessed be the name of the Lord.’”.

Clearly Jobs life did not consist in his possessions (Luke 12:15), nor was Job worried about his next meal.

Job didn’t blame God – rather he justified him.  How could he do this?  We get a hint of the reason in other passages in scripture.  For example the Psalmist says “You are my Lord, I have no good apart from you” (Ps 16:2).  Paul similarly said “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith” (Phil 3:8-9).

The reality for Job, the Psalmist and Paul was that Christ, and salvation was infinitely more valuable than anything we have on earth.  The responses of Paul and Job tell us that their prime concern was living for the honour of the God who created them.  This alone is of value.  As Job said – we come into the world with nothing and we leave with nothing, however “it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgement” (Heb 9:27).  Correct preparation for judgement is more valuable than anything in this life, and Jesus is all we need to prepare for this judgement.