Living on God’s Economy—The Mission of the Local Church is Worthy of My Investment

I love the local church! I praise the Lord for the opportunity to have been raised in church. God used my many Sunday school teachers, each sermon I heard, the church camps I attended—every aspect of the church to influence and shape my life. Even as a child, He used the local church to give me a desire to live with eternal values. Today, I’m thankful for the love and fellowship of my church family. I’m thankful that God has allowed me to be a part of something so awesome, so needed, so eternal as the local church.

Do you love your church? Thank God for the many ways the local church has benefited you—salvation, spiritual growth, opportunities for service, help in directing your children’s hearts to God—the list is long.

The Mission of the Local Church
Your church has the responsibility of reaching every person in the community with the Gospel of Christ. Christ has commanded His church to “Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled” (Luke 14:23). What a joy to be a part of such an awesome responsibility!
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Living on God’s Economy—Grace-Giving

Second Corinthians 8 describes the sacrificial offering of the poverty-stricken churches of Macedonia: “Moreover, brethren, we do you to wit of the grace of God bestowed on the churches of Macedonia; How that in a great trial of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality” (2 Corinthians 8:1–2).

Why is the testimony of these Macedonian Christians so powerful? The significance lies in their motive. In God’s economy, the motive is as important as the gift. Some Christians give financially, but they give for the wrong reasons.

Early Christians were not guilt-givers.
These Macedonian Christians did not give because Paul pushed or coerced them into giving. In fact, they had to beg Paul to take their gift—“Praying us with much intreaty that we would receive the gift…” (2 Corinthians 8:4).
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Living on God’s Economy

Giving is not a minor topic in Scripture. In fact, the word give in its various forms is used 2,162 times throughout the Bible—that is more than believe (271 times), prayer (268 times), and love (714 times) all combined!

Yet, in spite of the vast material on giving, many Christians respond to even the mention of the word by reaching for their wallets—to hold them tightly closed.

Does this response reflect a true lack of resources? Can we really not afford to give? Actually, the opposite is true—we can’t afford not to give.

Giving Meets Our Needs
God does not need our money, for He is the one who has given it to us! “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” (James 1:17).

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One of the highlights of Leadership Conference this year for me was honoring Pastor Jason Herring on Tuesday evening with the Faithful Church Planter Award—the first we have ever presented.

Jason and Suzie Herring  moved to Eagle, Idaho, in 2004 and planted the North Valley Baptist Church. Since that time, the Herrings have consistently seen people saved and baptized, and they have labored in discipleship and personal ministry to build strong Christians.

God’s will took a dramatic turn for the Herrings this past March when their four-year-old son Josiah was diagnosed with a grade four cancerous tumor. The Herrings prayed for a miraculous healing, but fifty-five days later the Lord chose to take Josiah home to Heaven. In the midst of tremendous grief, the Herrings have remained faithful to the Lord and to His church.

After the presentation of this award, Pastor Herring spoke for a few minutes about God’s grace in their lives and in their son’s life. He described the joyful relationship Josiah developed with the Lord during the last fifty-five days of his life. Often, his family would hear him talking to the Lord (sometimes even in his sleep) and saying “I love you, Jesus.” One of his favorite songs became “I Love You, Lord,” written by Ron Hamilton (“Patch the Pirate”).
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Today we celebrate our twenty-third anniversary at Lancaster Baptist Church. We stand amazed and humbled at all God has accomplished in our midst through these years, and today we joyfully offer the sacrifice of praise for His goodness.

I’m reminded of David’s sacrifice in 2 Samuel 24. Humbled at God’s greatness, David determined, “neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing” (2 Samuel 24:24). What a privilege it has been for me to pastor a church family who recognizes that God is worthy of our sacrifice and realizes it is a privilege to pay the price in their offering of service.

As we look forward to the future, awed at God’s work in the past, our overwhelming realization is that God is worthy of our continued sacrifice. So we will…

Pay the price in prayer.

What a joy it has been for me as a pastor to see our members grow and develop in their prayer lives. Time and again our church has seen God’s blessing as a direct result of prayer. Our men’s prayer meeting on Saturday evenings is one of my favorite times of the week. I love to hear our men intercede for God’s power in their own lives and families and in our church. Their fervent, effectual prayers truly avail much. Various times throughout the year (such as this past week leading up to Anniversary Sunday and Spiritual Leadership Conference) our church family forms a twenty-four hour prayer chain and prays round the clock for God’s work to be accomplished.
Let us never become complacent in God’s blessings and neglect to pray. He promises to answer our prayers, and we’ve seen how His answers far exceed what we ask or think. May we continue to make prayer central and focal in our lives and in our church.

Pay the price in giving.

Twenty-three years ago, the small group of less than twenty people meeting in a building that was in foreclosure could never have imagined the campus God has given us today. But over the years, our people, as the Macedonian believers in 2 Corinthians 8:3, have given “beyond their power.” They have given generously and joyfully of their time, their finances, their skills—their lives. And we praise the Lord for a campus that is used daily as a tool to reach people for Christ and build lives for God’s glory.
Still today, our campus is developing, and we are excited about the Anniversary Sunday offering we will give today. As we continue to grow in our giving, God continues to use our offerings to build lives here in Lancaster and through church planters and missionaries around the world.

Pay the price in faith.

The price our people have paid in prayer and giving bears testimony to their faith. They have trusted God to answer their prayers and meet their needs. They have exercised great faith in following their pastor’s vision. Their faith is evidenced by their faithful soulwinning in our community. And how we all rejoice at how God has blessed that faith! Today, many changed lives bear testimony to God’s answer to the faith of His people.
Our church has known the winds of adversity as well as the thrill of victory, and through it all we have seen the faithfulness of God. It is God’s faithfulness that encourages our faith and calls us to press forward claiming the promises of God for the future. I believe the greatest days of Lancaster Baptist Church are still before us.

Thank you, Lancaster Baptist family, for willingly paying the price to sacrifice to the Lord. What a privilege it is to know and serve Him. Let’s determine to keep our eyes on God’s greatness as we continue to pay the price in prayer, giving, and faith. God is worthy—to Him be the glory!