One saying that totally grabs my attention about money comes from the teaching of Jesus:'I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings'. Luke 16:9.
It's reckoned that 15% of Jesus' teaching is on the subject of money, which certainly underlines its significance in most of our lives. But the suggestion that we use our money to win friends may not be what we expect to hear Jesus say.
The New Testament teaches generosity rather than tithing. Tithing is concerned with how much we give, whereas generosity is really about how much we've got left.
For, some, let's say a single mum with a couple of kids who is trying to manage on a very low income then a tithe would be very generous. Because she is left with even less from her very little to get by. What about the person in a very high earning position who receives, let's say, £150,000 a year? Then the tithe would be £15,000 which sounds enormously generous. Not so! They are still left with £135,000 for themselves, which most people would view as a phenomenal amount of money. Yes, I realise that there are tax deductions etc, but get the point I'm making.
Preachers love the story of the poor widow who put everything into the temple treasury (Mark 12:41f), though in fact it was a tiny amount. Jesus responds by talking about those who give large amounts out of their wealth (with plenty left over) but points out that the widow's tiny coins left her with nothing. Clearly it is the widow who is really generous.
What can motivate true generosity in us which will be measured by what's left rather than by what's given?
Well, Jesus tells us to use our money to win friends! 2 Corinthians 8 &9 are favourite chapters for preachers to use when seeking to motivate giving for building projects. The only problem with that is the context; which is about giving money to the poor, not to buildings!
I reckon it's like this. If we give 'generously' to the local church, to ministry and mission and, yes, to a building fund, we may be making a very wise investment. A Chinese student may wander into our newly acquired building one day and convert to faith in Jesus Christ. He returns home to preach to his village, they plant a church and then send out from that church evangelists to preach in other villages.
The one day as you approach the glory of heaven you see a huge crowd of people waving flags and cheering as you arrive. Who are they? These are your friends. Because of your generous giving you helped to give the opportunity to a Chinese student to come to Christ and as a result many thousands came to Christ as well.
The Church needs people who can make and give money. If you've got that ability why not consider making as much money as you can and then giving it 'generously'. You may live in a smaller house and have less holidays than you can afford, but you'll have a a great bunch of friends waiting for you in heaven.
Jesus said so - he really did.
Hey, there's an enormous crowd around that widow...