| The 100 Fold Return - Part 2 |
Continuing where we left off in part 1, Let’s take a brief look again at:
Matthew 19:29: And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall
receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
In the above verse Jesus makes no mention of any type of sowing. He makes it quite clear that the hundredfold return was available only to those who had forsaken
something. Is forsaking or giving up something the same as sowing seed? Not in my book!
Mark 10:30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions;
and in the world to come eternal life.
Whereas Copeland etal. Have made lucrative multi million dollar industries out of promoting this ‘sow a dollar and reap a hundred dollars’ doctrine, far from being Biblical it
is anti–Biblical; for neither Jesus nor any of the apostles ever taught their disciples to expect or hope for any sort of material returns in this life. Jesus taught us to “lay up
treasures in heaven”, not for us to us to go treasure hunting on earth. The hundred fold return that He promised for us “in this life” consisted not only of houses but also
of brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers and persecutions. Have you ever heard Oral Roberts teach that you should expect a hundredfold increase in your family
size or a hundredfold increase in persecutions? So what exactly did Jesus mean that if you forsake houses or families for His sake, you can expect a hundredfold increase
in the number of houses you have as well as brothers, sisters and so forth? By the way, for those who might have given up a wife; take notice that Jesus did not say that
you can expect a hundredfold increase in the number of wives (or husbands)!
All that Jesus meant was that those who give up material things and families for His sake will have access to a hundred times more material things and family members than
what the person forsook. If you give up your own house and family God will make available for you plenty of houses to dwell in and plenty of people who will be like brothers
and sisters and mothers and fathers and children to you. Did Jesus say that God would send you the deeds to a hundred houses if you give up yours? Kenneth Copeland
might claim that this is what He said but there are plenty of other scriptures that can guide us into understanding that Jesus’ definition of the hundredfold return does not
include material things or money. Where else in the NT do we find mention of a hundredfold return?
Mark 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
Why is it that the seed-faith, word of faith, plant your seed crowd always insists that the SEED that you need to plant must be MONEY or material things? This whole
doctrine has so many serious flaws in it that it makes me wonder why I ever fell for it. Upon introspection I can only conclude that we are indoctrinated right from birth to
think in a worldly way; our parents and family, our teachers, and society in general hammer it day and night into us that SUCCESS means MONEY. These charlatans
disguised as preachers have successfully used this mentality to make gullible people think that this is what the Bible also teaches. So sub-consciously we all feel that if we
are not successful monetarily then we are failures. However as I have studied and meditated on what the Bible actually teaches about success as defined by God, it
became clear to me that ‘Godly’ success has nothing and I mean NOTHING to do with money or material things.
Solomon was the richest man in the Bible and the richest man on Earth in his day. Therefore by the modern definition of ‘success’ he was the most successful man ever in
the Bible. But did his riches and wealth make him successful according to God or was he the biggest failure in the Bible and the direct cause of the destruction of his own
nation? This man ended his days an apostate idolater who turned completely away from God who had so richly blessed him. He is directly responsible for the division of his
nation into two kingdoms immediately following his death. He is directly responsible for the abominable idolatrous practices that flourished in both Israel and Judah soon
after his death and that brought such severe judgments upon both these nations. This man who was the most ‘successful’ that ever lived was not included in the list of
those men and women that God considers to be a success; the names of many of whom are recorded in the book of Hebrews, chapter 11. Yet people who were
destitute, who were absolute failures according to the world are to be found amongst these heroes of faith.
Hebrews 11:36-38 36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37 They were stoned, they were sawn
asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the
world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
At this point I would like to define a few terms that will make it clear to us that terms such as ‘Seed’, and ‘Sowing’ and ‘Hundredfold Return’ do not Biblically mean what the
advocates of the ‘Prosperity gospel’ make them out to mean.
Mark 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
• Who is the sower? Mark 4:14 “The sower (Jesus) soweth the word. But what do the false prophets teach; that the believer (not Jesus) should be sowing seed
which they define as money not the word of God.
• What is the seed? Luke 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Once again the seed is the word of God not money and it is planted in the
heart of the believer not in the televangelist’s bank account.
• What is the fruit? Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 5:23 Meekness, temperance:
against such there is no law. The fruit that springs up thirty, sixty and hundredfold is not money or material things as falsely promised by these wolves in sheep’s clothing.
So according to the Bible, the one that does the sowing is Jesus; and what he sows is the Word of God. Does the believer provide the seed or is it Jesus who has the
seed? So what does the believer provide? He provides the good ground of his heart in which the Word grows and produces fruit! Does the fruit have anything to do with
money or material things? Are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance monetary rewards? If you do not have the peace
that passes understanding in your heart the last thing you should be chasing after is material gain–it will surely destroy you even if you become the richest person on Earth.
What other evidence maybe presented that proves that neither Jesus nor the apostles ever advocated material gain as godliness?
The following scriptures pretty much speak for themselves so I have not expounded upon them in detail but only added a few comments here and there.
• Matthew 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: Matthew 6:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
• Luke 18: 22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and
thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. 24 And when Jesus saw
that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a
needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. At this point I would like to give you an example of how these ‘name it and claim it preachers’ twist
the word of God to suit their nefarious purposes. I once heard Kenneth Copeland teaching that in the above scripture Jesus was not really referring to a needle as in
needle and thread. No what he meant was that in Jerusalem there was a narrow gate into the city through which camels could not easily pass through; they had to bend
down to make it into the city. First of all any gate into a major city such as Jerusalem would have had big doors and no matter how narrow it was it would surely be big
enough for a camel to easily pass through. Secondly if all it took was for the camel to bend down slightly to get in does this interpretation not negate the teaching of Jesus
that it was not just difficult but it was impossible for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God; that it was only a miracle of God that could free such a man from the snare
of riches so that he could believe unto salvation. Read the rest of Luke 18 and see for yourself what Jesus was really teaching and if it lines up with Copleand’s teachings.
• Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on.
Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Jesus taught that we should not even think about our material needs much less spend time and money
praying about them or sowing material seed that we may reap material rewards.
• 1 Timothy 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. According to God’s word, food and clothing is all we need to be fully content – beyond
that we need neither to pray for nor concern ourselves about material things.
• Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor
forsake thee. If we truly followed God instead of filthy lucre, we would be truly content with what we have and not run ourselves ragged trying to chase the imaginary pot of
gold at the end of rainbow.
• 1 Timothy 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and
perdition. If we follow God’s will we will spend our time studying, praying, and fasting; material things will hold little or no value for us. If we follow our own will then we will
always be chasing worldly riches; and the pursuit of such riches will destroy us as surely as a moth is destroyed by the flame to which it is so fatally attracted.
One scripture that I wish to expound on a bit more in detail is Luke 6:38 which is frequently quoted by the ‘name it and claim it’ crowd.
Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with
the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. This scripture is invariably used to justify collection plates in churches, camp meetings and
on TV with the inference that if you give your money to the ‘man of God’ who is encouraging you to sow your seed; you too will be the beneficiary of monetary gain that will
be given into your bosom by other men. Is this what the scripture is teaching? Let’s look at a Biblical example in which there are both givers and receivers.
Acts 4:34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things
that were sold, 35 And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
In this wonderful picture of how the early church conducted its affairs, we find a multitude of believers not tithing or sowing seed but forsaking all and being perfect
examples of the type of disciples that Jesus mentioned in Matthew 19:29. On the other hand we see the apostles who had previously forsaken all and were now receiving
their hundredfold reward that men were giving into their bosom. This is an accurate Biblical picture of both giving and receiving; of what it actually entails. What we discover
is the following: That those who were giving had no expectation of any material returns; they certainly were not expecting a hundredfold return, and neither were the
apostles making them any such promises. The givers did not consider that which they were giving as ‘seed’ that they were planting in the hope of a bountiful material
harvest. Also notice that they did not give a ‘seed’ or a ‘tithe’, they gave everything they had and they did it willingly; without anyone having to persuade them that they
would receive a hundredfold return on their investment. Those that were receiving did not keep nor had any desire to keep that which they were receiving for themselves.
They did not consider it a reward for seeds sown since they themselves had forsaken everything for Jesus’ sake in the past.
When men did come and give into their bosoms as Jesus taught in Luke 6:38, did the apostles consider the money and material things to have been given for their own
personal use or for the benefit of the whole church? Did they set up corporations, numbered companies, various bank accounts and foundations; did they hire lawyers,
and investment bankers, and management firms to manage this vast wealth that was being given into their bosoms? Did they turn around and acquire vast real estate
holdings including multi million dollar mansions for their abodes not to mention beach front cottages and winter ski chalets? Did they use the monies thus acquired to build
‘churches’ costing tens of millions of dollars; the only purpose served by such buildings being that their fans could gather there once or twice a week expecting ‘miracles’;
preferably of the monetary variety? Did they set up vast telephone networks and publishing companies so people could call in 24/7 and order and pay for (they call it LOVE
OFFERINGS) their latest and greatest teachings on how to ‘unlock the windows of heaven’; so that God could shower the ‘sowers’ with dollars bills? When I see Benny Hinn
sitting there with piles of prayer requests several feet high and wide; it makes my stomach churn. A real man of God does not have time for such charades; what real men
of God did in the Bible has been plainly shown in the book of Acts and let me focus on that for a moment before I end this study.
Acts 4:34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things
that were sold, 35 And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
The above scriptures make it abundantly clear that in the days of the real church there were plenty of sincere and genuine people who did not value any of their material
possessions but rather desired to use their material wealth to benefit the whole body of Christ. They did that which the young ruler had been instructed by Jesus to do; to
sell all and give to the poor. They sold everything and gave the proceeds to the apostles expecting nothing in return. The apostles on the other hand did not consider
these proceeds to have been given for their own personal use; they did not think of the monies as their hundredfold return! All the monies and material things that they
received they distributed right away; they kept none of it for their own personal use. So little a value did they place upon material things that they did not even want
themselves involved in the accounting or distribution of what amounted to tens of millions at today’s rates. Acts 6:2 Then the twelve called the multitude of the
disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. 3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men
of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. 4 But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the
ministry of the word.
The above scriptures make it abundantly clear that the apostles considered their business to be PRAYER and MINISTRY OF THE WORD not the business of
counting money and making distribution of it. If material aspects of ministry are as important as modern day charlatan preachers make it out to be would the apostles have
given up such an important business to other men to oversee and conduct? For the apostles real riches meant prayer and ministry of the Word; they did not think it
reasonable to consider anything else to be of higher priority. “It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.”
In conclusion I will say that if those who make merchandise of their flocks for the love of filthy lucre are able to quote ten scriptures to support their ungodly teachings; then
I can quote a hundred scriptures as EVIDENCE that the Truth is the exact opposite of what is taught from these pulpits and TV screens. Finally, if the fruits of the Spirit;
love’ joy, peace that passes understanding in particular are not being manifested in your lives then what you need to do is to sell everything you can including your homes
so that the cares of this world will no longer choke the Word in your life. Live in a smaller house or in an apartment, make do with one car or none at all, have less clothes,
TVs, DVD players etc. and you will soon find that you do not need as much money as you thought you did; and you will have more time to spend in prayer and in studying
the Word which is where you will discover the true riches that bring forth everlasting fruit. Remember the warning that the apostle Paul gave to young Timothy:
• 1 Timothy 6:5 Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. 6: But
godliness with contentment is great gain.
No matter how they disguise it, these con artists are teaching in one form or another that (material) GAIN IS GODLINESS. This teaching appeals to the naturally avaricious
nature of human beings; and most of us fall willingly for these pernicious lies. If we can convince ourselves that our greedy natures are actually ‘godly’ then we don’t have
to feel guilty about chasing the American dream (nightmare in reality!) As noted in the above scripture, God defines GAIN as godliness with contentment; and for
material contentment all that any of us needs is food and raiment. Chasing any other material goals will only bring discontentment and disillusion and will surely shipwreck
our faith; so let’s avoid such traps lest these doctrines of men drown us in perdition.
Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Matthew 19:29: And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall
receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
In the above verse Jesus makes no mention of any type of sowing. He makes it quite clear that the hundredfold return was available only to those who had forsaken
something. Is forsaking or giving up something the same as sowing seed? Not in my book!
Mark 10:30 But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands, with persecutions;
and in the world to come eternal life.
Whereas Copeland etal. Have made lucrative multi million dollar industries out of promoting this ‘sow a dollar and reap a hundred dollars’ doctrine, far from being Biblical it
is anti–Biblical; for neither Jesus nor any of the apostles ever taught their disciples to expect or hope for any sort of material returns in this life. Jesus taught us to “lay up
treasures in heaven”, not for us to us to go treasure hunting on earth. The hundred fold return that He promised for us “in this life” consisted not only of houses but also
of brothers and sisters and mothers and fathers and persecutions. Have you ever heard Oral Roberts teach that you should expect a hundredfold increase in your family
size or a hundredfold increase in persecutions? So what exactly did Jesus mean that if you forsake houses or families for His sake, you can expect a hundredfold increase
in the number of houses you have as well as brothers, sisters and so forth? By the way, for those who might have given up a wife; take notice that Jesus did not say that
you can expect a hundredfold increase in the number of wives (or husbands)!
All that Jesus meant was that those who give up material things and families for His sake will have access to a hundred times more material things and family members than
what the person forsook. If you give up your own house and family God will make available for you plenty of houses to dwell in and plenty of people who will be like brothers
and sisters and mothers and fathers and children to you. Did Jesus say that God would send you the deeds to a hundred houses if you give up yours? Kenneth Copeland
might claim that this is what He said but there are plenty of other scriptures that can guide us into understanding that Jesus’ definition of the hundredfold return does not
include material things or money. Where else in the NT do we find mention of a hundredfold return?
Mark 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
Why is it that the seed-faith, word of faith, plant your seed crowd always insists that the SEED that you need to plant must be MONEY or material things? This whole
doctrine has so many serious flaws in it that it makes me wonder why I ever fell for it. Upon introspection I can only conclude that we are indoctrinated right from birth to
think in a worldly way; our parents and family, our teachers, and society in general hammer it day and night into us that SUCCESS means MONEY. These charlatans
disguised as preachers have successfully used this mentality to make gullible people think that this is what the Bible also teaches. So sub-consciously we all feel that if we
are not successful monetarily then we are failures. However as I have studied and meditated on what the Bible actually teaches about success as defined by God, it
became clear to me that ‘Godly’ success has nothing and I mean NOTHING to do with money or material things.
Solomon was the richest man in the Bible and the richest man on Earth in his day. Therefore by the modern definition of ‘success’ he was the most successful man ever in
the Bible. But did his riches and wealth make him successful according to God or was he the biggest failure in the Bible and the direct cause of the destruction of his own
nation? This man ended his days an apostate idolater who turned completely away from God who had so richly blessed him. He is directly responsible for the division of his
nation into two kingdoms immediately following his death. He is directly responsible for the abominable idolatrous practices that flourished in both Israel and Judah soon
after his death and that brought such severe judgments upon both these nations. This man who was the most ‘successful’ that ever lived was not included in the list of
those men and women that God considers to be a success; the names of many of whom are recorded in the book of Hebrews, chapter 11. Yet people who were
destitute, who were absolute failures according to the world are to be found amongst these heroes of faith.
Hebrews 11:36-38 36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: 37 They were stoned, they were sawn
asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented; 38 (Of whom the
world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
At this point I would like to define a few terms that will make it clear to us that terms such as ‘Seed’, and ‘Sowing’ and ‘Hundredfold Return’ do not Biblically mean what the
advocates of the ‘Prosperity gospel’ make them out to mean.
Mark 4:8 And other fell on good ground, and did yield fruit that sprang up and increased; and brought forth, some thirty, and some sixty, and some an hundred.
• Who is the sower? Mark 4:14 “The sower (Jesus) soweth the word. But what do the false prophets teach; that the believer (not Jesus) should be sowing seed
which they define as money not the word of God.
• What is the seed? Luke 8:11 Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. Once again the seed is the word of God not money and it is planted in the
heart of the believer not in the televangelist’s bank account.
• What is the fruit? Galatians 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 5:23 Meekness, temperance:
against such there is no law. The fruit that springs up thirty, sixty and hundredfold is not money or material things as falsely promised by these wolves in sheep’s clothing.
So according to the Bible, the one that does the sowing is Jesus; and what he sows is the Word of God. Does the believer provide the seed or is it Jesus who has the
seed? So what does the believer provide? He provides the good ground of his heart in which the Word grows and produces fruit! Does the fruit have anything to do with
money or material things? Are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance monetary rewards? If you do not have the peace
that passes understanding in your heart the last thing you should be chasing after is material gain–it will surely destroy you even if you become the richest person on Earth.
What other evidence maybe presented that proves that neither Jesus nor the apostles ever advocated material gain as godliness?
The following scriptures pretty much speak for themselves so I have not expounded upon them in detail but only added a few comments here and there.
• Matthew 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: Matthew 6:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal.
• Luke 18: 22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and
thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me. 23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich. 24 And when Jesus saw
that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God! 25 For it is easier for a camel to go through a
needle's eye, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God. At this point I would like to give you an example of how these ‘name it and claim it preachers’ twist
the word of God to suit their nefarious purposes. I once heard Kenneth Copeland teaching that in the above scripture Jesus was not really referring to a needle as in
needle and thread. No what he meant was that in Jerusalem there was a narrow gate into the city through which camels could not easily pass through; they had to bend
down to make it into the city. First of all any gate into a major city such as Jerusalem would have had big doors and no matter how narrow it was it would surely be big
enough for a camel to easily pass through. Secondly if all it took was for the camel to bend down slightly to get in does this interpretation not negate the teaching of Jesus
that it was not just difficult but it was impossible for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God; that it was only a miracle of God that could free such a man from the snare
of riches so that he could believe unto salvation. Read the rest of Luke 18 and see for yourself what Jesus was really teaching and if it lines up with Copleand’s teachings.
• Matthew 6:25 Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on.
Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment? Jesus taught that we should not even think about our material needs much less spend time and money
praying about them or sowing material seed that we may reap material rewards.
• 1 Timothy 6:8 And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. According to God’s word, food and clothing is all we need to be fully content – beyond
that we need neither to pray for nor concern ourselves about material things.
• Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor
forsake thee. If we truly followed God instead of filthy lucre, we would be truly content with what we have and not run ourselves ragged trying to chase the imaginary pot of
gold at the end of rainbow.
• 1 Timothy 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and
perdition. If we follow God’s will we will spend our time studying, praying, and fasting; material things will hold little or no value for us. If we follow our own will then we will
always be chasing worldly riches; and the pursuit of such riches will destroy us as surely as a moth is destroyed by the flame to which it is so fatally attracted.
One scripture that I wish to expound on a bit more in detail is Luke 6:38 which is frequently quoted by the ‘name it and claim it’ crowd.
Luke 6:38 Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with
the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again. This scripture is invariably used to justify collection plates in churches, camp meetings and
on TV with the inference that if you give your money to the ‘man of God’ who is encouraging you to sow your seed; you too will be the beneficiary of monetary gain that will
be given into your bosom by other men. Is this what the scripture is teaching? Let’s look at a Biblical example in which there are both givers and receivers.
Acts 4:34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things
that were sold, 35 And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
In this wonderful picture of how the early church conducted its affairs, we find a multitude of believers not tithing or sowing seed but forsaking all and being perfect
examples of the type of disciples that Jesus mentioned in Matthew 19:29. On the other hand we see the apostles who had previously forsaken all and were now receiving
their hundredfold reward that men were giving into their bosom. This is an accurate Biblical picture of both giving and receiving; of what it actually entails. What we discover
is the following: That those who were giving had no expectation of any material returns; they certainly were not expecting a hundredfold return, and neither were the
apostles making them any such promises. The givers did not consider that which they were giving as ‘seed’ that they were planting in the hope of a bountiful material
harvest. Also notice that they did not give a ‘seed’ or a ‘tithe’, they gave everything they had and they did it willingly; without anyone having to persuade them that they
would receive a hundredfold return on their investment. Those that were receiving did not keep nor had any desire to keep that which they were receiving for themselves.
They did not consider it a reward for seeds sown since they themselves had forsaken everything for Jesus’ sake in the past.
When men did come and give into their bosoms as Jesus taught in Luke 6:38, did the apostles consider the money and material things to have been given for their own
personal use or for the benefit of the whole church? Did they set up corporations, numbered companies, various bank accounts and foundations; did they hire lawyers,
and investment bankers, and management firms to manage this vast wealth that was being given into their bosoms? Did they turn around and acquire vast real estate
holdings including multi million dollar mansions for their abodes not to mention beach front cottages and winter ski chalets? Did they use the monies thus acquired to build
‘churches’ costing tens of millions of dollars; the only purpose served by such buildings being that their fans could gather there once or twice a week expecting ‘miracles’;
preferably of the monetary variety? Did they set up vast telephone networks and publishing companies so people could call in 24/7 and order and pay for (they call it LOVE
OFFERINGS) their latest and greatest teachings on how to ‘unlock the windows of heaven’; so that God could shower the ‘sowers’ with dollars bills? When I see Benny Hinn
sitting there with piles of prayer requests several feet high and wide; it makes my stomach churn. A real man of God does not have time for such charades; what real men
of God did in the Bible has been plainly shown in the book of Acts and let me focus on that for a moment before I end this study.
Acts 4:34 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things
that were sold, 35 And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.
The above scriptures make it abundantly clear that in the days of the real church there were plenty of sincere and genuine people who did not value any of their material
possessions but rather desired to use their material wealth to benefit the whole body of Christ. They did that which the young ruler had been instructed by Jesus to do; to
sell all and give to the poor. They sold everything and gave the proceeds to the apostles expecting nothing in return. The apostles on the other hand did not consider
these proceeds to have been given for their own personal use; they did not think of the monies as their hundredfold return! All the monies and material things that they
received they distributed right away; they kept none of it for their own personal use. So little a value did they place upon material things that they did not even want
themselves involved in the accounting or distribution of what amounted to tens of millions at today’s rates. Acts 6:2 Then the twelve called the multitude of the
disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. 3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men
of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. 4 But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the
ministry of the word.
The above scriptures make it abundantly clear that the apostles considered their business to be PRAYER and MINISTRY OF THE WORD not the business of
counting money and making distribution of it. If material aspects of ministry are as important as modern day charlatan preachers make it out to be would the apostles have
given up such an important business to other men to oversee and conduct? For the apostles real riches meant prayer and ministry of the Word; they did not think it
reasonable to consider anything else to be of higher priority. “It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.”
In conclusion I will say that if those who make merchandise of their flocks for the love of filthy lucre are able to quote ten scriptures to support their ungodly teachings; then
I can quote a hundred scriptures as EVIDENCE that the Truth is the exact opposite of what is taught from these pulpits and TV screens. Finally, if the fruits of the Spirit;
love’ joy, peace that passes understanding in particular are not being manifested in your lives then what you need to do is to sell everything you can including your homes
so that the cares of this world will no longer choke the Word in your life. Live in a smaller house or in an apartment, make do with one car or none at all, have less clothes,
TVs, DVD players etc. and you will soon find that you do not need as much money as you thought you did; and you will have more time to spend in prayer and in studying
the Word which is where you will discover the true riches that bring forth everlasting fruit. Remember the warning that the apostle Paul gave to young Timothy:
• 1 Timothy 6:5 Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. 6: But
godliness with contentment is great gain.
No matter how they disguise it, these con artists are teaching in one form or another that (material) GAIN IS GODLINESS. This teaching appeals to the naturally avaricious
nature of human beings; and most of us fall willingly for these pernicious lies. If we can convince ourselves that our greedy natures are actually ‘godly’ then we don’t have
to feel guilty about chasing the American dream (nightmare in reality!) As noted in the above scripture, God defines GAIN as godliness with contentment; and for
material contentment all that any of us needs is food and raiment. Chasing any other material goals will only bring discontentment and disillusion and will surely shipwreck
our faith; so let’s avoid such traps lest these doctrines of men drown us in perdition.
Mark 8:36 For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
 | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  | |  |
| | | | | | | | | | | | |