Money and Power

The world operates on the premise that in order to be "safe" you must have money and power and that money IS power. The more money you have the more power and influence you have and the safer you are from catastrophe. In other words money is salvation. The entire world system is now built upon money. It has not been this way historically. Men traded goods and services amongst themselves for centuries and still do in third world countries. Money, a medium of exchange, was created by man, the result of banks and governments. Banks because they can charge interest for the use of money and governments because they can control the economy and thus the country through the issuance of money. Now all money is today is a piece of paper with some fancy ink and 1's and 0's on it. (In a few years it will be a computer entry). It is worth nothing in itself. What gives it worth is the one who prints it, the various governments. They decide what it is worth, or at least they try to. Gold and silver was money for many centuries. It has intrinsic worth, but you cannot eat it or burn it to heat your house, but you can trade it for food or fuel. It is recognized world wide. Anyone in the world will take it in trade for something else of value. Of course gold can be stolen but not printed up (i.e. counterfeited). It is just a matter of time before the computerized, inserted microchip will solve the theft problem, if you can trust the government computers databases.

The result of this is the world desires and pursues money, stores it for a rainy day, lusts after it is some cases and worships it in others.

The kingdom of God has a different view of money. Yahweh does not consider money or gold and silver of much value since it has no Life. It is dead. Faith is the most valuable commodity in Yahweh’s eyes. It is living and growing. You can have no money or goods but have faith and you are rich in Yahweh's eyes (and He's the only one who counts). Your treasure in Heaven will not be money but living Faith because faith is eternal. Yahweh is our salvation, our hope, our provision, our eternity. Putting our salvation, hope and faith in anything or anyone else is idolatry.

The tithe that the Lord implemented to the priests as an inheritance and to care for the stranger, the widows and orphans had nothing to do with money. It was upon the first fruits of Israel's harvest. Living plants and animals that Yahweh created for man. It was meant to feed those who could not feed themselves. I have not been able to find any reference in the scriptures where the tithe referred to anything but first fruits, not labor directly nor money nor investments. Leviticus 27:30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD's: it is holy unto the LORD.

The world's answer to any problem is more money, man's invention. This has become the church's answer as well. The church has embraced the world's premise; money is power, even to the point of converting the tithe of the first fruits, Yahweh’s creation, which was directed to the tribe of Levi to feed themselves, the strangers in the land, and the widows and orphans, to a tithe on monetary gain for the use of the pastors and their agendas. This is un-Biblical. We are a nation of priests, all of the "tribe" of Levi and there is one high priest, Yeshua. Money is not the answer, FAITH IS! Faith in the person of Yeshua, the High Priest. He is our salvation, our healer, our deliverer, our hope. He is the one we pursue. When all money and stuff has vanished, He will still remain standing to receive those who have rejected money and power as the answer and received Him by Faith.

The world and the church has ultimately put their faith in man and man's inventions, not in Yahweh and His creation. The true Church's answer for every problem is more Faith in Yeshua not more money for pastors, buildings and programs. When the church looks to men for answers it is pride and the Lord resists the proud. That means that Yahweh is actively standing against and in the way of man's answers.

It's always handy to have a barometer to measure the status of things. This can be done with the church and money. What would happen in your church if there were no money brought in for the next 5 years? Could you tell a difference? What about faith, what would happen in your church if no one grew in faith for the next 5 years, could you tell the difference?