God, Money and 645

People can be really touchy about the topic of God and money. But it's something that God says lots about in the Bible

The big choice: Money or God

One of the biggest things he says is that money and possessions can easily become a rival god that takes the affection of our hearts and the commitment of our time, energy and money. Jesus presents it as a stark choice: 'You cannot serve both God and money' (Mt 6:24). Paul applies this as a warning to those who are rich (1 Tim 6:17-19).

Financial responsibilities

There are four areas where God says we have financial responsibilities:

to support ourselves in the things we need to live (e.g., bread!, 2 Thess 3:10-12)
to support family members in need (1 Tim 5:4)
to support gospel ministry, in particular those who minister the gospel to us (1 Cor 9:7-11; 1 Tim 5:17-18)
to support the poor, in particular the Christian poor (Acts 2:44-45; Rom 15:25-27; Gal 6:10)

How much?

This is the big question that everyone wants to know the answer to. The problem is God does not give us a definite answer. He just says we should give generously, where generosity is understood as relative to our capacity to give (Lk 21:1-4). $5/week from one person could actually be more generous than $100/week from another person! Given the Old Testament system of tithing (giving 10%), this should probably be seen as a baseline of where generosity starts.

What does it all look like at 645?

Not all a person's giving to support gospel ministry and the poor must go to their church, but for regular, committed members of 645 here's a suggestion: start at giving 10% of your income to support gospel ministry and the poor, and commit half of that to 645. In other words, every member of 645 should give at least 5% of their income to church.

How to Give

BPay Logo Bpay is a great way to set up regular donations to Christ Church St Ives through your Internet or telephone banking.

The BPay Biller Code for Christ Church St Ives is 172 247 & then use the Reference Number 06451 to indicate the money is for 645.

Information on other giving methods can be found in the brochure " Giving for God's Gospel ".

You can also find out about financially supporting other ministries at Christ Church like Scripture in our Schools and the Ministry Training Apprentices here.