Convictions for Biblical Stewardship

Anyway, we're, this Sunday going to be wrapping up our series on investing for eternity with the exception of this past Sunday. That's been our focus for the month of December. And, just given the times that we find ourselves in, we wanted this month to be a month where we take a deep breath and we just look at God's word and get biblical perspective on not only what's going on around us, but what God calls us to do with regard to our finances. And, we're very happy this morning to have Mr.

Jim Rickard, with us to be our speaker, for our service this morning. He is the founder and the president of Stewardship Services Foundation that is based presently for most of the year in Santa Clarita, California. He founded this, foundation in 1978, and the mission of this organization is to provide help to pastors, to missionaries, and to churches and Christian organizations, and to provide help to Christians in the area of finances. And I know they've been, they, they do free of charge tax returns for 2400 pastors and missionaries a year.

And I've done my tax return, a number of years and even the years where they don't, every single year, I'm calling them with tax questions. And Alvin, our church treasurer, is very appreciative of this particular ministry. we have been helped by Jim Rickard and by this ministry in a number of ways. In fact, about 10 years ago, Jim Rickard came and met with the elders.

And walked us through some very important biblical principles, regarding leadership and finances and the impact that he had upon your leadership in that meeting reverberates to this very day. So all of you, whether him or not or have heard him preach or speak or not, are the recipients of the benefits. Of the ministry that God has called him to. And we've asked him to come and to speak to us, on the subject of biblical stewardship, something he's very passionate about.

And so, Jim, we're very much looking forward to hearing what God has laid on your heart. Why don't you come and let's give our brother a warm welcome. Done his taxes for several years and he has stayed out of jail. How's that?

OK. Only about 25% of the patches we do taxes for have served time, so don't, That's a joke. That is a joke. Well, thank you for having me.

Wonderful, wonderful privilege. This is my wife and I's 31st year doing this. We live 4 months a year in Southern Ohio and then eight months out here so we can cover the country with our ministry and the tax ministry started as a hobby, really. I was taking some courses in accounting at the University of Toledo and I, back in the early 60s and I took a course on income tax.

And I fell in love with income tax. Now you have to have a screw loose to fall in love with income tax, but I did. I started doing income tax for my buddies, and then in 1966, 67, my pastor in Toledo asked me to do his tax return, and I didn't know how to do it. I had never seen a pastor's tax return before and I was captivated by that.

So I poured myself into that arena, studied the regs, and there wasn't a whole lot of good information back then about all that. So it took me a while to put it all together and then the word spread around Ohio that Rickard does tax returns for pastors free of charge. And so I was inundated with all that and I went down to Cedarville and I worked down there for 5 years. I taught in the business department and worked in the administration.

Then in 1974, the Lord led us out here to the Los Angeles Baptist College, now the master's college and seminary, and, that was in '74. In '75, I spoke at a pastor's conference at the Siomar Conference Center near San Francisco, Monterey Bay, and, they had allowed me, 45 minutes to speak on a topic involving preachers and money. So, I picked the topic, the pastor and his income tax. Can you imagine that subject for a conference?

I finished at 10:00 that morning. They'd allowed a half hour for questions and those 400 pastors asked me questions for 3.5 hours. That's when I realized how great the need was. Came back to my office in Newhall, and I was inundated.

these guys were from all over the northwest and and the southwest, Arizona and California and Oregon and Washington and Montana and Idaho, and they needed help. And, so it just, it just, I was inundated. Then a couple of months later, a pastor said, come to my church and teach my people what the Bible says about money. So in the fall of 1975, I launched the family finance seminar series, which is the same year that Larry Burkett launched his ministry out of Atlanta, Georgia.

I'm sure you're aware of that name. He's with the Lord now, but it goes on as Crown Ministries. And, I did my first family finance seminar, I got a lot of questions about wills and trusts, so I started doing Will and trust seminars, just in local churches, just to God's people. And then a couple of months later, the pastor said, come to my church and teach my leaders about church finance.

Did my church, first church finance seminar in Moscow, Idaho. And I spent two days with those leaders and it didn't take long for me to figure out that some of those guys were not biblically qualified to be leaders in their church. One guy had just left his wife, was living with another woman, and he was the chairman of the board. Another guy was a 32nd degree mason and propagating it right there in my seminar.

So, I added to my repertoire the qualifications of a godly leader from First Timothy 3 and Titus 1, and little did I know a ministry was developing. Well, fast forward real quick, in 1977, I spoke in a church in Walla Walla, Washington, B man took me to lunch and said, you need to do this full time. So, I said, well, I'll let my wife and I pray about it and we decided, yes, let's go forward. Went up to Richland, Washington, spent 10 years up there, went on the board of the college, the master's college in, 1983, then it was Los Angeles Baptist College, 1981.

And then in 1985, I was chairman of the board and we called John MacArthur to be the president and then one day John asked if I would move my ministry down here and travel with him and do the shepherd seminar series. So, he and I traveled the country from 87 to 91 and did the shepherd seminar series, and that tells you, that's all I know. So, I, I guess I should close in prayer, right? OK.

So, but the stewardship seminars come all out of the tax ministry because the pastors get to know us and trust us and so we're invited to their churches to do these seminars. And so, that's why I'm here. So, thanks to Vincent. I've known him, so he graduated in '92, was it?

1991, yeah, from the master's seminary. So, Great to be with you. We're going to talk about biblical stewardship. We've been hit hard this year with the economy.

We've been hit with some downturns. A lot of people forecasted that there was going to be a turnaround. I don't think anybody predicted as severe as it is, but what goes around comes around, and a lot of people have been hurt. We understand that.

But lest you think the United States is going into the abyss. That is not what is happening here, folks. We will weather this economic storm, and we will be the better for it. It is a wake up call, America.

We are the most prosperous people in the history of the world, and we take it for granted. And many people in this country have abused it. Many people got loans they never should have qualified for. People bought homes they never should have purchased.

Up where I live, the Stevenson Ranch, I'm told there's 150 homes up there in foreclosure. I know some of the bankers, and they told me at least 70% of those people should never have qualified to buy those homes. And so what is happening should not be a huge surprise. The severity of it is is Madoff, this $50 billion fraud people will not be $50 billion.

Wait till it filters out. It is not as severe as the news tries to make us believe. A lot of that is accumulated interest. When he's paying 24% interest, and there was a couple on television last night, I don't know how many of you saw it, they claimed to have lost $1.6 million yet the questions that were asked of those people were not really the questions that should be asked.

How much money did you really put with him? They were with him for 28 years. If you'd have put $25,000 with him 24 years ago at 24% interest, it would be worth $1.6 million today. So how much money of their actual capital did they lose?

Then how much have they gotten back? That's the real question. It will not be $50 billion. It's going to be a lot, and he should go to prison for the rest of his life.

But it's not the doom and gloom that they lead us to believe the liberal press. So don't believe everything, everything you read and everything you hear. Let it filter out. But it's a wake up call.

What's been going on in this country is a wake up call. The problem is most Americans have a short memory. Have a short memory, because once they work through this, and we will, this will turn around. It's all cyclical.

We're in a down cycle. It will turn around. And when it starts to turn around, it won't take long for people to forget, and they'll go back into the old bad habits, misusing credit cards, borrowing money they shouldn't be borrowing, and it'll cycle back again because people do not learn their lessons. But less, less you believe, That we are in the front end of the abyss of America economically.

Let me read something to you. Kiplinger Letter is one of my favorite publications, one of the most trusted. In the United States. This is the latest issue.

Compared with the rest of the world, how does the US really stack up? We're at the top of the pile, the largest economy, the most broadly used currency, the largest exporter, and the biggest importer by far. The US military is the world's mightiest, and the nation contributes more foreign aid than any other. It's the first and largest responder in times of international crisis.

Want proof that the US remains the world's preeminent economy? Look no further than what's happening these days in US Treasury bills. In the face of a global recession, investors worldwide are flocking to that safe haven called the United States of America because despite the current contraction, confidence in the US economy is greater than anywhere else in the world. The investors feel assured that the US government will pay off its obligations, and they're going to have a lot to pay off.

Foreign direct investment flows also point to the US economy's vibrancy. Last year, foreign investors sank $233 billion into business ventures in the United States, far eclipsing any other economy, including China and Hong Kong combined. At nearly $14 trillion the US economy dwarfs every other. It's three times as large as the economy of Japan, which ranks second.

China is 3rd. Germany is 4th. They average $3.5 trillion a year in their economy. We're at $14 trillion a year.

Very, very, very strong. The efficiency of American crop and livestock growers. The country ranks first in the output of corn, soybeans, beef, poultry, dairy products. And more, of course, adamant errant land doesn't hurt either.

American farmers are at little risk of losing their edge in coming years despite rising production costs. Services have been one of the US economic strengths. The nation is by far the world's largest provider of them, churning out $6 trillion a year. It's also the number one exporter with 14% of world trade and services which run the gamut from architecture, banking to transportation and tourism.

What am I saying here? We are still the number one economy in the world, number one. We will survive. We will survive.

We will get through it. We will get through it. God is in control anyway, right? He's sovereign.

He's in control. I don't know his purposes. None of us do. But obviously, he's allowing America to be brought a little bit to its knees for some reason.

I don't know what it is. But we will weather the storm. But Americans will forget Because that's the history of America, which is sad. But to us in this room, we should not forget.

We need to be biblical stewards of the money that God has entrusted into our care. And that means Not selfishly. But biblically. OK.

And there's a lot of verses in the Bible about money and material possessions, 2350 folks. So, obviously, God in His infinite wisdom we're going to need a lot of help, and it's there. All we have to do is read it and apply it. So, let's look at what the word of God has to say about this subject.

Biblical stewardship is my hot button. You probably know that by now. I spent a lot of my life teaching it. I love it.

I love the subject because I think it's so important to the Christian walk. Take your Bibles and turn to Matthew chapter 6. Matthew chapter 6, verses 19 to 24. Are my 3 favorite verses on the subject of biblical stewardship, my 6 verses.

Are my six favorite verses on the subject of biblical stewardship. Matthew chapter 6, verses 19 to 24, let's look at it. Do not lay up yourselves treasures on earth where moth and rust destroyed where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, your eye is good or clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad or cloudy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If, therefore, the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness?

No one can serve two masters, or either you will hate the one. and love the other, or else you'll be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and Mammon. You cannot serve God and treasures, you cannot serve God and riches.

You can summarize these six verses like this, you could look at verses 19 and 20. You can say earthly treasures corrupt. It's called greed. We have seen the consequences of greed in this country the last 12 months.

They have been catastrophic in many lives, but it's greed. We have seen fraud in this country from the highest echelons of government on and down through the S&L industry a few years ago. We're seeing fraud exposed this year more than any other in the last 20 years. OK.

So, it comes down to the issues of greed. Earthly treasures can corrupt your life. You can look at verses 22 and 23, you could say yearning for earthly treasures could blind you of God's spiritual vision for you. You can look at verse 24, you say that money can draw you away from any interest in serving Jesus Christ.

So if you allow yourself to get caught up in the materialistic mentality of this culture, which is huge, It could eventually begin to corrupt your life. When money controls your life, money can eventually and probably will eventually corrupt your life. The next step, you lose what vision God has given you to serving with. And the end result, you can draw you away from any interest in serving Jesus Christ.

When you look up verses 19 and 20, it talks about laying up treasures on earth versus laying up treasures. In heaven. In verse 19, we are discouraged to lay up treasures on earth. Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth.

Treasures on earth are temporary. Treasures on earth have no redeeming value whatsoever. Treasures, On earth are the clothes on our back, the homes we live in, the cars we drive, the pension plans we accumulate. None of that has any redeeming value whatsoever, folks.

You came into this world with nothing. You are going to leave it with nothing. You will never see a hearse pulling a U-Haul. You are going to leave it all behind and yours truly is too.

However, in verse 20 verse 20 verse 20 we find out, treasures in heaven are eternal. And in verse 20 we are to lay up treasures in heaven. So the question you could ask yourself was, what are treasures in heaven? Treasures in heaven are ultimately people.

Treasures in heaven are ultimately people. Think about it. Nothing will precede us to heaven except people. Nothing will follow us to heaven except people.

So, I could say to you this morning, Christians should buy people for heaven. And how do we do that by investing our lives and our resources in the Lord's work. Think back to the day you accepted Jesus Christ. At that moment, no, you might not have fully understand the lordship of Christ in your life.

You do as you get more mature in your Christian experience. But the minute you accepted Christ, things began to change. Your focus began to change, your priorities began to change. And it didn't take long for you to say, what, by the grace of God, I am what I am.

By the grace of God, I have what I have. Verses 22 and 23 talks about the lamp of the body is the eye. If your eye is good or clear, your body is full of light. If your eye is cloudy or bad, your body's full of darkness.

What in the world is he talking about there? Well, we all have two eyes. It's how we understand the things about us. By and large, we enjoy God's beautiful creation through our eyesight.

we also have a spiritual eye. It's our hearts. Our hearts are the very eyes of our soul. Folks, it's through our spiritual eye, our heart that God's truth comes to us.

How do we understand the biblical principle of joy? How do we understand the biblical principle of love? How about forgiveness, eternal life? The mysteries of the word of God are revealed to us through His scriptures.

And they're revealed to us through His scripture through our spiritual eye, our heart, which is the eye of our soul, and in our spiritual eye our heart is cloudy, it may be because we're materialistic. And maybe because we've bought into the culture. And for many, their motto becomes, I want what I want. I want it now.

I'm even willing to go into debt to get what I want now. But if our spiritual our heart is clear, it's because we have a hunger for the Word of God. We read his word, we meditate upon his word, we memorize his word, our passion is to mirror the Word of God to the culture, because we have a clear eye. Verse 24 talks about divided loyalties.

You can't serve God and Mammon, you can't serve God and treasures, folks, you can't have a clear eye and a cloudy eye. You can't have 1 ft on earth and the other foot in heaven. Because it compartmentalizes our life. Our life is a package.

You can't compartmentalize your Christian walk. You can't say to me, Jim, I'm into the word. I memorized the word. I'm faithful to my church.

I'm out of control financially, but I'm OK. No, you're not. No, you're not. You just compartmentalized your life.

Why? Go back to Matthew 6:21. That's the key verse here. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Listen, folks, where you put your money is where your heart is. How we handle our money. It is an outward manifestation of what's really going on in our heart and life. So, it's a heart issue.

It's a heart issue, it's a spiritual issue. I happen to believe after we accept Jesus Christ as our personal savior, this is the most important issue we're going to have to deal with. Because we all live there every day. How we handle our money.

It is an outward manifestation of what's really going on in our heart and life. It is a very important issue. So, the few minutes I have left with you, I want to share with you the three convictions for biblical stewardship. The three convictions for biblical stewardship.

Number one is the most important. I call the three the cornerstone principles for biblical stewardship. Number one is the flagship. Number one is the most important.

Number one is develop a spirit of generosity in your heart and life. In other words, understand the biblical principle of giving. Why is that so important to the Christian walk? Let me show you why.

Let me show you guys's financial plan. Take your Bibles, flip back to 1 Corinthians 16:2, and also over to 2 Corinthians chapter 9, verses 6 through 8. 1 Corinthians 16:2 and 2 Corinthians chapter 9, verses 6 to 8. I call these verses God's financial plan.

Let's look at it. 1 Corinthians 16:2, understanding the biblical principle of generosity, on the first day of the week, let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper. Be a consistent giver to the Lord's work as God has prospered you. Yeah.

Well, you say I'm not prosperous. We're all prosperous, folks. Everybody in this auditorium is prosperous. It's relative, yes, but we are all prosperous.

You live in America, you're prosperous. Nobody starves to death in America. Nobody goes without a job very long in America unless they don't want to work. Travel with me across this country.

I have been in like 14 different states in the last 3 months. There are help wanted signs everywhere. You can flip hamburgers if you have to. Nobody starves in America.

We are the most prosperous people living in the most prosperous country in the history of the world, and what is sad is most Americans take it for granted. So be a consistent giver to the Lord's work, as God has prospered you. Now, flip over to 2 Corinthians chapter 9, verses 6 to 8. Now watch how this flows.

This is great material. 2 Corinthians chapter 9, verses 6 to 8, but this I say, he who sows sparingly, or a little bit, will also reap sparingly. He who sows bountifully, or a whole lot will also reap bountifully. So each one gives the purposes in his heart, not grudging their necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver, very important phrase.

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you that you always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work. And when you read these three verses, the question you could ask is what is the blessing or what is the harvest? You reap what you sow. You reap what you sow, folks, there are two benefits that accrues to the believer who is a generous giver to the Lord's work.

The first benefit is found there in verse 7, it's love from God. It's that little phrase, for God loves a cheerful giver. When you look at verse 7, it starts out, so each one gives you purposes in his own heart. Giving is always voluntary.

We are free to give from a willing heart, not casual giving. It should be purposeful giving. We give with no reluctance. It's not what you have to do.

There's no pressure. You give because it's in your heart. Giving is always a heart issue. Giving is always a form of worship issue.

Tithing can be legalistic if you're not careful. If you come to church and give because you sense you have to give, there's a possibility you could be giving grudgingly. Folks, if you ever find yourself giving grudgingly to the Lord's work, you might just as well stick it back in your pocket because you're dishonoring God. That is not a proper motive for giving.

It comes back to the heart. Do you realize that this little statement for God loves a cheerful giver is not said anywhere else in scripture. It's only said right here. We know from God's word, he loves all people.

That's John 3:16. Everybody in this room could quote that one. First John 4 tells us that God loves his chosen in a special way. Matthew 5 even tells us that God loves his enemies.

Do you realize that when you are a cheerful giver to the Lord's work, you are in a special class of people that God loves you uniquely? You are uniquely loved by God when you are a cheerful giver to his work. Yeah. what the Greek word for cheerful is?

Hilarious. It's God loves a hilarious giver. Not the person that comes into this auditorium, sits down in the chair and he sits there and he says, oh, man, you've come to Cornerstone. It won't be long before, someone will pray, they'll sing some songs.

And then they'll ask you for your money. They always ask you for your money. No, it's a person that comes in that door, sits down in those chairs, and he says, oh, another opportunity to give. Another opportunity to give to missions.

Another opportunity to give to the needy. Another opportunity to give to my church so I can impact my community in the world at large for Jesus Christ. I can do that. I can even double that's what he's talking about.

That's what he's talking about. That's a cheerful giver. There's a second benefit. It's found in verse 8.

Whom God loves, he lavishes. Whom God loves, he lavishes. It's the God will pour out a bounding grace phrase. Now be careful, it's not health, wealth, prosperity you see taught on television.

It's not naming and claim it that you see taught on television. Those people are counterfeits. They are frauds. There is no such thing as buying holy water.

It's probably sewer water. Those are frauds, people. What is really concerning to some of us or many of us, there are millions and millions of dollars being made today off the Lord's work. To fund lavish lifestyles.

That's the fraud. That's the fraud. The abounding grace is what's being taught here. That's the second benefit.

Verse 6, you sow bountifully, you reap bountifully. Verse 7, you give cheerfully. Verse 8 said, God will pour out a bounding grace to you, give, God gives back all grace. God gives back so you can do even more.

Come back to the heart, comes back to the motive. It goes like this. If you're generous, God will allow you to continue to be generous. Yeah.

If you're generous, you'll receive generosity. We have all been in testimony times, fellowship class, Bible study, sometimes the church service, and they've been giving testimonies and someone will stand up and give the testimony that you cannot give God. Folks, that's not smoke and mirrors. That's what the Bible teaches.

That's right out of the word of God. You realize that God's plan for prosperity rejects hoarding money? God's plan for prosperity demands that we give it away. That tests one's very, one's very faith.

Proverbs 39 and 10, you give, God will refill everything. Proverbs 10:22, God blesses the faithful giver. Proverbs 2:27, give to the poor you will never want. Isaiah 48:17-18, if you would have done what I told you, I would have flooded you.

Proverbs 11:24 and 25, there is one who scatters yet increases all the more. Then there is one who withholds what is just do, but results only in more want. Ever watched the life of a stingy person? You ever watched The Life of a stingy Believer?

That's a contradiction, by the way. They can't part with it. They're never satisfied. They want more and more and more.

That's a discontented Christian who lives like that. These verses conclude with this sentence, a generous man will be prosperous, and he who waters will himself be watered. If you're generous, you'll receive generosity. If you're generous, God will allow you to continue to be generous.

It comes back to the heart. It always comes back to the heart. Three things happens to the believer who is generous. Number one, it breaks the chain of selfishness in their life.

Generous people are not selfish people. Number 2, to humble you. Because God has given you the ability to do that. Number 3, to place a loose grip on your possessions.

Because from God's word it all belongs to him anyway. He owns a cattle on 1000 hills. The silver and gold is his. He's just loaned it to us to serve him with and to enjoy, and there's nothing wrong with enjoying it.

OK. Now, you've got to be careful. You don't ever give to get. You don't ever give the Lord's work with the idea of reaping.

That's wrong motive. Because what you get back may not always be material. Although these verses here speak specifically of material issues, what you get back from God's grace may not always be material. He may give you that extra measure of love when you need it.

How about that extra measure of faith when you need it? How about the ability to love the unlovable? How about courage when we need to stand tall for the things of God in a public setting? How about courage?

How about strength? How about energy? How about zeal for the Lord's work? How about enlightenment?

How about wisdom? All that grace God is able to bestow on those He loves and those He loves uniquely. In fact, God is able to bestow, bestow so much of that on us we never have to fear about dispensing it. Folks, that's God's intention.

For his elect. For his chosen. That's how we do good works after we're saved. That's all part of it.

That's why this issue is so important to be taught, because it's so misunderstood. When you contrast the Old Testament and the New Testament when it comes to issues of giving, it goes like this in the Old Testament, giving is specific. And the old and in the New Testament, giving a sacrificial the widow's mind. In the Old Testament, giving is by law, and the New Testament is out of a heart of love.

In the Old Testament, giving is an obligation, the New Testament, giving is an opportunity. In the Old Testament, giving is by percentage. 2313, by the way, people say, I get calls, interesting phone calls. Jim, I tithe 6%.

Excuse me, tithing is 10%, not 6%. So number one, they don't understand. And New Testament is not a tithing issue. It is a proportionate issue.

You give as God has prospered you. In the Old Testament giving us a responsibility in the New Testament giving us a response, are giving in the New Testament as a response because of what Christ did for us at Calvary. Folks, stewardship is not just about money and budgets. Stewardship is about our very life.

Stewardship is about a life that's been wholly given over to God. And one of the real obvious indications is how we handle our money, how we look at it, how we view it, how generous are we with it, how we manage it. That's the issue. It comes back to the heart.

It always comes back to the heart. Now there's a 2nd conviction. It's called contentment. Take your Bibles and turn to 1 Timothy chapter 6.

This issue of biblical contentment. 1 was generosity, 2 is being content. 1 Timothy chapter 6, look at verse 6. Now Godliness with contentment is great gain.

Now the definition of contentment. is synonymous with obedience. It's a preoccupation of the well-being of others. So biblical contentment is a focus on others, not on self.

That's biblical contentment. Now there is an enemy of contentment. It's called materialism. Let me define materialism for you.

Materialism is not having nice things. That is not materialism. You live a better house than I do. Enjoy it.

You and your spouse can go to Hawaii for your anniversary. Wish my wife and I could join you. If you drive a better car than I do, let me borrow it once in a while. That is not materialism.

You can be poor and be materialistic because you covet things you don't have. Materialism is not a possession issue. Materialism is an attitude issue. The more you are prosperous, the more God blesses you financially, the more generous you should be.

That's always the issue. That is always the issue. Look at verse 7. If we brought nothing into this world, as certain we can carry nothing out.

Having food and clothing with these we shall be content. Now, look at verse 9. But, however, Those who desire to be rich, fall into temptation and a snare and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. We're seeing the results of that right now in our economy.

This a person in verse 9 is compulsive. They're greedy. They'll probably eventually lose their integrity because money controls their life. And look at verse 10, for the love of money is the root of all kinds of evils.

It's not the love of, it's not money, it's the love of money. For some have strayed from the faith in their greediness and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. So, let me show you two primary examples of materialism in the Bible. Flip back to Mark chapter 10.

Mark chapter 10, this issue of materialism. Look at this biblically. Mark chapter 10 verses 17 to 22. Look at this.

Story of the rich young ruler, you've read it many times. Now as he was going on the road, one came running, knelt before him and asked him good teacher, what shall I do that I may in eternal life? So Jesus said to him, Why do you call me good? No one is good but one that is God.

the commandments, do not commit adultery. Do not murder. Do not steal, do not bear false witness. Do not defraud, honor your father and your mother.

And he answered and said to him, Teacher, all these things I have kept from my youth. Those were the words of a proud hypocrite. No way had he kept all those things from his youth. Impossible.

Then Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, one thing you lack, go your way, sell whatever you have and give it to the poor. You will have treasure in heaven. Come, take up the cross and follow me. Now look at verse 22.

But he was sad at this word and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. I like to read verse 22 like this. But he was sad at this word and went away sorrowful, for his great possessions had him. His great possessions had him.

OK. Look at Luke chapter 9. Luke chapter 9. This is a good one.

Versus 57 to 60. Gross materialism. Look at this. Luke chapter 9, verse 57.

Now it happened as a journey on the road that someone said to him, Lord, I will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head. What was Jesus saying there? He was saying to him, if you follow me, I promise you absolutely nothing.

Look at 59. Then he said to another, follow me. But he said, Lord, let me first go and bury my father. Jesus said to him, let the dead bury their own dead.

Will you go and preach the kingdom of God. Now, when I was a little guy, I used to read that text and I used to think to myself, I can remember it was yesterday. That's a little harsh. Lord, he just wanted to be go and bury his father.

Then I began to study scripture, and it dawned on me after a while, and I was taught this by other, John and others, MacArthur, that's not what was going on here. This guy's dad was not dead. What this guy was saying, Lord, I, I, I will not follow you because I want to go and be with my father. So that when he does die, I get my inheritance.

That's what was going on here. I want my cut. I want to be sure I get what's due me. That's greed.

That's materialism. That's materialism. It all comes back to the heart. It all does.

Folks, it's not the high cost of living that gets us, but living high. It's not how much you make, it's how well you want to live. That's almost always the issue. It's not how much we make, it's how well we want to live.

And every one of us, including me, needs to look in that mirror every once in a while and say, do I need all this stuff. Do I need all these toys? Do I eat all these things. I spoke in Chicago a few years ago and, They picked me up at O'Hare Airport and dropped me off at a couple's where I was staying, a couple's home.

They were in their mid 80s, elderly couple. I walked in this house and I've never seen so many antiques in one home in all my life. He was wall to wall, room to room, two floors, floor to floor, antiques. Get up Saturday morning, sit at the breakfast table, and I looked at him and I said, lots of antiques.

Oh, yeah. We've been collecting and buying antiques our whole married life. I think they've been married like 65 years. And I said, there must be an awful lot of money here.

And I said, well, there is. And I said, can I, mind if I ask you a question? Now they're getting just a little fidgety. They have no clue where I'm headed on this deal.

And I said, what's going to happen to these antiques? They didn't answer me. I said, do you mind if I predict what I think might happen? OK.

Well, yeah. OK. Yeah. I said, how many kids you got?

Three. How many grandkids you got? 6. I said, down the road, the Lord's going to call you into his presence.

And I'm thinking to myself, probably not too far down the road. I didn't say that though. And I said, you will leave all these antiques to your three children. Oh, yeah, we've already made provisions for that.

We have a trust. I said, OK. You're with the Lord, your 3 children, their spouses have all these antiques. In storage 40 years down the road, the Lord calls your three kids and their spouses into His presence.

What's going to happen to the antiques then? They'll probably be left to your grandkids. They said, yeah, that's probably true. 40 years down the road, you're with the Lord, your kids are with the Lord, and your grandkids have all these antiques.

In storage. They'll be together for a holiday. And they'll be reminiscing, talking about mom and dad and grandma and grandpa, and when the kids will say, hey. these antiques we've got.

Yeah, that's a bunch of junk. Let's have a garage sale. 30 cents on the dollar. I'm sure that couple regretted the day I stayed at that house.

Folks, what are we talking about? It's stuff OK. Let me fast forward real quick. Monday morning, they picked me up and took me down to O'Hare Airport.

When you travel as much as some of us do, things happen. Things happen. I get to American Airlines counter, they lost me. I'm not anywhere.

I said how can you bring me out on Friday and you don't have me to get me back on Monday. How does that happen? We don't know, sir, but you're not anywhere in, in the computer. So, I showed him my boarding pass from coming out and he said, well, the coach is full.

We're going to have to take you on a later flight. I said, I've got speaking responsibilities. He said, I said, what about first class? Well, there is an open seat in first class.

I said, well, thank you. So, they moved me to first class. So, I go on the plane, I get in and sit down in the seat. The seat next to me is empty.

Just when they close the cabin door, a guy comes in and sits down next to me. OK. So, he's, I'm reading the USA Today sports page. Tiger Woods had just won a golf tournament.

He leans over to me, he says, oh, Tiger won. I said, yeah, he did. Now we're taxiing out to the runway. He says to me, do you play golf?

I said, I play golf. I said, how about you? He says, yeah, I play golf. So, we're now in the air.

So, I say to him, what do you do for a living? He said, I'm in the movie industry. And I said, really? I said, are you making a living?

He said, yeah, I'm surviving. So, a few miles, he leans over. What do you do for a living? So I told him, so he was really interested in my ministry.

So, we talked off and on. L LEX pulled up to the gate. Just before they opened the cabin door, the stewardess asked us guys in first class to just be seated for just a few seconds, and she comes and escorts this guy off the plane. My first clue.

I get up to leave. The guy across from me is laughing. He says, Don't who that was? And I said, No.

He says that was Tom Cruise. So I said, who is Tom Cruise? I have a clue who this guy was. Yeah.

Well, I know now. And my kids tell me, dad, quit telling that story. It's an embarrassment to the family. So while they're getting off the plane, they're all laughing because they said we were eavesdropping on your conversation coming across the country.

Nobody bothered him for his autograph. I probably picked up on that. And they said, that we knew you didn't know who he was. And we also figured out that he knew you didn't know who he was.

What he's surviving. What does he make $25 million of film? I was flying on his airplane. Things do happen.

Some of the guys at Grace Church are trying to get me connected with him, because some of them work on the movie sets. And so they're trying to get me an audience with him to see if we can, I, I didn't know he was Church of Scientology. He had a pretty good testimony. I thought he was a believer.

Heads his Bible, accepted Christ, and I didn't know the Scientology stuff was, that's who he was, but, yeah. Learn to be content. Learn to be content with people you sit next to you. Buy a modest home.

Buy a modest home. People have a home and sell it. 3 out of 4 buy larger homes. OK.

65% of the people who buy larger homes or kids have left home or soon will leave home. I counseled a couple down in, up in Newhall. Two daughters got married the same summer a few years ago, left with their husbands and moved back to the Midwest. Mom and dad's nest is empty.

They had a $350 450 dollars a month mortgage payment on a three bedroom home. Pretty good. They had owned the home for 22 years. And, came in that next fall, decided they needed to, they wanted to build their dream home.

So they built their dream home, 4 bedroom home with a swimming pool. I know them well. Neither one of them swim. They exchanged a $450 a month mortgage for an $1850 a month mortgage.

They lost $1400 a month in cash flow and came to my office for counseling. And I said, your elevator doesn't go to the top floor. You have to be at least a few quarts low. Or as kids say, a few fries short of a happy meal.

What in the world Buy cars that meet your needs. Pay your bills on time. Is it a need, a want, or a desire? Need is I need a car.

I want a Cadillac. I desire a Mercedes. Like the guy that walks up to his group of buddies and sticks out his chest and says, I have a house full of furniture from France that goes all the way back to Louis the 14th. Another guy says that's nothing.

I've got a house full of furniture from Sears that's going back on the 15th. Reality, right? Comes back to the heart. Always comes back to the heart.

Be generous, be content. Be a person of integrity. Be a person of integrity. Understand what the word of God says about.

Deceit All of that. Look at Proverbs chapter 6 real quick. Proverbs chapter 6. Look at 16 to 19.

These six things does the Lord hates an abomination unto Him. That's strong language. Proud look, that's the seed, lying tongue, that's the seed. Hands that shed innocent blood.

How about hands that destroy innocent reputation? A heart that devise wicked schemes like Madoff. Feet that are swift in running to mischief, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren. Look at chapter 16, verse 8.

Chapter 16, verse 8, Better is a little with righteousness and vast revenues of righteousness. One who has vast revenues without righteousness is a rule breaker. Ever bend the rules? Ever, ever take discounts you're not entitled to?

Ever cheat on your income tax return? You professional people take business discounts or business reimbursements that you're not entitled to? Look at chapter 19 verse 1. Chapter 19, verse 1.

Better is the poor who walks in his integrity than one who is perverse in his lips and is a fool, a perverse person is a boaster, braggart, self-willed, knows all the answers, plays all the games to take advantage of people financially. That's a perverse person. It's not what we're all about. That's not what believers are all about.

So, so what about the heart? It's generosity, contentment and integrity. If I'm generous, everything flows from there. If my passion is to be generous, It all starts Biblically.

Because I'm dealing with the right heart. And if my passion is to be generous, I'm not going to allow credit cards to control my life. Because I know credit cards control my life, I can't be generous. It's the way it goes.

I'm generous. I'm content. Because it's discontented people who are not generous. So if I'm generous, I'm content.

If I'm generous and content, I'm a person of integrity. Because I want to do what is right. See how that goes together? It's beautiful.

Now, let me put it to practical use. Let's bring it right down to where the rubber meets the road. Financial stewardship, folks is not rocket science. It's discipline.

Be generous, take care of the needs of your family. Protect your family from a catastrophic occurrence and plan for the future. Be generous. Take care of the needs of your family.

Protect your family from a catastrophic occurrence of premature death, premature disability, plan for the future. Planning for the future is a retirement plan and have a will or a living trust. Now, listen to me. Credit cards control your life.

You can't do any of that. Credit cards control your life. You can't be generous. You're not taking care of the needs of your family like you should.

You're not protecting your family from a catastrophic occurrence because you can't afford the premiums because you got too much credit card debt. You're not planning for the future. I'll get a call during tax season. I got it I got it this year, Jim.

I work for IBM. This is an actual phone call. If I put 6% of my salary into IBM's 401k, they'll match it. Then he pauses.

Jim, do you think that's a good deal? No, it's a terrible deal. Why would you want to double your money? That's an incredible question.

It's an incredible question. If money controls your life, you probably don't have a will or a living trust. You can't afford it, so you don't do it. Bottom line, Let's really put it to work.

Have a budget. Stewardship says I know where my money goes. Have a budget. You cannot make financial progress unless where your money goes and when it goes there.

Number two, get out of debt. Get rid of the credit card debt, get rid of the installment debt as soon as you can, may take you two years, for folks we're creatures of habit. If you have a target that says, Lord willing, by January 1st of 2011, I'm going to be out of debt. And that's your focus, chances are very good you'll be out of debt.

Don't have a target, you'll never hit it. OK. So, get out of debt. Number three, control your credit card use.

Credit cards are great tools or terrible masters, folks. I have a credit card. I use it. I'm on the road all the time.

I have to stay in motels. I have to rent cars. I have to fly an airplane. Advantage Citibank credit card costs me $35 a year.

I get a point for every $1 I put on this credit card. I get a point for every mile I fly. For every 20,000 points, I think it's $25,000. For every 25,000 points, I get a free ticket.

My wife and I get 5 to 7 free tickets off that credit card every year. I don't give them a dime of interest. They call me a moocher. Their headquarters is in the lakes of Nevada, so when I fly over to their headquarters, I wave out the window and say thank you for your free ticket.

That's stewardship. That's stewardship. Control your credit card use. Folks, if you're nearing 50 or if you're over 50 and you don't have a retirement plan, get your head out of the sand.

Get your head out of the sand. You are not going to take Social Security at 62. You're not. Now, you've got time.

Get with the program. Cut the budget, tighten the belt. What's going on this year should be a big time wake up call. Lastly, have an up to date will of trust.

California, you do not want your state to go through the probate process. That living trust has become a very, very popular document. Now, I brought two, a set, I've got a set with me, CDs, two CDs and a study guide. They'll take you through all of that, the living trust, the budget process, all of that.

it's out there. I wish I could give them to you. They're $25. MacArthur made me do it about 4 years ago.

I'm glad I did because it's, it's really helpful to people. But it's there for you. Folks, stewardship is not rocket science. It's discipline.

Where's your heart? What's really important to you? What has gone on in this country, like I've already said, is a wake up call. Learn from it.

Get in control financially if you're not already in control. Be generous. That starts the process. Be content.

Don't have to live in a 4 bedroom home with swimming pools and you don't have to have 3 cars and 2 drivers. Don't have to go there. Get your house in order financially. Amen.

Well, Larry Burkett coined a phrase, you can't be financially bound and spiritually free. The more money controls your life, the more in debt you are, the less freedom you have to serve Jesus Christ. Boy, how true that is. Let's pray together.

Father, thank you for our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Thank you for sending your son to die, that we can have eternal life forgiveness of sin. Thank you for this wonderful season. Where we celebrated your wonderful birth.

What a privileged people we are. God help us to be faithful. God, help us to be men and women of unimpeachable integrity and all that we say and all that we do. Thank you for Cornerstone.

Thank you for its leadership. Thank you for a man like, like, Vincent, Pastor Vincent that preaches the word of God uncompromisingly. God help him to be faithful to your word and to your teaching. Thank you again for this congregation in Christ's name we pray.