Skip to main content

“MEGA CHURCHES”

Monday, September 28, 2009

Matthew 23:37-39

37 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, ()the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling. 38 "Behold, your house is being left to you desolate! 39 "For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say, 'BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!'"

A friend of mine posted a FACEBOOK blog blasting Mega Churches. It is funny to me how folk outside the church can tell folk inside the church what to do. As I was reading and studying Matthew 23 this morning, Jesus warned against much of what this brother is seeing in the church today, he may not be all wrong. Nonetheless, here is my private response to him…

Why is it that Bill Gates can have billions but a man or woman of God must be in the poor house? Folk do not have a problem with Microsoft getting bigger but God forbid if the church grows or gets bigger. Job was rich. Noah and Moses were loaded. Paul and John had money too. Not to mention King David and how about Joseph? They all had money and God blessed them. Just as he blesses every one of us. It is not the responsibility of the church to take care of people who are not taking care of their business, for whatever reason.


Additionally, people just do not support their church. I have had people tell me "Pastor I do not have money for the offering today." That is fine with me because there are times when I did not have it as well, but I know my reasons… Money mismanagement. If you are paying more on credit cards than you are giving to your church something is wrong. Here are folk telling me that they have no money for an offering with their hair and nails done, new suits on, large rims on their cars, and plans to go out and eat after church. I cannot judge any of that but I do observe and God sees all! God knows their heart.


I do not receive a salary from my church and I work. I have the things that I have because of my giving to the church, not taking out of the God’s Kingdom. My rewards await me in heaven! I live in the house I live in because I am a man of God and I deserve to be blessed. I drive the car I have because I am a man of God and I am blessed. I have my PhD because God blessed me with knowledge and wisdom and I deserve to be blessed. My wife left her job to stay home with our baby because God blessed with me the skills I have to do the work that I do. What God has for me is for me and what God has for others in the ministry it is for them. You are pointing out what the church is not doing but how about you? Are you giving, studying, praying, fasting, repenting, praising, confessing, witnessing, loving, and testifying to the best of what God would have you be? I know I am not... But I am working on getting there and cannot call anyone else out until God is done with me…


Finally, I need to correct you. Jesus was a radical and DID separate people, places, and things. (Read the book of Matthew Chapters 23-28) YES! Jesus was a radical and angered a great number of people. In fact he separated people all the time... Jews and Gentiles. Good people and evil people. The faithful and the lost... The dead and the alive. He most certainly divided people. He had many disciples, and divided them. He had the special 12, and then divided them and had an inner circle of 3. And when all the disciples went out into the lands guess what happened? All these different church groups were formed. Each formed at the death of Christ and birthed at His resurrection. Jesus said "Upon this rock I will build my church." And there was a man standing on that rock and Jesus was building the church in him... In us! My question to you is are you standing on that rock or throwing it? In Jesus’ Name! Have a blessed week! AMEN!

Shabach Shalom!



By: Pastor Dr. Michael L. Hargett

Copyright 2009 © TBMN, Inc.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Put All Your Trust In God!

Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others. --Philippians 2:3-4 This past week, God blessed me to minister to my older sister in New Jersey. She called me because of a business deal that had not gone the way she had hoped. In short, a friend under cut the deal and gained the property in their own interest. For those who do not know my sister, she epitomizes this week's scripture. She is a wonderful person with a free and giving spirit. Over the years, I have and watched as she would give loans to family and friends many of these loans were never repaid. I can not recall one single instant where she has every asked for money back that she has given to me. She elected to stay in New Jersey to be close to our Mother, while the rest of us moved on and out of Newark, N.J. and til this day, I have never heard her complain or voice an...
Post a Comment
Read more

SOMETIMES WAITING IS HARD

ECCLESIASTES 3:11 11God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God's work from beginning to end. We are taught at a very young age to be excited about expected events. I remember as a child that I could hardly wait for my birthday, holidays, and Summer Breaks. Sometimes as an adult I find myself anxious waiting for things I desire from God. I heard someone say that as we look at our watches; God looks at the calendar. Waiting on God is sometimes a difficult discipline for believers to develop. By nature we're not patient, and our culture offers little encouragement to develop the habit. We want, we need, and we believe that we deserve what we desire now. Credit card companies and retailers have made billions of dollars on this fact alone. There is no doubt many of us may be waiting for a number of things, too: a victory, a healing, peace in the family, growth in the family, vi...
Post a Comment
Read more

CHRISTMAS, A TIME OF GIVING!

May Jesus, the One who came for us, be the One who brings you and yours the joys of His incredible love! Jesus was given to us as the perfect gift! Merry CHRISTMAS! Isaiah 9:6 “ For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. ” “Giving frees us from the familiar territory of our own needs by opening our mind to the unexplained worlds occupied by the needs of others.” Barbara Bush Let us pray… FATHER WE THANK YOU FOR THAT PORTION OF THE SCRIPTURES WHICH REVEALS TO US YOUR WILL AND YOUR WAY FOR OUR GOOD AND HAPPY LIFE ON EARTH. WE CELEBRATE CHRISTMAS, WHICH WAS YOUR PERFECT GIFT TO US, AND TO THIS DAY YOU CONTINUE TO GIVE US GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT; THAT WE MAY UNDERSTAND MORE ABOUT YOUR WORD AND HOW WE CAN FOLLOW YOUR TEACHINGS IN THIS MODERN WORLD. GOD HELP TO KEEP OUR HEARTS AND OUR MINDS AND OUR EYES FIXED FIRMLY ON YOU. SO, THAT IT MAY L...
Post a Comment
Read more