I am not sure I am up to this blogging. Seems like I forget to post new info. Oh, well here is what I have. It is quite interesting so dig in and lets get a discussion going. WaynO
VI. The Heart of the Matter
Roman Catholics give an average of 1 percent of their incomes to charity. United Methodists give an average of 1.3 percent. Jews 1.4 percent, Lutherans and Baptists 1.6 percent, and Presbyterians 2.2 percent. Other Protestants average 2.5 percent. Does this mean that Presbyterians are more Christian than Roman Catholics?
In a recent year, members of United Methodist congregations averaged per capita annual gifts of $635.39. while members of the Wesleyan Church averaged $2.065.36. Does this mean that one of these denominations is more Christian than the other?
During each year of the last two decades, citizens of Connecticut enjoyed an average per capita income slightly more than twice that of people in Mississippi. Does this mean that people in Connecticut are, on the average, more Christian than those in Mississippi?
The biblical answer to those three questions is found in two news items from Jesus's life that the Gospel of Mark reports back-to-back. The first item is a parable Jesus told about a Pharisee and a publican who where praying. The second item is Mark's report of what Jesus said after seeing a poor widow give two copper coins to support the temple (Mark 12:38-44). Both the parable and the incident at the temple treasury say that we cannot answer those three questions with a simple "yes" or "no." The real answer is. "It depends."
The amount of money people give to God to some extent reflects the attitude of their hearts, but not completely. Giving can also be driven by other motivations. Pride, a desire to look good in the public eye, and the habit of conforming to the traditions of our religious group can also influence our giving patterns. The Pharisee in Jesus's story tithed all his income, but Jesus said that he had not given the contribution that God appreciated even more—humility. The widow in Jesus's story gave only a fraction of a cent (a denarius—or penny—was a day's wages, so her two small coins were equivalent to a little more than one hour of earnings). Yet, this small gift was Jesus's model of excellence in giving.
The key word here is not giving; it is unselfish giving. As we saw in Chapter 4, money is a spiritual matter because it is one of the major ways by which we relate to God. Chapter 5 reminded us that giving is a way of helping ourselves. Now, Chapter 6 puts us in touch with Jesus's teaching that unless giving is unselfish, the gift is null and void in the eyes of God. "So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you. as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others." Jesus said (Matthew 6:2). "But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret: and your Father who sees in secret will reward you" (Matthew 6:3-4).
The question Jesus poses so perfectly in the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican—and then confirms by observing the line of givers at the temple—is one that all of us ask and answer every day of our lives: Will I act as if the giving of money is all God expects, or will I act as if the attitude of my heart is of equal importance to the amount 1 give? Each of us tends both to believe and to resist believing what Jesus indicated was the appropriate answer to that question. On one hand, we see that Jesus is right. God wants more from us than money. God also wants justice, mercy, faith, love, humility, and unselfishness. If we give God our money without giving God our hearts, we miss the mark. We move closer to God (grow spiritually), not because we are good in our giving but because our hearts are open to God's Spirit. Word, and will. God can do more with an open, receptive heart than with a person whose only commitment is to religious ritual.
On the other hand, we are constantly tempted to think and behave as if Jesus missed the turn on this issue. Living by religious rules brings a sense of security and ego stroking that can blind us to the need to look deeper than the amount of our gifts. A few years ago, Detroit Lions running back Barry Sanders (at that time said to be the highest-paid running back in the history of football) received a cash bonus of $2.1 million for signing a $9.3 million contract. The first thing he did was give $210.000 to his church (10 percent). That sounds meritorious, and it is. Yet, Jesus's teachings are once again radical rather than merely rational. According to Jesus, that is a right action, but the amount and the compliance with the tithing rule is not the heart of the matter.