The Tested Leadership Model – Should Leadership Encourage the Assembly of Believers to Give Financially to the Church in the form of Lands or Houses?

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The Tested Leadership Model – Should Leadership Encourage the Assembly of Believers to Give Financially to the Church in the form of Lands or Houses?

This is another aspect of this model that pertains to financial giving. It was decided to present this separately from the narrative on tithing. Where we’ll go first is the book of Matthew. Please turn there.



Suggested Reading: Matthew 19:16-30

16-17 And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life? And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.

Jesus conversed with a rich young man who asked Him what he should do to inherit eternal life. Jesus knew that he was operating under the tenets of the Old Testament, the Mosaic Law, i.e., believing in Yahweh and obeying His commandments.

21 Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.

However, in this dispensation, the Age of the Incarnation, what constituted eternal life was believing in Jesus as the Messiah. And if you believed in Him as such, you’ll obey His commands, follow Him without reservations, and preach the kingdom of God to others. It just so happened that this young man’s wealth hindered him from being a disciple of Christ.

One of my initial thoughts was, why wouldn’t Jesus want someone who had monetary riches to follow Him? The answer could be that He wanted those who unequivocally believed in Him and walked by faith (fully trusting Jesus during His public ministry).

After this young rich man walked away saddened, Jesus’ disciples said to Him that they had forsaken all, and what would be waiting for them? Essentially, He said that they would rule with Him. I don’t think they fully understood what He meant, but nonetheless, His answer was good enough. And then Jesus made this remarkable statement.

29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name's sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.

The word forsaken means to give up or leave behind. Is this word to be taken literally or figuratively? Well, we know that the apostles gave up their earthly occupations. But what about their wives or real estate holdings? I think that the idea being expressed here was that these weren’t to be hindrances because of the task at hand. Obviously, when Jesus called each apostle, I’m sure they were aware of what was required of them, and they had to make a decision concerning such.

By the way, about the forsaking of one’s wife, what we do know is that the Apostle Peter was married (Matthew 18:14-17). Even the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 9:5 confirmed that he and the other apostles had the right to marry. But for the divine plan to be fulfilled during this dispensation, there needed to be no hindrances to their calling.

There are other verses mentioned during this era that support this sentiment. Here’s one of them. Please go to the book of Mark.



Mark 8:34

And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

As Jesus and His disciples were going about from town to town in Caesarea Philippi, He said in front of them and the others who came to listen to Him that whoever decides to go after Him would be expected to deny themselves and take up his cross and follow him. Some counted the cost and walked away, while others accepted God’s plan for their lives.

With that said, let’s look at a situation, this one involving the sale of a plot of land, involving a New Testament believer during a different dispensation, i.e., of the Church Age.

The book of Acts is where we’ll begin.



Suggested Reading: Acts 4:32-37; Acts 5:1-11

34-35 Neither was there any among them that lacked: for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need.

Persecution against the Christian sect had intensified. The Roman government proclaimed that if anyone turned Christians over to the authorities, they’d be rewarded by receiving ten percent of their assets. Furthermore, if fellow unsaved Jews found out that any of their fellow workers converted to Christianity, they would terminate their employment. And if any of the newly saved owned a business they’d be shunned by the Jewish community.

The consequence was that many believers needed financial support. Some of them that owned land or houses sold them and gave the proceeds to the apostles, who distributed the funds as needed.

5:2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet.

There was a certain man named Ananias, along with his wife Sapphira, who evidently pledged to sell a piece of land and give all of the proceeds to the church to help their brethren. However, after the sale was completed, they only brought part of what they had promised.

5:4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.

The Apostle Peter confronted Ananias and told him that when the land had been in his own power (possession), he was free to do with it as he pleased. He was under no obligation to give any or all of the proceeds of the sale to the church to provide financial assistance. However, once he declared that he would give the entire amount of the sale price, he was under obligation to follow through what he’d promised.

One thing to keep in mind is that the early church believers were operating in a different dispensation meaning that eternal life or salvation was based on repentance and belief in Christ as to who He is and what He has accomplished. Our walk isn’t to proclaim the coming kingdom but the reality that this kingdom has arrived, that it’s a spiritual kingdom of which those who respond to the gospel will receive the indwelling Spirit. Letting go of their old way of life will allow them to embrace their new life, thus becoming conformed to the image of God’s Son.

While there might be times when a believer donates the proceeds from selling a house or a piece of land, hopefully this is based on the Word of God and the leading of the Holy Spirit.

With that said, a different portrait in this dispensation as to what it means to take up one’s cross is delineated. Please turn in your Bibles to the book of 1 Corinthians.



1 Corinthians 1:17

For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect.

The Apostle Paul said that Christ didn’t send him to baptize (with water). He did baptize some converts, but that was not his mission. He was called to preach the gospel (of repentance and belief). This message wasn’t to be presented with wisdom (human wisdom) of words (clever talk). This could be deduced as information that offered a different gospel. Thereby, the cross of Christ that should have changed people’s lives when they responded to it would be of none effect (void of its saving power).

This dispensation isn’t about someone taking up the cross but responding to the cross, i.e., the gospel of Christ. The cross is the gospel’s message to the unbeliever that Christ died on a cross paying mankind’s debt of sin owed to satisfy the justice of God the Father. Not only was the debt paid, but the record of it was removed forever (forgiveness). If this proclamation is responded to, then the Holy Spirit would be received, and the protocol plan for the new believer would be revealed in the teachings from the book of Acts, the Epistles, and the book of Revelation.

Now, we’re ready to unveil another trait of this model.



The Tested Leadership Model Characteristic

Believers aren’t obligated to give any of their real estate holdings to the church for whatever need. If the church needs financial assistance, leadership should let the members know what it’s for without compulsion. Under the dispensation of the Incarnation, following Christ demanded a total detachment from owning land or houses and even one’s wife or family if they were a hindrance to the calling to follow Him. (Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 8:34; Acts 4:32-37; Acts 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 1:17)



The Mandated Leadership Response - Rebuttal

When God reveals to those in leadership the need to request financial support from the assembly of believers, whether it’s in the form of money, land, houses, cars, etc., the assembly is obligated to provide their demands. (Exodus 3:1-4:12; Matthew 19:16-30)

Acts 4:32 And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common.

The believers of the early church had all things common (they shared with one another all things that they had).

Another verse that’s used to support this perspective is taken from the book of Matthew.

Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

The words take up his cross can be interpreted to mean as Christ instructed His disciples to forsake all, wives, lands, mother, father, etc., so should believers forsake whatever it is that’s being requested by those in leadership?

Are you becoming more aware of the differences in each leadership model’s characteristics and the subsequent disparity in how each one approaches church matters? I have a few more components for us to look at. Before we do, I have an article for you to read. What stands out in this one are the quotes from different Christian writers who capsulate the lives of Christians in the early church. It’s a pretty compelling and refreshing read. Enjoy.



LESSONS FOR TODAY’S CHURCH FROM THE LIFE OF THE EARLY CHURCH

The first Christians were revolutionaries. The group they formed was, in many ways, very different from what we know as the [church] today. According to the [book] of Acts, they met in their homes and devoted themselves to God’s Word. As a result, these early Christians brought about the most amazing and powerful transformation the world has ever known. Think about it for a minute. Christians emerged in the midst [of] a tremendously diverse Roman melting pot of social and religious [ideas and, through purely peaceful means,] completely changed the Empire and united it under the banner of Christianity. And they did it without a single mega-church, television [program, or website. They simply opened their homes, spoke the truth fearlessly,] and trusted God for the results. Long before Christianity became a dominant political power, it was a divine movement of God. Long before Christianity found a comfortable home in church buildings, it was an active body of passionate believers:



1. Christians Were Bound and United [by a] Common Truth

Early observers of the movement recognized the first believers were committed to an important objective truth claim: Jesus Christ is God Himself and the only way to enter into a personal relationship with the Creator of the Universe. This common truth and relationship to Christ became the unifying force behind the movement of God. Look at what Tertullian (a church scholar who lived in North Africa c. 160-225AD) had to say as he described the young Christian believers:

“We are a body knit together as such by a common religious profession, by unity of discipline, and by the bond of a common hope. We meet together as an assembly and [congregation, offering] up prayer to God as with united force, we may wrestle with Him in our supplications. This strong exertion God delights in. We pray, too, for the emperors, for their ministers and for all in authority, for the welfare of the world, for the prevalence of peace, for the delay of the final consummation.”



2. Christians Were Characterized by Uncommon Joy

In the midst of terrible persecution and hardship, these early believers were able to stay focused on God instead of their own situation. As a result, regardless of their personal circumstances, they were able to live with joy. Read these words from [an] unknown author of the Epistle to Diognetes (written c. 130AD):

“They love all [men] and are persecuted by all. [They’re unknown and condemned; they’re] put to [death and restored to life. They’re poor] yet make many rich; [they’re] in lack of all things, and yet abound in all; [they’re] dishonoured, and yet in their very dishonour are glorified. [They’re] evil spoken of, and yet are justified; [they’re] reviled, and bless; [they’re] insulted, and repay the insult with honour; they do [good yet are punished as evildoers]. When punished, they rejoice as if quickened into life; [they’re] assailed by the Jews as [foreigners] and are persecuted by the Greeks; yet those who hate them are unable to assign any reason for their hatred.”

Aristides presented a letter [to Emperor] Hadrian (c. 117-138AD) and described the uncommon joy of early believers:

“Every morning and all hours on account of the goodness of God toward them, they render praise and laud Him over their food and their drink; they render Him thanks. And if any righteous person of their number passes away from this world, they rejoice and give thanks to [God,] and they follow his body as though he were moving from one place to another. And when a child is born to them, they praise God, and if again it chances to die in its infancy, they praise God mightily, as for one who has passed through the world without sins.”



3. Christians Were a Fearless and Animated People, Not a Passive Church

Early Christians [didn’t go to church;] they were the church; they [didn’t] attend church services, [and] they impacted their culture as the people of God. They assembled not as the end [goal] but as a way to equip themselves to be the people God intended them to be and do the work God intended them to do. Listen again to Tertullian:

“We assemble to read our sacred writings . . . and with the sacred words we nourish our faith, we animate our hope, we make our confidence more [steadfast,] and no less by inculcations of God’s precepts we confirm good habits…



4. Christians Were Known [by] Their Love

Because they had surrendered so completely to God’s call on their lives, they began to live as the children of God. The world took notice. [Again,] from Tertullian:

“But [it’s] mainly the deeds of a love so noble that lead many to put a brand upon us. [‘See,’] they say, ‘how they love one another’, for they themselves are animated by mutual hatred. [‘See,’ they say about us, ‘how they’re ready even to die for one another,’] for they themselves would sooner kill.”

And again from the Apology of Aristides

“They abstain from all impurity in the hope of the recompense [that’s] to come in another world. As for their servants or handmaids or children, they persuade them to become Christians by the love they have for them; and when they become so, they call [them,] without distinction, brothers. They [don’t worship strange gods,] and they walk in all humility and kindness, and falsehood [isn’t] found among them; and they love one another. When they see the [stranger,] they bring him to their homes and rejoice over him as over a true brother; for they [don’t] call those who are after the flesh, but those who are in the Spirit and in God.”



5. Christians Gave Sacrificially to the Needy
These early believers understood why God had given them the limited wealth they had. They [didn’t] have the burden of having to support programs or pay for a church building. Meeting in [homes] and led by regular men of character, these first believers were able to pour all of their financial gifts into the care of the needy. In fact, over and over again in [Scripture], this is the only thing offerings were used for. Listen to Tertullian:

“Though we have our [treasure chest, it’s not made up of purchase money], as of a religion that has its price. On [a] monthly day, if he likes, each puts in a small [donation,] but only if it be his pleasure, and only if he be able: for [there’s] no compulsion; all is voluntary. These gifts are . . . not spent on feasts, and drinking-bouts, and eating-houses, but to support and bury poor people, to supply the wants of boys and girls destitute of means and parents, and of old persons confined now to the house; such, too, as have suffered shipwreck; and if there happen to be any in the mines or banished to the islands or shut up in the prisons, for nothing but their fidelity to the cause of God’s Church, they become the nurslings of their confession.”

And from the Apology of Aristides:

“And there is among them a man that is poor and [needy,] and if they have not an abundance of necessities, they fast two or three days, that they may supply the needy with the necessary food.”



6. Laymen of Character Led the Movement

The New Testament repeatedly describes small groups of believers [led] by laypeople called elders. These elders were not paid [staff] but simply men of character who rose to leadership based on their passion and gifting. Look at what Tertullian observed: “The tried men of our elders preside over us, obtaining that honour not by purchase but by established character. There is no buying and selling of any sort in the things of God.”



7. Christians Were God’s Holy Ambassadors in a Dying World

The world also quickly recognized there was something very different about these Christians. They represented something noble and [pure] and were influential in their communities. Read these words from the Epistle to Diognetes (c. 130AD) as this ancient letter describes how powerfully Christians reflected God’s nature in the world:

“For the Christians are distinguished from other men neither by country, nor language, nor the customs which they observe. For they neither inhabit cities of their own, nor employ a peculiar form of speech, nor lead a life which is marked out by any singularity. The course of conduct which they follow [hasn’t] been devised by any speculation or deliberation of inquisitive [men,] nor do they, like some, proclaim themselves the advocates of any merely human doctrines. But, inhabiting Greek as well as barbarian cities, according as the lot of each of them has determined, and following the customs of the natives in respect to clothing, food, and the rest of their ordinary conduct, they display to us their wonderful and confessedly striking method of life…”

“…They dwell in their own countries, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things with [others] and yet endure all things as if foreigners. Every foreign land is to them as their native [country] and every land of their birth as a land of strangers. They marry, as do all [others; they beget children, but they don’t] destroy their offspring. They have a common [table] but not a common bed. They are in the flesh, but they [don’t] live after the flesh. They pass their days on earth, but [they’re] citizens of heaven. They obey the prescribed laws, and at the same time surpass the laws by their lives.”

“…To sum up all in one word–what the soul is in the body, that are Christians in the world. The soul is dispersed through all the members of the body, and Christians are scattered through all the cities of the world. The soul dwells in the body, yet [isn’t of the body,] and Christians dwell in the world, yet [aren’t] of the world. The invisible soul is guarded by the visible body, and Christians are known indeed to be in the world, but their godliness remains invisible. The flesh hates the soul, and wars against it, though itself suffering no injury, because [it’s] prevented from enjoying pleasures; the world also hates the Christians, though in nowise injured, because they abjure pleasures. The soul loves the flesh that hates it, and [loves also] the members; Christians likewise love those that hate them. The soul is imprisoned in the body, yet preserves that very [body,] and Christians are confined in the world as in a prison, and yet [they’re] the preservers of the world. The immortal soul dwells in a mortal [tabernacle,] and Christians dwell as sojourners in corruptible [bodies], looking for an incorruptible dwelling in the heavens. The soul, when but ill-provided with food and drink, becomes better; in like manner, the Christians, though subjected day by day to punishment, [increase more] in number. God has assigned them this illustrious position, which it [was] unlawful for them to forsake.”

Early Christians stood apart from the world because they had been transformed by the power of God and had surrendered themselves to their Lord in both word and deed. From the Apology of Aristides: “They observe scrupulously the commandment of their Messiah; they live honestly and soberly as the Lord their God commanded them.

[Clearly,] the early believers were living their [faith] and not merely going to church. In fact, there was no institutional church to go to, even if they wanted to. Yet the movement was impossible to stop, and it eventually encompassed the known world. Where did these early believers come up with this notion of the Christian life [that’s] not dependent on buildings, paid staff, or programs? They got the model from their predecessors as described in the [Scriptures]:

Acts 2:42-47 They were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. And everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together, and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions, and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. And day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved. [NASU]

The first community of saints reflected the power and design of God in their lives as a family of believers. This early history of the church simply reflected the teaching of the Bible as it recorded the nature and essence of the very first community of saints in this passage in the book of Acts. The early Christians didn’t attend [church;] they were the Church; an active, energized body of believers equipped to change the world. Today’s [church] can learn something from the Early Church.30



Endnotes

30J. Warner Wallace. “Lessons for Today’s Church from the Life of the Early Church,” CHRISTIAN HISTORY

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