USING EXPENSIVE MATERIALS
Using expensive materials to impress people in the name of serving God will only distract you and the people from serving God acceptably. When we use expensive materials to appreciate God and impress people, it will have a serious implication on the people eventually; they will soon defocus their attention from God and focus on those materials. That could be applicable to Gideon, when he used gold instead of stone to erect a symbol of victory, and later children of Israel were running after the golden image instead of God. This is more applicable to the churches of today, we want to impress people with miracle programs, prayers and preaching; along the way, and people have forgotten purity and preparation for heaven and now running after miracles.
Why are the churches of today spending multi-million dollars on church building projects? Why does every denomination today, including those who claim to believe and preach holiness, centers on multiple multi-million church auditorium building? It is because every denomination wants to impress the world outside that they can build the best and beautiful headquarters; while they continue incessant multi-million building projects from headquarters, to state, even going inside the bush to build cities, they are deviated from the Bible ordinance to build people. How can a church build a multi-million church auditorium without building a free Primary or Secondary school, without distribution of daily need to the needy members, without daily care for the widows and fatherless? It is simply because they care to impress the world than implementing the Word of God; you can’t do both together at the same time.
A church cannot impress people and please God at the same time. The early church did not have a single multi-million auditorium or headquarters, but they had stores from where they distributed to the needs of their thousands of members. Acts 4:34-37. You cannot impress people and please God at the same time. You know why your big church does not have free Primary schools? You know why your church does not have stores where to distribute for the needs of their members? Do you know it will be always impossible for your church to follow the example of the early church by distributing the tithes and offerings to meet the needs of the members? It is because your church wants to impress the world with big and beautiful physical edifice. Another thing is that, it is not possible for your church to have a rich, extravagant pastor and caring church at the same time. How will your church’s university be free or affordable when your Senior Pastor flies with private jet? Seeking to impress people will only leads to deviation from the Bible truth.
Your church aside, what about you? Is it not because you want to impress the world with a good and beautiful car that you can’t assist your own family members and brethren in your church? Is it not because you want to finish your personal building project by fire by force this year that your eyes of kindness and goodness are closed and blind towards people around you, even your own brethren in your church and family members? Is it not because you want to take your child to “expensive” school that you can’t afford to help another family’s children to school? Like Gideon, impressing people with expensive stuffs will only ensnare you from obeying the Bible truth, simple. As it is applicable to a church, a minister, so to individual Christians.
RTEM: rtemoutreach.org