(This question is a follow up to “Kudos To Who?”).

What I am talking about is a certain day that the church sets aside for the pastor.  Right now, we are asked to give one thousand dollars to the pastor for pastor appreciation, but in this particular church, you pay for everything that is done, and the leadership caters to groups who give that money, and others are left out.  I wanted to be a greeter in this church and was told that I couldn’t because I didn’t sign some type of contract and pledge to give every time they ask for something.  A thousand dollars is a lot of money for some, and I really don’t think that they are understanding what Christ's church is all about.  If you have heard this before, then believe it because it is happening, and these people think they are right, and it saddens me to see people doing it, and nobody is doing anything about it.

Sincerely,
Hand On My Wallet

Dear Hand On My Wallet,

Wow!  Apparently there is big money in pastor “appreciation” day.  If only we all could get a thousand dollar gift from our friends and neighbors.  This sort of money-grubbing worldliness makes us sick… and it sickened Jesus too (Mk 12:38-40).  Heb 13:5 teaches that everyone, and that includes church leaders, should be free from the love of money.  All sorts of evil comes from the love of money (1 Tim 6:10), and a pastor is specifically forbidden to be a man who is a lover of money (1 Tim 3:2-3).

The church you are describing is a false church, and the best thing you can do is leave.  They are using the Gospel as a means of financial gain and power – a deplorable misuse of Christ’s message.  These wolves in sheep’s clothing have perverted the Bible for their own wicked gain (Acts 20:29-30).  We recommend you read “Finding The Church” and start looking for a faithful congregation.  If you would like our help, feel free to e-mail us at askyourpreacher@mvchurchofchrist.org, and we will happily point you toward a faithful congregation in your area.

What guidance does the Bible have for how a church should use its money?  It seems from places such as 1 Corinthians 16 that when the early church collected funds, they were primarily used for benevolence.  Today it seems like the majority of a church's income tends to go towards paying utilities and mortgages, and churches frequently have a large savings account.  What guidance does the Bible have as far as how much a church should keep in savings, how much debt it should take on, etc.?  If a church buys land, should it consider the investment value of the land as well?  What about earning interest on money in savings?

Sincerely,
Not For Profit

Dear Not For Profit,

The church is allowed to spend money on anything God commands the church to do.  If God commands the church to assemble (Heb 10:24-25), the church can spend money to assemble in the most practical way it sees fit.  If God commands the church to teach (1 Cor 4:17), the church is authorized to spend money to facilitate teaching the saved and the lost.  If the church is told to do something, they are authorized to spend money to make it happen – that freedom to spend money is inherent within the command.  It would be the same as if someone asked you to take their car to the car wash… it would be understood that it was okay for you to spend the gas to drive the car to the car wash, and it was also okay for you to spend the money to pay for the car to be washed.  Whatever is necessary to fulfill a command is automatically allowed.

In the particular case of the Corinthian church, they needed to collect funds for benevolence… and that was a very common reason for collection in that time of Christian persecution.  In today’s culture and world the church finds itself in, we need to pay for things that the first-century saints would never have dreamed of (“Electrical bills?  What’s that?!”).  However, just because the expenses we face are not the same, that doesn’t mean that the same guidelines don’t apply.  1 Cor 16:1-2 outlines the mode with which to collect funds to pay for whatever expenses a church may incur.  It also explains that it is appropriate for the church to have a store of money for future expenses (1 Cor 16:2-3).

As far as how big that savings account can be, what level of debt the church can incur, savings accounts with interest, etc. – the church has the same guidelines for financial management as individuals… use wisdom (Pr 8:12-18).  Too little of savings is foolish; too much is greedy.  Interest is condoned by God (Matt 25:27) and shows wisdom, but “playing the market” with the church’s treasury is very different from gaining simple interest.  In other words, the church needs to show wisdom and discretion in its financial management.

It has been a long time since I last e-mailed you.  I would like to know from whomever answers this question how long they've been serving God.

My question is:  My christian friend and her father (in particular) say that I shouldn't listen to Turkish/Arabic or any music from around the world.  Now, in my defense, I do hope that it isn't the words of the devil but of the counsel of God.  My defense is that God made music, and like art, it makes you feel good.  I understand I should want to hear only music to exalt God, but I have gotten translations to these tracks, and they just talk about life and how they went through life trials.  Why can't I enjoy some classical or salsa music just because nobody is singing "hallelujah God"?  Their defense was that everything you do should work up to God; if you’re a christian and you are pleasing yourself before God, it is wrong.  Long story short, why can't I appreciate the gift God gave to a man to play the violin or a computer to make tracks or art that doesn't particularly talk about God, like Monet or Rembrandt paintings?  I also understand to back away from things (in particular things God has told you not to do) that will hinder your path to God.  So I don't listen to specific music, art, movies, books that may arouse me negatively or state inappropriate lyrics.  But classical?  Jazz?  I still listen to christian rock and gospel 70% of the time, though.

Sincerely,
Art Lover

Dear Art Lover,

  There is nothing wrong with listening to music of any type as long as it:

1. not teaching or professing evil ideas (such as drunkenness, promiscuity, immorality, violence, etc.)
2. not full of foul or crass language (Eph 4:29).

Bad company corrupts good morals (1 Cor 15:33), and bad music is a form of bad company.

Having said that - any other type of music is perfectly permissible.  Jesus even uses music as an example of general happiness in the parable of the prodigal son (Lk15:25).  In fact, you might find it interesting to read some of our articles on religious music; it might give you a point of view you've never heard before.  Here are links to a couple of those posts:

“Should The Hip Hop Stop?”

“Ain’t Nothing But A Hound Dog”

I have been reading through your archives and saw many people who asked about Christians keeping the Sabbath day.  Since Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament when He died on the cross, why do Christians still go to church on Sunday?  Many act like it is required, that you MUST go to church, but is that true?

Sincerely,
Do I Have To Go?

Dear Do I Have To Go,

Christians do not need to keep the Sabbath day… but the Sabbath isn’t Sunday.  The Sabbath was an Old Testament day of worship – it was on Saturday (Ex 16:26).  Christians are commanded by God to meet on Sunday.  We know this because there are two things that the church has to do every Sunday.

1. The church is supposed to gather together and take the Lord’s Supper (Acts 20:7, 1 Cor 11:18-20).
2. The church is supposed to take up a collection every Sunday to further God’s work (1 Cor 16:1-2).

While those two acts are commanded for Sunday and Sunday only, there are plenty of other things the church needs to gather to do.  The church needs to be praying together, studying God’s Word together (Acts 2:42), and singing praise to God on a regular basis (Col 3:16).  Heb 10:24-25 says that it is a sin for a christian to forsake the assembly.  Every christian needs to make it a clear and consistent priority to set Sunday aside to serve and worship God.  Sunday worship is a part of a christian’s duty.

(This is a follow-up question to “Women Preachers” and “Women Preachers (Part 2)”)

First of all, let me state that I am a believer in God's Word.  I do believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God; however, is it so impossible that human intervention (we are blessed with the gift of free will after all) in the compilation of the Bible did omit books?  Weren't the four gospels chosen out of all the others to be included because of the way they were written - easy to understand, story lines, and recognizable authors, etc. - because a group of humans got together and voted?  And as for my disinformation, I have to disagree - I AM a woman, therefore I know what it is like to be treated condescendingly because of that fact.  Long hair as a covering... what about short hair; are you saying that is a sin?  Silence in church assembly... so if I let out an "Amen" or "Praise Jesus" during a sermon, I am sinning, but if a man does, he is not?  Why should a woman's role not include leadership?  As for Mary Magdelene, by me quoting "kissed her on the...", I meant to illustrate their relationship not as a romantic one, but as a fellowship.  Do you mean to tell me that Jesus and Mary didn't have a relationship?  If you follow that line of logic, then it would be logical to say that He did not have a relationship with the twelve either.  She was part of His entourage, for lack of a better word, along with the twelve disciples.  Friendship/Fellowship/Discipleship is a *relationship*, is it not?  What about the paintings they have found in ancient worship sites with Mary in a teaching position with her two fingers raised that have been scratched out...by a human's male hand no doubt...simply because of sexism?  Is it not fact that at the time the Bible was written, women were considered so second-class that to even include them in a conversation or use them as a witness, was laughable?  For example, you seem to have labeled me in a derogatory way by judging me and calling me a feminist simply because I am asking a question that perhaps is not answerable until we are able to ask the Source.  No, God does not care about our gender, on this point we agree... but we humans sure do!

Sincerely,
Would Prefer Not To Be Called A Feminist

Dear Would Prefer Not To Be Called A Feminist,

To begin with, we did not mean to offend you by using the byline ‘The Feminist’ – your question was about female rights – the title seemed appropriate because ‘feminism’ is defined as ‘the advocacy for women’s rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality with men’… isn’t that what you are trying to defend?

Now having said that, let’s address the issue.  No, parts of the Bible are not missing.  You cannot simultaneously say that the Bible is divinely inspired and also say that God allowed necessary parts of it to be lost.  If the Bible isn’t exactly as God wrote it, it isn’t God’s Book anymore.  You can’t have it both ways.  Your whole argument is based off the idea that when you run across something you find distasteful in the Scriptures (in this case, the verses concerning men’s and women’s roles), you can simply say, “We don’t have the complete Bible”.  Jesus says that not even the tiniest detail of the Scriptures have been lost (Matt 5:18).  Jude says that we have the Word of God handed down to us “once for all” (Jude 1:3).  Regardless of what ancient paintings, manuscripts, mythology, etc. you reference – the Bible is what the Bible is.  Your frustrations with what the Bible says about hair length, women leadership, etc. are not with us… they are with the Scriptures.  No matter how many times you talk about these subjects, you will still have to contend with verses like 1 Cor 11:15, 1 Cor 14:34, Eph 5:23, etc.  These verses aren’t going away.  God, from the very beginning, designed men and women to be equal heirs of salvation (1 Pet 3:7) but to have different roles.  Men and women are different – frankly, that shouldn’t be news to anybody.

The differences between men and women are often abused by both genders.  Women tell jokes about how stupid men are, and men condescend and demean women… neither behavior is right.  In the Bible, God doesn’t ignore the differences between men and women; He explains how men and women ought to live to fulfill their fullest potential.  Until we accept that we must mold our lives as God desires, we will never truly be submitting ourselves to Him… and whether male or female, we are all subject to God (Jas 4:7).