Merchants - Teaser Video

In this new message series entitled, Merchants, I’m going to, with the help and power of the Holy Spirit, bring to life the words of God found in the Holy Bible that were written by men of God, who never relied on theatrics or music to illustrate what God instructed them to write, but rather simply Holy Ghost power. We are living in a day and age that most pastors, teachers, evangelists and prophets are relying more on arts and entertainment to illustrate Bible Stories than the power and demonstration of the Holy Spirit, that Jesus Himself said would not only lead us into the truth found in what’s written in the Bible, but also that He would watch over His word to perform it with signs, wonders and miracles that would follow the preaching of gospel.  

After the apostles and disciples were baptized in the Holy Spirit and fire with the evidence of speaking in tongues on the day of Pentecost found Acts 2:1-4, the birth of the early church began to grow as a result of the Holy Spirit’s powerful demonstration of signs, wonders and miracles which had little if anything to do with a church program full of theatrics, music and various forms of entertainment. We find in Acts 2:14-36, the Apostle Peter giving an explanation as to what the devout Jews had witnessed with regards to them hearing about the wonderful works of God spoken supernaturally by the disciples in foreign tongues of their own native languages. Let’s read in Acts 2:43-47 what took place after Peter’s explanation.

Acts 2:43-47 in the  Amplified Bible says; “43 A sense of awe was felt by [a]everyone, and many wonders and signs (attesting miracles) were taking place through the apostles. 44 And all those who had believed [in Jesus as Savior] [b]were together and had all things in common [considering their possessions to belong to the group as a whole]. 45 And they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing the proceeds with all [the other believers], as anyone had need. 46 Day after day they met in the temple [area] continuing with one mind, and breaking bread in various private homes. They were eating their meals together with joy and generous hearts, 47 praising God continually, and having favor with all the people. And the Lord kept adding to their number daily those who were being saved.”

They were sold out for Jesus. They were selling everything out to make sure that everyone’s needs were met. It was a revival. Lots of God fearing devout Jews had come to Jerusalem and they encounter this outpouring of the Holy Spirit. All of this required accommodation and provision to be made. So what did the disciples do? They sold out to not only meet their own needs but of the Jews who were being born again and filled with the Holy Spirit. There were practical needs that had to be met. They were so sold out that they didn’t consider what was ‘technically’ theirs, to be theirs any more. Revival not only took place with the 120 in the Upper Room who came down speaking in tongues, but also to those that lived and visited Jerusalem at that time also.

There’s nothing that can be added to what took place on the day of Pentecost and the birth of the early church, but for whatever reason, Christians have and are continually trying to capitalize off of the arts, entertainment and book publishing, of what was given freely to them by the Holy Spirit. Boy, if anybody had a book or books to write and sell, it would have been the disciples. Can you image if they had decided to write books about what happened to everyone at Pentecost and sold them? They could have made some money, couldn’t they have? They could have set up booths and sold to anyone and everyone and they wouldn’t have had to rely on anyone for provision. They could have had books available for purchase at every town they visited, articulating in detail all that happened at Pentecost. They might have even started book publishing companies, paying scribes to pen down all of the stories and testimonies, they would have been ‘extra Biblical books’, and not the Old Testament books, just so that no one could complain that they were capitalizing off of the Old Testament. They would have tagged it as, extra business ventures, outside of the newly formed church, where they’d be able to sustain themselves for the rest of their lives. But that wasn’t them, they were sold out. They didn’t want to sell out what Jesus gave them freely, so they sold out everything to have all things in common.

There’s no Bible scripture that is able to justify the merchandising of any illumination, inspiration, or revelation derived from the Holy Bible, be it thru arts and entertainment or book publishing. There may be a lot of practical business procedures that businessmen have come up with and incorporated into the church, but there is no scriptural reference for it. I personally believe that it all comes back down to the love of money that is at the root of all kinds of evil that is taking place in the Christian arts and entertainment and book publishing company's who instead of freely distributing their illuminations, inspirations and revelations that were given to them freely by the Holy Spirit, they have sold out Jesus for personal gain. This can be seen clearly in Christian Ministries where pastors, evangelists, teachers and prophets have set up personal publishing companies that are separate from their ministries, so that they can justify their personal gain because it’s separate from their Church salary's that they receive from the tithes and offerings received at Church. In some cases they don’t take the offerings of tithes from the church because of the lucrative money made with their side business of selling materials ... sell, sell, sell out Jesus.

It was the baptism of the Holy Spirit and fire with signs, wonders and miracles taking place that birthed the early church and caused them to have all things in common, (considering their possessions to be for the group as a whole), and sold their property and possessions, sharing with all those who had need among them. As you read Acts 2:43-47, it’s evident that the love of money was not operating in them as a Church and their priority's were to gather as a church daily, which I find interesting in that today Christians have a hard enough time gathering once or twice a week or at all, never mind daily.  

Having all things in common was not an ongoing practice of the early Church, but was rather a period of revival for the specific time of Pentecost.

Let’s read the Dake Bible Commentary on this scripture from Acts 2:43-47. It says; “vs.43, Great fear came upon all in Jerusalem. For several weeks past they had seen great miracles and were seeing them daily, so there was confusion and fear upon all the people. vs.44, Many thousands of people were cared for without charge at the feasts at Jerusalem. This community of goods was no strange thing among Jews at such times, but it was carried father here than at a feast.  Multitudes were staying longer due to the revival and strange happenings, making it necessary to provide for the people. Many sold their possessions (not necessarily their homes but extra possessions), so that everyone could be provided for. This was only temporary during the revival and was not a permanent practice of the church at Jerusalem or elsewhere. The fact that collections were later taken only for the poor and not for the church proves that not all the church was poor (1 Cor. 16:1; 2 Cor. 8-9). No one was forced to sell anything for the common cause, as proved in Acts 5:4.”

A good example of that is Ananias and Sapphira, which we’ll teach about in a later message, and even Peter told them, was not the money your own when it was in your power to do what you wanted to do with it? So there wasn’t a mandatory dictate which obliged everyone to sell everything and give it all to the church. It was still peoples individual choice. Ananias and Sapphira sold a piece of property that they owned, but they lied to the Holy Spirit and instead of saying that were just giving a portion of it, they said they were giving everything. They had the power to say that they were giving only a portion because it was their land and they could do with it what they chose. It seems like they were moved by jealousy, doing something big to outshine the rest, like people do today when they give $100,000.00 to a charity and they have the photo-op with the 2’ x 4’ cheque in hand. So for this couple, it wasn’t about having all things in common and they’d never have all things in common with anyone because they were not upright with God nor the church. God saw it and killed them. It’s something important to keep in mind.

1 Timothy 6:10 Amplified Bible says; “10 For the love of money [that is, the greedy desire for it and the willingness to gain it unethically] is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves [through and through] with many sorrows.”

So it’s not about being a rich, middle class or poor Christian, it’s about the love of money that is gained unethically being the root of all kinds of evil that cause Christians to wander from the faith and pierce themselves thru with many sorrows.  

When Christians sell for personal gain any illumination, inspiration or revelation that they freely received from the Holy Bible, it’s money that is gained unethically. However when they finance their own books, CD’s, DVD’s, movies, etc., and give them away freely and receive a ministry donation, it’s money gained ethically that even a poor Christian or non-Christian is able to receive what is given away with the option to give what they can afford as an offering. When the poor can’t go to your Christian concerts or buy your books and CD’s because they can’t afford them, are you not guilty of the sin of partiality found in James 2:1-3?

James 2:1-3 Amplified Bible says; “2 My fellow believers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of partiality [toward people—show no favoritism, no prejudice, no snobbery]. 2 For if a man comes into your [a]meeting place [b]wearing a gold ring and [c]fine clothes, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and you pay special attention to the one who wears the [d]fine clothes, and say to him, “You sit here in this good seat,” and you tell the poor man, “You stand over there, or sit down [on the floor] by my footstool,”

Or, as it would be at a Christian concert, you’d be sitting outside on the curb, while those who were rich enough to buy the tickets are inside. In essence, if you can’t pay for the ticket, you can’t worship with us. It’s a mockery to the poor Christian, telling them to sit at your feet (or outside), simply because they couldn't afford your concert ticket. So if a person can afford your Christian concert ticket, you give him a seat in the venue you’re playing in, but if the poor person can’t afford a ticket, he is not allowed to attend your ministry event and receive from you the gift of worship and ministry that God freely gifted you with. It’s money that is gained unethically, and the worst part of it all is that the majority of venues are Churches that are able to take up an offering to cover expenses instead of charging for admission. You’re selling out Jesus. Because if you’re selling out the Christian that’s on the curb outside your concert because they can’t afford to pay your ticket price to come in and worship with you, you’ve sold out Jesus. It’s the same Jesus that’s inside the rich who can afford your ticket that’s in the poor Christian that can’t afford it. It’s unethical gain.

2 Corinthians 2:17 Amplified Bible says; “17 For we are not like many, [acting like merchants] peddling God’s word [shortchanging and adulterating God’s message]; but from pure [uncompromised] motives, as [commissioned and sent] from God, we speak [His message] in Christ in the sight of God.”

If you’re selling out your Christian brother and sister because they’re poor, you’re selling out Jesus. So Christian, are you sold out for Jesus, or are you selling Him out? It’s a valid question to ask yourself today. Are you acting like merchants that short change and adulterate God’s message for personal gain, or are you pure and uncompromised in your motives as commissioned and sent from God, speaking His message in Christ in the sight of God without charge. It’s a good question to ask yourself today. Let me tell you what I think, outside of what I’ve just preached;

JESUS I’M NOT GONNA MERCHANDISE YOUR NAME

I DON’T WANT NO FORTUNE THRU VAIN FAME

FOR THE RICHES OF THE WORLD CAN’T TAKE AWAY THE PAIN

THAT YOU TOOK ON THE CROSS IN SACRIFICE AND SHAME

SO FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO USE THE CROSS OF CHRIST FOR GAIN

THE MONEY YOU CAN REAP CAN’T REPLACE THE PAINFUL SHAME

YOU’VE ROBBED THE GOLDEN GLORY FOR A LITTLE FORTUNE AND FAME

THE SACRIFICE OF YOUR LIFE IS JUST LIKE THE WORK OF CAIN

YOU’VE CRUCIFIED YOUR BROTHER JESUS OVER AND OVER AGAIN

AND HAVE MADE A REPUTATION FOR YOURSELF WITH THE NAME ABOVE ALL NAMES

WHEN FREELY YOU HAVE RECEIVED SO FREELY GIVE IS THE NAME OF THE GAME

BUT YOU LET THE ADVERSARY HAVE HIS WAY BY STAKIN’ YOUR CLAIM

ALL FOR A LITTLE FORTUNE

ALL FOR A LITTLE FAME

IN JESUS NAME

MERCHANTS – By Richard McCue, A Salvation Studio House Ltd. Production

Are you sold out today for Jesus?  What the Holy Spirit is saying today is; even though you don’t have all things in common right now in the church, you need to have all things in common in heart. You need to be willing at all times and in every situation to do what is right when it comes to finances, to give, to meet the needs of others and not sell Jesus out. When you have this attitude of heart, you realize that all that you own really isn’t yours, it’s Jesus’s. Jesus wants to meet the needs of people and He uses us, His Church, so we have to have an ‘all things in common’ hearts desire, and even though we’re not in the middle of Pentecost and revival, there are needs that need to be met, in our own lives and in the lives of those around us.

To read the full film script, Travesty, click here.

Jude 11 Amplified Bible says; “11 Woe to them! For they have gone the [defiant] way of Cain, and for profit they have run headlong into the error of Balaam, and perished in the rebellion of [mutinous] Korah.”

Let’s look at verse 4 that reveals who Jude is referring to in verse 11.  

Jude 4 Amplified Bible, “4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed [just as if they were sneaking in by a side door]. They are ungodly persons whose condemnation was predicted long ago, for they distort the grace of our God into decadence and immoral freedom [viewing it as an opportunity to do whatever they want], and deny and disown our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”

How many snuck in the side door, unnoticed, all around world in churches today, with all of these character attributes? Unnoticed.

In 2 Peter 2, the Apostle Peter is talking about the rise of false prophets and God’s impending judgment on them, and it’s in verse 15-16 that He compares them to the false teacher Balaam.   

2 Peter 2:15-16 Amplified Bible;“15 Abandoning the straight road [that is, the right way to live], they have gone astray; they have followed the way of [the false teacher] Balaam the son of Beor, who loved the reward of wickedness; 16 but he was rebuked for his own transgression: a mute donkey spoke with a man’s voice and restrained the prophet’s madness.”

It’s interesting to see that it was a mute donkey, maybe it couldn’t even utter a bray. Maybe she was a special donkey. There may be a few special donkey’s in God’s house, that have a word of the Lord for the mad Christians. The ones that have allowed the love of money to drive them insane, even as Balaam was driven to insanity and madness. There are a few special donkey’s that are now speaking into the lives of mad Christians today. Prophets trying to stop them in their track because they can’t see signs on the road that are warning them, they can’t hear any more, they are deaf and dumb in the spirit because of their hardness of heart that’s allowed them to love money more than God.

That wasn’t in my notes, it just came out and it’s a good word for someone.

This word madness in 2 Peter 2:16 means the following in Greek; “..."contrary-beside" ,"internal perspective regulating behavior" , "beside oneself," madness; insane (irrational) behavior, describing someone acting "out of their mind" (used only in 2 Pet 2:16).

How many are acting the same way today? According to the Bible, you’re supposed to have a sound mind, God hasn’t given you a mad mind. How many are full of fear, doubt, unbelief, worrying about tomorrow, trying to secure themselves in this world by the love of money? You don’t have to stay there.

So, what exactly was the wickedness of Balaam and the reward that he loved? A good description of the wickedness that he loved can be found in Revelation 2:14 where it says in the Amplified Bible; “14 But I have a few things against you, because you have there some [among you] who are holding to the [corrupt] teaching of Balaam, who taught [a]Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, [enticing them] to eat things that had been sacrificed to idols and to commit [acts of sexual] [b]immorality.”  

Imagine that, the church in Pergamum was holding to the teaching of Balaam. Balaam was a false teacher too, not just a prophet.  

When you read Numbers 22-24, there’s no scripture that references what’s mentioned in Revelation2:14, however if you turn to Numbers 25:1-5, you’ll clearly see the outcome of what appears to be the result of Balaam’s hidden instruction to Balak on how to destroy Israel from within thru sexual sin and the worship of Baal.  

Numbers 25:1-5 talks about Israel’s harlotry in Moab; “25 Now Israel remained in Acacia Grove,[a] and the people began to commit harlotry with the women of Moab. 2 They invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. 3 So Israel was joined to Baal of Peor, and the anger of the Lord was aroused against Israel. 4 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people and hang the offenders before the Lord, out in the sun, that the fierce anger of the Lord may turn away from Israel.” 5 So Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Every one of you kill his men who were joined to Baal of Peor.”

You can read in Numbers 25:6-9, how one man with Godly zeal brought an end to God’s judgment thru a plague which took the lives of 24,000 Israelite's.  

Numbers 25:6-9 says; “6 And indeed, one of the children of Israel came and presented to his brethren a Midianite woman in the sight of Moses and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel, who were weeping at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. 7 Now when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose from among the congregation and took a javelin in his hand; 8 and he went after the man of Israel into the tent and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her body. So the plague was stopped among the children of Israel. 9 And those who died in the plague were twenty-four thousand.”

What’s interesting is that by one man, Phinehas, the false counsel of one man, Balaam, are brought to an end, which shows you that all it took was one righteous person to stand up against what was causing the people of Israel to sin against God.   

Just as Jude and the apostle Peter spoke out against false teachers and brethren, it’s important for you Christians to do the same in whatever church you reside in, and you may at times be the only one that’s taking action to speak out against false teachers, and brethren who are selling Jesus out for monetary rewards and putting stumbling blocks before the church body of Christ that is causing them to sin.  

Let’s look at some of the scriptures, Numbers 22-24, that will help us to understand what exactly was requested of Balaam by the Moabite King Balak, and Balaam’s responses.  

Numbers 22:1-14 says; “22 Then the children of Israel moved, and camped in the plains of Moab on the side of the Jordan across from Jericho. 2 Now Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites. 3 And Moab was exceedingly afraid of the people because they were many, and Moab was sick with dread because of the children of Israel. 4 So Moab said to the elders of Midian, “Now this company will [a]lick up everything around us, as an ox licks up the grass of the field.” And Balak the son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. 5 Then he sent messengers to Balaam the son of Beor at Pethor, which is near [b]the River in the land of [c]the sons of his people, to call him, saying: “Look, a people has come from Egypt. See, they cover the face of the earth, and are settling next to me! 6 Therefore please come at once, curse this people for me, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed, and he whom you curse is cursed.”

So the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the diviner’s fee in their hand, and they came to Balaam and spoke to him the words of Balak. 8 And he said to them, “Lodge here tonight, and I will bring back word to you, as the Lord speaks to me.” So the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam.

9 Then God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?” 10 So Balaam said to God, “Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me, saying, 11 ‘Look, a people has come out of Egypt, and they cover the face of the earth. Come now, curse them for me; perhaps I shall be able to overpower them and drive them out.’ ”

12 And God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them; you shall not curse the people, for they are blessed.” 13 So Balaam rose in the morning and said to the princes of Balak, “Go back to your land, for the Lord has refused to give me permission to go with you.” 14 And the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak, and said, “Balaam refuses to come with us.”

Balaam heard from God immediately to not go with these men, and God didn’t change His mind during this whole event. He was very clear from the beginning. We see that Balaam wavered between two opinions; obeying God without questioning Him, or taking the ‘diviner’s fee’ that was being offered to him. Money speaks. He probably felt stupid having turned down a lucrative reward which lingered in his mind. He was a true prophet who backslide becoming a diviner.

After this act of obedience by Balaam, he is then again summoned by Balak a second time, with what appeared to be a better monetary reward, brought by men more honorable – upping the anti so to speak – but what’s interesting about this offer, is that instead of sending them away as he did the last time, he decides to consult with God on Balak’s behalf, which will show you that Balaam takes the bate for money in his heart, with the hope that God would change His mind. This really reveals the insanity and madness of mind that Balaam was operating in at the time, and he really makes God mad at him, to the point that God then plans to kill him by the hand of an Angel.

15 Then Balak again sent princes, more numerous and more [a]honorable than they. 16 And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak the son of Zippor: ‘Please let nothing hinder you from coming to me; 17 for I will certainly honor you greatly, and I will do whatever you say to me. Therefore please come, curse this people for me.’ ” 18 Then Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of the Lord my God, to do less or more. 19 Now therefore, please, you also stay here tonight, that I may know what more the Lord will say to me.”

It’s pretty obvious that Balaam is not in his right mind, and it shows that the love of money is at the root cause of his bad decision making, that made him think that God would possibly change His mind and curse His own people out. Today, there are many untimely deaths of ministers that because the love of money had driven them to insane decision making that caused them to exchange sound Bible doctrines for doctrines of devils. God gave Balaam his answer to the first time, but the second time God saw that Balaam loved the wages of unrighteousness (wickedness), more than obeying Him, and He then appears to set Balaam up to kill him.

Verse 20 continues; “20 And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men come to call you, rise and go with them; but only the word which I speak to you—that you shall do.” 21 So Balaam rose in the morning, saddled his donkey, and went with the princes of Moab.”

Let’s read about God’s attempt to kill the mad prophet, and how in the midst of it he has mercy on him, and gives him a chance to repent of his love for money that has driven him to madness.    

Numbers 22:22-30 gives the account of Balaam, the donkey, and the Angel; “22 Then God’s anger was aroused because he went, and the Angel of the Lord took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and his two servants were with him. 23 Now the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field. So Balaam struck the donkey to turn her back onto the road. 24 Then the Angel of the Lord stood in a narrow path between the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. 25 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she pushed herself against the wall and crushed Balaam’s foot against the wall; so he struck her again. 26 Then the Angel of the Lord went further, and stood in a narrow place where there was no way to turn either to the right hand or to the left. 27 And when the donkey saw the Angel of the Lord, she lay down under Balaam; so Balaam’s anger was aroused, and he struck the donkey with his staff. 28 Then the Lord opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you, that you have struck me these three times?” 29 And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have [a]abused me. I wish there were a sword in my hand, for now I would kill you!” 30 So the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey on which you have ridden, ever since I became yours, to this day? Was I ever [b]disposed to do this to you?” And he said, “No.” 31 Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the Angel of the Lord standing in the way with His drawn sword in His hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face.”

Balaam was so convinced that he was doing the will of God that he could not even see the Angel in front of him that was assigned to kill him, and what even more shows his insanity is that when his donkey talks to him as a human, he is so blinded by the love of money that he doesn’t comprehend that it’s abnormal to be talking with his donkey. This is a good object lesson for ministers who have allowed the love of the wages of unrighteousness (wickedness), to cause them to sell Jesus out to the point that they can barely see the warning signs that are indicating that they have left the straight and narrow road and are now on a broad and wide road that leads to destruction. This is why when they hear that it’s not biblical to merchandise any illuminations, inspirations or revelations that they received from the Bible, they continue to do so, because their love for money has them so blinded to what is written in the Bible, they create doctrines of demons to validate the wages of unrighteousness (wickedness), received for selling Jesus out. They have all the rational and reason as to why they can sell Jesus out, business logistics, good stewardship....on and on. They’ve fallen into a state of having an unsound mind. You can only reject the Holy Spirit so much, and after a while you can’t even hear Him. You might be making good money by merchandising Jesus, but you can’t hear Him anymore. You can’t see the road signs, indicators or flashing warning lights.  

Numbers 22:32-34,“32 And the Angel of the Lord said to him, “Why have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out [a]to stand against you, because your way is perverse[b] before Me. 33 The donkey saw Me and turned aside from Me these three times. If she had not turned aside from Me, surely I would also have killed you by now, and let her live. And Balaam said to the Angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know You stood in the way against me. Now therefore, if it displeases You, I will turn back.”

It reminds me when the religious leaders stood in front of Jesus and they struck Him. Jesus asked them why they struck Him, going on to describe the situation a bit better for them from His perspective, (John 18:19-23). The Angel of the Lord deals another blow to Balaam calling him perverse, perverted, meaning that he didn’t have a sound mind anymore. In this whole story, you see the tables turning on Balaam that he goes from bad to worse, like the Lord is making a public display of him in his stupidity and apostasy.

God in His mercy continues to warn Balaam to only speak the word of the Lord, and it seems like Balaam goes in and out of insanity, and that the love of money has him so driven that instead of simply turning around and returning home in a state of repentance, he again shows where his heart is by his following question found in verse 34.     

Verse 34 again, “And Balaam said to the Angel of the Lord, “I have sinned, for I did not know You stood in the way against me. Now therefore, if it [c]displeases You, I will turn back.”  

If it displeases you? We already know that it displeased God, and that Balaam would not even been having this conversation with the angel, nor his donkey, had he obeyed God in the first place. Verse 35; “Then the Angel of the Lord said to Balaam, “Go with the men, but only the word that I speak to you, that you shall speak.” So Balaam went with the princes of Balak.”

Proverbs 26:11-12 Amplified Bible “11 Like a dog that returns to his vomit Is a fool who repeats his foolishness. 12 Do you see a man [who is unteachable and] wise in his own eyes and full of self-conceit? There is more hope for a fool than for him.”

This pretty much sums up the life of Balaam.

In the book of Numbers 23-24, it contains four prophecy's where Balaam speaks blessings and not curses over the people of Israel, and it’s evident that Balaam obeys God and receives a sound mind and is not bribed by Balak to curse Israel. However, some how in the middle of all of their exchanges, something must have been said about how to lead the men of Israel into sexual sin with the Moabite women and the worship of Baal. It must be also mentioned that in Numbers 24:1 when Balaam gives his third oracle it says; “And when Balaam saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel, he did not resort to sorcery as on the previous occasions, but he turned his face toward the wilderness.” This being said means that he used sorcery on the first two blessings, which also is a sin against God.  

Once again, even though there’s no mention in Numbers 22-24 of Balaam instructing Balak on how to seduce Israel into sexual sin and the worship of idols, Numbers 31:16 says the following; “16 Look, these women caused the children of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against the Lord in the incident of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of the Lord.”

This was through Balaam’s counsel, his heart was in the money and guaranteed he got paid for divulging these commandments of God to Balak. He knew that God Himself would judge Israel for these sexual sins. So he cursed them in a round-a-bout way.

Revelation 2:14 Amplified Bible “14 But I have a few things against you, because you have there some [among you] who are holding to the [corrupt] teaching of Balaam, who taught [a]Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, [enticing them] to eat things that had been sacrificed to idols and to commit [acts of sexual] [b]immorality.”

The love of money caused Balaam to backslide from being a true prophet of God to the practice of witchcraft and he died as a diviner (soothsayer), by the hands of those he was obedient to bless, and not curse. How ironic is that! Think about that. He never cursed them out but he did show Balak how to cause them to stumble, worship Baal and commit sexual immorality involved in that worship.

Joshua 13:22 Amplified Bible;“22 The sons of Israel also killed Balaam the son of Beor, the diviner (soothsayer), with the sword among [the rest of] their slain.”  

It’s good to reflect, rest and meditate on this word and how it applies to your life today. You have a call to be a prophet, preacher, teacher, evangelist, pastor, missionary, but are you behaving like Balaam? Are you more concerned about the money and the provision for a rainy day than you are about delivering the word of the Lord? Are you more concerned about offending the people than you are of offending God? A good indicator to show that you’re in the same situation as Balaam is that you don’t have a sound mind. Fear, doubt, unbelief...it’s called the love of money. That’s why Jesus says to you, set your minds on things above, not on things below where rust and moth destroy and thieves break in and steal.  

He doesn’t want you to become like Balaam, so preoccupied with the love of money that you loose sight of the call on your life and get the point that you can’t see the warning signs any more. He sends prophets to you but you can’t hear them, you can’t see the flashing lights, you can’t see where God is trying to get your attention. Unsoundness of mind, fear, doubt and unbelief keeping you up at night, worrying about money and provision. Jesus says in Matthew 6:33; “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.”

Work with your hands as the Lord provides, pay your tithes and offerings, be obedient to give above and beyond and the blessings of Abraham will overtake you because that’s the seed we are from and keep trusting Him for His provision. Somewhere along the line, Balaam lost his trust in God, a seed got planted and he put his mind on the money, he was enticed, he was seduced, loosing his mind as a result.

We don’t have to be that way today, Christians. Tomorrow you have jobs to go to, He gives you the power to get wealth to establish His covenant. He supplies all of your needs according to His glory and riches. Some of you have been so preoccupied with gaining the riches of this earth, that you’ve lost your call. You can’t hear Him anymore. Don’t allow yourself to stay there. Don’t allow yourself to be in a position that you make God mad by your disobedience. You may say that God doesn’t get mad because we’re under grace. Well, look at what happened to Ananias and Sapphira who we studied last week. The Holy Spirit was a little mad and took their lives for lying.  

It all comes back down to not allowing the love of money to dictate your life and what God has called you to do. I have a job to go to tomorrow, I look forward to it, I look forward to working with my hands to see God’s provision, I look forward to the cheque that comes in, but one thing I don’t do and won’t do is receive the wages of unrighteousness and wickedness offered to me to compromise my call. We have to reject the temptation to be lovers of money and replace it with complete obedience to the Holy Spirit. You don’t want to end up ‘once a prophet’ then dying a ‘soothsayer’.

In studying the Bible, you’ll see there are a lot of people who have done that, died in sin as a result of disobedience, as a result of the love of money. There are people who are not in church today because the love of money has gotten in the way. They don’t have time for church, let alone give to church. People say they can’t afford to tithe, but you can’t afford not to tithe, because that’s where your blessing is. You don’t want to come under God’s curse.  

As for Israel, you’re to bless Israel right now and not be a Christian that curses them. You’re job is to pray for the peace of Israel, not to pray for their destruction. That’s your job today Christian, to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. The world would want the church to curse Israel, those that are in the flesh and those that are outside of covenant with Jesus, they want you to curse Israel, deeming them as an enemy. You’ve been grafted into the vine – Jesus. Don’t seek to curse Israel, bless them.

Illustrated Message Overview of Merchants – Message 5 - Cleansing the Christian Convenience Store - December 22nd, 2024

To start today’s message, I want to set it up by clarifying what God’s true tabernacle is from Acts 7:44-50; “44 Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen, 45 which our fathers, having received it in turn, also brought with Joshua into the land possessed by the Gentiles, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers until the days of David, 46 who found favor before God and asked to find a dwelling for the God of Jacob. 47 But Solomon built Him a house. 48 “However, the Most High does not dwell in temples made with hands, as the prophet says: 49 ‘Heaven is My throne,  And earth is My footstool. What house will you build for Me? says the Lord, Or what is the place of My rest? 50 Has My hand not made all these things?’”

The body of Christ, being the Church body, are Christians that individually are temples of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, and corporately they are not the temple where God dwells on earth, but rather they are as individuals the temple of God that are members of the Church body of believers. When you became born again of the Holy Spirit, He came to dwell and live in you.

1 Corinthians 12:27-28 says; “27 Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually. 28 And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues.”

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 says; “19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body [a]and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

We can firmly establish that our body becomes the temple of the Holy Spirit when we are born again, and God does not dwell in temples made by man any more, but rather in a Christians body that is part of the corporate Church Body of believers. The days of building big temples for God and ritual Old Testament sacrifices are over.

Under the Old Testament law, Gentiles believers were not allowed to worship God in the inner sanctuary of the man made temple, but were only allowed to worship in the outer court which was turned into a religious marketplace, and made it impossible for Gentile believers to worship God. The only place they were allotted to worship in was the outer court, but the Jews had made it a place of merchandise for believing Jews to purchase their sacrifices which they needed to present for their sins. They took over the outer court which was designated to the Gentiles. The religious leaders were making money off the buyers and sellers and sacrifices.

Luke 19:45-48 says the following; “45 Then He went into the temple and began to drive out those who [a]bought and sold in it, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house [b]is a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a ‘den of thieves.’ ” 47 And He was teaching daily in the temple. But the chief priests, the scribes, and the leaders of the people sought to destroy Him, 48 and were unable to do anything; for all the people were very attentive to hear Him.”

Let’s read some commentary's from the Blue Letter Bible on the subject of Jesus cleansing the outer court Temple Marketplace;

“a. He went into the temple and began to drive out those who bought and sold in it: This seems distinct from the cleansing of the temple courts mentioned in John 2:13-22, which happened towards the beginning of Jesus’ earthly ministry. Yet the purpose was the same; to drive out the merchants, who in cooperation with the priests cheated visitors to Jerusalem by forcing them to purchase approved sacrificial animals and currencies at high prices.

i. Barclay notes, “A pair of doves could cost as little as 4p outside the Temple and as much as 75p inside the Temple.” This is almost 20 times more expensive.

ii. Yet Jesus’ anger was against those who bought as well as those who sold in it. “Sellers and buyers viewed as one company — kindred in spirit, to be cleared out wholesale…The traffic was necessary, and might have been innocent; but the trading spirit soon develops abuses which were doubtless rampant at that period.” (Bruce)”

So an Israelite would show up with their sacrifice, but it may not have met up to the ridiculous high standards the priests had set by their own traditions, so they’d have to buy one of their ‘pre-approved’ sacrifices...all to make money.

It’s interesting to note that not only were the sellers guilty but also the buyers who, out of convenience, purchased what was needed to sacrifice to God in their worship, and regardless of how much they were being ripped off buy the merchants, they were still guilty for purchasing whatever they purchased. They should have resisted the convenience and rather done what was inconvenient, by bringing their own sacrifices. Service to Christ is not about doing what is convenient, but it is obedience and not convenient sacrifice that God requires. God is always looking for obedience in everything.

How many both new believers in Christ and unbelievers will not or no longer fellowship with the Church Body of believers, because of the merchandising of the Gospel for personal gain that takes place in the Church leadership, be it through teaching book sales, teaching conference expenses, music concert admission tickets, music DVD and CD sales, etc.

The Blue Letter Bible continues to say;

“b. My house is a house of prayer: The merchants operated in the outer courts of the temple, the only area where Gentiles could come and pray. Therefore, this place of prayer was made into a marketplace, and a dishonest one (a ‘den of thieves’).

i. Mark’s record contains the more complete quotation of Jesus’ reference to Isaiah 56:7: Is it not written, “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations?” (Mark 11:17). The point was that Isaiah prophesied, and Jesus demanded that the temple be a place for all nations to pray. The activity of all those who bought and sold in the outer courts made it impossible for any seeking Gentile to come and pray.”

How many times have you heard believers and non-believers mock the Christian Pastors, teachers, evangelists and ministers of music that have merchandised the gospel message for personal gain, whose finances match or exceed lavish lifestyles of the secular rich and famous. Let’s look at what Jesus has to say about causing anyone to stumble in their walk with God.   

Matthew 18:5-6 Amplified Bible says; “At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” 2 He called a little child and set him before them, 3 and said, “I assure you and most solemnly say to you, unless you repent [that is, change your inner self—your old way of thinking, live changed lives] and become like children [trusting, humble, and forgiving], you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Therefore, whoever [a]humbles himself like this child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 Whoever receives and welcomes one [b]child like this in My name receives Me; 6 but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble and sin [by leading him away from My teaching], it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone [as large as one turned by a donkey] hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”

As Christians and ministers of the Gospel that make up the Church Body as a whole, we are to individually take responsibility to not only work out our own salvation with fear and trembling, but also to not allow anything we do to cause anyone to stumble and hinder their relationship with God.  Merchants of the Gospel are the thieves and robbers in the Church today, that have become rich off the believers who are buying their Christian product that in the end, is the cause of countless individuals stumbling in their walk with God and the Church Body.  

The reason why so many Christians are not committed to attend a Church, is that they are able to buy all the books, CD’s, DVD’s, live stream teaching, etc., that they justifiably purchase with their tithe money, which makes it easy to circumvent being committed to a church, and simply attend what I call the Church of “Me, Myself and I”, without even having to step out the door. As convenient as this all seems, it’s causing Christian brothers and sisters to stumble and before you know it, Churches of Me, Myself and I are springing up all over the place, causing believer after believer to buy into the lie that they don’t have to be an inconvenienced committed church goer, when they can conveniently attend the Church of Me, Myself and I, with no accountability to anyone except themselves. It’s quite deceptive for Christian merchants as well as buyers of their merchandise, to think that they will escape the judgment of God found in Matthew 18:6 “but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to stumble and sin [by leading him away from My teaching], it would be better for him to have a heavy millstone [as large as one turned by a donkey] hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”

You may say that sounds extremely hard and way over the top and too judgmental, but you judge it. Jesus was very zealous to cleanse the temple of thieves and robbers that were capitalizing off of Jewish believers and causing the believing Gentiles to not have a place of worship which they had turned into a marketplace. When Christians believe the lie that they don’t have to tithe 10 % of their income to a Church, and spend it at the Christian convenience store on whatever the latest and greatest books, CD’s, DVD’s etc..., they are robbing God and will have to deal with what His word says in Malachi 3:8-11 about the curses that follow robbing God of His tithes.

Malachi 3:8-11 Amplified Bible says this about robbing God; “8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘In what way have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings [you have withheld]. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, this whole nation! 10 Bring all the tithes (the tenth) into the [a]storehouse, so that there may be [b]food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you [so great] a blessing until there is no more room to receive it. 11 Then I will rebuke the [c]devourer (insects, plague) for your sake and he will not destroy the fruits of the ground, nor will your vine in the field drop its grapes [before harvest],” says the Lord of hosts.”

By taking the tithes that you’re to be giving to your local church, and spend it on all the Christian products at the Christian convenience store, or using it to support your favourite teacher or preacher on TV or the internet, are you not robbing God? So if you’re attending the Church of ‘Me, Myself and I’, you’re tithing to yourself and purchasing all the Christian literature, music, clothing and bling (the ‘Merch’). You’re purchasing with your tithes, the latest and greatest of messages, motivational preaches, kumbaya feel good teaching that tickles the ears. Now, I want to be clear on something. I’m not against all the things you can use to help you in your Christian walk (of which I’ve mentioned), but it can be as a supplement and not a replacement of giving your tithes, offering and giving to your local church. Add to that, I’m strongly convinced that in light of all of this, those who write Christian books, produce Christian music, create Christian products etc., should not sell it but rather give it away freely and if someone can give a love offering, great, if not, watch how God provides otherwise.

Jesus drove out the thieves and robbers and made it clear that His Father’s house is to be a House of Prayer and not a marketplace. So it is today, for Christians to not allow the buying and selling of Christian products to replace gathering corporately for Church, Bible teaching worship, prayer and communion.  

Hebrews 10:24-25 says; “24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”

You don’t want to be sitting at the church of ‘Me, Myself and I’, and realize you’ve missed the rapture, because you’ve forsaken the assembling of yourself with other Christians and been disobedient to God’s word. You don’t want to go through seven years of tribulation, with all your books, tapes, T-shirts, CD’s, Christian banners that say Jesus is Lord, and yet have missed the rapture. While all the Christians that obeyed Jesus and never relied more on the Christian convenience store rather than the church, they obeyed Him, submitted their tithes to Him, built His church with the gates of hell having not prevailed against it, have been raptured. Those who went to the church of ‘Me, Myself and I’, are sitting at home wondering, where did everyone go, how come I didn’t go, certainly I should have gone, I spent all that money at Christian convenience stores, I sent off all those offerings to the evangelists, teachers on TV, have you seen my library...I have knowledge of God’s word, why was I left behind???? All dressed up, no where to go. The lamp was not trimmed and burning, the lamp went out when you walked out the church and said, I’m not going to attend here, I’m not going back to church, the lamp went out when you disobeyed God and chose the way of convenience and submitted yourself only to Me, Myself and I. Don’t think that judgment won’t be a part of that subject when you stand before Jesus and give an account for your life.

Let’s face the reality, face the truth. So, if you chose to forsake the assembling of yourself with other Christians and attend the church of Me, Myself and I out of convenience, you may have caused many, many brothers and sisters to stumble and set up their own Me, Myself and I churches all over the place, and in turn they caused people to stumble.

It would be good for Jesus to drive the merchants out of the ‘Me, Myself and I’ Churches, and cause them to repent of robbing from God and it would be good for Christians to stop shopping at the Christian Convenience stores and simply commit themselves to a Church, support that Church with their tithes and offerings and come out from under the curse of disobedience into God’s blessings from being obedient. For inconvenient obedience is better than convenient disobedience, for to obey is better than sacrifice.  

Malachi 3:10 says; “Bring all the tithes (the tenth) into the [a]storehouse, so that there may be [b]food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you [so great] a blessing until there is no more room to receive it. 11 Then I will rebuke the [c]devourer (insects, plague) for your sake and he will not destroy the fruits of the ground, nor will your vine in the field drop its grapes [before harvest],” says the Lord of hosts.”

That is God’s promise, you have a choice this day. You can choose the convenient or choose the inconvenient, inconvenient obedience or convenient disobedience to Christ. It’s inconvenient for you to go church, it makes you accountable to others and to a pastor, it’s more convenient to shop at the Christian convenience store than it is to go to church, because at church, the gifts of the Holy Spirit are in operation, at church you have your own gifts that will operate, you may have a job or task in the church that you need to do. Serving Jesus isn’t about convenience. Even the devil made it convenient for the worshippers in the temple but it cost them a lot of money in the end. The worshippers had to pay extra money on sacrifices paying exorbitant prices on the sacrifices from robbers and thieves, out of convenience. It’s convenient to go to the Christian convenience store to get all your teaching, books and CD’s, it’s convenient to turn the TV on and cut a cheque to the ministry of your choice, but it’s not necessarily obedience because your disobedient by not going to a local church.  

I’m going to choose the inconvenient way to serve Jesus, my flesh would like to sit in the church of Me, Myself and I, put up my feet and have no accountability to anyone. But I know as I know what that leads to. I could take my tithes and spend it on whatever I want to and I wouldn’t have to submit myself to anyone, let alone God. How many people today are in the church of Me, Myself and I, conveniently established for their comfort. It’s so conclusive how true this all is. Jesus is cleansing the temple today, He’s cleansing your temple, Christian, He’s personally coming to you today asking you to give up the convenient Christian walk, convenient Christianity, He wants you to walk inconveniently obedient to Him. His grace is sufficient, He’ll help you through whatever situation you face in a church setting, He’ll see you through. He’s the head of the Church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. But He’s not the head of the church of Me, Myself and I. He’s not even there, don’t think for a minute that He’s there, He’s at the church down the road where you’re supposed to be, where you’re supposed to be dedicated to, tithing to, committed to. It’s time to repent, give that church up, lock the door behind you, don’t go back into it, get rid of all your books, CD’s, DVD’s, tickle your ear sermons and lock them up and get rid of them. Get into a church that preaches the full gospel, do it now, light the candle again that went out when you left the church and joined the church of Me, Myself and I. Keep it trimmed and burning until Jesus comes back, you don’t want to be left behind.  

Here is what Charles Spurgeon wrote on Jesus cleansing the temple; “I do not believe we shall thoroughly purify any church by Acts of Parliament, nor by reformation associations, nor by agitation, nor by any merely human agency. No hand can grasp the scourge that can drive out the buyers and sellers, but that hand which once was fastened to the cross. Let the Lord do it and the work will be done, for it is not of man, nor shall man accomplish it.”

Click here to read the prophecy from church.

Here also is a short video by CBN entitled “Is Secularization Killing Church Giving”. Shocking new research indicates that only about 10% of the Christian community in the USA tithe.

Merchants – Covetous Ministers - Message 7 – January 19th, 2025

Who is your neighbour today? We know Jesus talked about the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 calling him neighbour to the man who was beaten and robbed. We can also call the widow, the orphan and elderly as our neighbour.

So many ministers today are skilled in the art of coveting the monetary inheritance which belongs to the widow, the monetary inheritance which belongs to orphan and the elderly.

James 1:27 Amplified Bible talks about what pure religion is; “27 Pure and unblemished religion [as it is expressed in outward acts] in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit and look after the fatherless and the widows in their distress, and to keep oneself uncontaminated by the [secular] world.”

James is talking about these people who are in distress and one would think there is not much to covet from a widow, orphan or fatherless who are in distress. Why are they in distress? Because they’ve been robbed from by religious leaders after they’ve lost a loved one as we’ll study today. What makes this to be pure religion, is simply that of providing the monetary needs of widows and orphans while keeping oneself separated from secular worldly sins that lead Christians off the straight and narrow road that leads to life.  

How many ministers have left the straight and narrow road and lost their eternal inheritance by exchanging it for the coveting of the widows inheritance. It doesn’t sound like a very good deal, but in this fallen sinful world it would be tempting to inherit the inheritance of a widow, of an orphan, to gain their inheritance but unfortunately exchange it for their own inheritance of heaven. It doesn’t sound like it’s worth it but it goes on all the time, all around the world by Christian ministers and ministries by them coveting the inheritance of the widow, orphan and elderly, for gain.

The religious Pharisees made it their rite to not have to provide for widows and orphans, but rather devour whatever inheritance that was left by the deceased husband by having the husband sign over their money prior to death, with the intent that the Pharisees would look after the wife and children as executors of his will. They were skilled at covetousness.

Got Questions says the following about this;

The phrase devour widows’ houses means “greedily cheat widows out of their property.” In ancient times widows held little or no power in the courts. It was not uncommon for a husband to appoint in his will a Jewish legal expert—a scribe or Pharisee—to be the executor of his widow’s estate. Essentially, this gave the executor authority to oversee the widow’s finances and assets. It would not be hard for a corrupt lawyer to find legal ways to trick a widow out of her house and other property—and this is precisely what the religious leaders were doing. It could be that’s why the poor widow Jesus noticed in Mark 12:42 only had “two very small copper coins” to give.  

Today we have Christian ministries that have set up legal ways for Christians to conveniently sign their last will and testament over to their ministry, instead of willing it to their own family members or persons of their choice if no family members are alive. It’s one thing for a Christian to will what they have to the Church on their own volition, it’s another to be coerced to do so by the Church. We’ve often heard it in meetings, it’s a little ‘fear’ plug by saying that if your inheritance isn’t going to anyone, then it’s going to the government. So you might as well put it to eternal souls as it’s a worthwhile investment. We’ve heard all of the ‘hooks’ and ‘clichés’.  

This is no different than what the religious Scribes and Pharisees did to widows and orphans, only it’s done in a way that is legal and easy that makes it seem not so corrupt. Legal and easy to give your inheritance to their church.

In Matthew 23:14 Jesus says; “14 [a]Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. Therefore you will receive greater condemnation.”

Luke 20:46-47 says; “46 “Beware of the scribes, who desire to go around in long robes, love greetings in the marketplaces, the best seats in the synagogues, and the best places at feasts, 47 who devour widows’ houses, and for a pretense make long prayers. These will receive greater condemnation.”

Jesus addresses the Scribes and Pharisees about this very sin of not providing for mothers and fathers by implementing tradition that made null and void the laws of God that were required of them to fulfill.  

Matthew 15:1-6 Amplified Bible talks about tradition and commandment; “15 Then some Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem came to Jesus and said, 2 “Why do Your disciples violate the [a]tradition (religious laws) handed down by the [Jewish] elders? For Your disciples do not [ceremonially] wash their hands before they eat.” 3 He replied to them, “Why also do you violate the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders]? 4 For God said [through Moses], ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘He who speaks evil of or insults or treats improperly father or mother is to be put to death.’ 5 But you say, ‘If anyone says to his father or mother, “Whatever [money or resource that] I have that would help you is [already dedicated and] given to God,” 6 he is not to honor his father or his mother [by helping them with their need].’ So by this you have invalidated the word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect] for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders].

One of the 10 Commandments in Exodus 20:12 says; “12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you.”

Another scripture in Mark 7:11, Jesus uses the word ‘corban’. Got Questions explains what that meant;  

“The word Corban is only found in Mark 7:11. The interpretation is given in the same verse: “devoted to God as a gift.” The word described something to be offered to God or given to the sacred treasury in the temple. If something was “Corban,” it was dedicated and set apart for God’s use.
 

In the context of Mark 7:1-13, Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees about ritual without reality. The Pharisees had asked why the disciples did not wash their hands according to the ritualistic tradition of the elders (Mark 7:5). This hand-washing was not what we think of today with soap and water. It was not for cleanliness; rather, it was a prescribed ritual done as a show of piety.
 

In answer to the Pharisees’ question, Jesus told them that they had rejected the commandment of God in order to keep their own tradition (Mark 7:6-9). Jesus gives the proof of their corruption of the Law by citing their use of “Corban.” Moses had instructed God’s people to “honor their father and mother” (Exodus 20:12), but the Pharisees negated that command by teaching that they could give money to the temple in lieu of helping their parents in need. Whatever money might have been used to provide for aging parents could be dedicated to the temple treasury instead. Saying, “It is Corban” would exempt a person from his responsibility to his parents. In other words, the Pharisees took a legitimate Corban offering and used it in an illegitimate and devious way to defraud their parents (and enrich themselves). Thus, the Law of God was nullified.”

Christian, that’s still your duty today, it didn’t change from the Old Testament to the New Testament. It doesn’t say honour  your Christian parents only, it simply says honour your mother and father, and this is important for Christians to carry out in their actions and not words only towards unbelieving parents. It’s not unheard of that unbelieving parents persecute and do not provide for their children who have become Christians, it happens all the time, but it’s not acceptable for Christians to not provide for their unbelieving parents in time of need, and this is what reveals a Christian to be a lover of God or a lover of money. If you’re a lover of God, you honour your parents whether they’re Christians or not. If you’re a lover of money it’s a whole other story and you more than likely won’t honour your parents.  

The Pharisee’s were giving family members an ‘out’ to not look after their widowed parent, this was fraudulent and covetous.

Jesus says this Luke 16:10-13 Amplified Bible; “10 “He who is faithful in a very little thing is also faithful in much; and he who is dishonest in a very little thing is also dishonest in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of earthly wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? 12 And if you have not been faithful in the use of that [earthly wealth] which belongs to another [whether God or man, and of which you are a trustee], who will give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will stand devotedly by the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and mammon [that is, your earthly possessions or anything else you trust in and rely on instead of God].”

Matthew Henry’s Commentary says this regarding this scripture;  

“(2.) We have no other way to prove ourselves the servants of God than by giving up ourselves so entirely to his service as to make mammon, that is, all our worldly gain, serviceable to us in his service (Luke 16:13): No servant can serve two masters, whose commands are so inconsistent as those of God and mammon are. If a man will love the world, and hold to that, it cannot be but he will hate God and despise him. He will make all his pretensions of religion truckle to his secular interests and designs, and the things of God shall be made to help him in serving and seeking the world. But, on the other hand, if a man will love God, and adhere to him, he will comparatively hate the world (whenever God and the world come in competition) and will despise it, and make all his business and success in the world some way or other conducive to his furtherance in the business of religion; and the things of the world shall be made to help him in serving God and working out his salvation. The matter is here laid plainly before us: Ye cannot serve God and mammon. So divided are their interests that their services can never be compounded. If therefore we be determined to serve God, we must disclaim and abjure the service of the world.”

Luke 16:14-15 Amplified Bible says the following; “14 Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, were listening to all these things and were sneering and ridiculing Him. 15 So He said to them, “You are the ones who declare yourselves just and upright in the sight of men, but God knows your hearts [your thoughts, your desires, your secrets]; for that which is highly esteemed among men is detestable in the sight of God.”

This all comes after the teaching of the parable of the Unjust Steward found in Luke 16:1-13, and it appears that not only was this read in the hearing of the disciples of Christ but also of the Pharisees, which shows that it was not just a message for the Pharisees and it’s all the more reason for Christians today to not become a lover of money.  

As for those who are ministers of the gospel, pastors, evangelists, teachers, prophets, etc, that are considering to take advantage of coveting to gain the inheritance of widows, orphans and the elderly, it would be good to repent of the very premeditated thought and meditate on 1 Timothy 6:9-10 which says; “9 But those who [are not financially ethical and] crave to get rich [with a compulsive, greedy longing for wealth] fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction [leading to personal misery]. 10 For the love of money [that is, the greedy desire for it and the willingness to gain it unethically] is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves [through and through] with many sorrows.”

Reading this verse might help a minister to repent of trying to gain the inheritance of a widow, an orphan and of the elderly.  

As for ministers who refuse to take advantage of coveting to gain the inheritance of widows, orphans and the elderly, Hebrews 13:5-6 says the following;

Hebrews 13:5-6 Amplified Bible; “5 Let your character [your moral essence, your inner nature] be free from the love of money [shun greed—be financially ethical], being content with what you have; for He has said, “I will never [under any circumstances] desert you [nor give you up nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless], nor will I forsake or let you down or relax My hold on you [assuredly not]!” 6 So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently say, “The Lord is my Helper [in time of need], I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?”

This is a comforting promise from God for the minister who refuses to sell God out to covet and gain unethically the inheritance of widows, orphans and the elderly.

However, those who sell God out to covet and gain unethically the inheritance of widows, orphans and the elderly fall in the category of sins listed that prohibit a person from inheriting eternal life. It really doesn’t matter how much you rationalize and reason it through, no matter how good your intentions are to use the widows, orphans or elderly’s inheritance for God’s glory, it’s covetous practice. I said this earlier; if a widow, orphan or elderly wants to give to your church or ministry their inheritance, that’s to be under their own volition not by your coercion. That’s them on their own volition hearing the Holy Spirit speak. It’s not by your coveting and your covetous skilled practice. This is a hard word but a much needed word by many, many ministries today.  

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 says; “9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor [a]homosexuals, nor [b]sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.”

You read the word covetous there didn’t you? So when your giving your fund raising speech at the end of your service and you include the opportunity, and plant the seed for the widow to give up their inheritance to your ministry...what are you doing? It’s pretty obvious that you’re coveting your neighbour's property.  

Is the sin of coveting to gain the inheritance of widows, orphans and the elderly worth it for forfeiting your inheritance of the kingdom of God? Regardless of how much you’re going to use the money for the glory of God, for soul winning, your good intentions, just the fact that your coveting the widows, orphans and elderly’s inheritance puts you in a position with God where you fall in line with the rest of the sins that keep you out of heaven. It sounds so extreme that coveting can keep you out of heaven, after all, you just wanted to do good with the money, for His glory! Apparently it is a sin that leads to eternal separation from God. Whatever inheritance you and your ministry receive here on earth, is it worth the exchange of eternal life and God’s eternal inheritance for you?

The Pharisee’s were skilled at this, robbing the widow of her inheritance, robbing the orphan of their inheritance, robbing! Unfortunately, it’s continued on in the church, the body of Christ for over 2000 years. How can that be? Christians have been subtly influenced (manipulated), by preachers in pulpits to think that it’s better for them and the kingdom of God, that they turn their wills over to ministries and not to family. As a matter of fact, they even have lawyers ready to draft up the wills to do it immediately or they have third party lawyers who will do it, and by the way the person has to pay the lawyer on top of it do the legal work. How many children or family members – Christian or non-Christian – have been so hurt and embittered by this practice that they’ll never go to a church to get right with God. If one is obedient to the Word of God, who knows if by your obedience in leaving your inheritance for your family, that they will come to know Jesus and be repentant. Even look at the prodigal son. The Father gave the son his inheritance, probably knowing that he’d squander it, yet the son was repentant in the end and returned home. One can never underestimate the blessing in obedience. Let your inheritance be used for your family, extended family or those that the Holy Spirit has led you to will it to.

I said it before, if a person who by their own will under no coercion from ministers decide to give their inheritance or part of it to a ministry, that’s one thing, but when it’s done from a covetous minister, that’s sin and falls right in step with drunkards, homosexuals, idolaters etc. (1 Corinthians 6:9-10), who will not go to heaven. It’s that serious and sinful.  

You could go onto the website of any number of church organizations, ministries etc., who will have a page that will direct you how to give your inheritance, or if not that way, then it’s been said over the pulpit, at fund-raising events or in a sermon. It’s called coveting your neighbour’s property. There are so many stories in the Bible that reveal what happens when men covet their neighbour’s property...it doesn’t go well for them on earth and for eternity.  

Look at your life today, Christian minister, look at your heart, if that seed has been planted,  don’t act it out, submit to God, resist the devil and be content with what God is doing in your ministry, be content with the scriptures that we read earlier, that God will never leave you. 

Hebrews 13:5-6 Amplified Bible; “5 Let your character [your moral essence, your inner nature] be free from the love of money [shun greed—be financially ethical], being content with what you have; for He has said, “I will never [under any circumstances] desert you [nor give you up nor leave you without support, nor will I in any degree leave you helpless], nor will I forsake or let you down or relax My hold on you [assuredly not]!” 6 So we take comfort and are encouraged and confidently say, “The Lord is my Helper [in time of need], I will not be afraid. What will man do to me?”

So, when you’re swimming upstream and everyone else is floating downstream on their pleasure crafts, eating and drinking with the widow’s, orphan’s and elderly’s money, just remember what’s downstream and it’s not comfortable. They think they’re living the life of Riley, so prosperous, but they’ve gained it unethically because of covetousness. Will it be easy to not be tempted to do as they do and float down stream? No. But your reward is greater, stay on the straight and narrow road, resist the temptation to covet your neighbour’s property.

Today’s message is based on the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, which is a true story and not something fabricated by Jesus, they were real individuals.

Luke 16:19-31 says; “19 “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and [a]fared sumptuously every day.”

We’ve all heard the term, “Living the Dream Baby”, which is often quoted by workers on their job depicting that what they are doing is not their dream job, but rather, it’s what they simply do for a living until the dream job of their choice is available. The Rich Man represented in this parable, is not shown as working a “Dream Job”, from where all his riches came from and it’s not clear how he became rich, however, he would be literally living what would be termed, “Another Day in Paradise”, which is another statement that workers often use to make light of their place of employment that often depicts the opposite of a place of paradise. The rich man portrayed here is a fulfillment of a what Jesus calls a wealthy fool in Luke 12:19-21.

Luke 12:19-21 Amplified Bible says; “19 And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many good things stored up, [enough] for many years; rest and relax, eat, drink and be merry (celebrate continually).”’ 20 But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own all the things you have prepared?’ 21 So it is for the one who continues to store up and hoard possessions for himself, and is not rich [in his relationship] toward God.”

Again, Luke 16:19;“19 “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and [a]fared sumptuously every day.”

Being rich towards yourself is one thing and being rich towards God is another, and it’s easy to live a life of self-servitude with your riches, but to live a life of serving God and His poor, is another that often is inconvenient, and is in direct conflict with being a lover of self-indulgence, which clearly describes the rich man in Luke 16:19 as well as the rich fool in Luke 12:19-21.  

Let’s read about the beggar named Lazarus, who was not living the ‘dream job’ or with it being ‘another day in paradise,’ but rather being at the opposite spectrum of the Rich man.

Luke 12:20-21 continues to say;“20 But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with [b]the crumbs which fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover the dogs came and licked his sores.”  

There is no understanding as to why Lazarus was in the unfortunate position in life or how old he was, or of how often he had been laid at the gate, we only see that he was physically sick in body and handicapped to the point that he was laid daily at the rich mans gate to beg. The simple difference between the rich man and Lazarus is that the rich man was either a nominal Jewish believer or non-believer of God and Lazarus was a Jewish believer of God – regardless of his present physical state he believed God and kept His commandments, and this is made clear by where they spend their eternal lives after death. Who knows, maybe the rich man may have been seen by some of the religious scribes and Pharisees who were lovers of money, to be a man blessed by God and was highly esteemed simply be cause he was rich. How many Christians today have bought into the lie that says that if a person is rich they are blessed by God and if they are sick and poor that they are in sin and are under God’s curse, however, it’s the eternal destination of a persons soul after death that determines God’s blessing on their lives. Regardless of how a person is blessed (financially and materially) on earth...will they be blessed in heaven or eternally separated from God in hell? Do you look at the rich in your life as being blessed by God and the poor as cursed by God? It’s a good question to ask yourself today.

Luke 16:22 continues saying; “So it was that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.”  

It makes you wonder if the religious Scribes and Pharisees were happy at the death of Lazarus, to be finally gotten rid of at the rich man’s gate, believing he was cursed to an eternity in hell, and also on the flip side, were unhappy and mourned the rich man’s death believing he was blessed to an eternity in Heaven. It makes you wonder, only for the fact that we know the Scribes and Pharisees were lovers of money. Maybe the religious leaders knew Lazarus and saw him as an embarrassment to their religious establishment viewing him as a backslidden Israelite who was cursed of God for some sin, and besides all of that, just bad for any business deals with the rich man...just a thought.  

Lazarus died and went to place called Abraham's bosom, Paradise, which is where all the Old Testament saints went after death, until the death and resurrection of Jesus which gave them entrance from Paradise to Heaven for eternity. The ungodly rich man who was ‘living the dream’ daily in paradise on earth, died and opened up his eyes in Hades, a place of torment where all non-believers go to after death and await to be judged at the great white throne judgment of Jesus where they are cast into the lake of fire in hell for eternity, (Revelation 20:11-15).

Apparently, the placement of Paradise and Hades were a stones throw away, so to say, from each other, and were close enough for the rich man in Hades to see Abraham and Lazarus in Paradise. There was a large chasm that separated them.

Continuing with Luke 16:24-26, “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.”  

This shows a supernatural situation here, tormented by flames yet not burning up. Everything about heaven and hell is supernatural yet real. Both the rich man and Lazarus saw each other and the state that each of them were in. It also shows that the rich man continued to treat Lazarus as someone beneath himself, someone to do his bidding, even in hell he didn’t have remorse.

The rich person turning a deaf ear to the cry of the poor is never good, regardless of circumstances that led them there, and it’s never good to pass judgment on them, but this goes on all the time in Church settings, it’s called the sin of partiality, (favouring the rich over the poor).

James 2:1-9 talks about this; “2 My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. 2 For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in [a]fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in [b]filthy clothes, 3 and you [c]pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit here at my footstool,” 4 have you not [d]shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?

5 Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? 7 Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called?

8 If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well; 9 but if you [e]show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.”

Who knows, maybe the rich man that turned a deaf ear to the cry of Lazarus, played the religious image once in a while by attending the Jewish Temple for special religious festivals, like so many people today only attend church at Christmas, Easter and fundraising events, etc., to make a religious show of themselves, while they are living in duplicity with one foot in the world and one foot in the Church, and are lukewarm enough for God to spit them out of His mouth on the day of Judgment.

Revelation 3:14-17 says this; “14 “And to the [a]angel of the church [b]of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither [c]cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.”

This could sum up the position of the rich man, one foot in the world and one in the church (or synagogue), playing the religious game or show, declaring he believes yet showing no commitment.

The following scripture pretty much exemplifies the present times we are living in, and this is all the more reason for Christians to be rich towards God in both their relationship with Him and their charity towards the poor, who out of misfortune and sickness are begging at their gate.

2 Timothy 3:1-4 Amplified Bible talks about the difficult times that are coming and are presently here; “3 But understand this, that in the last days dangerous times [of great stress and trouble] will come [difficult days that will be hard to bear]. 2 For people will be lovers of self [narcissistic, self-focused], lovers of money [impelled by greed], boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy and profane, 3 [and they will be] unloving [devoid of natural human affection, calloused and inhumane], irreconcilable, malicious gossips, devoid of self-control [intemperate, immoral], brutal, haters of good, 4 traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of [sensual] pleasure rather than lovers of God,”

It’s interesting to see that the very person who the rich man turned a deaf ear to regarding his needs, is now needed like never before to quench his thirst from the tormenting flame in Hades. It just shows that it’s never good to turn a deaf ear to the needs of the sick and poor, and no matter how logistically you reason your way out of it, the table will get turned on the day of judgment. You’ll be held accountable for having turned a deaf ear.

Matthew 25:31-46 says; “31 “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the [a]holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. 32 All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. 33 And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’

41 “Then He will also say to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels: 42 for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.’

44 “Then they also will answer [b]Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?’ 45 Then He will answer them, saying, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.’ 46 And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

The rich man is not depicted as a non-believing evil man, and neither a righteous believing Jew, and all we can derive from this parable is that he, the rich man, opened up his eyes in Hades, a place of torment, and the sick poor man Lazarus, was escorted by Angels to Paradise. There was no angelic escort to Hades for the rich man, he just opened up his eyes and found himself in Hades and this is where he is to this very day until the Great White Throne Judgment of Jesus that sends him into the Lake of Fire for Eternity. You don’t want to make this judgment.

Continuing with the parable in Luke 16:27-31 it says; “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father’s house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.’ 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.’ ”  

A day will come for those who have rejected the Gospel, God’s salvation plan, (John 3:16), in exchange for the riches of this world, only to lift up their eyes in Hades, possibly in the vicinity of the rich man and his 5 brothers and wait with them under the torment of flaming heat, to be judged at the Great White Throne Judgment and cast into the Lake of Fire for eternity. That’s now for those who reject the preaching of the gospel and reject Jesus as their Lord and Saviour. Like the rich man, they’re not able to warn their family who has also rejected God’s Salvation Plan, (John 3:16), and they to will end up in Hades with them to be Judged to Hell for eternity. You can’t warn your family when you’re in Hades, just like the rich man couldn’t.

A good example of to show that though someone were to rise from the dead with the warning to repent and receive God’s Salvation Plan, and not believe it, can be found in the person of Jesus Christ Himself, who not only died for ours sins, but rose from the dead and preached the Gospel for a short period before ascending to heaven where He now sits at the right hand of the Father God making intersession and praying for us.  Although Jesus rose from the dead, many still turned a deaf ear to His message of salvation, and to this day many still turn a deaf ear when it is preached, and just like the rich man, will die and lift up their eyes in Hades. Every person will live forever, they will either be escorted by angels to Heaven or they will lift up their eyes in Hades and spend an eternity in Hell, the lake of fire, where the worm does not die and the fire does not go out.  

So Christian, who has God placed daily at your gate that you have turned a deaf ear to? Who is the Lazarus in your life that you’re avoiding and scorning who has needs that you can meet? You may say, but I’m not rich, but it doesn’t matter, what do you have in your hand to give? Rich church(es), who is or are the poor at your doors (or gates), that you’re turning a deaf ear to when you have it in your power to do good? Riches and money is not sin or sinful in and of itself, but how are you using your riches to advance the kingdom of God and to meet the needs of those around you whom God has placed there for you to help? Do you have it in you to give to those who are in need around you? That’s the question today. There is a day of accountability.  

It might be a good time to repent of your sins, receive the Holy Spirit, and make Jesus Lord of your life before it’s to late and you find yourself lifting up your eyes in Hades.  

Deuteronomy 15:7-8; “7 “If there is among you a poor man of your brethren, within any of the [a]gates in your land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your poor brother, 8 but you shall [b]open your hand wide to him and willingly lend him sufficient for his need, whatever he needs.”

Hebrews 13:16; “16 But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.”

1 John 3:17-18; “17 But whoever has this world’s goods, and sees his brother in need, and shuts up his heart from him, how does the love of God abide in him?18 My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.”

James 4:17; “ Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

Proverbs 3:27;“Do not withhold good from [a]those to whom it is due, When it is in the power of your hand to do so.”

Here is a short video on The Rich Man and Lazarus.