Hope Community Church

Money is Important

Wars are fought over it, families are destroyed by the lack of it or the excess of it, couples fight over it, cultures worship it, and people spend their life in pursuit of it. Scripture calls it foolish to care too much or to care too little about money. This is because money is the tangible expression of the value we place on people's time, their productivity, and materials. Money matters to us and matters to God.

Following the ways of Jesus gives shape to all areas of our lives, including money. At Hope Church we desire to not only be generous but also to be a people that handles money well. Many communities of faith have lost their way in the pursuit of the right use of money and we should always live in recognition of this. With that in mind, we must seek as a community to live in the way of Jesus with money both collectively and individually.

Jesus taught that where our treasure is our heart is also. Money is a heart issue. How we handle our money is about how we spend our money, how we view money, how we pursue money and, of course, the giving of our money. We bear the scars of letting money fall from proper care and letting money rule our lives, rather than Jesus.

The history of the church and the Bible teach more about the issue of money than about many other topics. The right understanding of money and the right behavior with money is crucial to following God in the way of Jesus. The Bible is at times explicit about the care that should be given in people’s relationship with money.

Phrases such as these are not uncommon in the text of the Bible:

Psalm 15:5
He who lends his money without usury and does not accept a bribe against the innocent, he who does these things will never be shaken.

Proverbs 17:16
Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no desire to get wisdom?

Ecclesiastes 5:10
Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.

Matthew 6:24
Jesus Said, "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

1 Timothy 6:10
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.

Hebrews 13:5
Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

These kinds of warnings are not intended to make us afraid of money, but should serve to keep us from pursuing money and the power it can bring in our lives. There is little question that this is easier said than done. So, at Hope church we are seeking to create ways that will help us be people who relate to money in ways that are obedient to God and in service of others.

Giving 10%

The example set for followers of Jesus in the Bible and throughout history includes a giving of 10% of their income. While this is not a hard-set number, and some may choose to give more, the giving away of 10% of what we have control over has served as a starting base for followers of Jesus. At Hope we seek to find ways to encourage and provide ways to give at least 10% of resources to the care of others and the efforts of God.

The issue is not the amount of money given; the issue is a perspective of money. Money is not ours to consume, but it is ours to give and share for the efforts of God. It is much more an issue of having real-life ways of following the teaching of God and to give tangibly to the efforts of God. Sacred giving is not membership dues or a way of appeasing God, it is an act of worship reflecting our surrender and faith.

Not Only To Hope Community Church

The giving away of 10% of our resources is a good amount with which to start and we encourage those of Hope Church to begin there. There are many worthy efforts that are doing the work of God in the world, and there is not an expectation that the people of Hope only give to Hope. But for those who are part of this community, there is an expectation that they will join with the others of the community in our efforts.

The Opportunity of Community

We are called to join our lives together.

The Book of Acts in the New Testament of the Bible records in the second chapter that in the early days of Christianity the followers of Jesus met together and sought ways to live their lives in obedient patterns of Jesus. Central to this effort was their sharing of money, homes, meals, and all of life with one another.

While we live in a different time and culture than the first followers of Jesus, their way of life with one another should be encouraging and instructive for us in how we ought to live.

We are called as followers of Jesus to share what we have with one another and to collectively give and spend our money. That is why, as a part of our community, we give money and set a collective budget for that which we are collectively about in our community.

In Christian giving, there is no room for the giving of money while retaining the notion that it is still your money which you have control over. The giving of money means that the control of the money is also given away. This does not mean, however, that we should give blindly or foolishly. We want to provide accurate information and maintain an open-door policy about how we spend our money.

Thoughtful Spending

We seek to be thrifty and thoughtful with our money Hope Church.

While money is not the most important thing in life, it is an important thing and we seek to be good stewards of that which is put in our care.

To this end we make every effort to be thoughtful and effective in the use of money. It is with careful consideration that money is spent.

The building of the budget of Hope Church is decided by the amount of money that is given. Because the budget is determined by the amount of money contributed, we do not set a budget and then attempt to persuade people to give that amount. This way of budgeting raises the importance of people making consistent commitments of their money.

We are Called to Give, Not to Consume

The clear call of followers of God throughout the Bible is that we live as a people who are a blessing to others and readily design our lives around the understanding that it is God who is central and it is God who provides.

In the earliest of days in the recorded history of the Bible, God calls people to give in response to what God has given them and for the care of the needy.

In the books of Leviticus and Deuteronomy, the nation of Israel is given specific instruction about important, timely, societal patterns of giving in series of gifts, each of 10% of their income (the first to God, the second to the poor, the third to the work of the Temple) which totaled some 28% of their income. This was the basis not only for things of faith, but the establishment of a particular governmental and societal structure. A nation was being created that gave and did not simply consume all that was at their disposal.

While in our day we live under a different social and economic structure with the government taking on some of the roles of the Old Testament Temple, the understanding of the followers of God to give to the poor and to the efforts of God is nonetheless important for us.

The pressures we face are as daunting as ever to be Consumer. The call of the Gospel of Jesus however, is that we not be a consumer people, but a giving and blessing people.

Sacred Giving

We believe that the giving away of money is best done in a thoughtful and prayerfully considered way. But there are different ways that people may chose to give their money.

Some give weekly or monthly or annually. Some give by cash, writing checks, automatic deposit or check card. All these ways are legitimate and should all be taken with consideration and prayerful intention.

If you would like to establish automatic deposit to Hope church from your checking account, please email finances@extremehope.org or call 595-8490, ext 344.

Our Commitment

Our desire is that our community would live right with one another and the world in all areas, including money. To that end we covenant with one another:
   •    To not consume all we have (with money and all things)
   •    To give our money to the efforts of God.
   •    To join our resources together in the efforts of Hope Church
   •    To use 10% as the norm for our giving