Category: Christian Living

Articles I have written specifically dealing with areas of Christian living.

Giving Away Your Money

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Ministry

–Winter of 1999

Giving Away Your Money

Money has been a favorite topic of conversation for Christians since the earliest days of the Church. Scripture itself gives a significant portion of its content to the subject. Money ranks near the very top of subjects most often mentioned in the Bible; only idolatry is mentioned more.

Most of us have a fairly good understanding of why the Bible has so much to say and so many warnings to give about money. We have all seen what the power and influence of money can do. We have watched as those who craved it and clutched it became so twisted and bent that their chances of being a blessing and making it to heaven are indeed as probable as a camel getting through the eye of a needle. On the other hand, we have seen the example of those who have held it loosely and given it generously to the benefit and blessing of thousands.

“Why do some people and their money part so slowly, while others give with such freedom and ease?”

The Old Testament has numerous passages that refer to God’s people giving a tithe (tenth) of their money back to God. Upon close examination, one will find that the tithe doesn’t have its origin in the law. The first in the Bible was given by Abraham 430 years before the Mosaic Law was revealed. The reason Abraham tithed was to acknowledge God’s sovereignty (Heb.7:1-10). He tithed as a testimony that God owned everything in his life. This is a practice that Jacob took up as well. Since the minimum amount mentioned in the Bible is a tithe, it would seem that if we cannot return to God this small amount we are acknowledging that the whole has not been surrendered. The giving of the smallest requirement is an outside indication of an inside spiritual condition. It is our testimony that God owns everything in our lives.

So the bottom-reason people struggle over giving is the issue of sovereignty. Does God own it all or is it mine to do with as I please? When God told his people that they did not love Him, His proof or evidence was that they had withheld the tithe from Him. At the heart of giving is the heart. Giving indicated more than anything else who is really in control of our lives.

Are there biblical guidelines for the giving of our money?

A very simple study of God’s Word will produce a number of principles that should guide our giving. The first principle is that we should give “willingly”. II Cor. 9:7 teaches us that we should give to God with a willing spirit, not reluctantly or from a sense of pressure. Cheerful giving can only stem out of a love for God and a desire to advance His cause. Gifts given from a willing spirit bring untold blessing on the giver as well as the recipient.

Another principle in giving is that we are to give “liberally” (II Cor.9:6). Our giving should be marked by generosity. Our frame and reference should not be, “How little can I give and still give.” Giving should be as generous and liberal as our means will allow.

II Cor. 8:13-14 gives us a third principle. The principle of giving sensibly. Our giving should be guided by good sense. We are not to endanger the welfare of our own family and personal responsibilities by giving beyond our means. Paul admonished the Corinthians, “not to get yourselves into trouble in order to offer relief to others.” Rather share what is fair and appropriate so that none, including yourselves, will have any lack.

Paul gives a fourth principle in II Cor. 9:5-7. The principle of giving thoughtfully. Paul lays down some excellent advice on “planned giving.” Giving should not be spasmodic and emotional. It should be well thought through. We should plan ahead for special offerings and other gifts. Making provision in advance for giving is a sure way to make giving a greater blessing for all involved, as well as a way to insure that we do have something to give. There will always be times of “special direction” from the Spirit in our giving for which we may not be prepared and for which He will provide the extra funds in ways to increase our faith. Generally though, people who make plans to give not only accomplish their plans but give far more less strain than those who do not.

A fifth principle that we rarely ever hear about is the principle of proportionate giving (Lk.12:48). If I could change our church our manuals I would change the section on giving to read, “We covenant with Christ and one another to give proportionately beginning with the tithe of our income.” Our giving should not be regulated by the tithe. The tithe ought to be the base or minimum level of our giving. Jesus said, “For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required.” Proportionate giving may well be the standard for New Testament believers. None of us has to be an accountant to know what ten percent of our income is, but each of us has to a person on his knees before God if we are to understand our obligation to give proportionately.

Proportionate to what you say? Proportionate to the accumulated wealth of our family? Proportionate to our income and the demands upon it? Proportionate to the keenness of our awareness of those who suffer and are needy? Proportionate to our understanding that our God owns all? The answer, of course, is in proportion to all of these things and any others God may enlighten us with. The widow’s mite teaches the clear lesson that giving is not measured by the amount we give but by what we have left over when we have given.

The last principle is the principle of giving sacrificially (Lk. 14:33). I remember taking an offering one time in the Philippines among rural farmers who were very poor. They had no money, but still wanted to give. So they gave their rice, eggs, chickens, goats, and pigs. Literally, taking the food from their mouths to give. God expects us to give at times until we feel it. In all reality, we have never really given, until we have felt the self-denial of a sacrificial gift.

Where do I give?

Most Christians receive an unbelievable number of financial appeals each week. They have become frustrated and confused and even angry about so many letters “asking for money.” Many requests are indeed counterfeit, but not all are promotional rubbish. Many represent fine Christian organizations with real legitimate needs.

How do you know which to support? Let me offer you four suggestions that may serve as guidelines in choosing where to send your money.

First, in all your giving make sure that you are faithful to support your local Church. Studies indicate that twenty percent of the people do eighty percent of the giving. If every member would be faithful in his giving, the local Church would have more than enough for its own ministries as well as the others it may support.

Secondly, understand that you can’t give to everything and ask God to carefully lead you in adopting a few ministries as your own. This will allow you to follow more closely the work that they do as well as get better acquainted with the workers. This gives you a feeling of being a “team member” in advancing God’s work through these particular ministries.

Third, use wisdom and discernment in choosing what you will support. Blind giving is like blind loyalty; it can be a mistake. Make sure you know what their doctrinal position is and what kind of people serve on their board and on their staff. Ask if it has as annual audit by an independent auditing firm.  Request a copy of its most recent audit or financial report if you have reason to question how funds are used. If it is not worth forthcoming, then you may have real reason to suspect something is wrong. If it is a sending agent and collects money for others, ask how much stays in the home office for administrative purposes and how much goes to the field. Our giving must be done without a lot of strings attached. However, giving is a spiritual investment for which you have a right to know how it is being spent.

Fourth, pray over every gift given and continue to hold the ministry up in prayer. Stay in contact with them and follow the results of your giving. This can be a wonderful way to see how your giving is making a difference.

Jesus made it clear that we could not serve God and money. He also told us that where our heart is that is where our treasure would be. The wonderful thing about being changed by His grace is that we can be free from the power of money and become men and women who are only stewards of what comes into our hands. This is liberating as well as exciting. We can make a difference for His kingdom in so many ways and places as we follow His guidance in our spiritual investments.

Sun-Lit Certainty or Shadowed Insecurity

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Theology

–Winter of 1998

Sun-Lit Certainty or Shadowed Insecurity?

Thanks to my friends, I’ve been on a reading binge lately. My list includes: Latimer: The Apostle to the English (thanks to Dr. Kinlaw); Anatomy of a Conversion: The Messages and Mission of John and Charles Wesley (thanks to Dr. Brown); and Lives of Eminent Methodist Ministers (thanks to Uncle Bob). Reading about the English Reformation, the birth of Methodism, and the colorful men who moved forward with its message renewed my love for and commitment to our historic holiness message.

Interestingly, though, I found a common doctrinal thread running through all of these books. The Reformers were burned at the stake for it, the Wesleys were banned from many Anglican pulpits because of it, and the Methodist preachers placed it at the very heart of the Wesleyan message. It was the doctrine of assurance – the simple fact that man can know that he is saved.

The Reformers contended that a man can know that he is justified by grace through faith in the atoning work of Jesus Christ. Samuel Wesley’s dying words to his sons John and Charles were “the witness, son, the witness; that is the proof of Christianity.” Wesley’s own heartwarming experience at Aldersgate convinced him that a man can have a clear knowledge of the salvation experience. In his sermon, “The Witness of the Spirit,” Wesley defines the testimony of the Sprit as “an inward impression on the soul, whereby the Spirit of God directly witnesses to my spirit that I am a child of God, that Jesus Christ hath loved me and given himself for me, and that all my sins are blotted out and I, even I, am reconciled to God.” Wesley, later in life, after many years of developing thought on the subject, made it clear that the objective witness of God’s Word is and must be our sure anchor. He also realized that the conscious witness of the Spirit may dim or fade in relation to a person’s mood, emotions or physical condition. However, he contended to the very end that a man can know that he is saved, and that justifying faith will bring a sweet calm to the heart, enabling the believer to rest in the arms of Jesus. Hence, historic Methodism still has at its heart the truth that “all men can know they are saved.”

On one occasion, when Wesley was visiting Bristol, the bishop of Bristol, Joseph Butler, endeavored to stop Wesley from preaching. Their dispute centered around the doctrine of assurance. The bishop contended such a doctrine was not true to the Scripture or the teachings of the church. This happened sometime in the late 1730’s. Thirteen years later, as the bishop lay dying, he approached his death without the assurance of salvation. He called for his chaplain and told him that he was afraid to die. The chaplain encouraged him with the thought that Christ is our Saviour, but the bishop plaintively asked, “How can I know that Christ is my Savior?” Some forty years later as Wesley lay dying, the words that fell from his lips were these, “The best of all is, God is with us.”

Bishop Kern notes the startling contrast between these two dying men. There is the “sun-lit certainty of Wesley’s experience and the shadowed insecurity of a bishop’s soul.” The bishop “could prove the existence of God by analogies from nature but did not know Him in the peace of an inward mystical and redeeming fellowship.”

I’m so grateful that I can sing with Wesley, “My God is reconciled; His pardoning voice I hear, He owns me for His child, I can no longer fear; With confidence I now draw nigh, and, ‘Father, Abba, Father,’ cry.” Can you sing that verse with me?

A Clear Call to Entire Sanctification

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Theology

–October of 1998

A Clear Call to Entire Sanctification

This year’s student body has been characterized by intense spiritual desire. Chapels and prayer meetings from the very beginning have been marked by God’s presence and much spiritual seeking. Rising out of this hunger after God is this oft-heard testimony, “I want to be sanctified wholly, but I’m not sure I understand it.” This beautiful honesty is welcomed and encouraged. It is also met with the willingness on the part of an upperclassman, faculty member, the school pastor or even me to serve as a mentor and counselor until that person has satisfied the deep longing of his heart.

However, the quest to be sanctified wholly and the subsequent acknowledgement of failure to understand what God does for a person in this work of grace is not limited to a freshmen class at a Bible college. The truth is that many sensitive, intelligent, and dedicated people often-express serious problems in understanding what it means to be entirely sanctified. They have traveled to revivals and camp meetings to hear sermons by holiness preachers, only to find them confusing and at times even conflicting. They have asked questions, but found their questions to be ignored or discouraged. In some cases, their confusion and perplexity have been met by the response, “Throw your questions to the wind and claim it now!” Admittedly, we don’t approach God with just our mind, but our heart will never rejoice in what our head rejects.

Holiness theologian and author, H. Ray Dunning, says that these frustrated seekers will tend to end up in one of three different categories if they do not find clear direction. The first is the category of those who have quietly accepted a second-class Christian walk and have given up obtaining this experience in their own hearts. Secondly, there will be those who were pushed into claiming an experience of grace for which God had not yet had time to prepare them; and, hence, they end up professing that which does not work and which they do not have. The third group is composed of those who notice a gap between what is promised and preached, and what is observed and experienced. The temptation for these is just to toss the whole thing out, as if there were nothing to it.

The confusion is real, but the blame can’t always be placed on the preacher or teacher. There are those who complain of not understanding this doctrine, but they have done nothing to enlighten their minds or feed their faith. They are corrupted by a spiritual laziness that wants quick, easy results without hungering and thirsting after righteousness.

On the other hand, the holiness pulpit must accept some responsibility for the deficiency of our teaching on entire sanctification. One of the traps that we who are preachers have fallen into is a presentation of entire sanctification that goes through the grid of our own personal experience rather than a Biblical, theological approach. Experience-oriented preaching that is highly personal can create unnecessary issues in the heart of an earnest seeker that have to be cleared up before progress can be made.

Another problem lies in the use of terms we use to describe this work of grace. One might well hear entire sanctification defined in any one of the following ways: “A death to self,” “a complete consecration,” “the perfection of love,” “a cleansing of the heart from the nature of sin,” “the baptism of the Holy Ghost,” “the rest of faith,” of just simply, “Christlikeness.” All of the above describe some facet of entire sanctification, but when used interchangeably can create confusion. We must seek concise and clear statements that are biblically accurate, theologically sound, and communicate with a great degree of precision what we want to say.

It might well be that our most serious problem in presenting this doctrine is that we have taken it out of its natural setting alongside the other great doctrines of the church. The doctrine of entire sanctification is indeed a wonderful and glorious truth. It is desperately needed by our world today. But so are the doctrine of grace and the doctrine of the new birth, and the doctrine of progressive sanctification. The goal of redemption is the renewal of fallen man into the image of God. The road of redemption that we must travel for this to happen begins with the new birth, continues naturally to the point of entire sanctification, and moves right along to the glorification of the body in eternity. In our attempt to stress the doctrine of entire sanctification, we have inadvertently demeaned other doctrines or made them appear secondary. This has created an unhealthy focus on the experience of entire sanctification, rather than the whole overarching life of holiness.

God, indeed, has called His people to holiness. We need not expect any other call. But those of us who take up that call must make sure that we give it with a clear, certain sound.

Clear Beliefs

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living, Culture, Education, Theology

–September of 1998

Clear Beliefs

One political analyst characterized former President George Bush as “a good man who just couldn’t decide what he believed.” This inability to articulate strongly a set of beliefs enabled the media to paint him as a “wimp” and ultimately took him down to political defeat. It is too bad that the church didn’t learn a valuable lesson from this former president. No one wants to listen to the windy babble of a man who isn’t sure what he believes, while on the other hand people are strongly attracted to the man who can state his opinions and beliefs in clear logical terms. Unfortunately the church is often plagued by leaders who pride themselves on their ability “to almost say something.” Too many leaders seek to cultivate an ambassadorial style of communication that never ruffles anyone’s feathers. Traditionally, the holiness preacher was a man who stood for and stood against some things. You didn’t see him “bellying up” to the bar of consensus and compromise to drink his fill. Convictions were not set aside for the sake of convenience. There were places he refused to go and things he refused to do. He was known and admired for his stand on the issues. Nowadays, however, it has become almost in vogue to consent to a host of general rules and biblical principles with our mouth, only to ignore them with our lives. This duplicity is not only accepted but defended as a way to operate and keep peace.

In fairness to the pulpit, it must also be said that this is a serious problem in the home as well. Parents seem to lack the courage and commitment to communicate forcefully, yet lovingly, to their own children a belief system that will not be compromised under any circumstance.

I’m not suggesting that holiness people need simply to adopt “tough” agendas so as to appear spiritual. That direction is as deceitful as it is deadly. I am saying, however, that if we truly have a belief system grounded in the Word of God it will affect the way we live and lead. Biblical principles form convictions in our lives, and those convictions will become the moral fiber of what we are. What we are and what we believe will ultimately guide and gauge all of our actions. If it doesn’t, then something is critically wrong with our Christian experience. I believe we will have to take stands on issues where the Bible draws a line. The Bible gives us moral laws, standards for ethical behavior, as well as numerous directing principles to guide our daily lives. We cannot give intellectual assent to them and move on with our lives. True holiness demands that we allow the Word of God to impact the totality of our living.

When a culture or civilization goes as far astray as ours, it becomes easy to overlook some things as “not very significant” under the circumstances. However, those insignificant issues can be, and at times are, a first line of defense and, once lost, give way to an onslaught of all other sorts of evil. Attorney David Gibbs observed that… “any church body or denomination always makes changes in lifestyle issues prior to making changes in its theological tenets.” In other words, if we change the way we live, we will necessarily change what we believe. This is a treacherous path to trod. Instead of allowing the ancient faith to stand in judgment on us, we turn and judge the ancient faith. I believe we need to take a firm stand on the desecration of the Lord’s Day, on sexual promiscuity, homosexuality, and abortion, on social sins like using drugs, drinking alcohol, smoking and gambling. We need to warn against immodesty and worldly attire. We need to sound the alarm against the immoral values that are being piped into our homes through the arts and entertainment world. We need to speak up and courageously proclaim that Christians don’t lie, cheat, steal and defraud their neighbor. This is not a time to soft-soap our words. It is not a quiet day in Zion we need, but rather it is an earthquake followed by a thunderstorm from men who will boldly and courageously proclaim “thus saith the Lord.”

I mean to imply that everybody is capitulating. Some time ago Presbyterian leader Dr. D. James Kennedy, thundered to his large congregation, “Some of you are going to leave here and violate the Lord’s Day by eating out in a restaurant.” Jim Cymbala of Brooklyn Tabernacle fame, advises live-in couples to separate and stay that way until they get married if they really want to follow the Lord and be genuine Christians. If these men will be courageous, shouldn’t we as holiness people be clearly voicing and insisting upon a high standard of moral and biblical behavior for our people?

My heart was refreshed when I heard the story of a young man who is enrolling in our college this fall. He was the manager of a large merchandising store in the Southeast. His position commanded a large five digit salary. However, after his conversion he refused to work on Sunday and accepted the consequences of being fired from the position. I also recently learned of an elderly lady in a distant state who lived most of her declining years in near poverty conditions. After her death they found a stack of checks from the state which were to help subsidize her income and make her living more comfortable. However, those checks had not been cashed because that money came from the state lottery, and she felt that the state lottery was wrong. Here is a woman who would rather live in poverty than spend one dime of money that came from the lottery.

How can we, in good conscience, call men and women to revival when we refuse to insist upon reform in both the pulpit and the pew? I believe the biblical portrait for revival always includes and demands both repentance and reform prior to any outpouring of God’s Spirit.

What a man believes is important. You will ultimately live out what you truly believe. As men and women of God within the holiness tradition, we need to start living out what we say we believe.

Thoughts on Thinking

by Mike Avery, posted in All Articles, Christian Living

–Summer of 1998

Thoughts on Thinking

“I’ve been thinking quite a bit lately… and that usually gets me into trouble.” This offhanded comment by a young man drew hearty laughter from our student body in a recent public assembly. But as the laughter abated, I began to reflect on his statement. Why should thinking be a dangerous exercise? Is there something inherently treacherous about using one’s mind?

Someone has said, “It is difficult to think; it is more difficult to think about thinking; but it is most difficult to write or talk about thinking!” Although the task may be challenging, let us consider what the Bible has to say about thinking.

First of all, God’s Word clearly indicates that man is capable of thinking; he does have a mind. This may seem like a silly point to make, yet a predominant view in many secular colleges and universities is that what appears to be reflective thinking in man is actually a sequence of voluntary nerve impulses that are following prescribed circuits traced out over time by the natural process of evolution. There is no “mind” that transcends the electrical currents dashing to and fro throughout the “gray matter” called a brain, many contemporary philosophers insist. Thus, in an evolutionary world-view, man is stripped both of his mind, and, of course, the responsibility that goes along with it, such as making moral choices. It is mildly ironic, if not humorous, for one to be in the position of arguing with tightly-knit logic that he or she does not, in fact, have a mind and is not actually thinking! But when the Bible presses the seal of “God’s image” upon mankind, inherent in that lofty bequest is the gift of a mind that is capable of real, meaningful thought.

Secondly, Holy Scripture clearly indicates that God expects His children to think. Jesus’ parable of the talents points out the fact that we are responsible to use wisely all that we have been given, be it great or small. Certainly, this includes, among other things, the diligent use of our God-given minds. Sadly, in recent years, the Christian community at large has not always been perceived as a thinking people. This is partly due to an unfair stereotype that depicts Christians as “behind the times” and “out of touch,” because of our sharp opposition to the man-centered ideologies that have embedded themselves within the moral fabric of our society. But on the other hand, there are sometimes valid reasons why stereotypes are formed in the first place; and, sadly, too many Christians have taken the position that “thinking is dangerous,” that the acquisition of knowledge is somehow antagonistic to the values and ideals of the Church, and, therefore, should be shunned. However, Biblical injunctions such as Paul’s charge to Timothy to “study to show thyself approved unto God” (2 Tim. 2:15) soundly contradict any notion that Christians should “check out their brains at the door.”

Finally, the Bible does make it clear that it is wrong thinking, not right thinking, that is dangerous. Eve was thinking when the hue of the forbidden fruit was reflected in her eyes. But she was thinking wrongly, and the results were tragic. It was a sequence of thoughts that led King David to place Uriah in harm’s way in an attempt to make murder look like an accident. But they were the twisted thoughts of a fallen man. Whatsoever things are true, honest, just, pure, lovely, praiseworthy, virtuous – think on these things, the apostle admonished (Philippians 4:8).

There is only one defense against the treacherous shoals of misguided thinking; that is for the sailor on life’s sea to continually adjust his intellectual compass in accordance with the steady beam from the lighthouse of God’s inerrant Word. In the beam of the lighthouse there is moral, ethical and intellectual safety. Apart from the constant beam, thinking can indeed be dangerous.