The Wall Street Journal by Shelly Banjo
(excerpts): Roseville, CA - Residential and commercial real estate
owners aren't the only ones losing their properties to foreclosure. The
past few years have seen a rapid acceleration in the number of churches
losing their sanctuaries because they can't pay the mortgage. Just as
homeowners borrowed too much or built too big during boom times, many
churches did the same and are now struggling as their congregations
shrink and collections fall, owing to rising unemployment and a weak
economy. Since 2008, nearly 200 religious facilities have been
foreclosed on by banks, up from eight during the previous two years, and
virtually none in the decade before that, according to real estate
services firm CoStar Group, Inc. Analysts and bankers say hundreds of
additional churches face financial struggles so severe they could face
foreclosure or bankruptcy in the near future.
Commentary:
I can tell you of a certainty that, according to the scriptures, it was
never God's will for the Godly to borrow from the ungodly and pay usury
(interest). The Bible says, "The rich rules over the poor; the borrower is servant to the lender" Proverbs 22:7. God doesn't enslave His people to the ungodly. The Word of God also teaches God's people not to charge usury, "Take no usury of him, or increase, but fear God so your brother can live among you" Leviticus 25:36. We see many ministers today putting the evangelistic message on
the "back burner," as they beg for money and use all sorts of gimmicks
to increase tithes and offerings - a shame and reproach on the name of
Christ. Not only are ministers doing this for money, but they believe
they are doing God a service by using their own ideas and concocted
gimmicks to "win souls." Souls that are 'enticed' to Christ by worldly
things have no sound foundation for their faith and God doesn't work
through those ways and means. Unless the builder is God and the
foundation sure, the house will not stand (Matthew 7:24-26).
I
know of a national evangelist who demonstrates a perfect example of
building God's house on a "solid foundation." Perry Stone began his
evangelistic ministry in the Church of God when he was only 17 years
old. Early in his ministry, he made a promise to God
. He told the Lord he would never go into debt to do God's work, and
he would never beg for money to build up the ministry, but he would rely
on God to provide what was needed in advance;
after all, the work is God's work. To this day, he runs a very
successful worldwide evangelistic ministry; he has a weekly television
program, "Manna Fest;" and he travels throughout the world preaching the
gospel. Perry Stone pays for his television programming expenses one year in advance; he doesn't pay interest to the ungodly and he never begs for money or support. Success story - because God is the builder and founder of his ministry!
If God doesn't provide the resources needed for a ministry, did God really inspire it? There is an old saying (speaking of preachers),
"Some were called (by God), some were sent (by religious
organizations), and some just packed up and went." When you see a
church close the doors you have to know one of two things has happened,
either the church was initiated by man, not God, or the people fell away
from God, into sin, and they suffered loss. Right now, there is a
great falling away of many people, as foretold in the Bible, "Let
no man deceive you by any means, for that day (the return of the Lord)
will not come until there is a falling away first, and that man of sin
is revealed, the son of perdition (Antichrist)" 2 Thessalonians 2:3.
We
see ministers today "squeezing" anyone and everyone they can to get
money for "God's work." If you are supporting a minister who begs for
money, you need to ask the Lord to provide you a real man of God for
leadership. God has nothing to do with begging, "I
have been young, and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous
forsaken or God's children out begging for bread" Psalms 37:25.
This is an absolute truth across the board. If God ordains a ministry,
or a minister, or any kind of work, God will provide for it; if He
doesn't, you might as well relinquish the cause, because God had nothing
to do with it in the first place. There is absolutely no excuse for a minister to declare, "If you
don't give this or that, God's work is going to fail..." These are the
worst kinds of lies, because the name and cause of God Almighty are
being used for man's ideas, man's projects, and man's purposes. God
does not forsake His work or fail to provide when He inspired the work.
God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7); He never intended for His children to give because they were squeezed.
A
minister asked me one time if I would use my home for collateral to
purchase a church for the congregation. I politely refused, because I
didn't believe God was in the matter. I believe the preacher meant
well, but the church was very small, and struggling at that. I
suggested to him that we have services in our homes and wait for God's
direction. The Apostles had services in the homes and they were not
confined to five songs, an offering, announcements and a 45-minute
sermon. In fact, this type of schedule, schedules the move of the Holy
Ghost right out of the churches. A recent Pew Research survey shows
that 9% of American protestants attend only home churches, and there is
more growth in that area now than in organized churches. The facts show
that more people than ever are also leaving organized churches and
congregating in homes because they want more of the move of God, not
because they are angry or offended. At least 6 million Americans attend
house churches, according to a Nightly News NBC report by Brian
Williams. I am not putting down churches and many are blessed by God and
ordained by God; but what I am saying is that many of them today are on
the wrong path and people are leaving to seek out an intimate relationship with God.
