Financing the Work of God

1
Financing the Work of God

• The Mountain View Vision

Royce P. Bell October 24, 1999 - Mt View, SB
2
Past - The Positives

• Large Body of Career-Secure Christians
• Locally Situated and Settled In
• Financially Stable
• Positive SB Business Environment
• Consistent Financial Reserves
• Fund Emphasis (Long-Range Outlay)
• Profound Outside Evangelism
• Literally millions spent, over there

3
Why the Past? Positives

• Emphasis on Preaching
• Strong Preacher Presence
• Go into all the world Emphasis
• Sacrificial Giving by Members (80/20 Rule)
• Strong, Consistent Oversight (since 1932!)
• Mountain View Avenue Vision
• Church Building Orientation
• Gospel Meeting Local Evangelism Vision

4
Past - The Negatives

• Stop-Gap Facilities Management
• Repair What is Broken, But
• Non-Permanent Problem-Resolution
• De-emphasized Local Needs
• Local Evangelism Inconsistently Applied
• Personal Work Program orientation
• Individual life-style evangelism not stressed
• Limited Future-Vision for SB

5
Why the Past? Negatives

• Inadequate Local Focus (esp. facility)
• Right-headed Emphasis, but Inadequate Provision
  for On-going Facility Maintenance
• Limited Swarm Vision
• Especially after 1968 (Fear-Based Reality?)
• Shifted SB Demographic (UCSB, Redlands)
• 1980-90s Declining Financial Base, Not Yet
  Resolved...

6
Recent Needs and Expenses

• Windows 20,000
• Interior Carpet 16,000
• Exterior Painting 8,500
• A/C Repairs 2,000
• Cameras/Security 1,500
• Sound System Upgrade (2 yrs) 1,200
• Auditorium Seats/Reinstall 500
• Sign 500
• Total is in Excess of 50,000 Beyond Budget

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Current Ongoing Situation

• Expenses
• Support/Salaries
• Utilities
• Insurance
• Office Expense (Incl. Copy Machine)
• Literature/Curriculum (Mostly In-house)
• Current Spending Pattern is Barely Adequate, No
  Excess to Replenish

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Solutions

• Despair, disappointment (cf. Numbers 13)
• Unscriptural Efforts, Measures?
• Or...
• Personal Sense of Local Obligation
• Attendance, exhorting one another
• Involvement / Training / Qualifying to service
• Contribution of Resources
• Time
• Talents
• Financial Ability

But, how?
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Turn Affliction/Poverty into Joy

• Now, brethren, we wish to make known to you the
  grace of God which has been given in the churches
  of Macedonia, that in a great ordeal of
  affliction their abundance of joy and their deep
  poverty overflowed in the wealth of their
  liberality
• 2 Corinthians 81-2

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Let Fellowship Exceed Ability

• For I testify that according to their ability,
  and beyond their ability they gave of their own
  accord, begging us with much entreaty for the
  favor of participation in the support of the
  saints
• 2 Corinthians 83-4
• Key Concept of their own accord

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Exceed the Expectation

• ...and this, not as we had expected, but they
  first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by
  the will of God
• 2 Corinthians 83-5
• First, Be Given to the Lord
• Then, According to His Will
• Whereever He takes us...
• For whatever purpose He desires
• Under whomever He appoints...

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Let Fellowship Match Faith

• But just as you abound in everything, in faith
  and utterance and knowledge and in all
  earnestness and in the love we inspired in you,
  see that you abound in this gracious work also.
• 2 Corinthians 87
• If You Lack or Doubt Abundance,Your Problem is
  Faith!

13
Exercise Prompted Sincerity

• I am not speaking this as a command, but as
  proving through the earnestness of others the
  sincerity of your love also. For you know the
  grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He
  was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, that
  you through His poverty might become rich.
• 2 Corinthians 88-9

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Use Integrity In Purposing

• For if the readiness is present, it is
  acceptable according to what a man has, not
  according to what he does not have. For this is
  not for the ease of others and for your
  affliction, but by way of equality
• 2 Corinthians 812-13

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Let God Provide Sufficiency

• God is able to make all grace abound to you,
  that always having all sufficiency in everything,
  you may have an abundance for every good
  deed...Now He who supplies seed to the sower and
  bread for food, will supply and multiply your
  seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your
  righteousness
• 2 Corinthians 98-10

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Let Sufficiency Dictate Liberality

• Now He who supplies seed to the sower and bread
  for food, will supply and multiply your seed for
  sowing and increase the harvest of your
  righteousness you will be enriched in everything
  for all liberality, which through us is producing
  thanksgiving to God.
• 2 Corinthians 910-11

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The Challenge of Example

• Remember 2 Corinthians 88-9, ...as proving
  through the earnestness of others the sincerity
  of your love
• Several have made a commitment of increased
  contributions
• Can youwill you do the same?
• Amount is not the point
• Attitude is the key issue...

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Paying a Vow

• The Vow is Unto God
• No defect in it (not ill-gotten or tainted)...
• Tainted by defect in nature - Leviticus 2221,
  cf. Malachi 17-9, Why not offer it to your
  governor?
• Tainted by poor attitude - 2 Corinthians 97
• Pay it...
• Ecclesiastes 54-6, cf. 2 Corinthians 810-11
• Penalty of failure is the penalty of lying to the
  Holy Spirit (Acts 51-11)