Main Idea: Seeing your resources beyond a numbers-only perspective is an insight that only God can give.

Today we begin a new sermon series called "Money Matters." As I begin this message today I want to give you a little background on why I’m doing this series now and not in November. Last spring I asked our Minister of Administration Ross Burton to go to a conference called "The Resource Challenge" at Willowcreek Community Church in Chicago. Willowcreek has been successful at helping people manage their resources and honor God with their resources. One of the strategies that was recommended that has worked for them is to talk about money management issues in January or February of each year rather than during the time you are presenting your budget. The reason being that early in the year most people are thinking about their finances and their personal budget rather than at the end of the year. You might say, "Hello"?…"

So this year we are shifting our money management series from November to January and February. This will do two things for us: First, by our talking about this now it helps us get some perspective on what things God might want us to adjust in our personal finances. Second, after this series is over our church will offer a course for the second time called "Good Sense Budgeting" that will help people find the financial freedom they truly want and need. By helping more people find the financial freedom needed we will then be able to share our resources effectively and joyfully.

One of the great problems we have as Christians is that we are unwilling to admit the truth that money, resources, material things matter more to us than spiritual matters. That’s the bottom line and until that changes in us then we will never be able to live in the financial freedom that God desires for us. Getting to a place in our life where we see our resources from God’s perspective requires a spiritual seismic shift. I mean making this change is huge. In fact in our text for today Jesus lets us know that making this shift is something only God can do. We basically have two perspectives that compete for our focus. One is what I’ll call a "mere-math" mindset. This is a viewpoint that sees your resources from strictly a math-only point of view. It’s the viewpoint that drives all of us to make more, spend more and have more. It’s a bottom line mentality.

The other viewpoint is the perspective that doesn’t ignore the numbers or the math but sees beyond the math and the numbers to what God says and how God sees our resources. It is what I call the "beyond-the-math" perspective. A person who is a beyond-the-math person is someone who, because of their relationship with God through his Son Jesus Christ, has a loyalty far higher than mere allegiance to the numbers or the bottom line. They are people who, because of their allegiance to Jesus Christ and listen when God gives financial guidance, issues financial warnings and makes financial promises. Because of this they live beyond the math and beyond what the bottom line says.

The question we want to ask today is which viewpoint do you have? Is it a mere-math mindset, numbers-only or is it a beyond-the numbers perspective? What I want us to see today is that seeing your resources beyond a mere-math mindset is something only God can give. That’s what Jesus talks about in our text for today as he encountered a young man struggling to overcome a numbers-only vision of his resources. His point was that winning that battle was something only God can do.

In our text Jesus meets a young man who is obviously a very spiritually ambitious person. He comes to Jesus with a question about how he can secure his highest goal, which is having eternal life (v. 16). Jesus responds to him with an answer that corresponded to the young man’s ambitions. The young man is a high-achieving sort of guy so Jesus tells him that if he is going to reach his goal then keeping the commandments is a good place to start (v. 17). The young man responds that he has been successful at keeping the specific commands that Jesus mentioned but he knew there was more so he asks, "What else must I do?" (v. 20).

That question was his mistake because we should never ask Jesus a question if we don’t want an answer. Jesus answers with these words, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." (v. 21) I believe Jesus knew all along where the conversation was headed because he knew what was really blocking the man from achieving the spiritual goal of life. His response to his question drove right at the soul of the young man’s life. What the young man couldn’t see was his perspective on his resources was keeping him from being free to pursue his highest goal. This is obvious from the young man’s response in v. 22: " But when the young man heard this, he went sadly away because he had many possessions." His problem was he couldn’t see beyond the math!

As the young man walks away Jesus teaches the disciples about the dangers of seeing their resources from a numbers-only viewpoint and the advantage of seeing their resources from God’s perspective. He tells them that the danger of seeing your resources from a mere-math mindset is that it keeps you from achieving the spiritual blessings God wants us to have. He doesn’t say that "rich" people aren’t going to heaven. What he says is that it is "very hard" for a person with a numbers-only vision of their resources to enjoy ultimate spiritual blessings. This led Jesus to say that changing your perspective from a mere-math mindset is something only God can do (v. 26).

Peter asks Jesus a very important question. He hears Jesus saying that a numbers-only perspective of your resources places you at risk of missing ultimate spiritual blessings. He wonders then, "What’s left for us? If that doesn’t work, then what does?" Jesus explains to him that there is an accounting that is beyond the math and greater than the numbers. In verses 29-30 Jesus is telling Peter that there is a system at work that is beyond the math, greater than the numbers and greater than the bottom line in life. God’s perspective is beyond the math!

In this story we see the contrast between a numbers/math-only perspective on our resources and the perspective that God wants us to have that is beyond the math and the numbers. What I want us to do is take a look at these two perspectives and you ask yourself which one do you have: Are you a mere-math person or has God given you the ability to see beyond the math?

If you are a mere-math person what would be the basic principles around which you would plan the use of your resources? Well, it would look like the five basic laws of sound money management that you could get from any basic finance course or find in a book at the bookstore. It’s the kind of advice that any good banker or financial planner would give you. The first basic law of a numbers-only person is to earn all you can. It’s pretty hard to manage money if you aren’t making any. So a numbers-only view would be to do anything you can to earn all you can. If that means a move up the ladder, taking another shift, moving to another city, staying later—whatever it takes to move your income higher that is what is important because it is all about the numbers.

The second basic law has to do with spending and it basically is this: spend less than you earn. This isn’t nuclear physics. It means that if your income is going up then the only way to have more income to manage is to not only make more but also use less of what you make. The idea is that if your income is going up and you are spending less than what you create between your income and your spending is margin. Then with that margin you can apply the next two laws, which are savings and investing.

So the third basic law has to do with saving for emergencies. The goal is to capture the difference between your income and your spending. You do this for emergencies or needs out in the future. You may want to call it a contingency fund. We have a contingency fund for our church that helps us during the summer months or as our treasurer Donald Timms calls the "lean months."

The fourth basic law of good money management has to do with investing for the future. The idea here is that after you have this cushion of savings set aside, then you can start an investment fund. This fund allows your money to work for you through the magic of compounding interest. For example, our daughter Amy turned 21 on Thursday. If Amy were to take a hundred dollars a month, just $3.50 a day, and place that in an investment fund, never touching it, never adding any more than just a hundred dollars a month, then by the time she is 65 at an average of 7% interest rate, she will accumulate three hundred and fifty five thousand dollars! That is the power of compounding interest. That’s nothing more than math and it is amazing!

The fifth and final law of good financial planning is about giving for tax benefits. Now this is where, if you are a straight numbers-only person, that it makes no sense to give away what you feel is yours to keep. I mean it is a bit dumb to give away what you will not benefit from financially. It is that mentality that has led to the average person in the U.S. giving to charitable purposes around 2.5% of their income. Christians are a little better at 3.8%. So from the numbers side we are all pretty smart because if it is all about the numbers and math is math, then I need to keep what I have.

So there is the mere-math approach. It is good sound money management advice. You can take this approach and regardless of the economy you can do well because the numbers are the numbers and math is math. The question to ask, though, is this: Is your money management approach all about the numbers? Is there something beyond the math? Is there an approach to money management that is wise financially and Christ-honoring at the same time? The young man in our story couldn’t get beyond the math. The question is can you?

Jesus taught that when it comes to material resources God operates at an entirely other level, a level we’re calling beyond-the-math. This is a person who understands that God is greater than the system because he is the architect and overseer of the system. A beyond-the-math person says to God, "You’re the one who can intervene into the economic universe sovereignly whenever you so choose. And if I’m trusting You with my one and only life, and if I’m trusting You with my eternity, then, God, I can trust you with my money." I wonder how many of you really have that attitude that your loyalty to God is your bottom line. Let me show you how this plays out with these five financial basic laws that I just mentioned.

First, let’s talk about earnings if you have a beyond-the math perspective. For this person they decide to follow their calling rather than the check. We said a moment ago that a math-only mentality says that I have to earn all I can and I need the job that will let me do that. It doesn’t matter if I like it or not. I have to have more money so whatever I have to do to get there, that’s my goal. The Bible has a different mindset. The Bible is not against you being aggressive about increasing your income.

The Bible says that what matters more than your compensation is doing what God has called you to do. In our story, Jesus was calling the young man to follow him (v. 21) and he assured him there was going to be a treasure greater than his material compensation. I say to you this morning that he has no less a call to you. He has gifted you and created you and can call you to do any number of things. The joy is that when you are following your calling you are fulfilled even if your compensation isn’t optimal. If you are following your calling, then the God who is beyond the math will supernaturally intervene and bless your life for following His calling in your life. You may or may not get rich but at the end of the day you will know satisfaction and peace because you are doing what God gave you a love to do. When you keep calling ahead of compensation you are living in a beyond-the-math world where God wants you to be.

What about the law of spending? In contrast, a beyond the math person learns contentment. A numbers-only person doesn’t really bother with what they spend their money on because the goal is just make sure it’s less than what you earn so you can save and invest. But the God who is beyond the math cares about your life and cares if you have what you need. So he cares if you are worried about your needs, envious of what others have, jealous for what others possess. He desires to bring you to a place of contentment with or without a vast amount of material things. The young man in the story couldn’t get that. He couldn’t imagine being happy without having all of his stuff. Jesus was offering contentment but he wasn’t accepting it.

Jesus offers you and me the same thing. He can bring us to the place where we are not tormented by the lust for more and can say, "Enough! I have enough! I have all I need for today that will satisfy my life." There will always be something more for you to spend your money on and that only leads you to be consumed with wanting more. Jesus offers us a lifestyle that gets out of that and can say to the world’s appeal for more, "I’m free from that because I have learned to be content." That won’t happen unless you let the God beyond the math do that in your life.

So, when it comes to the law of savings, what about that? A beyond the math person trusts that God will provide. A math-only person is warned that the reason you need to save all you can is because just around the corner is some catastrophe and if you are not ready for it then you are going to be ruined. Now the scriptures, especially in the Proverbs, teach that we should save a portion of our resources. The perspective, though, is to do it not out of anxiety and fear but out of wisdom. The motivation for saving from the Scripture is out of wisdom not worry. The reason we are not to save out of worry is because we are not alone in this world!

You don’t have to set savings aside in some kind of frenzied anxiety all the time, saying, "I know some terrible thing is going to happen to me and I’m alone in the world." No, the Bible says to just pursue your calling and live with contentment so that you have margin. Set some of that aside so that you’re wise, so that you have a cushion. Don’t be all anxious about it and realize that God says, "I’m the God beyond the math. I’ll be with you in your time of need. It’s not all up to you. It’s not all up to your savings. It’s really all up to Me, the God beyond the math.

The two final laws of money management are investing and giving. A mere math person believes that the goal of investing is to get all of this money working for you so that some day you’ll cross an earnings finish line and say, "I made it!" Is that the right way to think about your investments? A beyond the math person is different in that they invest in what lasts. You see Jesus told the young man that he would have "treasures in heaven" if he released himself from his resources and followed Jesus. He told the disciples that they would have a 100% return on their investment because they were following Him. There was a beyond the math reward waiting for them for their investment of their lives in his work.

Now let me say that this passage, nor does the Bible, prohibits a Christian from investing resources on this side of eternity. It is simply teaching that your investment funds on the other side of the grave are far more important in the overall scheme of things than your investments on this side of the grave. If all you do in this life is pay attention to the investment on this side of the grave, you’ve missed the plan entirely. The God beyond the math wants you to have a little investment thing for your future but where He really wants your attention and where He really wants your best effort is to build an eternal portfolio that pays off in the spiritual world. That happens when we use our resources for the things that will really last and that is joining Him where He is working!

The single greatest divider between a mere math mindset and a beyond-the math perspective pertains to giving. A beyond the math person gives for eternal blessings. A numbers-only person knows that their giving hurts their cause. Their cause is to get the checkered flag at some economic finish line that they have set. You know what God says? There’s another cause. When you give, it doesn’t hurt that other cause; it serves a greater cause. Did you know that when you give something is transformed inside of you? Giving is an act of defiance to a math-only perspective. Giving is a rebellious, in your face, kind of response to greed and hording mentality. Something good in you happens when you give. Giving serves the cause of relieving suffering and oppression in our broken world. Giving helps the church of Jesus Christ advance in this world. I mean, really, really good things happen as you give.

The Bible says you should give regularly. You should give proportionately. You know the Bible throughout its teachings referenced ten percent, the tithe as the threshold, the beginning part, the beginning level of regular giving to the work of God in the church that you call your home. So start there and beyond there give as the Spirit prompts you. As you catch on to that and you start using your money and your giving and your whole money management God’s way, there is something so profound that happens in you. And you know what it really does? It is counterintuitive as it sounds. It sets you free. It liberates you from the tyranny and the deceptive power of money.

So, which person are you today—a mere math person or a beyond the math? There is a charming movie called "Millions" that illustrates the two different mindsets. The story is about an eight-year-old little boy named Damian Cunningham (Alex Etel) who, after his mother dies, moves to a new house with his brother and father (James Nesbitt). One day, near Christmas, he finds while playing almost a million British pounds that, unknown to Damian, was stolen and was thrown from a train. Damian believes that it was God who gave the money and seeks to give all of it away. His brother believes they should spend it. At last, his father finds out about the money. The father’s idea is as well to spend it all in one day. The reason is that at the end of the year all the British pounds will be worthless because the United Kingdom is switching from the pound to the Euro. They only have one day to spend the money. Damian’s father comes into Damian’s room the night before their big shopping trip and asks, "Do you want a story?" Damian replies, "It’s wrong." His dad asks, " Who says?" Damian says, "God!" His dad casually responds, "Yeah well…" Damian is incredulous, "Yeah, well what? Don’t you want to go to heaven?" His Dad then says, "Look around you, Damian, we’re on our own. No one is smiling down on us, Damian. No one is looking out for us. So we’re looking out for ourselves." Damian then interjects, "But Mom…" His Dad ends the discussion with these words, "Is dead. She’s dead, Damian. You’ll never see her again and neither will I. And the money is ours. We’ll take it to town tomorrow and change it and spend it. Do you hear me? All of it, because its ours." ("Millions," 2005 Twentieth Century Fox)

This year, which mindset will be yours? Does God have anything at all to do with your money? Is your perspective a mere-math-only, by the numbers, earnings, spending, saving, investing, mere math? Or does God want to move you toward a beyond the math mindset where there is real freedom? Jesus said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible." He is the God who is beyond the math!

(Portions of this message were adapted from: "Beyond the Math," a sermon by Bill Hybels and used with permission.)

Sunday, January 29, 2006

Dr. Bruce Tippit, Pastor

First Baptist Church

Jonesboro, Arkansas

btippit@fbcjonesboro.org