Why Giving & Sharing
is NOT A Church
Since I am not an
ordained elder, it would be presumptuous of me to start my own church and ask
people to send me tithes to support myself and my family. Giving & Sharing
is not a church; it is a religious service organization, serving
Sabbath-keepers around the world with literature and books, computer disks, and
correspondence. We strive to preserve
the revealed Truth of the Almighty, and fulfill the command, “Freely ye have
received, freely give,” Matthew 10:8.
Churches have a
bad reputation, which is often well-deserved.
While employed by a large Church of God organization, I personally saw
millions of dollars mismanaged (wasted, stolen), and it was enough to sicken my
stomach. Many organizations continue
to serve the hierarchy, instead of serving the brethren.
One small
Sabbath-keeping group is led by a man who has employed his son and daughter in
the Church office. In discussing with
me a job in his Church (which I declined), He said that working for the Church
was a fine way to make a living and also serve God. Is the Church then a business, or in the case of some, a family
business? Another group doesn’t serve
the brethren too well, but admitted in its annual business report that about
65% of the income went for salaries. In
the Company that I work for, if labor represented more than 35-40% of the cost
of doing business, there would be massive layoffs.
“But,” some may
say, “what about that scripture that says, ‘The laborer is worthy of his hire,’
Luke 10:7? Did not Paul say that
he had the power to forbear working, and live off the tithes, I Corinthians
9:6-9, 13-14?” Indeed, these
scriptures exist, I Timothy 5:17-18.
Paul did, at times, receive financial support from the brethren in
Macedonia, II Corinthians 11:9.
Why did the
Apostle Paul work for years as a tentmaker, supporting himself (see Acts
18:1-11)? Why didn’t Paul live off
the tithes? Paul answers: “Nevertheless we have not used this power;
but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of
Christ . . . . when
I preach the gospel, I may make the gospel of Christ without charge,
that I abuse not my power in the gospel.
For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto
all, that I might gain the more,” I Corinthians 9:12-19. See also I Thessalonians 2:4-9, and
II Thessalonians 3:6-10, in the Living Bible. In Paul’s day, as in ours, so-called
ministers of God had set such a poor example, that Paul had to counter this
financial corruption by going the opposite direction. In the First Century, the office of High Priest was bought and
sold. Then, as today, ministers liked
to obtain the best seats at Feasts (of Tabernacles), Matthew 23:6. Highly paid ministers abused the brethren,
even the widows, verse 14. Then,
as now, there were important “perks,” or special privileges, for being a
minister. Even in small groups, one man
has total control over the finances, and can use “God’s money” to build an
air-conditioned dog house, if he so desires.
Numerous
scriptures refer to “filthy lucre,” defined as “money acquired by disreputable,
or obscene, means; reward, profit.” In I Timothy
3:2-7, we are given the qualifications for an elder, or overseer. (Actually, these traits should be
exemplified by the Church membership as well.)
The elder must not be “greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a
brawler, not covetous,” verse 3.
The Amplified Bible renders this, “not a lover of money —
insatiable for wealth and ready to obtain it by questionable means.” Deacons, or those who serve, must be
likewise “not greedy of filthy lucre,” verse 8. And, Titus 1:7 repeats this warning
against elders being guilty of “filthy lucre.”
Why do you suppose the Eternal inspired this warning for the
ministry? Because the ministry has
responsibility in handling money, sometimes lots of money, and the temptation
to help themselves can be too great.
The Apostle Peter exhorted the elders to feed the flock not for a
paycheck, “not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind,” I Peter 5:2. Today, as hundreds of ministers are jumping
from one organization to another, all without missing a paycheck, these
scriptures have profound meaning. Did
they stay in their former affiliation for years, merely for constraint, only
for a paycheck, while they disagreed with the doctrines? My brother-in-law, who had pastored several
churches, indicated he had done this.
Probably there are many more like him.
What a filthy paycheck they cashed!
The mouths of false ministers “must be stopped, who subvert whole
houses, teaching things which they ought not, for filthy lucre’s sake,” Titus
1:11. I do not envy such ministers,
for they are going to answer some day for their stewardship.
One minister
publishes a very excellent book on the Passover. It costs less than $10 a copy to print and mail. Yet, he charges $21.95 a copy. He could give away free half the books, and
still make a profit! Is the Truth of
God to be merchandised? When I wrote
him to see if Giving & Sharing could distribute his book on computer disk
for, $4, and give him a royalty of $2 or more per copy, he spurned our offer,
replying that “such a penurious royalty is entirely out of the question.” I haven’t made one cent out of the books and
literature distributed through Giving & Sharing since 1978. Religion should not be a business, but a
service.
You may request a financial statement. Earl Lewis receives a small processing fee
per order, which amounts to less than $300 per month. This “labor” cost is not even minimum wage. Earl does a fine job managing the Giving
& Sharing bookstore. People have
told us that they appreciate his care in filling their orders.
Because the abuse of tithes by those guilty of filthy
lucre is so prevalent today, it is imperative that religious organizations
pare their labor costs to the bone, and give full accountability, so that those
who contribute can be sure that their tithes are not wasted on “perks.” Members are guilty before the Eternal for
not demanding a full reckoning. There
are plenty of “false apostles — spurious, counterfeits — deceitful workers,
masquerading as apostles (special messengers) of Christ, the
Messiah . . . . For
you readily and gladly bear with the foolish, since you are so smart and wise
yourselves! For you endure it if a man
[false minister] assumes control of your souls and makes slaves of you, or
devours (your substance, spends your money) and preys upon you, or is arrogant
and puts on airs, or strikes you in the face,” II Corinthians 11:13-20,
Amplified Bible. The extravagant
lifestyle practiced by many “ministers” today is contrary to Scripture. That is why Giving & Sharing is not a
Church.
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Faithful Stewards
We are to be faithful stewards of the Word of
God. “Let a man so account of us, as of
the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover it is required in stewards, that a
man be found faithful,” I Corinthians 4:1-2. Now a faithful servant has proven himself worthy of trust. You can depend upon him, put your life and
finances in his hands. In describing
the New Testament Passover ceremony, Paul said, “For I have received of the
Lord that which also I delivered unto you,” I Corinthians 11:23, and
again, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ,” verse 1. If you knew Jesus Christ when He walked the
earth, you had just as well have seen the Father, because the Savior acted and
taught exactly as the Father, John 14:9-10. Messiah was a faithful steward of the Word of
the Almighty.
Yet, we do not always faithfully pass on the Truth of
God which has been given to us. Have
you ever played the game where you whisper a story to a person next to you,
then he or she whispers it to the next person, and so on, circling through a
large group? When you finally hear the
last person repeat the story, everyone laughs, because it is no doubt
completely garbled, barely resembling the original story.
The writings of Herbert W. Armstrong are not Holy
Writ. Nevertheless, many of us have
learned a great deal of the Almighty’s Truth through Armstrong’s ministry. That is why I have put forth great effort to
painstakingly reproduce (with very minor editing for things such as spelling
and punctuation errors) the early writings of Herbert W. Armstrong. I believe many will be encouraged to follow
the Eternal through his dynamic writing.
I want to preserve this legacy for the Church of God.
There are several Churches of God today, who claim to be
the rightful successors of Armstrong’s teachings. Each one of them, to our knowledge, has major doctrinal
aberrations. Perhaps one of the most
insidious tactics is to falsely claim that they are preserving the teachings of
Herbert W. Armstrong.
One of them, Gerald Flurry’s Philadelphia Church of God,
has reprinted The United States and Britain in Prophecy. I had planned to use Mr. Flurry’s version of
this important booklet in our Early Writings book. It was said to be the 1945 public domain
version. “Every effort,” Mr. Flurry
said, “has been made to preserve this work in its original form.” The only exceptions, he claimed, were to
update outdated statistics, and to delete references to King George, replacing
them with Queen Elizabeth.
Then, a friend sent me a copy of the real 1945
edition. I quickly realized that Mr.
Flurry’s claims were totally untrue. He
made substantial changes to the 1945 edition, many of which have nothing to do
with “outdated statistics.” At best,
the Philadelphia Church of God version is only about 80% the same as the original,
public domain, 1945, 24-page, edition.
While it is commendable that the Philadelphia Church of God wanted to
preserve this booklet, they were not faithful stewards in reproducing this
book.
The more I thought about this situation, the more concerned
I became. Is this the way I have
handled the Word of God in my life?
Have I been a faithful steward of the oracles of God? This corruption of the writings of Herbert
Armstrong is only an illustration. The
First Century Church of God quickly corrupted the Gospel. Are we any better than they? Not everyone who claims to be holding fast
to the faith once delivered, is actually doing so. Unless we take the scriptures to heart, and, with the Almighty’s
Spirit, carefully preserve the true doctrines in our lives, it will not be long
before the way we formerly lived will become unrecognizable. Let us hold fast, and be faithful stewards —
trustees, curators, guardians — of the Word of God!
Three
Tithes?
If you have taken a course in mathematics or logic, you
no doubt learned very early the meaning of the word “all.” The Hebrew word, kol, or kowl,
does indeed mean ALL, the whole amount.
In Numbers 18:21, the Eternal said, “I have given the children of
Levi ALL [kol] the tenth [tithe] in Israel for an inheritance, for their
service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the
congregation.” Yet in Deuteronomy
14:22-23, we read that “Thou shalt truly tithe ALL [kol] the
increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year, And thou
shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which He shall choose to place
His name there, the tithe of thy corn, and of thy wine, and of thine oil, and
the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear
the LORD thy God always.” ALL of a tithe was given to the Levites, yet
another scripture says ALL of the tithe was to be eaten at the festivals. How can this be?
Even more, “At the end of three years thou shalt bring
forth ALL [kol] the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay
it up within thy gates: And the
Levite . . . the stranger and the fatherless, and the
widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied;
that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou
doest,” Deuteronomy 14:28-29.
ALL of this third year tithe goes to feed the poor. Does this mean that in the third year, no
tithe was available for the Feasts, and the Festivals were canceled that year?
You do not have to be a mathematics major to realize
that you cannot give ALL of the same tithe to serve three different
purposes! One man recently told me that
you just take a PART of the tithe to serve these three purposes: ministry, festivals, and the poor. He claimed that there is in reality only one
tithe, rather than three tithes. The Bible use of kol totally destroys
this argument. Can the Bible be more
clear that there are three distinct tithes, not just one?
The idea that there are three Biblical tithes is not
new, nor was it “invented” by Herbert W. Armstrong. An excellent book, The Tithe in Scripture, by Henry
Lansdell, shows Biblical evidence for the validity of three tithes. This book, now available once again as a
reprint from Giving & Sharing, was originally published in 1908!
Write to Giving & Sharing for your
free copy, if you have not already done so in the past. And remember to be careful where you invest
the Almighty’s tithes.
Are You a Friend of the Family?
Dr. James Dobson (b. 1936) has devoted his life to the
preservation of the family. His radio
program, Focus on the Family, is heard on over 2,000 stations around the
world. His many books have given
helpful advice to parents, children, teenagers, and the elderly.
Although Dr. Dobson has Protestant religious beliefs and
is somewhat ecumenical, most of his literature has a solid Biblical basis. In a culture which attacks and ridicules the
family, Dobson and his associates present an uncompromising pro-family message. Furthermore, Dobson does not hound his
supporters for money. All literature is
distributed on a “suggested donation” basis.
Dobson receives no salary from Focus on the Family; his income is
derived from his book royalties.
Focus on the Family practices a very admirable
policy: they aim to answer EVERY
letter, many of which ask for advice.
Churches of God today sometimes ignore questions and personal requests.
Dobson’s organization promotes and advertises good literature and tapes of
other groups and individuals. They know
they do not have a corner on the Truth, and bring to our attention many other
ministries doing a good work preserving the family.
While many can listen to Dobson on his daily radio show,
those too busy can catch the Weekend broadcast, which is a summary of
the five daily programs for the preceding week.
Some of Dobson’s most important books are: The New Dare to Discipline, The
Strong-Willed Child, Love Must Be Tough, Straight Talk to Men and Their Wives,
Parenting Isn’t for Cowards, Emotions: Can You Trust Them? and Preparing
for Adolescence. His 1995 book, Life
on the Edge, is dedicated to young people in the 16-26 age group, the
“critical decade,” in which so many decisions affecting their whole lives are
made. Dobson says, “Life on the Edge
is my lifework, my effort to help our next generation bridge the chasm between
adolescence and adulthood.”
Many of the books and videos distributed by Focus on the
Family are truly excellent sources of education and inspiration to people of
all ages. However, some of those who
most need this reference material cannot afford it. That is where Focus on the Family and Giving & Sharing come
together to fulfil a need. Focus on the
Family provides, at cost, the bulk of their materials to non-profit church
libraries. Giving & Sharing plans
to obtain these resources. Now, all we
need is someone to maintain this “Sharing Family Library,” which is planned to
loan, free of charge, family-oriented material from Focus on the Family and
others, to Sabbath-keepers around the world.
If you are a single parent who cannot afford Bible-based family
material, you no doubt realize the value of this proposed free service.
Are you a “Friend of the Family”? We are requesting a volunteer to work from
5-15 hours a week to mail family-oriented books, audio and video tapes, from
Focus on the Family and others. A male
or female adult, young or old, who is committed to preserving the family, will
qualify. All expenses for literature,
postage and packaging will be paid by Giving & Sharing. This volunteer will need to make at least
one trip to the Post Office per week, and pay for postage out of a local Giving
& Sharing bank account. If there is
enough interest, Sharing Family Libraries can be set up in various countries in
addition to the United States of America.
(This new area of service will be in addition to our mail order
bookstore for Bibles and religious books, Giving & Sharing, PO Box 100,
Neck City, MO 64849.) In line with the Sharing Family Library
service, we need an individual to record and duplicate Focus on the Family
radio broadcasts. We need nothing from
you except a little of your time.
Donations for postage will be accepted, but not
requested. If just one family is
helped, one teenager stays away from drugs and illicit sex, as a result of this
service, then it will be all worthwhile.
If you are willing to volunteer for the Sharing Family
Library, call Richard C. Nickels at 307-686-5191 (evenings).
I have believed that Isaiah 3:12 means that
children in end time Israel would be unruly and engage in criminal activities,
plaguing the adult population. “As for
My people,” this well-known passage states, “children are their oppressors, and
women rule over them.” While juvenile
crime may be part of the meaning of this verse, there is a modern fulfillment
that I have observed in recent news events that more likely is what the
Almighty’s Word has in mind.
I am referring to juvenile accusations of sexual abuse,
coached and aided by over-zealous social workers. You may have seen or read news reports of fantastic accusations
of sexual abuse in the city of Wenatchee, Washington. Dozens of people are now in jail. As shown on the ABC television show 20/20, children can easily be
“coached” to report sheer fantasies as true stories. Child exploitation and sexual abuse do exist. But, the paranoid atmosphere that is
sometimes generated has framed many innocent persons. The false premise is often that “children do not lie about sexual
abuse.” They can, and often do, lie,
especially when coached by evil witch hunters.
Courts should absolutely verify the validity of all testimony.
For the sordid story of what is going on in Wenatchee,
read the September 29, 1995, issue of The Wall Street Journal. In March of 1995, Pastor Robert Roberson
stood up in a public meeting and roundly criticized the public investigator’s
tactics. Five days later, police took
Mr. and Mrs. Roberson to jail, where they were kept on a million dollars bail
each. They were accused of sexual
assaults against their own 4- year old daughter and an 11-year old girl, who
has been the accuser and chief witness in most of the cases. Mr. Roberson was brutally beaten at regular
intervals, the guards having informed other prisoners of the “child molester”
in their midst.
This happened in America. Truly, as the Eternal foretold, “children are their
oppressors.” And, as the rest of the
verse goes on to say, “women rule over them.”
Now, this may refer to the increasing numbers of women political
rulers. However, in the context of the
first part of the verse, is it not an interesting coincidence, that many social
workers are women? Social workers have
almost dictatorial power to rule over, and oppress, their hapless victims, taking
away children from parents and guardians whom they deem to be “unfit.” As believers, we have little to fear from
women political rulers, per se. They
operate more or less along the same vein as their male counterparts, and are
checked and balanced by other political forces. But, on a local level, social workers filled with righteous
indignation, who have unchecked power, can devastate the families and children
they are supposed to protect.
In Wenatchee, child care caseworker Paul Glassen
reported to his superiors that a girl who had just accused her foster father of
sexual crimes, came in, disturbed, to confide that she had “told the police a
lot of lies about Dad.” Glassen was fired for alleged “misconduct,” and his own
name suddenly began cropping up on the list of those identified as participants
in sex rings. Wisely, Mr. Glassen and
family promptly fled to Canada.
Truly, truly, Isaiah 3:12 is being fulfilled
today. Children would never be our
oppressors if it weren’t for adults manipulating and abetting them. May the Messiah come back soon to punish the
real evil doers, and execute judgment and justice!
A reader wrote, telling us of his ouster from a
Sabbath-keeping Church of God over his stand against divorce and
remarriage. He says, “Along with the
Sabbath, I have reason to believe that since 1974 there has also arisen a
conspiracy to destroy marriage in the Churches of God. I find few wish to address these issues as
they are considered too divisive and controversial.”
Very few wish to seriously investigate what the Bible
says about divorce and remarriage, and issues relating to the family. For those rare individuals, we have
reprinted our series of articles on Marriage in a new, 92-page edition of Biblical
Marriage and Family. It
contains a new article, Biblical Childrearing. Order your FREE copy, today!
—
written by Richard C. Nickels
Giving
& Sharing, PO Box 100, Neck City, MO
64849