As I was preparing for the year, the Lord laid this message on my heart, "The high cost of debt". I didn't realize months ago where we would be as a nation and as a people. How many believe that God wants you to prosper? Part of that is having the ability and the knowledge of God's wisdom in your life to be able to do just that.
Romans 13:7-8 says, "Render therefore to all there due, taxes to whom taxes, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear and honor to whom honor. Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law".
Father, we thank you for this word and we thank you for your presence in this place and for your joy. Lord, we ask now that you would increase and that we would decrease. Let this word strongly impact our lives that we would be free. In the mighty name of Jesus, amen.
Owe no man anything except to love one another. That is the duty of all men, not only the command of the Lord but the great privilege to care for people. The truth is that there are so many wonderful people in this world to care for and to love. Even the ones that are very unlovely, if you will love them they will change. That is a powerful thing.
In dealing with debt God's desire is for us to live a prosperous and abundant life. Jesus said, "I came that you would have life and that you would have it more abundantly". This deals with every area including our finances. We need to understand that and as believers we need to be secure in this. Especially in the economy that we live in and in the end times because people get worked up over money more than anything. God has called us to be secure and he has given us the ability to live abundantly. The only debt that we are to owe one another is the love, honor and respect that each one deserves.
Borrowing and debt has become a way of life in this country. It has become the norm and it is not the biblical norm. Personal debt has caused many people to live with anxiety. Many are suffering from depression and have a great deal of worry because of financial situations. As a matter of fact most of the marital problems in this country trace back to the struggles people are having financially. People make poor financial decisions that leads them into debt and to blame one another and get frustrated and then they begin to live in a hardship that God never desired for them to live in.
Many Christians are struggling just as much as the world is because we are not practicing Biblical economics. My desire as your pastor and I believe it is God's will, that each of us would live in the fullness of all that God has. We believe God's word. Proverbs 13:22 says, "A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous". We amen this but we are not doing things God's way. We're expecting Biblical results without doing things in a Biblical manner. You cannot leave an inheritance to your children's children if you are spending all the money that you have and are getting yourself in debt by spending money you don't have.
Today in America we are over 11 trillion dollars in debt. If you go to the debt clock on the internet it will tell you by the second how much this nation is going into debt and how much each person owes. Because we are 11 trillion in debt and have 320 million people in this nation, every man, woman and child in America right now owes $36,819.47. The average family owes $154, 000. Fifty percent of Americans owe between $3000 and $8000 in credit card debt and many owe quite a bit more. So what is debt? It is spending tomorrow's money today. We could talk about bankruptcy and all those other things but what we need to understand is that God desires his people to live free; not only free from sin but free in every area of life.
Debt has cost us far more than money; it has cost many people their integrity and their families. Debt is one of the devil's greatest devices that the Bible tells us to not be ignorant of. Debt gets many people in trouble. A key step to living debt free is to consider our ways. Haggai 1:5-7 says, "Now therefore thus says the Lord of Hosts, consider your ways. You have sown much and bring in little; you eat but do not have enough; you drink but you are not filled with drink; you clothe yourselves but no one is warm. He who earns wages earns wages to put them into a bag with holes. Thus says the Lord of Hosts, consider your ways".
Americans are some of the most hard working and most productive people in all the world. I want you to think about this, China has 1 billion people: America has 320 million people. Their nation is thousands of years older than our nation which is only 250 years old; yet in 250 years America has built the most prosperous nation in the history of the world with fewer people than most sophisticated nations in all of the world. We are a hard working, innovative people but a great many of us still feel empty. Even in all our prosperity we are in greater debt than we've ever been in all our years.
First of all we must understand that that emptiness is a spiritual condition that only God can satisfy. He made the way to be satisfied through Jesus Christ, his son. How many are thankful that you have Jesus living on the inside and you understand that as long as you have him you have everything you need? Secondly, many people are living a lifestyle they can't afford. They make money but they have holes in their pockets. Those with much are now living a life of less than enough because they owe more than they have coming in. The enemy is stealing our wealth through debt. Wealth is more than money; wealth is peace and security and in having enough; being free to live your life in the power that God has given you, the freedom that he has given through the spirit and knowing that you are content with what you have.
Because of debt many people are possession rich but are wealth poor; they have no peace. Calvin Coolidge said "There is no dignity so impressive and no independence quite so important as living within your means". Many are in debt because we overestimate the importance of money. Proverbs 22:1 says, "A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, loving favor rather than silver or gold". We must keep our eye on what is important; we've got to keep our eye on Jesus and what God has planned for our life. There is a difference between borrowing and debt. Most of us will have borrowed for major items like a house or a car. They are debt in the truest sense but you have borrowed with the ability to pay back within the means of a monthly budget.
Debt is presuming upon tomorrow and it is extending yourself beyond your ability to pay. I've heard many Christians say this, "I believe God wants me to have it now and although I don't have the money now, he will make sure I have it so I'm just going to go do it. How many know that's not the word of God? It is extending yourself beyond the ability to pay or when your budget is stretched by just 1% it snaps and it breaks. We need to realize that $100 a month above your budget over 10 years will amount to $30,000 in debt at 15% interest. That's incredible, just living $100 a month beyond your means. How many are thankful that Jesus is more than enough? Proverbs 17:18 says, "A man devoid of understanding shakes hands in a pledge and becomes surety for his friend". Surety means you have taken an obligation to pay without a specific way to pay it. How many know that if you buy something you have to have the money? This subscribes with the banks of America and what America has been doing over the last several years and that's why this nation is in the situation it is right now. This leads many people to default. Psalms 37:21 says, "The wicked borrows and does not repay but the righteous shows mercy and gives". If you've made a pledge or an agreement you need to pay it back.
I am not the greatest economist in the world. People ask Pastor's questions sometimes like we understand everything. Someone asked me the other day, "Pastor, do you really believe America can get out of the situation its in by spending money that it doesn't have?" No, we need to understand that we just need to go to the word of God to see what we're doing. I sat with a dear brother a while back who through no fault of his own had found himself in a very tight financial place and went to the banks to make arrangements so that he could still pay his debt. They looked at him and said, "You need to file for bankruptcy as it's going to be the best way". That godly man sat across from the banker and said, "Sir, I want to pay back every penny that I have ever borrowed. I believe that if I were to file for bankruptcy then that would be stealing from you. I want to pay it back because my God said that I should make sure that I pay every debt and I intend to repay". I really believe that God is going to bless this man for his stand. God will make a way.
Debt is not promoted in scripture but faith is. God tells us that if we can be trusted with the less important issue of money then we can be trusted with the riches of heaven. You and I need to understand that the wealth that God has entrusted to you and I is really the testing ground to see if you can be a steward of what God has given so he can trust you with spiritual things. The money God has given to my family, God is asking what can we do with it? I believe that if we do it right then he'll say, "I'll bless you to the point that you can bring in many souls which is far more important to me than your bank account. It is far more important to be trusted with other lives. If you can be trusted with the money then I can trust you with things that are even more precious than silver or gold". It's a test.
Luke 16:10-12 says, "He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much, Therefore, if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon who will commit to your trust the true riches? If you have not been faithful in what is another man's who will give you what is your own? Think about that. God says in his word, "I want to be able to trust you first of all with something that doesn't mean a whole lot, money". God says, "If I can trust you with that then I know I can trust you with the things that are precious. If you have debt that belongs to another man then God says I want to be able to trust that you're going to pay that back as well".
One of the high costs of debt is that you become servant to the lender. Proverbs 22:7 says, "The rich rules over the poor and the borrower is servant to the lender". In the first church I was senior pastor, there was a family whose last name was Lender. When I read that verse they loved that. A borrower is always in the position of servant-hood. If the enemy cannot get us bound up in sin he will love to get us bound up in debt. Why? Because your freedom is impaired and your loyalty is divided. You are not free to do all God has for you because now you are in a place of servant-hood to something other than God. Luke 16:13 says, "No servant can serve two masters for either he will hate the one and love the other or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon".
I remember when my oldest daughter wanted a car. I asked her what kind of car she wanted and she told me. So I told her if you buy an expensive car then all you're going to be working for and living for is that car. What do you want? Do you want to have life or do you want to have a car? You can have both but it depends on what you're getting. I preach that to my sons, they like Maserati's and Porsche's and Lamborghini's. Those are wonderful things but what do you want to live for? Live within your means. Get a job, get a descent car, one that gets you from point ?A' to point ?B' because you can't live in it and you can't take it to heaven with you. Eventually it's going to rust and fall apart.
We need to remember this, the word "serve" means to be enslaved to. Many are enslaved to Mastercard instead of the Master of their life. The former pastor of Calvary Assembly in Winter Park helped to dig that church out of a 27 million dollar building debt. He said, "Invariably we would have great need in many areas of ministry and those needs would be left undone because every Monday we would bow down to mammon and make our debt payment because that had to be served first. Debt limits our freedom because we are locked into having to pay a certain amount. Because of this debt limits our ability to decide our destiny. We have locked ourselves into one direction and into one thing and have become un-free to be mobile for God. It can be hard to make a life change to move when the Holy Spirit prompts you to move or to do what he tells you to do if you are in debt. I'm not so much talking about a house, I'm talking about other things, but that house can be included if you bought more than you needed.
It's hard to give to needs when he prompts you to give when you see someone who needs food or you see a missionary that comes through and needs help but you are unable to and not free to serve God because you have been locked into debt. As a matter of fact many people even rob God of tithes and offerings because they have committed themselves to pay someone else first and now the enemy has locked you into a spiritual cycle of lack. Debt locks you into a cycle of lack because you are always behind. God wants his people to be free and to follow his will, to be in that place where they are always living within the "enough" that God has given. He is more than enough.
Why do I believe this is so important to the church today? Because if you believe that you are living in the end times, if you believe that Jesus could come back at any moment and you and I believe that what this Bible says is going to happen in a nation, then we need to be wise and winning souls and be on good footing. It is one thing to trust God for miracles when you need them and it is another thing to be wise and not put yourself in a position to have to beg God for a miracle.
So how do you break out of debt? Number one is choose who you're going to serve. Joshua 24:15 says, "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve". You have to make a decision to serve God and do money and finances his way. We're going to start a series on doing finances God's way on Wednesday nights. Proverbs 14:23 says, "In all labor there is profit but idle chatter leads only to poverty so choose this day whom you will serve". Here's what that means, "Shut up and do it, quit talking and do it".
Secondly, learn to recognize the difference between need and want. A need is anything required to sustain life; a want is anything beyond a need. Cable television is not a need, cell phones for everybody in the house is not a need. Your fingers could use a break and so could your ear. Food is a need and remember that God promises to supply all of our needs. Phillipians 4:19 says, "And my God shall supply all your need according to his riches and glory by Christ Jesus". We must get our heart so set on that. The reason we are in lack many times is because we think we need stuff that we don't. Get the difference into your mind between a need and a want. Much of what we get into trouble over are our wants. Instant gratification is greed. Develop self-control in your life, it's a fruit of the spirit. If you have Jesus in your life and the spirit of God living inside of you then self-control should be a part of your life. Stop buying those things you don't need. You might like the NFL but you don't need to have the NFL package because it will put you in debt. You might like all these fancy things but if you save up for them you'll enjoy them a whole lot more.
Next, develop a plan and work it. In financial circles this is called something really deep, a budget. Proverbs 21:5 says, "The plans of the diligent lead to plenty but those of everyone who is hasty lead to poverty". Many people panic at the term budget. Here's all that a budget is, it is a plan to prosper. You've got to have a plan and you know the saying, "If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail". Really all a budget is, is stewardship of the resources of what God has given us. People get so upset about our America and America should learn to set a budget and live by it, then we will be a prosperous nation. As a matter of fact I would love to send that message to every congressman and to our president.
Everyone in this room, find a budget and live by what God has given you, it is enough. If all you have is a little then prove to God that you are faithful with it and you watch how he will multiply it. This is a spiritual principle, if you will do it, it will work because God is always faithful and his word doesn't fail.
Lastly is this, invest in the Kingdom of God. Proverbs 19:17 says, "He who has pity on the poor lends to God and he will pay back what he has given". The NIV says, "He who is kind to the poor lends to the Lord and he will reward him for what he has done". I want to challenge the church to refuse to be stingy with God. All around us are needs. In our nation are people who need a touch from the Lord. The thing that made this nation great was during the great depression, people who were without always made sure that they gave to one another. They may not have known where their next meal was coming from but if they had enough and their neighbor didn't, they would share what they had.
Remember our ministry to each other is more than giving each other a warm and fuzzy feeling. Helping those in need is an investment in eternity and God promises to bless now and in Heaven. I believe that this is a way better return than the stock market. Many of you thought I was going to talk about tithing but that's something you should already have settled with God. The issue is lending to the Lord. Those people whom God puts in front of you that have needs; give and watch the investment returned, people's lives will be changed. The truth is much of what is being taught in the churches today is to bless others so that you'll get blessed right back. You will but you need to understand that there are far more important things.
I want us to remember this, people are what they do, not what they say. If we trust God then we will do what we believe is best. If we believe it then we will live it because we live what we believe and God will bless. There is a high cost to debt and I don't want to be a servant to anybody but Jesus. I'm going to be a servant of all but not because I put myself there or because I got myself in trouble, but because I've decided to be a blessing according to what Jesus says, "We are to be a servant of all" in ministry not because we've put ourselves in shackles.
If you're in debt I believe that God gave you this word so that from this day on you can begin to live according to his word. God didn't say this to condemn you so you'll get beat up but it's a word so that you can be set free. If you're in debt then begin to pay it back. Begin to scale back and make a budget to start paying down your debt. Get those things in order so you can be set free. Live within your means, live within what God has given you and watch yourself prosper beyond your wildest dreams. The truth is even as a church we're getting ready to start building and I'm believing we're going to be debt free. In the end days I don't want some banker knocking on the door saying we have to leave because we can't pay it. I want to be able to reach out and set a good example in this community, seeing people come in and finding Jesus. The truth is if we will do things personally God's way then God can bless a church God's way.
