A young minister of the gospel once prayed a prayer that has stayed with me all these years. He asked God not to put his meal ticket in the offering basket. I had never heard it said quite like that, but it made a lot of sense. It also suggested that many pastors do not say such a prayer as they look to their church members, not God, to provide for their needs.
You join a church, and because you arrive in a nice car, which the parking lot attendants notice, the pastor considers you his cash cow. In a couple of weeks, he starts on a building project for which church members have to contribute cash. He and his assistants watch to see who gives the most so they can promote that person to a church position. They do not want to know the source of your wealth. All that interests them is that you represent their meal ticket in the offering basket.
No doubt the above scenario rings a bell with you. Does that mean you should not give to the work of God, especially if the church feeds you spiritual food? Not at all. You will not eat at Wendy’s and fail to pay for your food, would you? Or, for people who starve their local church of funds and give to an online prayer line somewhere, eat at Burger King’s and pay at McDonald’s. You have to support the local church, but it should not be a question of the pastors’ meal ticket in the offering basket.
Paul Did Not Have His Meal Ticket In The Offering Basket
This was a principle that Paul the Apostle fully understood. He worked a secular job, making tents, so he would not depend on church members for his needs. The young minister who prayed the prayer we referred to at the start also has a great secular job. Does your pastor? If not, he may be looking for his meal ticket in the offering basket.
At the end of his ministry, Paul could boast that he owed no man anything. He was not the only one in the Bible to be able to make such a boast. Can your pastor or several of the ones you know brag that way? Remember, we are to owe no man anything, except love, and Paul personified that teaching. Does your pastor?
Was Paul being arrogant in his boast? Not at all, because anytime a church blessed him, he was grateful, not because he needed it but because the gift would bless them in return. In Philippians 4:17-19, the Apostle declared: “Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. Indeed, I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God.
When you give such a gift to a church or a man of God, then, “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. This is a popular promise of God we claim without doing what comes first. I like to think of that in purely physical terms. When you are generous, whether to God or His creatures, the English and other languages describe you as open-handed.
Rogue Pastors Are Easy To Spot
Imagine what could happen when you come to God with an open hand (a generous disposition). God, with His almighty hand, shakes hands with you and leaves something behind. There is no way what God gives you is not larger than what your hand drops. That leads me to declare that you cannot outgive God. Try it in your church, but not because your pastor is looking for his meal ticket in the offering basket. You do it for the God whose hand is many times bigger than yours. Watch the blessing roll in.
First, like Eli and his sons, they pray with their eyes open. They are watching for the better-dressed members of their congregation, to whom they then send ushers to find out names. Next, they announce the names of people they wish to see after the service. At such meetings, the church’s needs are presented, after an automatic prayer, of course.
A friend of mine attended church at such a place. Fortunately for him, he is old enough to spot pastors who look for their meal ticket in the offering basket. He beat a hasty retreat. If your pastor is not like the Apostle Paul, be like my friend and look for another church to attend. Remember, whenever people blessed Paul, the purpose was not for Paul’s benefit but for the benefit of the giver. Giving will bring many multiples of blessings to you, as one of God’s promises in our lives. Read about it in Luke 6.38.
There Is Greater Danger
Whenever God sends someone somewhere, the provision they will need is already in place. That is not to say they see it and know where it is, but the pro comes before the vision, always. This is why it is called pro-vision. If your pastor does not have God’s provision in his life, perhaps he did not have a vision to start a ministry. It is possible he gave himself the assignment and that God did not call him.
I understand that in some countries, your people, after failing to secure a job, decide to start a church. God did not send them to start, and they would have to look for their meal ticket in the offering basket. Such ministries are dangerous since God is not there. All the people that God called in the Bible, He also provided for. If your religious leader is always seeking money and gifts, run away. Look for a church that has God’s provision and give there.
Maranatha!
