Stewardship

If American Christians could somehow find a way to move to practices of reasonably generous giving (e.g. tithing 10%), they could generate, over and above what they currently give, a total of another 133.4 billion a year to devote to whatever purposes and needs they would choose. What good in the world U.S. Christians could do with an additional 133.4 billion, year after year, is almost unimaginable, simply astonishing, nearly beyond comprehension. - Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money (Oxford University Press)

As we invite our alumni network to join us in mission on campus, we thought it might be helpful to provide a few financial stewardship resources and highlight those separately from the other broad discipleship areas for which we are listing resources.

Again, we all have faith in something(s) and are actively being discipled by that thing whether we are conscious of it or not. We don’t live in a vacuum such that nothing is discipling us. We can be a Christian and, without realizing it, also have our faith in something(s) else such that we are being shaped by that thing. How do we become aware of what is really shaping us in our life? One way is to think about how we spend our financial resources. What do we spend our money on? What is the narrative that informs our budgetary expenses? And should we view our money as OUR money or is it God’s money that we have been called to steward in his stead? Also, how do we think about tithing to church and giving to other ministries?

Keep this in mind, if all Christians just tithed as imagined in the quote above, then God’s Kingdom would be more clearly evident to the non-Christians we are trying to reach. One seeking Jewish friend recently said he’d believe Jesus was the messiah if there was more of a tangible difference in the world because of him in terms of sacrificial Jesus-like love and concern for others.

This first wave or resources are recommended by our InterVarsity Campus Minister, Mickey Sanchez. If you have resources on this that you’ve found helpful, please let us know as we’d like to list it here for others to benefit from as well. This list (sermons and bible studies especially) leans on Tim Keller a good bit because he has a great way of talking about this often sensitive area even to skeptics. Feel free to contact Mickey Sanchez with questions about any of these resources or if you would like some advice or coaching on financial stewardship. If you happen to be a financial planner or think you could mentor other alumni in this area, pleas let us know as well.

Website

Some Common Questions
(responses borrow from resources below)

  • Is tithing (giving 10% of income) required of Christians today?

    • While there are some differences of opinion on this within the Christian community, it’s notable that even those who argue that the tithe is not technically required (e.g. David A. Croteau in the 4 Views on Tithing book recommended below) would say sacrificial giving is part of being a Christian and strongly encourage Christians to give beyond 10%. According to Croteau, “While tithing should not be advocated as a minimum contribution based on Scripture, the affluence of our country is such that giving at least 10 percent, for the majority of Christians, would be the natural application of the principles above.”

  • Would 10% be from gross or net income?

    • As Tim Keller explains, first fruits was the idea, so likely gross. However, the sociologists in the quote at the top of the page assumed net. But don’t let numbers scare you. Start where you can and grow from there. In order to grow, and to avoid guilt, make sure you have a budget. Just as a Rule of Life can order our spiritual lives (mentioned under discipleship resources), a budget helps prayerfully and intentionally order our financial lives. If you need help with budgeting, email mickey.sanchez@intervarsity.org and he can email you some resources to help you get started.

  • If I’m unemployed or in debt, am I still biblically called to tithe the full 10%?

    • To summarize Keller’s response, No and Yes. No, not the full tithe because we need to honor our debts and give a good witness to the world. At the same time, we might still give something from what we are living on like the widow in Mark 12:14-44, though it need not be as much as she gave proportionally. It helps to start the habit and build when you area able to. For example a grad student or recent alum (without a job) could probably give $5/month. Then, when they have an income, they could easily increase since they already have the habit of giving.

  • Should the whole tithe go to the church like the whole tithe went to the temple?

    • From Keller’s The Gospel and Your Wealth sermon: “I don’t believe that…Here’s the reason why. The temple was not a local church. You didn’t have little temples on every corner. The temple was not a local body. Most people didn’t go to the temple, because it was too far away. The temple was the institutional seat of the service of God for the entire society. When you gave your money to the temple, it supported the spiritual community in the entire country, and when you gave your money to the temple, it supported the poor in the entire culture. There is no one church and no one organization or charity in your life that is parallel to that, because there is no one organization or church you can give to that would give the kind of comprehensive help to the human community that the tithe gave to the temple. There just isn’t anything like that. So to give your whole tithe to the temple simply means to give all that you should be giving to charity and ministry, but there’s no one source for you to do that anymore. If you go to Redeemer, you do not have to give your entire 10 percent (or whatever you give away) to Redeemer. You give it to Redeemer and other charities and ministries.”

  • Does giving to other things besides the church hurt the church?

    • From Keller’s The Gospel and Your Wealth sermon: “Now I’ve had people say, ‘Oh my goodness. By talking like this, aren’t you going to erode the financial support of the local church?’ No. The problem with this country, the problem with this world, is not that people don’t give enough money just to their local church. The problem is they don’t give in biblical proportions, out of biblical joy. If people were giving in this proportion, if we were all giving in this proportion, it would float all of the boats. I’m sorry. Redeemer would have all it could handle, and all of the other charities and institutions and ministries would too [corroborated by sociologists in Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money by Oxford University Press]. We’re not going to overcome the problem by saying, ‘Make sure you give it all to me.’”

Sermons & bible studies

  • Sermon: The Gospel and Your Wealth (Tim Keller)

    • [From website] Money will always reveal what you truly worship. As God’s money managers, we are called to share the money he has provided to us with those who do not have as much. However, money exercises great power over us and we are often oblivious to this power. If you feel unable to part with your wealth, meditate upon the radical generosity of Christ on the cross and he will become the treasure of your heart.

  • Sermons: Generosity Sermon Series (Tim Keller)

    • [From website] In the fall of 2012, Tim Keller led a sermon series on generosity, looking at what it means to take a holistic approach that includes being generous through service to ministries, through relationships, through hospitality, through the privileges and power we hold, and lastly, through our wealth.

  • Bible Study: Stewardship — Kingdom, Mission & Money (Tim Keller)

  • 20 Day Stewardship Devotional (Redeemer Presbyterian Church)

  • Other Generosity Sermons (Tim Keller)

Books

  • Passing the Plate: Why American Christians Don't Give Away More Money (Oxford UP)

    • Sociologists take an in depth look at Christian giving in the US and conclude that many are not giving, or are giving insubstantially, and that if all gave 10%, then our Christian witness to the world would skyrocket as we eradicate diseases, care for the vulnerable in ways that would alleviate much of the suffering in the world, AND fund our evangelistic efforts. They also analyze why we don’t give enough and suggest some steps forward. The authors include Michael Emerson, a well respected evangelical Christian whose other sociological work on race (Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America) has been widely praised and foundational for much that has followed.

    • Reuters article summarizing book

  • 1) True Riches: What Jesus Really Said About Money and Your Heart and 2) God and Money: How We Discovered True Riches at Harvard Business School (this is their first book)

    • Recent InterVarsity GCF alumni from Harvard Business School used some of their time in grad school to do a deep dive on how to steward their future potential financial resources. The result is a narrative of their journey of going from financially self-focused to gospel generosity and a book with practical advice. One of the alums, Greg Baumer is married to an NU GCF alumna, Alison Baumer (NU Marriage and Family Therapy Program). Our current InterVarsity Campus Minister, Mickey Sanchez, worked with Greg while Mickey was a Harvard Chaplain. These books receive high recommendation and contain a great list for further reading.

  • Perspectives on Tithing: Four Views

    • For those who want to take a bird’s eye look at some of the different approaches to the idea of tithing and whether it is required, this book offers a chance to hear some of main perspectives in dialogue with each other. Interestingly, even the perspective that we are not required to tithe, meaning give 10%, suggests that we should be giving more and 10% might be a good starting point.