Can a person withdraw his gift to the church?
Question:
Hello Brother Jeffrey,
I trust you have been doing well lately. I want to express my appreciation of your unwavering commitment to the work of God, and all the scriptural answers you've provided to solve challenges confronting the Christian faith.
During our weekly Bible studies, we happened to talk about the brethren's contributions to the work of God. The teacher stated that "there are some people who, after they have decided to give a gift to let's say the church, will want to withdraw that gift if the church is not using it the he expected it to be used."
Then a question arose: Should a brother give for collection and the church is mismanaging her treasury, should he stop giving to the Lord until the church corrects herself? Or should he continue to give? We could not be on the same page because some agreed to withdraw from giving an offering while others said no because it is given unto the Lord, though it's for the saints.
Hence my concern, what is your insight on this?
Thank you.
Answer:
Ananias and Sapphira had a piece of land that they sold and then gave a portion of the portion of the money to the church. The problem is that they claimed that what they gave was the full amount that they had received for the land. They wanted to give the impression that they had sacrificed more than they had. Peter told them, "While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God" (Acts 5:4).
Peter's point is that they could have left the land unsold and it would have been perfectly fine. No one was requiring them to sell their land. Even after they sold the land, they could have kept the money or give a portion of it to the church. Again, such would not be a sin. However, once they gave the money to the church it was no longer under their control. To tell the church that they gave the entire proceeds from the sale was a lie, not to just the church but to God.
Thus, when a person gives to the church, what is given no longer belongs to him. He cannot ask for it back as if he had deposited money at a bank. If he thinks the church is not using its funds appropriately, the first task is to attempt to get the brethren to follow God's teachings. If it remains a problem, he can choose not to give additional funds. The money is his until he decides to give it to the Lord.
Response:
Thank you very much for your response. I remain grateful as always for your attention.
