Should an unused preacher’s home be rented out by a church?
Question:
How do you feel about a preacher's home that the preacher does not live in being rented out? The congregation also has one other home that it rents out. Is that scripturally wrong?
Answer:
The problem is a lack of authority. The Scriptures are clear that a church is to raise its funds by voluntary offerings. "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come" (I Corinthians 16:1-2). In this particular case, this was the raising of funds to help needy saints in Judea through a famine, but the church has other obligations as well, such as the support of a preacher. "Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel" (I Corinthians 9:14). No other means of raising funds by a church is found within the New Testament. Therefore, we appropriately conclude that this is the only authorized means God gave for a congregation to fund its operations.
The church is not in the rental business, nor should it be. It has more than enough work in teaching the gospel.
