Would it be wrong to use the church’s property for a garden?
Question:
Is it OKfor a congregation to allow members to use the property to grow a garden if they are in need? One example may be a guy who is living in an apartment and has no property. Another may be a family who has a nice lawn and doesn't want to bring down their property value by putting in a garden. I said the last one was a vanity. But the response was: "So, you'd rather see them lose money on selling their house?"
I said why don't other brethren come to our home and grow a garden if you need to. I don't see how using the property as a garden is right. It is similar to using the meeting house as a place to break a common meal.
Answer:
If something is purchased with the Lord's money, then it ought to be used for the Lord's business. There are limited cases where a congregation is responsible for taking care of widows (I Timothy 5:1-16). If in that care it is deemed expedient to grow food for the widows' care, then it would be no problem. But to do so simply because someone wants to save money, which both examples come down to being, then such is not the purpose of the church.
