{"id":2918,"date":"2007-09-20T11:55:53","date_gmt":"2007-09-20T18:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redeeminggod.com\/?p=53"},"modified":"2015-11-20T13:28:06","modified_gmt":"2015-11-20T21:28:06","slug":"money-missions-and-ministry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redeeminggod.com\/money-missions-and-ministry\/","title":{"rendered":"Money, Missions, and Ministry"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"FBCA\u00a0pet peeve of mine has been how much churches are willing to spend on buildings, all in the name of “ministry.” <\/p>\n

I used to live in Dallas, Texas, the mega-church capital of the world. There are more mega-churches in Dallas, TX per capita, than anywhere else in the world.\u00a0One street I was driving down recently contained four mega-churches in a one-mile stretch.<\/p>\n

I don’t\u00a0mind the number of churches so much. What gets me going is how much these buildings cost.\u00a0First Baptist Church in Dallas recently spent close to $50 million to construct a new “ministry” building! They say this will help them better reach the residents and people of downtown Dallas. Truly, I hope it is money well spent, and I wish them well.<\/p>\n

But I often wonder what that $50 million could have bought in\u00a0Africa or Papua New Guinea. If they answer by saying they were trying to reach the people in Dallas, then I wonder how many meals for homeless people in Dallas that $50 million could have bought? If they answer that they were trying to build a place for people to come for education and instruction so they could better their lives and get a good meal, then I have to ask why the building has “clever accessories” (that’s their term) along with 9000 square feet of exterior glass, state-of-the-art audio-visual equipment, wi-fi hotspots, beautiful stain-glass windows, comfy couches and lounge chairs, etc., etc.<\/p>\n

Don’t misunderstand. I am not condemning mega-churches. I attend a mega-church. Many mega-churches are doing a lot of good in their communities and around the world with spreading the gospel. I just wonder if all of us (big churches and small churches alike) could be a little wiser with our money.<\/p>\n

\"Churches<\/p>\n

I wonder if First Baptist Church in Dallas\u00a0could have built their building for about $10 million less, and sent the extra $10 million overseas to plant about 2000 churches (It costs around $6000 to build a church in Africa). OR, what if they said to their donors, “This building will cost $50 million, but we need to raise $100 million so we can build churches overseas as well.”?\u00a0What would happen if a church plant, from day one, decided to give at least 50% of it’s budget to missions?<\/p>\n

The issue, of course, is “How do you define ‘missions’? By “missions” I mean anything that is helping you accomplish the mission of the church, which is to make disciples of all nations. If you can really, honestly say that you need a $50 million building to accomplish the mission God has given you in Dallas, then I say “build away!” It’s not what I would do with $50 mil, but if it is truly what you believe God has called you to do, go for it.<\/p>\n

\"FirstBut here’s what really gets me going… I read today about a church that has alerted its missionaries that after this year, the church will not be able to support them any longer. Why? Because the church needs a new auditorium and can’t do both. You can find out more about this here. <\/a>Certainly, I don’t have the whole story, and this church definitely does not answer to me for how they use their money.<\/p>\n

But one thing I know: American churches are the richest churches in the world.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Yet our primary use of the funds God has given us seems to be to construct bigger and nicer buildings for ourselves and our “ministry,” I am just not sure this is what Jesus had in mind when He said, “I will build my church.” <\/p>\n

So what does your church budget look like? What does your church raise funds for? Whose kingdom are\u00a0you building?<\/strong><\/p>\n

UPDATE: FBC Dallas recently pledged $115 million for further renovations<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2nd Update: The final cost came to $130 million<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

American churches are the richest churches in the world.<\/p>\n

But our primary use of the funds God has given us is to construct bigger and nicer buildings for ourselves and our ministry. I am just not sure this is what Jesus had in mind when He said, I will build my church. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7499,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2234],"tags":[1537,19,1460,1443,32,1538],"class_list":{"0":"post-2918","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-redeeming-church","8":"tag-church-buildings","9":"tag-discipleship","10":"tag-ministry","11":"tag-money","12":"tag-theology-church","13":"tag-tithing","14":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nMoney, Missions, and Ministry<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"First Baptist Church in Dallas spent $50 million on renovations, and then $115 million on more renovations. 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