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April 14, 2008
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=========================== TODAY'S ARTICLE ==========================
The Lord's Take on the Subject, by Phil Ware
For many in the US, April 14 and 15 are two of the most stressful days
of the whole year. Rather than trying to weigh in with my opinion or
inject some humor on the subject, I felt it might be good just to give
us a few words from Scripture to consider.
Grace to you as you seek to honor the Lord in every area of your life!
First, from Jesus on the subject of taxes:
Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his
words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians.
"Teacher," they said, "we know that you are a man of integrity and
that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You
aren't swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they
are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay the
imperial tax to Caesar or not?"
But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, "You hypocrites, why
are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the
tax." They brought him a denarius, and he asked them, "Whose image
is this? And whose inscription?" "Caesar's," they replied. Then he
said to them, "Give back to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God
what is God's."
When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went
away
(Matthew 22:15-22 TNIV).
Again, from Jesus, this time on our need to be rich toward God:
Someone in the crowd said to him, "Teacher, tell my brother to
divide the inheritance with me."
Jesus replied, "Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between
you?" Then he said to them, "Watch out! Be on your guard against
all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of
possessions."
And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man
yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, 'What shall I
do? I have no place to store my crops.'
"Then he said, 'This is what I'll do. I will tear down my barns and
build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And
I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of grain laid up for many
years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry."'
"But God said to him, 'You fool! This very night your life will be
demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for
yourself?'
"This is how it will be with those who store up things for
themselves but are not rich toward God"
(Luke 12:13-21).
From the apostle Paul on paying taxes:
Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only
because of possible punishment but also as a matter of
conscience.This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are
God's servants, who give their full time to governing.
Give to everyone what you owe: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if
revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then
honor (Romans 13:5-7).
Now, from the apostle Paul, on the ability to handle all financial
situations because of God's presence and blessing in our lives:
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have
plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every
situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or
in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength (Philippians
4:12-13).
And in conclusion, reassurance for us all:
And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his
glory in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19).
----------------------------------------------------------------------
I'd love to get a response or two from you on my blog:
http://www.thephilfiles.com/2008/04/14/the-lords-take/
Does doing taxes make you nervous or give you heartburn?
Are there things the government spends money on that make you
uncomfortable supporting through taxes?
Would you support through financial gifts a "widows" and "paupers" and
"missionaries" fund in your church if it was fully tax deductible --
i.e., it was removed from your gross income before taxes?
---------
(c) 2008 Phil Ware <phil@heartlight.org>. All rights reserved.
RELATED LINKS:
* More than Death and Taxes
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200704/20070413_deathtaxes.html
* Today's Verse on Taxes
http://www.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/todaysverse.cgi?day=19981105
* Whose Face Do You See?
http://www.heartlight.org/wjd/matthew/1018-wjd.html
* Southern Hills Church of Christ
http://www.southernhillschurch.org
This article can be found on the web at:
http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200804/20080414_lordstake.html
=========================== FEATURED PRODUCT =========================
VELVET ELVIS: REPAINTING THE CHRISTIAN FAITH, by Rob Bell
In this provocative, hopeful book, Bell asks what the church might look
like if today's believers fully embraced "the way" of love, peace,
sharing possessions, compassion, risk, forgiveness, and harmony.
http://shopping.heartlight.org/cgi-shl/link?254
Find more great books, CDs and videos at the Heartlight store! With
each purchase you make, you're helping to support Heartlight's
ministry. Thanks SO MUCH for your help!
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