Lunenburg United Methodist Charge

Antioch UMC Williams UMC

On our walk. . . . .

October 24, 2008

Pastor’s Message –

Malachi 3:6-12

"I the Lord do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord Almighty.

"But you ask, 'How are we to return?'

"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me.

"But you ask, 'How do we rob you?'

"In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the Lord Almighty. "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land, says the Lord Almighty.

Although the Mosaic Law remained in effect for 15 centuries, from the time of Moses to the time of Christ’s death at Calvary, the people often ignored, defied, or buried it. When their spiritual life was low, their giving fell off, and when they were spiritually revived, their giving rose again. God sent prophets, such as Malachi, to warn them about their backslidings and invite them to return to Him. With their return, God promised to meet them in reconciliation.

“But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’ Will man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, ‘How do we rob you?’

In tithes and offerings.”

I want us to ask ourselves this question …and it is only between us and God…are we robbing God? …are we robbing God by failing to bring our tithes and offerings to the designated place at the designated time? …or can we feel confident that we are obeying the Lord?

God has a special place for His children to bring their tithes and offerings. In the wilderness, the Israelites brought them to the Tabernacle. Today, the designated place is the local church.

Now, what was once a voluntary custom of contributing tithes and offerings to the Lord, became a requirement under the Mosaic Law. As Christians today we give our tithes because we are under grace. And throughout the history of God’s dealing with His people, their willingness to make contributions to His work depended on their relationship with Him. If they walked in close fellowship with God, they supported His work gladly.

When they rebelled against Him, they withheld their tithes.

Christian stewardship reaches to our deepest treasures and resources. It involves our money or net income. The Gospel is not “inside stuff”; it is something to be shared. And in order for it to be shared, we must support our local church……so that our outreach ministries can continue and grow… so that we can do what God has called us to do…Make disciples for Jesus Christ!

It is the challenge of New Testament Christians—even in the 21st Century—to pay tithes of our salaries, or wages, or net income to the building and extension of God’s kingdom through our local church. Actually, the tithe is not a ceiling; it is a floor. Tithing means that—as believers—we give one-tenth of our income to the Lord. …and “Storehouse tithing” means that we give our tithe to God through the local church.
This is God’s designated storehouse!

“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”

Are we bringing God our whole tithe? There is no doubt that we are living in difficult economic times…but, ……if everyone of us would at least tithe……this church would have absolutely no financial problems…and just think of how much more effectively we could reach this community with the saving message of Christ!!! Tithing helps the church. As the church, we are commissioned by Jesus Christ to go into all the world and preach the Gospel. A tithing church will be able, not only to pay its bills, but also to expand its outreach. Yes, tithing makes good sense.

Tithing is not only a command from God, but it is also one of the opportunities He offers us as His adopted children. Tithing is good business. When we tithe, we go into business with God. He becomes our partner. Now it isn’t 50-50, or even 90-10… …because God owns everything, and we are allowed to give 10 percent back to Him. In return, God promises to pour out a blessing. We will see it in lives that are changed, in souls that are saved, in mouths that are fed, in pews that are filled.

God bless

Upcoming Events – October 25– October 31

Saturday, October 25

Williams Ladies Tea @ 1:00 PM

Antioch Tour @Antioch @ 2:00PM

Monday, October 27

Bible Study@ Antioch@7:00PM

Tuesday, October 28

Bible Study@ Audrey Smith’s @ 10:00 AM

Antioch Admin Council @ Antioch @ 7:00PM

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Prayer Meeting @ Williams @ 5:45 PM

William’s Celebration Choir practice @ Williams @ 6:30 PM

Worship Events—October 26

Service Theme: Extravagant Generosity

This week’s reading will be: Sermon Text 2 Cor 9: 6-15

Hebrew Text Lev 27: 30-33

Pianists: Leigh Anne Bacon

Nancy Turner

Antioch Council to Meet

The Antioch Administrative Council will meet on Tuesday, October 28 @ 7:00PM @ Antioch. Be part of your church. Come and take part in the decision making process

Trip to View the Dead Sea Scrolls

We are offering a trip to Raleigh to view the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Museum of Natural Resources. If you would like to take part in this entertaining and informative event please sign up on Sunday. The cost for the museum is $15 and, depending on the number going, the cost of the bus could be as little as $18 per person. The bus holds 46 and we currently have 22 signed up.

Ladies Tea at Williams

Williams Ladies tea will take place Saturday, Oct 25 at 1:00PM. This month they are baking bread to take to shut-ins in the neighborhood.

Williams Yard Sale and Stew

Williams will be holding a yard and stew sale on November 1. It will be held at the home of Tom and Willie Ann Tanner. If you would like to pre-order please contact Nancy Turner, Ida Bowen or Barbara Reese

Antioch on Tour Route

Saturday, Oct 25 Antioch will be a stop on the Lunenburg Historical tour. Visitors will be arriving at the church about 2:00PM. We are expecting 40 people to tour our historic facility.

Cookbooks are still available. The Christmas Season will soon be upon us. A great gift would be the Antioch Cookbook. If you would like to order one, please contact Earl Callis or anyone at Antioch.  They can get a copy to you for $10 each.

Sunday School is available each Sunday morning. The importance of Sunday School is that, though you may think hearing the word will suffice for you, you really need to be in attendance at Sunday School to gather all the information that you can in an open discussion classroom. Jesus’ word cannot be totally understood just by listening to a sermon. You have to interact with it and with other Christians to learn what He was saying to us. This is a life long study and you should take part. There is a class for every age so please plan on joining us to learn more about our Lord, Jesus Christ. Sunday School at Williams begins at 10:45 AM and at Antioch at 10:00 AM.

Evening Bible Study. Evening Bible study will continue on October 27 at 7:00PM. We will be reviewing the Book of Nehemiah.

Morning Bible Study. Morning Bible study will continue on October 28 at 10:00 AM at Audrey Smith’s house. We will be reviewing the Book of Nehemiah.. If you would like to join in the discussion please join us.

If you cannot reach Rev. Ed at the parsonage, you may call him on his cell phone: 252-532-0952. He can also be reached via e-mail at revedumc@yahoo.com . If you would like to receive e-mail messages from the pastor send an e-mail to him at revedumc@yahoo.com and we will add you to our list.

Remember: Tradition is the group effort to keep the unexpected from happening!

Have a Blessed Week