Tim and Laurie Thornton's Podcast

photo: Stellar Propeller Studio

In our Sunday gathering where we are working through the book of Acts. We are taking our time with the devotions and the ground-breaking generosity in Acts 2 so we can better understand giving from the bible and how to engage it as worship.

I am trying to discover the format to share these teachings with you. This one has the full audio recording but is briefer in writing, somewhere between the transcript format of Representative Rulership and the super-distilled short post format of  7 Results of Giving in the Bible. I would really love to hear which you find most useful if you have a moment to tell me via email, twitter, or Facebook. 

Today we are going to look at the pattern we see in the bible with the tithe, which means the tenth or 10%, and how that might inform us as we set ourselves about a disciplined regular generosity.

But first we have to have clarity about a bigger concept that will apply to a lot more than finances, and this is it:

For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. Eph 2:8

But whatever things were gain to me, those things I have counted as loss for the sake of Christ. More than that, I count all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ, and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that I may attain to the resurrection from the dead. – Phil 3:7-11

Both of these scriptures make it very clear that when we talk about behaviors, disciplines, and walking in the way of the kingdom, we are never talking about doing something to gain righteousness by our own works. We are talking about how we live out the gift of God which is righteousness that is through faith, from God.

Striving in the flesh doesn’t have a view of the good news; it makes the action a way to achieve righteousness. Discipline is a worshipful response to all that Jesus has done for us.

Now let’s talk about how to engage a discipline of generosity that will be life-giving to us.

We need to reclaim Christian action.

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead. – James 2:17 NIV

“For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me.” – 1 Cor 15:9-10 

Godly discipline labors according to grace. There is a holy striving according to the Spirit.

There is a fellowship with God that we enjoy when we choose to engage discipline by the power of God.

Discipline responds to and lives out the gospel and the way of Jesus, because it is Jesus in us, outworking the fruits of the Spirit. One of them is self-control.

We have to get over the idea that engaging a discipline–making a choice to do something that we may not always want to do–is religiosity or dead works.

We have to realize that God’s actually going to work self-control and self-discipline in us when He’s present with us.

For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. – 2 Timothy 1:7

“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” What is the Kingdom of God? The Lord’s prayer may shed light on this. “Your Kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” The Kingdom of God comes when we do God’s will.

The Lord’s prayer draws a vital connection between faith and action. “Your kingdom come” is our faith, “your will be done” is our action.

Jesus confirmed that those who do the will of God are his family:

“Who is My mother and who are My brothers?” And stretching out His hand toward His disciples, He said, “Behold My mother and My brothers! “For whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven, he is My brother and sister and mother.” – Matthew 12:49-50

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. – Matthew 7:24 NIV

No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. – Hebrews 12:11

His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, through the true knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence…Now for this very reason also, applying all diligence, in your faith supply moral excellence, and in your moral excellence, knowledge, and in your knowledge, self-control, and in your self-control, perseverance, and in your perseverance, godliness, and in your godliness, brotherly kindness, and in your brotherly kindness, love. – 2 Peter 1

Discipline does not give us righteousness, but brings forth the harvest of righteousness in our lives.

We often say to our children, “Are you going to discipline yourself or do you need me to discipline you?”

We discipline so our kids now so they will ultimately have self-discipline. In walking out a mature kingdom life we all ought to have certain disciplines that we willingly take on, enjoying the fruit of them.

When Christ comes he ups the ante. Do not murder becomes don’t hate.

If God is dwelling in us, not only are we going to do the letter of the law, but we will keep the spirit of the law because God is within us doing it.

Do not commit adultery becomes do not look at a woman lustfully.

Do we think that the kingdom come will have less generosity than the old covenant?

While both the New and Old Testaments have many of offerings and commands to give generously, under the New Covenant our practice of generosity is much more demanding.

“The tithe simply is not a sufficiently radical concept to embody the carefree unconcern for possessions that marks life in the Kingdom of God. …Perhaps the tithe can be a beginning way to acknowledge God as the owner of all things, but it is only a beginning and not an ending.”

Richard Foster, Freedom of Simplicity

There are various sobering words in the new testament about how the love of money money fights for the allegiance of our heart.

“The love of money is the root of all sorts of evil.” – 1 Timothy 6:10

“but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.”  – Mark 4:19 NIV

…for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. “But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth. Matthew 6:21-24

The eye is what we look toward; What’s our vision? What holds our hope? Whatever it is, it will fill our whole body. If we hope in wealth it will deceive us. If our vision is to look to God and serve him, and not a lesser master, then our whole bodies will be full of light.

‘Now when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very corners of your field, nor shall you gather the gleanings of your harvest. ‘Nor shall you glean your vineyard, nor shall you gather the fallen fruit of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the needy and for the stranger. I am the LORD your God. – Leviticus 19:19

Do we spend all the way to the end of our provision? Or do we leave some around the edges for the stranger? What if we budgeted for groceries to always have a little extra food for whomever who drops by?

Why does God command this? The phrase that follows is “I am the Lord your God.”

If your hope is in your harvest then it will become your god. By giving we remind ourselves who our God is.

Generosity can be a way that we express who our God is when our hearts are there; but when our hearts aren’t there the discipline of generosity can restore us to the good news that God is the one who gives seed to the sower and bread for food.

So disciplined giving will keep our heart and vision in check.

We are not under the law but under grace (Romans 6:14), but as it says in Romans “whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction” so let’s look at the larger pattern of the tithe as found in the Old Testament (both before and in the Law of Moses) and draw some connections to the New Testament and our lives as we consider how to engage a New Covenant discipline of generosity.

Abram wins a battle and has all kinds of plunder. Melchizedek blessed Abraham then he reminded him who his source is:

“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,

Abe did business with the King, and refused to keep the rest of the plunder so the king of Sodom wouldn’t be able to say that he made Abram rich. Then God came to him.

“Do not be afraid, Abram.

But Abram said, “Sovereign Lord, what can you give me since I remain childless and the one who will inherit my estate is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “You have given me no children; so a servant in my household will be my heir.”

Then the word of the Lord came to him: “This man will not be your heir, but a son who is your own flesh and blood will be your heir.” He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”

Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. – Genesis 14, selected

When we tithe and choose not to let money rule us, we’re creating a place where God can orchestrate provision on our behalf better than we can orchestrate it for ourselves.

Abraham, the father of faith, tithed to Melchizedek. In Hebrews 7 we see that Melchizedech is a picture of Christ and the writer explains that Christ is greater than the priesthood of Levi, and that in Abraham, the Levites tithed to Melchizedech. The writer of Hebrews places the whole tithing system under Christ.

Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me and will keep me on this journey that I take, and will give me food to eat and garments to wear, and I return to my father’s house in safety, then the LORD will be my God. “This stone, which I have set up as a pillar, will be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.” Gen 28:20

Jacob pledged generosity out of his worship after his encounter with God. He had expectations for God to provide for him and pledged to rule his provision a certain way based on that belief.

There are different tithes with different instructions: Do the tithes total 10% or 30% ? Are First fruits the same as tithes, or are they distinct from tithes? It’s good we’re not under the law because we could likely not figure out how to do it. We can definitely say this:

Generosity is a big value for God. Rather than figuring out the whole system or getting under all the blessings and curses of the Law of Moses, let’s look for the broader patterns it can reveal to us about how God wanted his people to give.

Here are a few scriptures to help illuminate the big themes, probably in order of the weight of their occurrences in the bible: Priesthood, Poor, and Pilgrimage.

“To the sons of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service which they perform, the service of the tent of meeting. Then the LORD spoke to Aaron, “Now behold, I Myself have given you charge of My offerings, even all the holy gifts of the sons of Israel I have given them to you as a portion and to your sons as a perpetual allotment. This also is yours, the offering of their gift, even all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel; I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters with you as a perpetual allotment. Everyone of your household who is clean may eat it. All the best of the fresh oil and all the best of the fresh wine and of the grain, the first fruits of those which they give to the LORD, I give them to you. The first ripe fruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to the LORD, shall be yours; everyone of your household who is clean may eat it. – Numbers 18, selected

“And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us.” – 2 Cor 8:5

Tithes and offerings must first be to God, then according to God’s will they are for people.

The Priesthood and their families ate the tithes, and many of the offerings.

You also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. – 1 Peter 2:5

The Law has been fulfilled in Christ, but the priesthood remains. It’s not an intermediary priesthood any more, because Jesus our High Priest made it so that no person stands between us and the throne of God.

Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus…let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith. – Hebrews 10, selected

To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood— and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen. – Revelation 1:5-6

He gave me the priestly duty of proclaiming the gospel of God… – Romans 15:16

Priests in the new covenant still minister to God and to the people just as the Sons of Zadok did in Deuteronomy 44 (not 14 as in the audio recording).

Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. – Romans 13:17

Honor (timē in Greek) includes the concept of value or price. There is a tangible nature to honor.

The Romans passage shows honor can be distinct from Revenue, but Jesus’s quote of Isaiah in Matthew 15 also makes it clear that honor is much more than talk.

These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. – Matthew 15:8 NIV

Paul connects honor directly to financial provision for church leaders.

The elders who rule well are to be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who work hard at preaching and teaching. For the Scripture says, “YOU SHALL NOT MUZZLE THE OX WHILE HE IS THRESHING,” and “The laborer is worthy of his wages.” – 1 Timothy 5:17

According to the New Testament we are a kingdom of priests, but the bible also commands a special portion be set aside to honor the family leaders in the church, especially those who establish the extended family of faith in the teachings of Christ.

To look at the multiple commands throughout the Old and New Testaments to take care of the orphans, widows, aliens, and strangers it seems clear that God’s priorities haven’t changed.

“When you have finished paying all the tithe of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, then you shall give it to the Levite, to the stranger, to the orphan and to the widow, that they may eat in your towns and be satisfied. Deut 26:12

Alongside provision for those who minister, God allocates a tithe provision for the needy every third year. This may be another tithe in addition to the tithe to the priesthood during that year, or a special allocation of one tithe. Either way,

Giving to the needy is such a large, recurring theme in the bible that we need to consider it when we structure of our regular disciplined giving.

“You shall surely tithe all the produce from what you sow, which comes out of the field every year. “You shall eat in the presence of the LORD your God, at the place where He chooses to establish His name, the tithe of your grain, your new wine, your oil, and the firstborn of your herd and your flock, so that you may learn to fear the LORD your God always. “If the distance is so great for you that you are not able to bring the tithe, since the place where the LORD your God chooses to set His name is too far away from you when the LORD your God blesses you, then you shall exchange it for money, and bind the money in your hand and go to the place which the LORD your God chooses. “You may spend the money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your heart desires; and there you shall eat in the presence of the LORD your God and rejoice, you and your household. “Also you shall not neglect the Levite who is in your town, for he has no portion or inheritance among you. – Deut 14:22-27

The bible encourages the use of the tithe for a lavish celebration once in a while, as long as we don’t forget the priesthood.

Celebration is a part of the structure of the whole lives of God’s people in the Old Testament. His people are not only allowed to celebrate, but are commanded to celebrate and even take a pilgrimage, to the end that families remember to fear God and to celebrate in his presence. We should probably take into consideration that this tithe is only mentioned once, but it’s certainly significant that lavish family celebration is a way to tithe that can align our hearts to God as our provider.

A regular generosity in a loving response to the gospel will help guard our hearts and our hope for the Great Reward, God himself. The bible reveals us many examples of extreme generosity and many commands to give, as well as a structure through which to begin a discipline of giving with 10%.

The Old Testament scriptures on the tithe and the New Testament mandates toward generosity reveal quite simply that God wants his people to worship Him by giving regularly to those who minister, to the care of the poor, and the prioritizing of every family’s joyful alignment to God as their abundant source.

So, as we structure regular disciplined giving into our lives, it would be a good idea to remember the Priesthood, Poor, and (less emphatically) the Pilgrimage.

There’s probably a financial reward in tithing, because there seems to be a reward for about everything in the gospel. God is such a good Father that he takes the punishment for our sin but rewards us for our obedience.

The best reason to tithe, though, is in response to the love of God, who has already given us his first fruits, his only begotten son Jesus. Jesus himself is our inheritance and has chosen us to be His inheritance! He left the Father to be united to his wife and become one flesh with us in a covenant of love and generosity.

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. – 2 Cor 8:9

God bless you as you structure a worshipful discipline of generosity for your household.

The Christian practice of generosity is about giving from the heart (not under compulsion) for the glory of God (not for recognition) and it has amazing results for the giver, the church, and the world.

In this podcast you get to listen to an informal recording of our living room church gathering where we talk about how in the New Testament we see the Christians practicing generosity.

Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

– The Apostle Paul

There are lots of ways to honor God with our giving. Whether we give to the poor, to our local church overseers, to the relief of suffering saints, to mission teams that establish new church families worldwide, or to other special ministries, here are some of the effects we can expect to see and enjoy.

1. We engage an appropriate act of worship in response to and toward God, which is joyful even in times of poverty and affliction. (2 Cor 8:5, 2 Cor 9:7)

2. We remind ourselves where our provision comes from. (2 Cor 9:10-11)

3. Our offering is remembered by God and can bring breakthrough in our lives, as well as for our families and nations (Acts 10:1-5)

4. We cultivate prosperity and position ourselves for reward. (2 Cor 9:6-8, Proverbs 11:25, Proverbs 3:9-10)

5. We knit the household of faith together as our gifts results in thanksgiving, prayer, and deepened connection both globally and locally. (2 Cor 9:12-15, 1 Tim 5:17)

6. We partner in the work of the gospel as it advances. (Phil 1:3-6, 2 Cor 11:9, Romans 15:22-25)

7. We contribute to an atmosphere of favor for those who need the truth to be able to hear it. (Acts 2:47, 1 Tim 3:15)

This teaching comes after Representative Rulership which helps giving become easier by exploring the concept of stewardship and understanding God is the giver of all good things!

Laurie and I were invited to speak to our friends at Vinelife a few weeks back so we thought we’d post their podcast episode from that morning. Look forward to hearing a dream I had for that fellowship, wonderful words from our daughter about hearing the voice of Jesus, an invitation to Worship@8500 (now over but you can read testimonies), and some encouragements about taking our place in the story of God!

Laurie and I led a breakout at Resound Conference this year and we’re pleased to offer the audio and guided meditation (a written prayer exercise) from that teaching for you here. In order to get the most from this, we suggest—especially during the interactive part—that you not engage it passively but that you actually print the guided meditation or write each of the scriptures and questions/prompts in your journal so you can fill it out with a pencil or pen. This is very important. You’ll need to set aside an hour for both the teaching and the exercise, but you may want to put on your own non-distrating music and take a little more time to pray through it. There is some good prophetic encouragement from Laurie on this recording after the exercise so if you fly solo on that part, you may want to also listen to the end.

Discover where authority and power come from in the kingdom and how they increase. Even though we all know the exhausting pressures of performance, comparison, and self­-promotion, it’s possible to be free from the need to prove our authority, strive for a place, and wish we had someone else’s position. You will leave this session with tools in hand that will help you exit the power struggle and receive godly empowerment that will make you a treasured ally in your friendships, church life, mission, and marriage.

Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. “He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ – John 7:37-38

Our surprise keynote from Resound Conference 2013. Jesus is our inheritance, and has inheritance for us. An inheritance gained too quickly will not be blessed in the end, so seek the Father and he will release your inheritance at the proper time.

If you’d like to skip the entertaining introductory portion straight to the teaching, move the slider to -1:20:10.

Technical note: It seems that a noise gate was applied to the audio to help the live sound, please excuse us for the resulting sensation that the talk is over every time we take a breath.

Tim: Your destiny is this. This is what God said when He created you. He said, “Let us make man in our image and our likeness and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth.” This is like a menu of surf and turf. It says, “God blessed them and said to them ‘be fruitful and increase in number.’”

How do you be fruitful? Be intimate.

How do you want to be fruitful for the Lord in your life? How can you do that? Be intimate.

Someone said, “There are lovers and there are workers, and lovers get more done than workers do.”

If you want to be fruitful, be intimate.

He said, “Be fruitful and increase in number, fill the earth and subdue it.” If I asked all of you in this room what your favorite memory is, I bet each one of you would have something about intimacy in it. Something about feeling so close to someone, whether it’s a lover, a parent, a grandparent, and usually it takes place in a special spot. Maybe it’s in the mountains, maybe it’s down at the lake–it’s a special place that feels like a little Eden. A lot of you are thinking about this place right now, it feels good, doesn’t it? It’s ok to go there for a second. If I asked you all what the dreams are of your heart, it would often be to go make a place like that. Why?

It’s imprinted in you to be intimate and to be fruitful, to enjoy the love and the relationship with God and with the people that he gave you. And then to establish that, to take it further. To take that overflowing love and establish places where other people can enjoy it in the earth. That’s what we were created for. Intimacy and then inheritance. And intimacy releases inheritance.

Now, you can be saved and still not live from your love relationship with the Trinity. It’s possible to do that. It’s possible to go and try to get the inheritance first and not worry so much about the intimacy, and that was the lie that our forefathers were tricked with in the Garden, that’s what we bought into–that we could have inheritance without intimacy. We’re in the Garden and the snake comes and he says, “You know, you’re so great, you have so much potential. God doesn’t want you to be like him. You can get this without Him. You can be like Him without Him.” That’s the lie.

When people started building the Tower of Babel, the Lord came and He said, “Oh no, they’re going to be able to accomplish anything. They’re building up this tower of their own kingdom and their own greatness—“

Laurie: They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city and a tower whose top will reach into Heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name.”

Tim: That’s pretty independent thinking. I can be great without Him, watch what I can do, watch what I can build for myself, I can show that I’m alright. I can be righteous on my own. It’s all a matter of trying to get inheritance without intimacy. Why did God strike it down and scatter the people? Do you think He felt threatened by the Tower? Do you think He felt threatened by their greatness? No, that’s the trick of the thing. It’s not our greatness that He’s against, but He knows that when we build something great apart from Him, we are building the size of the wall between us and our lover. And in His mercy, He has to scatter it and break it down, because He is a jealous lover, and He will not yield His glory to idols. In His mercy, He destroys the unworthy things that we hope in the most. Because it is love, because He wants us to move in the way of the Kingdom, which is that intimacy releases inheritance.

Turn your bibles to Luke 15. And while we’re going there, realize how all over the Bible this is. “Be appalled, oh Heavens, be utterly desolate. For my people have committed two sins. They’ve carved out for themselves broken cisterns that can’t hold water. They’ve forsaken the spring.” These are the two things that make Heaven appalled and desolate, because the Lord created the earth, and created you, His sons and daughters, to be fruitful, to be intimate, and to establish the Kingdom. And when we try to establish without intimacy, it makes Heaven–the most amazing, wonderful place you can imagine–appalled and desolate.

Laurie: I mean think of it. Even before the first documented sin, right? When they confirmed their doubt and mistrust by eating a fruit that we were never meant to eat. We were never meant to eat the fruit that puts us on a throne that doesn’t belong to us. We don’t have the shoulders to carry that weight. We don’t have what it takes to judge justly, to build our own thing apart from the Lord. Adam, he knew the sound of the Lord walking in the cool of the day. He was familiar with it. Because they walked all the time. It was a familiar sound to him. What we were made for is to walk with the Lord in the cool of the day, chat, talk, spend time, name some animals, play, toss a coconut around. You know? That’s what we were made for. To be His sons.

And then, out of intimacy we carry his Kingdom, we name the animals, we rule the earth and subdue it out of our intimacy. It’s like my dad–he’s so excited that he has a son because his name carries on, right? It’s a generational thing. And we are made to carry the name of our Father, and to do amazing things. Remember, Jesus says you’re going to do even greater things than these! Nothing will be impossible for you in me. Then, when we ate the fruit in the garden, we said, we’re going to be able to make our own way, make our own judgments about things, right? Go our own path, because God’s holding out on us and all the lies and false narratives of the enemy came in.

What did Jesus say his food was? To do the will and the work of His Father on the earth. That is the food we’re supposed to eat, the food of Christ himself, and Jesus was the greatest model of walking out the Kingdom on the earth in submission to the Father’s mission. Greater things will you do because of me, because you’ve eaten of my food, and my bread, and I bring life.

I think that’s just miraculous. Even in the covenant that he made with Abraham, “I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings will come forth from you. I established my covenant between me and you and your descendants after you threw out their generations for an everlasting covenant. For what purpose? To be God to you, and to your descendants after you. I will be your God, and you will be my people.”

That was the covenant: “I will be your God and you will be my people.”

And He even repeats it. In Jeremiah when there’s an echo, a prophetic echo of the new covenant, which says the same thing, “I have loved you with an everlasting love, therefore I’ve drawn you with loving kindness.” And then skipping ahead a little bit, “Behold, days are coming,” declares the Lord, “When I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. Not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant, which they broke, although I was  a husband to them, although I was there keeping my part of the covenant, being their God. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,” declares the Lord. “I will put my law within them, and on their heart, I will write it. I will be their God, and they shall be my people. They will not teach again, each man, his neighbor, and each man his brother saying ‘Know the Lord!’ for they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,” declares the Lord. They will all know me.

There’s nothing, nothing that we desire in our deepest, deepest hearts more than to know that God loves us, and He has chosen us as His own inheritance. We are the royal priesthood, set apart for His own pleasure, His own play. To establish his Kingdom on the earth.

Tim: You know what strikes me as Laurie reads those scriptures? This is not a God who is afraid of your greatness. He’s telling you where your greatness is. He’s calling you to it. Just like Laurie was saying earlier: my greatness is in Christ. He’s calling you away from establishing your own kingdom, striving for your own inheritance apart from him. He’s calling you into inheritance, He’s saying, as Jesus said, “You will do greater things than me,” He’s trying to call us into the place where our greatness can be glorious instead of destructive.

He knows we have two choices. You can build your own kingdom and you will be a slave to it. Or you can seek His Kingdom, and He will make you a king in it.

Laurie: Say that again!

Tim: You can build your own kingdom and you will become a slave to it, but if you seek His Kingdom, He will make you a king in it.

Now we’re going to read the Parable of the Lost Son in Luke 15, and I want us to pay attention to the motivations of each of the two sons and the motivations of the father. What are they trying to get? What are they after?

I’ll probably cry while we do this.

This is verse 11 of Luke 15: “There was a man who had two sons, the younger one said to his father, “Father, give me my share of the estate.” So he divided his property between them. What does this son want? —–

This is a slow pitch. His inheritance without what? Without relationship. He wants his inheritance without intimacy. He’s trying to get it early. Dad’s not even dead yet, you want it now?

“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need, so he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating. But no one gave him anything”

You know what this is the proof of? Proverbs 20:21, “An inheritance quickly gained at the beginning will not be blessed at the end.”

This is not just good financial advice, although it is that. This is probably the best advice you can ever have for how you manage your heart and live your life. Don’t try to get your inheritance too soon. All the things that you think that you want, you think that you want them more than you want intimacy with the Lord, they will break you. They will ruin you. This son ended up in a distant land, far away from anybody that he loved. He lost everything that mattered to him. And he couldn’t even get pig food to eat. No one would even give him that.

Proverbs 20:21, “An inheritance quickly gained at the beginning will not be blessed at the end.”

“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare and here I am starving to death. I will set out and go back to my father and say to him- Father, I have sinned against Heaven and against you.’ “

And this is probably the most tragic phrase in this whole story, maybe in this whole book. “I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me like one of your hired men.” And in that, he decided to give away his identity. In that, he decided to give away the way that he relates to the father. And he gave up the most important treasure of his life, his sonship. I’m no longer worthy, make me a slave.

So he got up with this ridiculous plan and went to his father.

Now let me ask you a question, let’s stop here. What does this son want now? What does he say? When it says he came to his senses, let’s find out what senses he came to. “‘How many of my father’s hired men have food to spare? And here I am starving to death.’” I don’t think this son has changed yet. I think he wants what the father can give him, he still wants inheritance without intimacy, because he gave up intimacy when he gave up sonship. He said I’m not worthy to be a son. He’s still trying to come and get what he wants without coming in love relationship with his father.

This is like what George McDonald said in Unspoken Sermons. He said, “You are not yet a child in the Kingdom. You do not care for the arms of your Father. You value only the shelter of His roof.” How many of us come to the Father for the shelter of His roof? For the food that we need because we’re starving, but not for the love of His arms? You want to walk in the way of the Kingdom? You want to walk in authority and power? You want wealth? You want influence? Let me tell you where that starts. In the arms of the Father.

Inheritance is released by intimacy. It’s released by your sonship. There is nowhere else you can get it that it will not destroy you.

Let’s keep going in Luke 15. You think this is rich already, but it’s just gonna get a lot better.

“He got up and went to his father, but while he was still a long way off, his father saw him.” Now we’re going to get to see what’s in the father’s heart. “His father saw him and was filled with compassion for him. He ran to his son, threw his arms around him, and kissed him.”

The mouth that was about to give his slave’s plan to get more inheritance without intimacy, what’s the first thing it gets? A big, wet one. The mouth that basically pronounced the father dead by saying I want my share early gets a kiss. How amazing is our Father’s heart? When you and I just come to Him saying ‘I want what I want, I just want to be powerful, I just want to be recognized, I just want to be rich, I just want to be famous, I just want my problems solved,’ what’s the Father waiting to give you and I? He’s waiting to run to us. He has a totally different agenda. What He wants is intimacy with you. What He wants is intimacy with me. It gets better.

“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against Heaven, and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ The father says nothing in regards to this ridiculous notion, this surrendered identity that says I’m going to work for you and be a slave instead of being your son.

The father says something to the servants instead, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet, bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate for this son of mine was dead and is alive again. He was lost and is found’.  So they began to celebrate.”

How many of you feel absolutely lost in your desperate search for your inheritance? How many of you feel like you put on a good face but this is actually just killing you? How many of us are lost and dead? Why are we lost and dead? We’re trying to get inheritance without intimacy. Everything we want is in the Father who has a different agenda. To celebrate together. Despite whatever plans you have made for yourself, whatever slave plans you might be operating in right now, the Father has no regard for them. He has an agenda, it goes like this: Kisses. The ring of His authority. Sandals for the feet of the son who wandered. Now they’re feet that establish the Kingdom wherever you go. A robe that covers everything you have ever done that you have to be ashamed of. Covered. You put on Christ himself when you put on the robe, you receive the Spirit who testifies of your sonship. This is the Father’s agenda. Smoked meat. Dancing. Musical instruments. These are the things our Father is all about and we would do well to have those agendas as well.

You see what happens? The Father says, “The first thing you get is this. My son is home! He’s back, he was dead, he’s been restored to me. He was lost, and now he’s found.” And then you get everything else.

This is what C.S. Lewis was talking about when he said, “Aim at Heaven, and you get earth thrown in. Aim at earth, and you will get neither.”

“Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he heard music and dancing.” That’s good dancing when you hear it from out in the field. There is some hoe-down stomping going on.

“So he called one of his servants and he asked him what was going on. ‘Your brother has come,’ he replied. ‘And your father has killed the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.’ The older brother became angry and refused to go in. So his father did what? Went out.”

You and I refuse to go into the celebration of those who are in intimacy with God, those who are enjoying intimacy first, because we don’t feel like we have gotten ours. We don’t feel like we’ve gotten what we deserved. What does the Father do? He comes for you. He is a jealous lover. He comes to where you are, to rescue you, to rescue you from your mindset.

“His father went out and pleaded with him. The father is pleading come, be intimate, come, celebrate, come, let’s be together. But he answered his father, ‘Look, all these years I’ve been slaving for you,’” And his heart is revealed. Just like the son who wandered to the foreign land, he had a plan. To build his own kingdom. To establish his own righteousness. It doesn’t matter if you do it in foreign land or if you do it right here where everything is all nice. Where you look all religious and clean. If your plan is, ‘all these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders, yet you never even gave me a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends, but when this son of yours’- he doesn’t call him his brother- ‘When this son of yours, who has squandered your property with prostitutes come home, you killed a fattened calf for him and hired a bluegrass band!”

What does the older son want? He says, “I’ve been slaving for you, I’ve never disobeyed you. And you never gave me…what?” Inheritance. Specifically he wants a young goat. Or what he’s saying is- you never even gave me a ham sandwich so I could go out here and celebrate with who? My friends. Does he want intimacy with the father? Does he want to have a feast and celebrate love and togetherness? No. He wants something to show his friends. He wants something to vindicate his self-righteousness. Now, the father’s heart is magnificent in what happens next.

What is the first thing the father tells him? What is the first thing the father says? “My son.” The father has no regard for his ridiculous plan either.

The father begins with intimacy. “My son.” He tells him who he is. This son does not know who he is! Even though he’s at home, he thinks he’s a slave. The father starts by giving him his identity, just like he gave the other son his identity back. He gives the son his identity first. What is his identity? Son. An intimate word. A family word. A word of belonging. Jesus said, ‘Slaves can’t be sure of their place in the house. But a son belongs forever.’

No matter how ridiculous your slave plan is, you belong in the Father’s House forever.

George McDonald said, in Unspoken Sermons, “Because we are the sons of God, let us become the sons of God.” Friends, because we are the sons of God, let us become the sons of God. Let us be who we are.

“My son,” the father said, “You were always with me. And everything I have is yours.” Intimacy releases inheritance. Will you take it? Will you come to the Father first? Will you come to be intimate before you’re fruitful?

“My son,” the father said, “You are always with me, and everything I have is yours, but we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours—“ See this? The father gives him back to his brother. The father does not only want to give you himself, he wants to give you back to each other. He wants to give me back to you. He wants to give you back to me. The person you have the most contention with, he wants to give you back to each other. Come in. He’s pleading. The meat was smoked over mesquite wood, the bluegrass band is hot. Come! Let’s celebrate. Come be found.

The son gets a choice. As do we. Are you willing to be found? Or do you insist on building a kingdom that you will be a slave to? Are you willing to be brought into the celebration, to become a king, to belong forever in the Father’s House? That’s what you’re entitled to. Delight yourself in the Lord. Delight yourself in the Lord. Delight yourself in the Lord…and He will give you the desires of your heart. Intimacy releases inheritance.

This ten-minute audio clip is the third of three podcasts comprising the second session (I did not manage to record the first) of some teaching I did on worship alongside Aaron Strumpel last month at Timberline Lodge, a bible school in Winter Park, CO.

On Worship-Part 3

[Originally this was posted with a broken link–fixed now. Sorry for the error and resulting repost.]

This 12-minute audio clip is the second of three podcasts comprising the second session (I did not manage to record the first) of some teaching I did on worship alongside Aaron Strumpel last month at Timberline Lodge, a bible school in Winter Park, CO.

On Worship-Part 2

Under intense pressure from all our podcast listeners (okay, just Marcus Hilterbrand) I have decided to put the smelling salts under the digital nostrils of our podcast. This 15-minute audio clip is the first of three podcasts comprising the second session (I did not manage to record the first) of some teaching I did on worship alongside Aaron Strumpel last month at Timberline Lodge, a bible school in Winter Park, CO.

Tim speaks at Origins community on 1 John 3.

Act Like Who You Are