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1 Corinthians 16 (NKJV)

Collection for the Saints

16 Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: ² On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come. ³ And when I come, whomever you approve by your letters I will send to bear your gift to Jerusalem. ⁴ But if it is fitting that I go also, they will go with me.

Personal Plans

⁵ Now I will come to you when I pass through Macedonia (for I am passing through Macedonia). ⁶ And it may be that I will remain, or even spend the winter with you, that you may send me on my journey, wherever I go. ⁷ For I do not wish to see you now on the way; but I hope to stay a while with you, if the Lord permits.

⁸ But I will tarry in Ephesus until Pentecost. ⁹ For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries.

¹⁰ And if Timothy comes, see that he may be with you without fear; for he does the work of the Lord, as I also do. ¹¹ Therefore let no one despise him. But send him on his journey in peace, that he may come to me; for I am waiting for him with the brethren.

¹² Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urged him to come to you with the brethren, but he was quite unwilling to come at this time; however, he will come when he has a convenient time.

Final Exhortations

¹³ Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong. ¹⁴ Let all that you do be done with love.

¹⁵ I urge you, brethren—you know the household of Stephanas, that it is the firstfruits of Achaia, and that they have devoted themselves to the ministry of the saints— ¹⁶ that you also submit to such, and to everyone who works and labors with us.

¹⁷ I am glad about the coming of Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus, for what was lacking on your part they supplied. ¹⁸ For they refreshed my spirit and yours. Therefore acknowledge such men.

Greetings and a Solemn Farewell

¹⁹ The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and Priscilla greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. ²⁰ All the brethren greet you.

Greet one another with a holy kiss.

²¹ The salutation with my own hand—Paul’s.

²² If anyone does not love the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be ^[a]accursed. O^[b] Lord, come!

²³ The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. ²⁴ My love be with you all in Christ Jesus. Amen.

There is freedom waiting for you on the other side of tough times. I’m praying that you begin to identify the blessings in your life and focus on them until you breakthrough into a new, anointed light. PLEASE do not hesitate to reach out to me if you need someone to walk through the process with you.

Make sure to get connected at Five Stones Church – we have an incredible community and small groups.

Blessings and Honor,
Scott

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so you know when I was a kid there was we had like seven kids and my mom and dad that’s nine people and we would jump

into that uh imitation wood grain panel station wagon and we would go to like uh

the restaurant or the grocery store or ball practice or wherever we went and my mom’s job was to Wrangle the seven kids

and we were like wow cats you know and my mom’s job was to get us together and she would be like uh did you get your

you know did you get your water did you get your notebook did you pack are you wearing clean underwear in case you get

into a crash and remember that old myth and um and as kids we figured we just we just beat her we just wouldn’t wear

underwear when we were kids but we were like yeah Mom we got it like it’s so aggravating like like I don’t need you

to Badger me all the time she’s like hey you’re five years old

settle down I’m gonna Badger you and then when I grew up and I and I went into my career in law enforcement and

you know I spent  years working undercover and  years of SWAT commander and you know it’s like oh

that’s really responsible stuff but you know what the majority of my duty was if we were going out for a raid or a rescue

or anything like that hey did you load your weapon with ammunition hey you got your headset turned on to the right

channel did you get some water to drink did you go to the bathroom before we left I mean I had become my mom in Full

Circle but you know what I realized is that that’s what Paul’s doing as we’re in the

th week in the First Corinthians in the book of First Corinthians we have spent  weeks together walking through

First Corinthians and I do I pray that it’s been a blessing for y’all because

it’s been a blessing for me it’s amazing that that then and now the church in

Corinth and the church in America we’ve not really moved the needle very far

but we’re trying we’re striving we’re working because we love the same Jesus

and we have the same spirit and that’s what Paul is doing in this th chapter is he’s given that final

check in the last chapter of First Corinthians he’s setting things in motion for the church to go forward in

motion like like you figure nine people in a station wagon and everybody’s got

different potty schedules we would never even make it across my little Bayou town

you know -something special operators going out for a mission and somebody didn’t have the plan ready we would have

never been successful the body of Christ and all of its diversity and its gifts

and and the G and the the the dislocated geographies had Paul not started to set

things in motion we would have never progressed to where we are today so that’s what I want to talk to you this

is the burden that the Lord has put on my heart and it’s the one thing and it’s will you

trust God to put you first by placing yourself last

you know I want to we’re going to read today and I’m going to ask you to stand for the word of the Lord as we read the anchor scripture and this is my favorite

scripture this scripture literally turned my life around I love it I’ve

shared it with you all for for months and those that have known us for years and I’m going to continue sharing it and

it’s such a great blueprint that if we could apply it to everything in our life and I am super happy to get to read it

together with my family so we’ll read together from the new King James watch Stand Fast in the faith be strong

be strong let all that you do be done with love that’s a good word that is a

good word that word applied to everything in life makes life good

what I want to talk to you is is being strong standing firm

it’s learning to provide for others and this is what Paul is sharing this is what Paul is trying to get across in the

message so we ask what is providing for others teach us what does it teach us well the first

thing it’s it’s what’s sacrificing for others feels like like I’ll ask you like when’s the last

time you truly truly sacrificed yourself for someone else

now some people are like well I ain’t Jesus you know like thank you Jesus thank you for giving your life so we have

everlasting life and like why ain’t Jesus well Christian christ-like like Christ

John tells us in  greater love has no one than this that a person lay down his

life for his friends Greater Love Not greater salary greater

promotion greater social media presence more likes on Tick Tock but greater love

has no one than this providing for others teaches us what it

really feels like to sacrifice for other people

providing for others it it reveals our hearts priorities you know people they sometimes people

get antsy when you start talking about giving but you know the reason that it’s so

important is because it works as a thermostat to check your temperature for Christ where’s his priority in your life

and if we’re like oh Jesus number one hashtag social media Facebook post Jesus

number one in my life what I love I’m very data driven I’m very quantitative statistic driven it’s actually how Lee

and I met and we fell in love over quantitative data and statistics and it’s like super romantic it’s super sexy

but that’s what brought us together so I like tangible measurables so when

people say I love you so much you can’t even imagine you know or like

you’ll never know how much I love you like don’t do that to me don’t do that to people you love

like God gave us a measurable and how much he loved us right

God for side God for God for so loved us that he gave his only son so if God can

put a miserable we can put a measurable so when it comes to revealing our hearts

priorities for God other than just the social media post that says Jesus number one he’s the Lord Of My Life Luke  gives us for where your treasure is there your heart will

also be so I ask you now we’ve discovered where your hearts are

you’re waiting for the restaurant and for me to be quiet so I thank you for your patience but

let’s look at the measurable let’s see where God ranks in your life as far as priorities and guess what guess what God

uses for the measurable money giving so immeasurable that you

could do right now are as you’re at the restaurant is is look at your look at your check registry look at your bank

account let’s look at some hard measurables you see you see food shopping movie

entertainment blah blah blah tithing food like where does tithing

giving where does that fall in your bank account let me ask you does it even show up in

the registry and look like there’s no condemnation giving is is a is a heart conviction

God didn’t do this to embarrass anybody or shame anybody or condemn anybody

everything in the word of the Lord is for conviction and for correction and

the beauty of New Testament giving is that it’s is that it’s free willed you don’t have to give

that’s between you and the Holy Spirit but if you’re going to say whoa Jesus

number one Jesus number one then you’ve got to there’s got to be a tangible uh

Association to that claim otherwise it’s just lip service and you know what is providing for

others teachers the third point is is that the local church is to provide for the body of Christ

see the way they they worked in First Corinthians  Paul tells us now you are the body of Christ

you see the local church is the body of Christ manifest in the in the real

you are the body of Christ coming together as the local church we’re to

take care of the of the body of Christ through giving to the local church so the local church can do what

provide for the body of Christ you see the beauty in the symmetry but you see

I’m going to tell you when it comes to money people get kind of weird about it why because God created the value God

created multiplication God created dominion and being fruitful but Satan

counterfeits it you see we place a man-made value on a man-made currency

and it’s only what it’s worth because man says that’s what it’s worth a home run over the left field fence sets a

world record or a Major League record that baseball is worth three million dollars

is it really worth three million dollars it’s not why is it worth three million

dollars because the Sports World said it was worth three million dollars so when it comes to giving tithing offers people

get a little weird about that because the world assessed the value you see and then God’s like are you really willing

to sacrifice remember last week we talked in chapter  about planting letting go of that hard kernel in your

hand plant that seed in the soil let it die let whatever it is you’re holding on

to with the depth grip plants it let it die let it decay let the DNA of the

glory of the Lord begin to rise up and Sprout through the ground and bear fruit

and it’s the same thing it’s the same thing with money so what what is the only thing that really matters is what

God says so God says in First Corinthians  . now concerning the collection for the

Saints as I have given orders to the Church of galatia so you must also do

what Paul’s doing is he’s given instructions it’s like why has he got to give instructions because he’s already

talked to the churches about giving as a cheerful Giver give from the goodness of your heart

right and then that didn’t work out so good so now he’s like okay let’s let’s like talk tangible measurables let me

help explain it a little better and sometimes when people like well you know I don’t believe in giving like God

got enough money god well guess what God got all the money they said why I got to give him   be in the Old Testament

tied standard uh and and tithe means tenth right so someone’s like well I got

to give him  well we look at like well why is he got to trust you with the other . because everything that you

have belongs to God and I’m going to tell you what really hit me in the gut a couple weeks ago is one of our brothers was telling us he’s up early in the

morning he actually gets up before the sun rise like he’s a freak he’s up early in the morning before the sun even comes up and he’s sitting on his tractor and

he’s looking over his land and he’s looking at the horses that they’ve rescued and the dogs and the grass and

the dew on the blades of grass and he’s just looking and he’s watching the glory of the Lord start to paint the sky start

to paint the skies the sun’s coming up in Light blues and Hues of pink and orange and he said it hit him

I don’t want none of this I don’t own none of this this tractor ain’t mine I didn’t create

those horses I didn’t create those dogs I could never recreate grass and I sure didn’t put to do like I

didn’t create any of this God allows me to care for what’s his

and that’s the difference between ownership and stewardship

and so when people get into this like well why I gotta give you don’t have to it’s free will

there’s no it’s not a law of Taxation okay but look like don’t get ahead of yourself thinking well well I Gotta Give

let me show you God started the pattern of giving we talked last week about Jesus being the template the Prototype

the model that we’re to follow God set the Prototype God set the example from giving well what did God

give me what did God give me well first off God gave you everything he created

everything he created everything and then he gives you

Dominion right to multiply God’s not a god of decrease God’s a god of multiplication

and you know what multiplication is equal to Faith go to the parable of the five talents of Matthew

God’s given you everything he’s created you know what else God gave

he gave you his son so if we’ve got a heart issue that says

well I got to give you don’t have to where did all this given come from from

God it’s given everything he’s ever created including the most precious thing in his

life to you you know when Paul was teaching about

giving and now we had to go to instructing and we’re like well why did he have to get hard with the word orders these orders I

give to you well let me tell you so we don’t know what the the um the statistical giving was the

percentage of the church in Corinth giving but we know what the American Christian churches averages of giving

congregants who give the percentage of congregants who give and because as we’ve learned over the last  weeks

what Corinth was doing we’re pretty consistent right we do a lot of stuff that they did

so we can assume if we look at today’s American Christian Church percentage of giving of the congregation we can assume

the church in Corinth was probably at the same level do you guys know of the

of the regular church congregation average American Christian Church what percentage of the congregation gives in

America it is a whopping

 percent  percent average American Christian churches give

regularly  and then we wonder why uh  people

leave the ministry every month and  churches in America are closing every week

because it’s a hard issue and it’s also a realistic issue there’s a tangible issue with giving because it it takes

money to turn the lights on so and you know the other statistic is that so of the  of the congregation

even less of that  give a minimum of  tithe

and you know when we planted this body the holy spirit said be different be

different it doesn’t mean be Rogue or go off the rails it needs to be different like go back to the basics like stick to

my word and you won’t go wrong submit yourself to the Holy Spirit and you

won’t go wrong honor Ephesians   and  in the fivefold ministry and you

won’t go wrong and even in the summer when everybody’s like woohoo it’s summer

we get to take the whole summer off even from church and I asked you guys let’s

be different do you know for the duration of that super crazy hot summer that our regular attendance almost

doubled do you know that because we’re different although the average National the national average of American

Christian churches of regular giving is  do you know what the you know what the average congregational giving for us

is it’s  percent

 percent of this body right here regularly gives

that’s being different and we know that there’s something special about this body

it’s got nothing to do with any of us it’s got everything to do because we’ve all submitted to the one spirit

now our prayer is in celebration it’s the other  percent never with

condemnation but conviction with education and sharing the word of the Lord so it’s not we’re not making an

emotional plea to your soul right make you feel guilty make you feel good make you one of the other  percent want to

start giving we want to speak to your spirit we want to speak to your spirit through the word of the Lord and that’s our our

prayer is that the other  percent at some point come into conviction to test

and show Lord I love you I love you I know I don’t know how I’m going to pay my rent I don’t know how I’m going to

pay for that third trip to Starbucks like I just don’t know but I’m trusting you Lord I’m trusting

you and then for the for the completion for everyone to come up to that level of

faith that had a minimum of  why because it’s a standard it’s a prototype

that’s been established and you know for the folks and again no condemnation this is strictly sharing

the word of the Lord and when some people are like well I don’t believe in giving I don’t believe in giving to the church you know I don’t believe okay

it’s free will it’s cool but let me assure you you are tithing

you’re tithing to the god of Netflix you’re tithing to the god of your sports team you’re tithing to the god of

Starbucks you’re tithing to your weekend Hobbies you’re tied into your video games

like you are tithing you are storing up your Treasures where your heart is

and again it’s not condemnation and the  Parables that Jesus gives he uses the

example of money  times just wasn’t cuckoo crazy over money he

got everything but he knows it works sometimes get cuckoo crazy over money so he uses Money  of the  Parables why

because it’s a heart issue it’s a heart issue are you willing to

put to death what you’re just clinging to that you’re fearful of and trust God

like we all willing to say oh I believe in God it’s good

but do you believe God do you believe God

and let me tell you how do we know well then just read his word this is what God says God in   says

on the first day of the week let each one of you lay up something aside the first day of the week is on Sunday the

early Christians began worshiping gathering on Sunday prototype that’s why we continue on Sundays but listen he’s

telling you each week to lay something aside each week become disciplined

and giving because if you only give when you feel like it you’re never going to feel like it look

what Sunday nights I’m so motivated to go to the gym on Monday morning like I

got my little shoes out and I got a water bottle I got a little granola bar like Sunday I’m motivated I’m motivated

Monday Morning Comes Around I’m like I’ll start on Wednesday

right of January like that’s the difference between

motivation and dedication dedication is

loving your spouse when you don’t feel like it dedication is loving your kids

when you don’t feel like it you know dedication is trusting the Lord and

giving when you’re not sure look I’m going to tell you it’s easy to give when you got money to burn

when you just got those two little mites and you drop it in the plate anyway God Honors that God Honors that so I

just want to ask you when it comes to this heart issue understanding the thermostat of where your heart is where

Christ is a priority are you being so LED or spirit-fed

spiritual maturity means keeping those commitments First Corinthians   Paul

tells us storing up as he may prosper you’ve got to be a good Steward with God

what God gives you if your wine skin has a gaping hole in the back and you’re

wondering why new wine has stopped flowing in because you’re not being a good Steward with God’s abundance

if you keep taking the seed and throwing it on cement you’re not being a good steward

God’s saying store up I’m going to tell you my mom I love my mom my mom passed away  years ago she was a good kind

woman and when Louisiana legalized the lottery she would she would sit there with her beads oh Jesus if you’d let me

win the lottery she wasn’t Irish I don’t know what I’m saying that if you’d let me

she would she would say hey you let me win the lottery I’ll help the poor people

and I said Ma you’re not going to help nobody she goes why would you say that

because you don’t help them now you see but money don’t change your

heart change your heart changes your money the way you look at money look and if you like I get it I get it

like but I just don’t no I just don’t know God says don’t test me don’t test me

that’s what I tell my kids don’t test me though sometimes I wish they would but don’t test me right but you know what

Malachi God tells us put me to the test you put me to the test you doubt me test

me let me show you Malachi  – and I’m sharing from the Amplified and he says bring the whole

tithe look that’s your first fruits not what’s left after Starbucks and white

rhino and and well we love to go to Veracruz and like after your new shoes and your new you know your new fall

clothing bring the whole tithe into the storehouse the temple the local church so that there may be food

provision in my house I love this and test me now in this says

the Lord of hosts you want to know who’s saying it well you may the Lord of hosts like let’s just read that out loud test

me now and this says the Lord of hosts God’s given you permission to test him

man if I will not open for you a window of heaven and pour out for you so great a

blessing that there is no more room to receive it can you imagine getting a call from your bank and saying I don’t

even know what’s going on but like the FDIC can’t even guarantee the money that you’ve got or not just fine on monetary

can you imagine the love from your spouse being so great that you’re just floating on a cloud can you imagine your

kids being such a blessing that you’re like I don’t even know whose kids those are and your spouse like they’re yours

look at the picture on the wall from eight years ago they’re your kids that’s the blessing God wants to pour

out on you then I will rebuke the Devourer now they

were an aggregarian Society so uh agriculture was their Commerce for your sake and he will not destroy

the fruits of the ground nor will your Vine in the field drop before his grapes before Harvest says the Lord of hosts

All Nations shall call you happy and blessed for you shall be a land of delight look you start testing God you

start trusting God when it says all nations shall call you happy all nations shall call you happy all your neighbors

will call you happy that dysfunctional side of your family that you don’t want to see for Thanksgiving will call you happy your friends on social media will

call you happy your co-workers will call you happy everybody that you know and don’t know and everybody that you see is

going to call you happy and they’re not even going to understand why you’re so happy that’s your opportunity to share with them the

gospel of the Lord and then he says and you shall be a land of the light says the Lord of hosts you

should be a land of delight you should be a spouse of the light you will be a parent of the lights you’ll be a brother

and sister in the light you’ll be a member of the body of Christ and the light you will be a true Joy

if you’ll just trust in the Lord I want to wrap up a little bit I want to

share that that cultural giving is counter-cultural it’s counter-cultural our mindset is I’m

going to take care of me and mine I’m gonna take care of me and mine you see it’s counter-cultural

and so we say Okay I want to try it out like I’m digging this whole thing right I’m loving it

and we’re like give me another tangible give me another metric right I need something I can hold on to well

where’s the where do we find the answer in the word of the Lord in Mark

he says then Peter began to speak up we’ve given up everything to follow you he said like I love Peter right it’s

always foot in the mouth foot in the mouth and Jesus said yep well yes Jesus replied and I sure I assure you that

everyone who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or property for my sake and

for the good news the gospel will receive now received now now in return a hundred times as many

houses brothers sisters mothers children property along with persecution there’s always going to be a price to pay and in

the world to come in the world to come we talked about that last week in the resurrection that person will have

eternal life listen so we say well how am I I’mma have a a  fold houses you

know what when I retired from law enforcement and God called me out I was  years old

and I had no friends I thought that my workers were my friends they were acquaintances the only value they had in

me was the fact that I was their boss when I walked away from that I had nobody

you see but I gave it all up I gave everything up

for the gospel a hundredfold I can name you a hundred men that God’s brought into my life in

the last eight years that are closer than my own blood family how do you how are you going to get

more houses I can tell you  different addresses of  different Christian families that God’s brought into my life

that are now my houses if you were willing to give up everything if you’re willing to take

that seed that you’ve been holding on to or you got it in your little Penny pocket and you got a little pity pocket

for a rainy day if you’re willing to sow that seed into the ground if you’re willing to die to what you think is more

important instead of what is most important and let that seed die and Decay because then

that seed contains what the DNA of potential every seed God

wants you to sow is pregnant with the potential of God’s blessing and what is that seed going to look like

a hundred fold whatever you sow I want to challenge you

keep in mind the one thing that the Lord put on my heart

will you trust God to put you first by placing yourself last

are you willing to make that sacrifice you know last week I gave an assignment

as we’re talking about the order of Resurrection the Glorious body

and and I asked you to simply just take time this last week just look at a tree

right meditate on how the oak starts with an acorn and grows into a

tree and like one of the brothers sent a picture of a tree and an acorn and he’s like I’ve already started my assignment

and I’m like amen and I pray that you did you took that time because the weather’s been amazing to just look at a

tree so the assignment for this week is a little different [Music]

I just pray because I want everybody to experience the hundredfold

I pray that that you go back today or very soon and take a realistic look at

your finances I guarantee you some of y’all hadn’t looked at your checkbook in years

you’re just praying like I don’t go to the doctor because I don’t want to get bad news and that’s not wise

you don’t look at your finances because you don’t want the bad news you don’t want the reality [Music]

so I’m asking you to go today or soon look at your finances get a realistic

picture of what your finances look like then I’m going to ask you to identify

what a tangible  looks like now I’m no mathematician but if you take home  a

week if you take home   of that is  bucks it’s a whopping  bucks so get

that tangible number in your head and this is first fruits this is first fruits this isn’t after

everything else all you know this and all your little Vats this is your first fruits who set the Prototype Cain and

Abel right Abel brought the best of what he had Kane brought what was left over

probably brussels sprouts and asparagus that’s that’s just the way I see things

so so pray about this look at your finances understand what you take home

every week get a tangible number let’s deal on facts because we’re dealing in Scripture and then get that number and then I want

you to pray about that and I want you to pray about sowing a weekly Financial seed into the local church which is five

Stones Church I am challenging you to take that number and pray I want you to pray about it first I’m

not saying to give I’m asking you to pray let the Holy Spirit convict you and I I ask you to get that tangible number

so we’re dealing in reality we’re not emotion-led we’re spirit-led because we’re working with data and then pray

about sowing that seed every week be a disciplined Giver

throughout the rest of the year now Leah said you should have said this

back in January so the reality is we got about six weeks left

but I know that that’s enough time for God to start working in your heart and at the and at the New Year I’m going to

ask you to reassess I want you to reassess has your heart towards sacrificing for others changed has your

heart towards loving others above yourself change and the big thing is has your heart towards God changed foreign

is not about paying bills and and and just giving money because Church wants

money giving giving tithing is a hard issue and and again all we’re trying to do is

show you the standard the Prototype that that God began that God created you see

because while God created it Satan counterfeits and attaches a false

monetary value to it which supersedes the love of God so that’s my challenge

what I would do is I’ll pray us out and then I’ll ask Corey Rudd to come out to

to close the service and if we would stand hmm Jesus

thank you Father thank you Lord Allelujah father thank you for this body thank you for the local Church Father

God thank you for for Jesus manifest the body of Christ in the local Church Father God I thank you for for our

hundredfolds of brothers and sisters and oh you’re so so good Lord You’re so so

good father we love you we praise you in Jesus name amen father amen