When I joined TDC's staff after a 13-year career in commercial real estate and construction, I was excited. I had been a non-vocational pastor at TDC, meaning I had a day job in the business world — and now I was pumped I could devote my time and effort directly to matters of the church.

At the time of my career transition, I was asked this question: “So now you see how the sausage is made, huh?” I don’t know if you get that metaphor, but making sausage can be pretty gross, and the insinuation was now that I had joined staff, I probably saw the ugly interior of the church.

As a business guy by trade, education, and upbringing (I was looking at financial statements with my Dad, a business owner/entrepreneur, when I was a child), I was no stranger to a budget. I had hired and fired people. I had sold and marketed. I had seen a lot of staff cultures, both in the businesses I was a part of and the clients we served. 

So was I disappointed by the inner workings of the church? Was it a sobering letdown? 

Absolutely not. I was thrilled.

I have noticed something. Those who have only worked in vocational ministry don’t fully understand the business world, and vice versa. Business folks can sometimes assume that churches run — no matter how effectively — inefficiently. Put simply, sometimes business-minded people think church folk don’t know what they’re doing.

So let me explain the financial side. You might wonder why the church is always asking for money. Is it because the church bleeds cash due to incompetent financial governance? Is it because the church staff is getting rich or taking advantage? Is it because the church is really an empire of man instead of the Kingdom of God? 

While there are ugly examples, by and large, if you get to know the pastors and leadership teams of faithful, Christ-centered churches, you will find encouraging stewardship. Don’t let the abuses of the few form your perspective on the faithful many.

But let’s get practical here. Why does the church ask for money? Here are 7 reasons:

1. Because God commands us to give to the “house of the Lord your God” (Exodus 23:19). Followers of God have always given to His purposes, and one of His primary purposes is to gather His people to praise Him. In the Old Testament, there were costly animal sacrifices to atone for sin, expensive materials to build the temple, and priests to provide for. Ministry takes money.

2. Because “the Lord loves a cheerful giver” (1 Corinthians 9:7). We, as the church, want to teach and promote that which pleases God. Financial generosity is pleasing to Him, He loves it when His children give. It is an act of worship to give to Christ’s church.

3. Because money competes with God for kingship in our hearts (Matthew 6:24). Giving helps to break the chains of greed and financial selfishness. When we give (not under compulsion, but gladly), we remember that God is the giver of all money and that He is better than money.

   
   

4. Because generosity is a spiritual gift we should desire to grow in (2 Corinthians 8:7). The church is to help cultivate the spiritual gifts of the members of the body of Christ, and generosity is one of those gifts. 

   
   

5. Because the church has always expressed radical generosity (Acts 2:44-45). The church has always been radically generous. If we were a part of the early church, it would make us very uncomfortable. They were selling their stuff and giving the money to those in need. “Where’s the couch, honey?” “Oh, I sold it and gave the money to Frances for her hip surgery.”

   
   

6. Because your money isn’t your money — you’re just a manager (Matthew 25:14-30). In the Parable of the Talents, Jesus teaches that we are like investment managers of God’s money. We aren’t deciding which dollars are ours and which are God’s. They’re all God’s. And what we do with them matters.

   
   

7. Because “those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:14). Paul says the Lord commanded that those who work in vocational gospel ministry should be rightly compensated for it. It takes money to provide a living for church staff. Scripture also says you don’t want to “muzzle the ox when it treads out the grain” (1 Timothy 5:17-18), meaning if you deprive your oxen of food they won’t be very helpful as a beast of burden. It is illogical to deprive those who serve you. 

We are, in our current cultural moment, skeptical of institutions. And Lord knows there are plenty of examples of institutional neglect, abuse, and incompetence. But the church is not just another institution. The church is the Bride of Christ, the Household of God. Managed and overseen by sinful, imperfect people, but a holy household nonetheless — set apart by God for God’s glory and the good of His people. The worthiest of investments.

If we are offended by the discussion of generosity in the church, perhaps it says more about our hearts than the church. Generosity is normative in God’s household, and always has been. When we give back to God, we are exercising a muscle of faith. We give thanks. We attribute worth to God. We trust Him to provide. We long for Him to save more people. We rest in His grace, knowing that as His children, goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives.