Sheryl Brady - Your Blessing is Hinging on Your Obedience

No one really wants to have the difficult discussion about money, «for the love of money is the root of all evil. {1 Timothy 6:10)» But, money itself is the currency by which the world works. You have to understand how to manage your money, invest your money and, yes, honor God with your money. Many believers perish for the lack of knowledge around the subject of finances, tithing and sacrificial giving.

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I want to go to just a couple of verses in Scripture that I’m going to read today from The Message Bible. I’ve asked them to put it up on the screen if they can. We’re going to go to Leviticus, and I’m just going to read until I feel ready to stop. Is that okay? I want to go to Leviticus 30, verse 30. I told you last week that I’m going to talk about money, and that’s what I’m going to discuss. I very rarely give a full service to talk about money, and I was actually looking through my calendar to see when the last time I spoke about money was; it has been a few years. So, if you’re visiting today, I apologize that you’re here on such a day as this. Then again, I’m not sorry because this is your day to be blessed! I said, «This is your day to be blessed!» I don’t know if anybody’s hungry, wants to be blessed, or needs God to shift some things in your life financially, but I’m believing that today is going to be a day that resets the course for you. Amen? Amen. Leviticus is where we’re going, and I’m not sure why my Bible is over in the Book of Psalms, but that’s where it went. Leviticus is in the Old Testament, and we’re going to the very last chapter and reading through the last verses there. The Bible says that a tenth of the land’s produce, whether grain from the ground or fruit from the trees, is God’s; it is holy to God. If a man buys back any of the tenth he has given, then he must add 20% to it. A tenth of the entire herd and flock—every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod—is holy to God. He is not permitted to pick out the good one from the bad or to make a substitution. If he dishonestly makes a substitution, both animals, the original and the substitute, become the possession of the sanctuary and cannot be redeemed. These are the commandments that God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai for the people of Israel, so these are not my words today, so don’t look at me mean, okay, when I break it down for you. Cuz it ain’t my words; it is God’s words. But I want to talk for the next few moments from the subject that your blessing hinges on your obedience. A lot of people want to be blessed; they’re asking God to bless them, but they’re not obedient. I love you enough to tell you the truth because I’m your pastor and I want you to be blessed. But sometimes we’re not blessed because we are not obedient. Obedience is even better than sacrifice. So today, I’m going to ask you to open up your heart so that you can hear the word of God today. So that when we walk out of here, we do so with a great understanding, because that’s what we need. We need a great understanding when it comes to the word of God. Father, bless this house; bless this food that we are about to eat. Please let it bring nourishment to our bodies. Speak to us here and to those listening in the audience, those around the building, and those who are listening from afar. I ask you to speak to us and bless us with ears to hear, eyes to see, and hearts to receive in the name of Jesus. Somebody shout Amen! On your way down, hit somebody—don’t hit them, just look at somebody and tell them your blessing hinges on your obedience. I have a bit of a low-end roar up here; if you could help me with that. Like I said a moment ago, I don’t often talk a lot about money. I’ll tell you what: God had to work really hard on me when it came to finances and giving—not because I didn’t want to give. I always wanted to give, but I never thought I could afford to give. So God had a blessing that he wanted to give me big, so he had to work with me big. Does that make sense to anybody? That’s what he had to do. What I do understand is that I still have a little bit of a ring up here. I believe that we all have a destiny and I do believe we all have a purpose to pursue. I believe we have a destiny to discover, but we also have an economic destiny and an economic target that God wants us to hit. Does anybody believe that besides me? Do you believe you have an economic target that God expects you to hit? I believe that because there is a kingdom to be established, and if we don’t do it, tell me, please, who will? If the church doesn’t do it, the world is not going to do it completely. There is an assignment on us. I believe that there are some people—I’ve said this for many, many years—and if you’ve been in this church for any length of time, I’m sure you’ve heard it.