Lay By

Lay By . . . In Store

"Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come." (1 Corinthians. 16:2 KJV)

This popular proof text is, I believe, at the heart of many of the problems encountered among God’s people today: especially in this country. It is a classic example of taking a specific admonition to a specific group of people in specific circumstances and turning it into a new law. Let’s apply the principles of interpretation and see what we can glean from this passage.

First, let’s consider the context. We haven’t quoted the full context by any means, but you will remember that the rapid expansion of the church in Jerusalem resulted in great financial needs. Paul appealed to the assemblies in Galatia and Corinth to help meet those needs. This verse contains his instruction about how they were to prepare to help.

It is reasonable to assume the Corinthian believers would assemble when Paul arrived since he was coming to see them. The "gatherings" mentioned in the text does not refer to assembling but is intended to avoid individuals running out to the ATM at the last minute to get their contribution.

Read the passage again carefully and realize why the ellipsis appears in the title above. The text doesn’t say that they are "to lay by in store" on the first day of the week when they come together. It says that each one is to "lay by him in store" so collections won’t be necessary when he comes. Doesn’t it?

The New American Standard is clearer in this instance, "On the first day of every week let each one of you put aside and save, as he may prosper, that no collections be made when I come." In other words, everyone was to save what they intended to give to the effort weekly as individual households. There is no support here for a common treasury of believers, which they are commanded to fund on a weekly basis!

This is the only place in the New Testament where this word for collection is used. Nowhere do we find believers regularly bringing money into a church treasury on the first day of the week. Yet, it is commonly taught that we are commanded to do just that. If you find that command in scripture, please send the reference to me and I will print the correction.

Scripture provides us numerous examples of believers giving and it is obvious that Christians will give, even sacrificially. But the abuses that have been wrought under the guise of doctrine need to be addressed.

In my early Christian training, I was taught that giving was one of the essentials of Christian "worship." That is true if we understand that worship (latreuo) means ministry or service and not a weekly assembling of the saints. Nevertheless, we were warned that if you didn’t give to the "church" as you had been prospered, your worship was in vain.

Of course, worship services other than Sunday morning did not require giving because they were different. You still risked hell fire if you missed those meetings, but all giving was reserved for the first day of the week (except for special occasions like revivals).

Are you beginning to see how the misapplication of a single verse gives rise to legalism? What was recorded in scripture as addressing a singular need has been capitalized upon (literally) by church leaders to sustain an institution that would be unrecognized by first century believers.

Church assets and property ownership came much later. The resources of early believers were kept under their personal control and given directly to those in need. If you remember the context of Paul’s instructions you know that he would not even deliver the Corinthians’ gifts to Jerusalem.

They were to choose someone local who they would authorize by letter to deliver their gifts for them. Paul was willing to go along if necessary, but he had no intention of taking the money and delivering what was left after he deducted his overhead and kept a portion to support himself.

This is a critical issue because it is money that ultimately leads to the splits and division we have in the family of God. We are happy to discuss scripture with other believers who see things differently, but we refuse to worship with them because we are putting our funds in a common pool and we disagree about where those funds can be used.

Before you reject that analysis, spend some time thinking about it. Most people I know will attend "worship" services of other denominations and, if they are honest, they even find they actually learn something occasionally while doing so. Some are so stuck in their own traditions they see worship other than their own as vain, but we’ll address that another time.

The point is money is the real issue behind many of the divisions we see among believers. That should sadden us because it certainly isn’t pleasing to God.

If you want an eye-opening experience, just study the budget of the church you attend. What percentages of the contributions make it outside the church doors? If your congregation is typical, it is a club that largely uses the resources to provide for its own comforts and needs.

Is there anything wrong with this arrangement? Not inherently. We have liberty in Christ to use the resources entrusted to us according to the dictates of our conscience guided by scripture. Contributing to a joint effort with other believers is certainly permissible and frequently desirable.

The problem comes when we make a specific use of those resources a matter of command. At this point, we overstep scriptural authority and bind on others what God has not bound.

We are free to associate with others and free to pledge ourselves to support a common meeting place and even a paid staff to see to the affairs of that organization. But let us not confuse that organization with the ecclesia of God.

We shouldn’t deceive ourselves into thinking that the assets we acquire as an organization represent giving in the biblical sense. They are largely a matter of our own comfort and have little to do with giving to those in need. Let’s quit playing games.

Having those resources is fine, just don’t count that as giving. For the most part, our giving is a lot like that of Ananias and Sapphira. We put our offering in the church coffers knowing full well that much, if not most, is going to be used on us. I will assert that keeping a portion corporately is no better than keeping it individually.

We are the only ones deceived in the process. If you don’t believe it, talk to non-Christians and see how they view our clubhouses. If we are going to use our resources in this way let’s be honest enough to recognize that we are feathering our own nest.

Folks can talk about how the clubhouse is an outreach ministry to the community, but just try to install new carpet in the fellowship hall and watch the battle over the style, quality and color ensue.

We sell bonds to build mausoleums to flabby faith, but when was the last time you heard of a congregation going in debt to help those in need?

Buildings are just the beginning of the problem but you should get the idea. We’ve institutionalized what God established as relational. Then, to fund the enterprise we latched onto a handy text we could use to squeeze contributions from people to build bigger barns and attract more people who will keep the process alive.

The bottom line is that by introducing the acquisition of assets and the accumulation of wealth by congregations of Christians, we have created something not found in scripture. In many cases, we have gone much farther by compelling people to support that institution through an abuse of God’s word. That ought not to be.