The church of the Lord Jesus Christ has a black eye in America for many reasons. One of those reasons the church is so disrespected is the way many churches and ministries handle the money they receive.

I will go on record here and say that much of the teaching and preaching found on TBN, Daystar, and in certain radical charismatic circles amounts to a religious money-making scheme that enriches so-called pastors at the top.

Paul often warned about false teachers in his letters. In Titus, he says that the god of the false teacher is his belly. How disgusting, but how true. They teach what they teach in order to make money and feed themselves. In 2 Peter 2, Peter says that false teachers make merchandise of the church.

What is so disgusting about the “health and wealth prosperity gospel” movement is that teachers like Kenneth Copeland, T.D. Jakes, Joyce Meyer, Jesse Duplantis, Joel Osteen, Creflo Dollar, Benny Hinn, and a host of others are shameless in their false teaching about money. They do not hide the fact that they live lavish lives off the backs of their congregants. Many regularly boast about the size of their homes, their wealth, and their private jets.

Not only do many of these teachers fail to meet the moral qualifications for eldership given in 1 Timothy 3, Titus 1, and 1 Peter 5, but they also appear shamelessly in love with money, which is a clear disqualification. These ministries often have little meaningful financial accountability. Their board members are frequently pastors of other megachurches, creating structures that seem designed more to keep one another in power than to provide real accountability. They gobble up the church as wolves among sheep.

And I want to say to you: do not be so gullible as to give your money to a man, or a woman for that matter, who promises you financial blessings that you have never seen and likely never will see.

You may not feel as excited to give to your local church because your church is not advertising “thousands saved” and “miracles done” like your health-and-wealth gospel teacher might. But giving to your own local church is God’s ordained structure for giving. It is the giving God blesses. It is the giving that propels your church forward so that the gospel may continue to be preached in your own local community.

As we survey the Scriptures, there are at least four things the church should give its resources to: missionaries preaching the gospel around the world, the poor, its own pastors, and its facilities. This is our outline as we consider where a church should send its money.

First, the church should send money to missionaries. In the Great Commission of our Lord in Matthew 28:19–20, Jesus said that His disciples were to make disciples of every nation by going, baptizing, and teaching believers the Word of God. How can this be done outside the agency of the local church? Certainly, there are parachurch organizations that specialize in helping the church accomplish its mission. Some may even help maximize that mission. But the church is ultimately responsible to do these things.

The Great Commission is worldwide in scope. How can one church, or even a coalition of churches, accomplish this goal? It is only possible through local churches joining together and supporting missionaries to take the gospel around the world.

A great example of this is none other than Paul himself. Paul was an apostle and missionary of the Lord Jesus Christ. At times, he stated that although he had great authority in the church, he worked with his own hands to provide for himself. However, he did receive financial gifts when they were offered to him. In Philippians 4:14–19, Paul speaks of how the church at Philippi gave to him financially to meet his needs. It is biblical for ministers of the gospel to receive financial compensation for their labor. Not only does it make biblical sense, it also makes common sense to give to those who bless you through their spiritual gifts, if they live by those gifts.

Second, the church is to give to the poor. One of Paul’s regular points of communication to the churches in the New Testament was the collection of financial love gifts for the church in Jerusalem. We can see this in 1 Corinthians 16:1–4, 2 Corinthians 8–9, and Romans 15. Because of famine and great poverty in Jerusalem, the Gentile churches associated with Paul made certain to help meet their financial needs. Likewise, Jesus said, “You have the poor with you always,” so take care of them when you can.

I do not think it is wise to simply hand money to people holding signs on the side of the road. If you want to give them food, do that. But handing cash to someone at a four-way stop with a cigarette in his mouth is not wise. There is no accountability in that. I think it is best for churches to give directly to the poor through leaders in the church or to give to organizations in the region that help the poor responsibly.

Third, churches should give to their own pastors. This is always a point I struggle to make in our own church because it can seem self-serving, especially since I am a solo pastor. However, it does not cease to be a biblical teaching simply because it is uncomfortable to say. Local churches should support their own pastors financially.

1 Timothy 5:17–18 speaks of elders who rule well being considered worthy of double honor. This is not merely talking about giving them respect. The context includes financial remuneration for their work. Pastors should be paid by their churches.

This does not mean pastors need to live lavish lifestyles, but they should be in a position to take care of their own families. If a church does not have the means to take care of its pastor financially, it cannot expect him to carry a full-time workload. This is a delicate conversation, for sure. Pastors must be patient and trust God, while churches must make it a priority to care for the financial needs of their ministers.

Fourth, churches should take care of their own property. In the primitive New Testament church, believers met in the houses of church members. They did not gather in cathedrals, metal buildings, or storefronts. Many churches were made up of slaves, so a member with a large home would often host the church. Therefore, there is no direct New Testament example of churches owning buildings.

However, when the people of Old Covenant Israel built the tabernacle and the temple, they gave of their own resources to take care of those buildings. Moses asked for freewill offerings, while Solomon raised resources through taxation. Of course, this is not a one-to-one connection, but the principle remains: God’s people should take care of the property God has entrusted to them.

To my knowledge, these are the four main things the church should send its money toward: missionaries, the poor, pastors, and facilities. Of course, there is liberty within these parameters. However, if we want to be biblical, we need to give according to biblical priorities.

Soli Deo Gloria.