Money is an important issue for followers of Christ. Jesus spoke about money frequently, so it should be expected that a church who seeks to be faithful to the scriptures will address the issue of money. Often our attempts to teach on the subject of money are received with suspicion by the church body and the community at large. We want to be clear where we stand on this important issue, in hopes of cultivating transparency and trust. In this short post, we are not attempting to communicate a theological position on finances, but rather share some basic principles that we have adopted.
At Restoration Hill we are not tithers. We are stewards of all that God has given to us. As stewards, we are called to effectively manage what God has entrusted to us; not for our own benefit, but for the good of His kingdom (Matthew 25:14-30). This means we are accountable to God for how we invest His resources for kingdom purposes. We do not teach that you must give a 10% tithe to the local church. In fact, we do not teach any designated giving to the local church. Rather, we encourage everyone to prayerfully seek how the Lord would have you use what He has entrusted to you. We hope that our members see that the church is faithfully making disciples and investing in the kingdom and are moved to invest in this work.
This is fleshed out practically in several ways. First, we do not take up offerings, i.e. pass the plate. There is a box in the worship area that members can utilize to invest in the work of the church. Second, we believe that churches, like individuals, are called to sacrificially manage the resources we have for the good of the kingdom. We have committed that, as a minimum, the first 20% of all offerings to Restoration Hill are automatically designated to global discipleship and local outreach ministries. Third, we promote transparency. Our bookkeeping is handled by a third party accounting firm and our leadership never sees who gives or how much anyone gives.
These are some practical steps that we have taken to ensure that we manage the resources entrusted to us in a manner that is both trustworthy and kingdom oriented. To be sure, we talk about money and we teach about living lives marked by sacrificial generosity. We believe how that manifests itself and where you give is between you and the Holy Spirit.