Good morning people who honour Christians in business

Yesterday we talked about God giving His best to us and us giving our best to Him and to each other. I feel to go back to the same scripture and let God speak to us some more. Here it is:

1 Chronicles 21:22-24 (NIV) David said to him, “Let me have the site of your threshing floor so I can build an altar to the Lord, that the plague on the people may be stopped. Sell it to me at the full price.”Araunah said to David, “Take it! Let my lord the king do whatever pleases him. Look, I will give the oxen for the burnt offerings, the threshing sledges for the wood, and the wheat for the grain offering. I will give all this.”But King David replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.”

The world’s way of doing things is to try and get things for nothing. Our focus is on bartering people down to the lowest prices. As I think about this, I wonder if this is subtly motivated by an obsession on us and a focus of what is best for ‘me’.

This philosophy has crept into some Christians, and if anything, is worse. We can sometimes approach Christian business people and expect to get the service or product cheaper because we are Christians. Just think about what this says and the motivation here!

This passage shows King David (a very important person and man of God) wanting a piece of land (and for a very good reason none-the-less). Because of who he was, the owner wanted to give him the land. David refused because he didn’t want to sacrifice to the Lord something that cost him nothing.

But we also see something else in David’s response. In effect he said, “I’m not going to gain personal advantage for me at the expense of you providing for your family.”

Now I am not saying we can’t be generous towards people or even receive generosity from people (I have been on the giving and receiving end of this many times and it is a biblical principle). But what I am simply saying today is: Our motivation is important and we must never focus on getting for ourselves at the expense of others. And when it comes to receiving business from other Christians, pay the full price and don’t take advantage of them and their generosity.

SELAH.