acts 9:32-9:43

text

32. Now as Peter was traveling through all those regions, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda.
33. There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden eight years, for he was paralyzed.
34. Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you; get up and make your bed." Immediately he got up.
35. And all who lived at Lydda and Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.
36. Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which translated in Greek is called Dorcas); this woman was abounding with deeds of kindness and charity which she continually did.
37. And it happened at that time that she fell sick and died; and when they had washed her body, they laid it in an upper room.
38. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, having heard that Peter was there, sent two men to him, imploring him, "Do not delay in coming to us."
39. So Peter arose and went with them. When he arrived, they brought him into the upper room; and all the widows stood beside him, weeping and showing all the tunics and garments that Dorcas used to make while she was with them.
40. But Peter sent them all out and knelt down and prayed, and turning to the body, he said, "Tabitha, arise." And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter, she sat up.
41. And he gave her his hand and raised her up; and calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive.
42. It became known all over Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.
43. And Peter stayed many days in Joppa with a tanner named Simon.

second time, same as the first

lydda
a --> travellin' pete visits the church in lydda (a city between jerusalem and joppa).
b --> he heals aeneas, a paralyzed man who'd be stuck in bed for 8 years (and tells him to make his bed).
c --> bunches of the locals who see the miracle turn to jesus.

joppa
a --> a christian lady named tabitha/dorcas/gazelle dies.

maybe a wealthy lady who gave money to widows? maybe a widow (since she's spoken of alone and in the company of widows)?
she was known for deeds of "kindness and charity which she continually did"; this included making tunics and garments, presumably for others.
the 'deeds of charity' bit apparently means that she gave lots of money away, so she probably was wealthy-ish.

b --> the christians send for peter since he was in the area.
c --> peter shows up, goes into the upper room, and asks everyone to leave.
d --> he prays, then tells her to get up. she opens her eyes and sits up; peter gives her his hand and presents her to the believers.
e --> bunches of the locals who see the miracle turn to jesus.

We as a church have resources that we can use to help physical and spiritual needs.
We want to figure out how we can do this.

but first...a note on our situation:

we as a church have no expenses currently. we are not against expenses however.
the bible clearly teaches that ministers of the gospel have the right to expect money for their work.

jesus tells the discples not to take money but to take support (matt 10)
jesus himself took support (luke 8:3)
paul says multiple times that it the right of the minister (1 cor 9, 1 tim 5:17,18); paul received support himself (phil 4:14-18)

so - let none of us think that we are special because we don't have expenses. it's a function of our current size, and likely will not last.
it would be stupid to look down on something the bible defends and models.

our motivation:

1. god takes delight in our generosity

2 cor 9:7 - "the lord loves a cheerful giver"

generosity seems to be measured as a percentage by the way...

luke 21:1-4

1. And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury.
2. And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins.
3. And He said, "Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them;
4. for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on."

2. giving is a marker of maturity

the giving of money, like the giving of oneself in any other capacity, is a facet of christlike selflesness.
in acts, one of the markers of a godly person has been their use of money:

the early church sold property/goods to give to the church (2:44,45; 4:32-37)
dorcas is praised for her "deeds of charity"
cornelius is introduced in acts 10 with a comment on his many alms to the jewish people.

3. giving is a means of getting

yes, i know it sounds like a con mans plea. hopefully it helps that we are talking about giving together to some other people.
paul, in phil 4 speaks of money the philippians gave him:

not that i seek the gift itself, but i seek for the profit which increases to your account.

he goes on to call their gift "a fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to god."

giving is sublimation; it turns money into spiritual benefit.

our preferences in giving:

1. we prefer to give to things that are related to the spread of the gospel and the church.

humanitarian work is great; but humanitarian work that is related to the spread of eternal salvation is greater and must be preferred.
related note: we must meet the needs of our christian family before we meet the needs of those outside.

2. we prefer to give where the recipient can be evaluated.

we would like to be responsible with the resources god has given us; as such, being able to evaluate the efficacy of our resources and allocate accordingly seems wise.

3. we prefer to give where we have a connection to the recipient.

connections (personal, geographic, or other) often form the basis of our spheres of influence and ministry. pre-existing connection to a ministry enables us to participate, evaluate, and share more easily.

4. we prefer to give to recipients who are wise, efficient, and effective.

we want to give to places that will use the money well.
'well' means something that includes wise (with foresight), efficient (without waste), effective (good intentions aren't everything).
sustainability is huge; charities that work towards sufficiency are preferred.

some options:

kenya- Ralph's connections: there is an acute need for some one time gifts due to recent political instability. Long term possibilities also.

marco and leah perez- Portantorchas Bible School. San Jose, Costa Rica

steve and karen plodinec- Christ Seminary, Polokwane, South Africa.

joe and brooke tartaglia, new tribes mission in papua new guinea.

lifecare- local pregnancy counseling, adoption services, etc.

rocky/sunnee conly- campus crusade folks

what else are you interested in?