DO NOT ACCEPT BRIBES, GIFTS AND REWARDS
It is hard to accept, but God considers a gifts and rewards to religious professionals to be equal to a bribe. That is an ugly word, but there are many scriptures that confirm this understanding.
Exodus 23:1-9 Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness. 2 Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil; neither shalt thou speak in a cause to decline after many to wrest judgment: 3 Neither shalt thou countenance a poor man in his cause. 4 If thou meet thine enemy’s ox or his ass going astray , thou shalt surely bring it back to him again . 5 If thou see the ass of him that hateth thee lying under his burden, and wouldest forbear to help him, thou shalt surely help with him. 6 Thou shalt not wrest the judgment of thy poor in his cause. 7 Keep thee far from a false matter; and the innocent and righteous slay thou not: for I will not justify the wicked. 8 And thou shalt take no gift: for the gift blindeth the wise, and perverteth the words of the righteous. 9 Also thou shalt not oppress a stranger: for ye know the heart of a stranger, seeing ye were strangers in the land of Egypt.
Psalm 26:9-10 Gather not my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloody men: 10 In whose hands is mischief, and their right hand is full of bribes.
Proverbs 15:25-32 KJV Without counsel purposes are disappointed : but in the multitude of counsellors they are established . 23 A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it! 24 The way of life is above to the wise , that he may depart from hell beneath. 25 The LORD will destroy the house of the proud: but he will establish the border of the widow. 26 The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD: but the words of the pure are pleasant words. 27 He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live . 28 The heart of the righteous studieth to answer : but the mouth of the wicked poureth out evil things. 29 The LORD is far from the wicked: but he heareth the prayer of the righteous. 30 The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart: and a good report maketh the bones fat . 31 The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise. 32 He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding.
Isaiah 5:18-28 RSV Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood, who draw sin as with cart ropes, 19 who say: “Let him make haste, let him speed his work that we may see it; let the purpose of the Holy One of Israel draw near, and let it come, that we may know it!” 20 Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter! 21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight! 22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine, and valiant men in mixing strong drink, 23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe, and deprive the innocent of his right! 24 Therefore, as the tongue of fire devours the stubble, and as dry grass sinks down in the flame, so their root will be as rottenness, and their blossom go up like dust; for they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts, and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. 25 Therefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people, and he stretched out his hand against them and smote them, and the mountains quaked; and their corpses were as refuse in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away and his hand is stretched out still. 26 He will raise a signal for a nation afar off, and whistle for it from the ends of the earth; and lo, swiftly, speedily it comes! 27 None is weary, none stumbles, none slumbers or sleeps, not a waistcloth is loose, not a sandal-thong broken; 28 their arrows are sharp, all their bows bent, their horses’ hoofs seem like flint, and their wheels like the whirlwind.
Micah 3:11 The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money: yet will they lean upon the LORD, and say , Is not the LORD among us? none evil can come upon us
Micah 7: 1-7 KJV Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grapegleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat : my soul desired the firstripe fruit. 2 The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net. 3 That they may do evil with both hands earnestly , the prince asketh , and the judge asketh for a reward; and the great man, he uttereth his mischievous desire: so they wrap it up . 4 The best of them is as a brier: the most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge: the day of thy watchmen and thy visitation cometh ; now shall be their perplexity. 5 Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. 6 For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man’s enemies are the men of his own house. 7 Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me.
Isaiah 1:18-28 18 “Come now, let us reason together, says the LORD: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20 But if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.” 21 How the faithful city has become a harlot, she that was full of justice! Righteousness lodged in her, but now murderers. 22 Your silver has become dross, your wine mixed with water. 23 Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves. Every one loves a bribe and runs after gifts. They do not defend the fatherless, and the widow’s cause does not come to them. 24 Therefore the Lord says, the LORD of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: “Ah, I will vent my wrath on my enemies, and avenge myself on my foes. 25 I will turn my hand against you and will smelt away your dross as with lye and remove all your alloy. 26 And I will restore your judges as at the first, and your counselors as at the beginning. Afterward you shall be called the city of righteousness, the faithful city.” 27 Zion shall be redeemed by justice, and those in her who repent, by righteousness. 28 But rebels and sinners shall be destroyed together, and those who forsake the LORD shall be consumed.
COMMENTARY: If you are not in a position of leadership, it would be a great mistake to conclude that this scripture does not apply to you. This applies to all who consider themselves to be Jewish or Christian because it addresses the entire people of Jerusalem (Zion). God’s complaint here is that his people are more concerned for themselves than they are for others (orphans and widows)
MORE COMMENTARY: People who solicit funding for their ministry efforts are essentially chasing after extra rewards for their ministry. They should be satisfied with the spiritual rewards of ministry that God provides, but they are not.
This scripture also provides clues that help to identify these rebels. They perform ministry in exchange for payment. In worldly commerce, payment for services is legitimate. But it is not legitimate to receive payment for spiritual services. These rebels are also known by the fact that they do not defend widows and orphans. That suggests that they are exclusively concerned with their own well being – not the well being of others.
Isaiah 55: 1-3 1 “Ho, every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. 2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Hearken diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in fatness. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live; and I will make with you an everlasting covenant, my steadfast, sure love for David.
COMMENTARY: This is God speaking again saying that He does not charge for real, nutritional, spiritual food. Furthermore, when He asks “Why do you spend money for empty, so-called spiritual food that does not satisfy?”, He is asking why people spend money for food that looks spiritual and tastes good but which has no real spiritual value?
The legitimate kind of buying to which God is referring here is the spiritual cost of repentance and obedience. It involves the great cost of brokenness that comes with repentance as found in Psalm 51:16-17 . Obedience also involves a spiritual cost because you must lay down a part of your natural life (including, but not limited to money, time, relationships, position) and/or your spiritual life (including pride, position, control, your preferred way of doing life, etc.) in order to obey God. What you get when you pay this price is a kind of spiritual food that only God can deliver.
Anything else that people purchase with money is only spiritual junk food. It may taste good when you eat it, but it lacks real nutritional value in the spiritual sense, and it tends to produce a kind of spiritual obesity (pride in spiritual behaviors and knowledge). (See Jeremiah 5:21-31 below for more about spiritual obesity)
Daniel 5:13-17 Then Daniel was brought in before the king. The king spoke and said to Daniel, “Are you that Daniel who is one of the exiles from Judah, whom my father the king brought from Judah? 14 “Now I have heard about you that a spirit of the gods is in you, and that illumination, insight and extraordinary wisdom have been found in you. 15 “Just now the wise men {and} the conjurers were brought in before me that they might read this inscription and make its interpretation known to me, but they could not declare the interpretation of the message. 16 “But I personally have heard about you, that you are able to give interpretations and solve difficult problems. Now if you are able to read the inscription and make its interpretation known to me, you will be clothed with purple and {wear} a necklace of gold around your neck, and you will have authority as the third {ruler} in the kingdom.” 17 Then Daniel answered and said before the king, “Keep your gifts for yourself or give your rewards to someone else; however, I will read the inscription to the king and make the interpretation known to him.
COMMENTARY: Daniel was a man of great spiritual ability. He was also a man of great personal integrity. In this story, he could have used his God-given ability to gain great material wealth and social/political status (i.e. purple robe) for himself but he would not receive the gifts. He was able to interpret the King’s proposition for what it was: A bribe that would exalt him to a position of esteem (purple clothing) and authority (third ruler in the kingdom).
Few men or women would have been able to refuse such an offer. But Daniel knew that receiving the gifts would compromise his relationship with God. He was not willing to exchange an immediate material reward for a long term spiritual reward.
All spiritual leaders would do well to do as Daniel did.