WHY BUYING AND SELLING IS WRONG
Since God does not show partiality to people based on their positions or income or any other criteria (see Job 34:16-19), He does not require payment of money from anyone to know Him. Therefore, the ability to pay does not enhance or limit access to God. What he does require, however, is a spiritual payment of a broken spirit and a broken and contrite heart (see Psalm 51:16-17 below) and obedience (see 1 Samuel 15:22). Sacrifices in these scriptures are generally understood to represent monetary payments, but money is not what God wants. Rather, God is interested in the condition of our hearts and obedience. All people can pay with this kind of spiritual currency regardless of how much money they have.
Requiring monetary payment for spiritual commodities (truth, wisdom, instruction, etc.) effectively limits access to God based on the ability to pay. Thus it is never right to require (whether implicitly or explicitly) payment for those commodities. And yet, all religious institutions are built on the finances provided by people who are ignorant of the fact that money is not necessary to learn about God.
When Jesus invited “all of you who are weary and burdened” to come to Himself for rest, He did not qualify their ability to come to Him according to their ability to pay. Thus, those who call themselves followers of Jesus who presume to dispense truth or wisdom, or prophecy, or a moving worship experience, or whatever, should also not qualify people who come to them for their particular spiritual commodity according to the ability to pay. If they limit the consumers of their commodity to only those who can pay, they have disqualified themselves as true followers of Jesus. Instead, they are nothing more than entrepreneurs who market and sell goods that are packaged in fine looking spirituality to make them appealing to a gullible and deceived consumer public. They are false prophets (Matthew 7:15-20) and wolves (Acts 20:28-34).
Isaiah 55: 1-3 “Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk Without money and without cost. 2 “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And delight yourself in abundance. 3 ” Incline your ear and come to Me.
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 (see following). 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 5:213-31 below for more about spiritual obesity)
Psalm 51:16-17: For thou hast no delight in sacrifice; were I to give a burnt offering, thou wouldst not be pleased. 17 The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise. .
COMMENTARY: When we read about Biblical sacrifices, we first think about animals slaughtered and burnt on an altar. Indeed, God did instruct Israel to perform such sacrifices, but they are only physical, natural representations of the kind of spiritual (not natural) sacrifice He wants from us (i.e. broken spirit and a broken and contrite heart).
Often in the religious community, the giving of money is referred to as a sacrifice. This usually happens in the context of exhortations by religious leaders when encouraging people to give money, whether as a so-called tithe for ongoing expenses or an offering for a special purpose. Such solicitations have all the appearance of being Biblical, but they are not. Indeed it is Biblical to give money to the poor, but such gifts should be done voluntarily in response to a perceived need, not in response to a solicitation from a religious leader who uses fine sounding religious arguments and misapplied scripture to guilt people into giving.
The problem here is this: God’s idea of sacrifice (i.e. a broken spirit and a broken and contrite heart) is misapplied. Sometimes, as in the case of tithes that are for ongoing expenses such as salaries, the leaders personally and directly gain from the practice. Other times they may not gain directly from such giving, but they at least enhance their standing as religious leaders within the religious community because they have advocated for giving to some kind of religious cause. In both examples the religious leader benefits.
Isaiah 56:11: All you beasts of the field, come to devour–all you beasts in the forest. 10 His watchmen are blind, they are all without knowledge; they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark; dreaming, lying down, loving to slumber. 11 The dogs have a mighty appetite; they never have enough. The shepherds also have no understanding; they have all turned to their own way, each to his own gain, one and all. 12 “Come,” they say, “let us get wine, let us fill ourselves with strong drink; and tomorrow will be like this day, great beyond measure
COMMENTARY: This is a scathing rebuke of God’s watchmen (spiritual leaders), including shepherds (priests, clergy, etc.) whom God calls greedy dogs. God says they have no understanding and gone their own ways instead of functioning as God has commanded.
Wine and strong drink are symbolic representations of pride in spiritual knowledge and influence in the religious community.The mighty appetite that the watchmen have includes spiritual pride for being a spiritual leader to whom people will pay money for instruction and the material possessions and influence in the world that such influence enables.he reference to unjust gain is a reference to payments for spiritual services which should be given without expectation of compensation. Some will argue that this rebuke is for Israel’s wayward leaders alone. It is sheer arrogance, however, to say that it cannot also be directed to contemporary religious leaders.
Jeremiah 5:23-31: But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have turned aside and gone away. 24 They do not say in their hearts, ‘Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives the rain in its season, the autumn rain and the spring rain, and keeps for us the weeks appointed for the harvest.’ 25 Your iniquities have turned these away, and your sins have kept good from you. 26 For wicked men are found among my people; they lurk like fowlers lying in wait. They set a trap; they catch men. 27 Like a basket full of birds, their houses are full of treachery; therefore they have become great and rich, 28 they have grown fat and sleek. They know no bounds in deeds of wickedness; they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy. 29 Shall I not punish them for these things? says the LORD, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?” 30 An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: 31 the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; my people love to have it so, but what will you do when the end comes?J
Jeremiah 6:13-17: “For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely. 14 “They have healed the brokenness of My people superficially, Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ But there is no peace. 15 “Were they ashamed because of the abomination they have done? They were not even ashamed at all; They did not even know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; At the time that I punish them, They shall be cast down,” says the LORD. 16 Thus says the LORD, “Stand by the ways and see and ask for the ancient paths, Where the good way is, and walk in it; And you will find rest for your souls. But they said, ‘We will not walk {in it.}’ 17 “And I set watchmen over you, {saying,} ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But they said, ‘We will not listen.’
COMMENTARY: This rebuke against prophets and priests applies to anyone in ministry. God says they are all greedy for gain and they have provided superficial ministry that does no good (i.e. does not provide healing or peace) for the people. Moreover, they do it all without shame.
That pretty much describes how the religious system works these days. Pastors try to grow churches, but they do not really help the people as they really need help. It’s all about the numbers: Money and people in the pews.
Jeremiah 22:13-17: “Woe to him who builds his house without righteousness And his upper rooms without justice, Who uses his neighbor’s services without pay And does not give him his wages, 14 Who says, ‘I will build {it} bright red.’ 15 “Do you become a king because you are competing in cedar? Did not your father eat and drink And do justice and righteousness? Then it was well with him. 16 “He pled the cause of the afflicted and needy; Then it was well. Is not that what it means to know Me?” Declares the LORD. 17 “But your eyes and your heart Are {intent} only upon your own dishonest gain, And on shedding innocent blood And on practicing oppression and extortion.”
COMMENTARY: A common practice in the religious community is for laypeople to honor religious leaders with various kinds of gifts and services. It is bad enough that they are in effect bribing the spiritual leader for some kind of spiritual favor, but here God is complaining that the religious leaders receive the services without paying for them. God calls this dishonest gain, oppression and extortion. Those are hard words for any religious leader who would welcome a so-called gift as a feature of the privilege of being a spiritual leader.
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. Here he could have used that ability to earn great wealth for himself but he would not receive the gifts. All spiritual leaders would do well to do as Daniel did.
Micah 3:1-11:Then I said, “Listen, you leaders of Jacob, you rulers of the house of Israel. Should you not know justice, …who tear the skin from my people and the flesh from their bones; who eat my people’s flesh, strip off their skin and break their bones in pieces; who chop them up like meat for the pan, like flesh for the pot?” This is what the LORD says: “As for the prophets who lead my people astray, if one feeds them, they proclaim ‘peace’; if he does not, they prepare to wage war against him. Hear this, you leaders of the house of Jacob, you rulers of the house of Israel, who despise justice and distort all that is right; Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for a price, and her prophets tell fortunes for money. Yet they lean upon the LORD and say, No disaster will come upon us.”
COMMENTARY: This is another scathing indictment against spiritual leaders who tell people what they want to hear (i.e. they proclaim peace) to those who pay them in advance (i.e. food or money). God says these leaders despise justice, distort what is right, judge people according to the bribes they have received, teach and prophesy for money. And they do all these things while giving the appearance that they trust the Lord and believe that they will be OK even though they know that what they are doing is not right.
Again, this all sounds like how Christianity has worked since the beginning. There is an appearance of religious truth while receiving payments for religious services. And through it all the leaders act as though this is acceptable to God. How can that be if the leaders have been to Bible schools and seminaries and read these scriptures? How can they miss God’s warnings to those who would receive payment for religious services?
Micah 7:5 Do not trust a neighbor; put no confidence in a friend. Even with her who lies in your embrace be careful of your words.
COMMENTARY: This is another warning to not trust anyone for anything. That includes clergy trusting the people in the congregation for tithes that will pay their salaries, or the missionaries who trust that others will be faithful to provide continued support while they are in the mission field.
To be close to God requires that you know God and to know God means that you need to know the truth about God and about yourself. Religious entrepreneurs sell truth for which payment is required, in advance, by those who have the ability to pay. Unfortunately, those who cannot afford to pay for , are priced out of something that should have been free. They may be willing to pay the spiritual price, but because the religious system always involves money, the gain the clear impression that money is involved somehow. This gives a very wrong impression of God and how he relates to people. This lack of access goes totally against what Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30:
28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
In God’s economy, the price of entrance to Jesus is not money. There is a cost, but it is spiritual, not material. Moreover, Jesus says here that he will “give rest“. There is no reference or even a hint about “selling” rest. When people sell something that Jesus would give away, they are nothing more than profiteers who capitalize on Jesus’ popularity for their own financial benefit. They are selling something God considers to be a free gift.
Selling Jesus totally violates Jesus’ commandments to his disciples in Matthew 10:1-10:
“You received without paying, give without pay” and “Take no gold, nor silver, nor copper in your belts”.
His commands to his disciples could not be any clearer than that! Money should not be part of the ministry transaction!