April 3, 2020 Show with Joe Jacowitz on “Coronavirus & Finances”

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April 6, 2020

April 3, 2020 JOE JACOWITZ, pastor of Christ Bible Church in Pleasanton, CA & founder of FirstLove Radio, FirstLove Missions & FirstLove Publications, will address: “CORONAVIRUS AND FINANCES”

00:05: Live from the historic parsonage of the 19th century Gospel Minister George Norcross in downtown
00:10: Carlisle, Pennsylvania, it's Iron Sharpens Iron. This is a radio platform in which pastors,
00:23: Christian scholars, and theologians address the burning issues facing the Church and the world today.
00:31: Proverbs chapter 27 verse 17 tells us, Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
00:38: Matthew Henry said that in this passage, we are cautioned to take heed with whom we converse and directed to have in view in conversation to make one another wiser and better.
00:50: It is our hope that this goal will be accomplished over the next two hours and we hope to hear from you, the listener, with your own questions.
00:57: And now, here's your host, Chris Arnzen. Good afternoon,
01:09: Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Lake City, Florida, and the rest of humanity living on the planet Earth who are listening via live streaming at ironsharpensironradio .com.
01:19: This is Chris Arnzen, your host of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, wishing you all a happy Friday on this third day of April 2020.
01:26: And today, being Friday, is our weekly coronavirus update and with the special focus today on finances during a global crisis like the one we are experiencing.
01:45: And to conduct this coronavirus update every Friday is Joe Jackiewicz, pastor of Christ Bible Church in Pleasanton, California, founder of First Love Radio and founder of First Love Missions and also
01:59: First Love Publications. And it's my honor and privilege to welcome you back to Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, Pastor Joe Jackiewicz.
02:06: It is also my honor and privilege, Chris, to be with you today. Great. This is the fourth edition of this coronavirus update series that we are doing every
02:17: Friday and we will continue them until further notice. And hopefully, not that I don't want
02:23: Joe Jackiewicz on frequently, but hopefully we're not going to be having to discuss the coronavirus so frequently in the near future because I'm hoping that the
02:34: Lord rescues this nation and this world from this pandemic and that a cure is found and all these things that need to occur to get rid of this virus.
02:53: And obviously, at the same time, we recognize that, number one,
02:59: God intends this for the good of His people, as Romans 8 .28
03:04: promises us, but He is also using it as a means of demonstrating judgment to those who are in rebellion to Him.
03:15: But before we go into the specific episode that we have today, where you start off with updates and then we will switch gears and focus on finances, remind our listeners or inform our listeners for the first time who are just discovering you about Christ Bible Church in Pleasanton, California.
03:35: Yes, we're a local church in Northern California, about 30 miles east of San Francisco, and we've been here for about going on 31 years.
03:48: And there are three ministries under the auspices of the church, actually four, but three of them are
03:55: First Love Publications, a publications ministry in which we've distributed almost 300 ,000 books, booklets, and tracts worldwide since 2006.
04:07: First Love Missions, we've distributed many of those publications on our mission trips, which we were going on two or three a year to foreign countries like Nepal, the
04:17: Philippines, Nigeria, and other countries, Kenya. And we hold pastors' conferences,
04:26: Bible conferences on university campuses and churches, and with pastors we distribute a lot of free literature to them.
04:36: And then First Love Radio, which many of our listeners are hearing Iron Sharpens Iron on First Love Radio right now.
04:43: It's a 24 -hour a day, 7 -day a week, round -the -clock, round -the -globe, live -streaming radio station.
04:51: And you will hear, usually hear, an announcement or an advertisement of First Love Radio on your program.
04:59: And so it's been a blessing to partner with you these Fridays to give people encouragement from the
05:05: Word, reminders that God is still in control, and encouragements from His Word about what we are to do as New Testament believers in these end times, where our focus should be.
05:20: Many, Chris, are panicking, are under great stress, some are in paranoia, and so many people of the world are turning to alcohol, drugs, prescription antidepressants, and many other sources, entertainment, loading up on the movies while they're locked down and sheltered in place, and trying to somehow, some way, have the stress and the anxiety and the despair, very honestly, on the part of many, to be swept under the rug.
05:57: And so we want to offer hope from God's Word, and it's wonderful that you and I can visit like this every
06:03: Friday. And for those of our listeners who don't know, immediately following Iron Sharpens Iron Radio every single day,
06:12: Monday through Friday, you will hear Joe Jackowitz preaching. What is the name of that show again, where you are preaching every day after my show?
06:19: A Table in the Wilderness. A Table in the Wilderness. And then on Wednesday night, you have an on -air
06:26: Bible study called Bible Talk, correct? Correct, Bible Talk, 7 p .m.
06:35: West Coast, 10 p .m. East Coast time. Right. And by the way, just in case someone has to leave earlier and doesn't hear me give this information at the end of the program, but the website for Christ Bible Church in Pleasanton, California is
06:53: ChristBibleChurch .org, ChristBibleChurch .org, and First Love Radio can be found at FirstLoveRadio .org,
07:02: FirstLoveRadio .org. That's especially for the benefit of those who hear
07:07: Iron Sharpens Iron Radio on Grace Life Radio in Lake City, Florida, who are using not only their own radios, but they're listening to the streaming on a different website.
07:19: So this way they can discover First Love Radio as well. And we also, you left out a key word when you were describing
07:28: First Love publications. All of those books that you've distributed globally have been distributed for free.
07:35: Yes. That's a big deal. It is a big deal. There are not too many ministries that distribute literature free of charge, and not that we're anything special, but that's what the
07:49: Lord laid on our heart is that we're a faith ministry and we give all of our literature away.
07:56: And, you know, we should start to think about perhaps next
08:01: Friday, God willing, we will offer a book free of charge.
08:08: If you write in to ChrisArnzen at gmail .com, ChrisArnzen at gmail .com
08:15: at the end of next Friday's program, and we will let you know what title that would be to supplement your spiritual diet and encourage you in these times of anxiety.
08:25: Great. And, well, what updates do you have for us? I mean, halfway into the show the updates will be outdated.
08:35: Yes, exactly. But if you could give us some anyway. Sure. Go ahead.
08:41: Oh, okay. By the way, I do want to just add briefly that this coming Sunday and also
08:47: Wednesday, our program can be heard not only on First Love Radio, but we broadcast video live on Facebook, and this
08:58: Sunday we're going to add YouTube Live to the service as well at 1 o 'clock on Sunday Pacific Time.
09:06: Our worship service sermon live streamed on First Love Radio, Facebook, and now
09:12: YouTube Live, and then, of course, next Wednesday at 7 p .m. Pacific Time as well.
09:18: As far as stats are concerned, as you suggest, things are changing very, very rapidly. As of a few minutes ago, there have been 258 ,000 folks infected confirmed in the
09:32: United States with 6 ,500 deaths, and confirmed infected with the virus worldwide is 1 ,083 ,823 with 58 ,155 deaths.
09:48: So the virus continues to spread throughout the world and infect more and more people.
09:54: There are some places where things are slowing down and the curve is flattening out a little bit, and we hear some encouraging prognostications from a few of the medical professionals on TV, on Fox News, and online that are indicating the virus should start to dampen somewhat.
10:17: But, again, we also hear that there's going to be long -term effects of the virus, both economically and health -wise, and we hear also that the virus will continue for some months and not diminish in a week.
10:32: So it's kind of hard to know which way it will go. Only the Lord knows, and those of us who believe in the sovereignty of God take great comfort in the fact that God knows what
10:42: He's doing, and this virus will not last one second longer, both in the longevity of it and the intensity of it and the pain of it, that God doesn't want to.
10:55: That's a major, major point of biblical doctrine, because so many
11:02: Christians, and professing Christians, and there's a difference because a professing Christian might not really be a
11:09: Christian, but so many, but I would include many who are true brethren in Christ, they don't have that hope and trust because they don't believe
11:21: God is in absolute, total, sovereign control over every molecule in the entire universe and in heaven.
11:34: They really believe that some of these things that would be under the umbrella of either natural catastrophe or accidents or even purposeful terrorist attacks or what have you, they think that these things can come about without being first decreed by God, and therefore very often you will have these crises, these horrible events that bring about great calamity and sorrow and suffering.
12:10: They will think these things are purposeless, that they have no meaning to them, and yet we who believe in the sovereignty of God, we can know for certain, as you just said, that the coronavirus will not spread one second longer than God has decreed it to, and we can put our trust as Christians that whatever we have to face, it will be for our good.
12:40: Indeed, that's correct. I'm reminded of Daniel 4, 35, all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing, and he does according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth.
12:57: No one can restrain his hand or say to him, what have you done? And we need to be reminded both the macro, that is the universe, and all things that we could see, things we can't see, and the micro, the microscopic world, are in God's total active control.
13:15: The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, beholding the good and the evil, but also the omnipotence of God, upholds all things by the word of his power.
13:26: And so he's in control of everything, period, though he is not the author nor the source of sin.
13:34: But as far as some of the other highlights regarding the coronavirus, half of humanity now is on lockdown,
13:42: Chris, as 90 countries call for sheltering in place. More than 3 .9
13:49: billion people, or half of the world's population, have now been asked or ordered to stay at home by their governments to prevent the spread of the deadly
13:59: COVID -19 virus. In the last two weeks, 10 million people have applied for unemployment benefits in the
14:07: United States, 3 .2 million the week before last, and I think it was 6 .6
14:15: million this last week. So, God willing, next Friday we'll report what it would be cumulatively.
14:22: But we know it's taken a great, great toll on our nation. Retail stores in large cities appear to be preparing for mass riots by boarding up their windows.
14:35: Even with a lack of available testing and delays in getting test results back, about one in every 1 ,500 people in the
14:43: U .S. have a confirmed case of the coronavirus. According to data from that famous hospital,
14:50: John Hopkins University, as well as the U .S. Census Bureau, the daily case count has been rising.
14:57: But even if it levels off, the U .S. may still get to a point where one in 1 ,000 nationally have it in the next week or so.
15:07: God forbid, but that's what they're predicting. And so the coronavirus is affecting every age group, young and small.
15:17: And it also, when it gets into the lungs with many people, it causes extensive damage.
15:27: Regarding businesses, one out of every four small businesses is either closed or teetering on closing.
15:36: And some in the government are predicting there's going to be a quick recovery and bounce back by the business world.
15:44: But others are saying, no, this is going to have long -term effects on business and employment.
15:51: So Christians need to prepare. With that update on the finances, I mean on the statistics of the coronavirus,
15:58: Christians need to prepare. The Bible has a lot to say about preparation.
16:03: The Bible gives a lot of warnings, not only in the spiritual areas, but also when it comes to economics in terms of preparing for the future.
16:13: And we need to heed those warnings. And that's why it's good for us to consider the topic of finances today.
16:20: The coronavirus and finances. And how can we get answers to the questions that people have about losing their job and what do they do now?
16:32: How can we prepare for ourselves and our families and pay our rent and make our mortgage payment if our income has been drastically reduced or come to zero?
16:47: There's talk of the coronavirus effects continuing for the long term, as I mentioned.
16:53: People are asking, what kind of financial security can I count on for the future? These are a lot of questions.
17:00: And, you know, finances and money occupies the minds and the hearts of the whole world.
17:07: As far as believers are concerned, it should not take uppermost place in our affections or our priorities, finances, that is.
17:17: But nevertheless, when we are weak in faith and when we don't trust the Lord and take our eyes off of the
17:22: Lord, money does tend to cause us worry in the household of faith.
17:28: So money is a big, big issue. It causes many to go astray and stumble.
17:33: And we need to talk about what kind of pressures and stresses will be upon us in the coming days and weeks and years ahead as we are forced by the
17:46: Lord to trust in him to provide for us, just like we did when we became Christians.
17:51: And one of the first verses that many of us memorized, Matthew 6, 33, seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
18:02: We're going to be challenged in the coming weeks and years to put that more into practice.
18:09: We're not living in regions and nations where we have to trust
18:16: God daily for our bread, because we've lived in an affluent culture in the West, in the
18:21: United States, where we took our income for granted and we had all kinds of safety nets underneath us to turn to, including the government with all of its programs, which are good, thank
18:34: God for them. But now most of those safety nets have been taken out from under our feet.
18:41: And with the government deciding to give away $2 .2
18:48: trillion, you know that even the government eventually will no longer be able to just give away money, print money, give it away, print money, give it away, and support businesses and bail out businesses and help people like they're doing now.
19:03: It's a good thing that they're doing that. But remember, the government is supposed to get its money from the people in terms of taxes.
19:12: But if you're just going to print money and give it away, that's not very good financial policy. And eventually that kind of activity is going to come to a head, where people who are depending on the government to bail them out and help them out in dire times as ours, the government will not be able to do that anymore.
19:30: And we're heading in that direction if the government keeps voting to help businesses and people out with these trillions of dollars.
19:40: It's a good thing. I thank God that he is using the government to help so many of us out during this difficult time.
19:48: But there's another side of this equation and this topic that we need to consider.
19:55: What if the government is not there for us a year from now, five years from now?
20:01: What if things get worse in terms of the virus or some other catastrophe that causes the financial security of our government and our people and our businesses to even be more unreliable?
20:15: How are we going to get food on our table? How will we be able to provide for our families? How will we be able to maintain our homes?
20:22: Where will the money come from? These are very important questions. And the American dream pretty much is over, at least temporarily, right now.
20:31: And all of these levels of affluence and layers of security and safety financially, retirement plans, the stock market, stock market has lost a third of its value.
20:45: That can happen in the twinkling of an eye. All God needs to do is just speak the word and we'll lose another third of its value or whatever.
20:54: And God is sending a clear message to people around the world. He's writing it across the sky.
21:00: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding.
21:06: In all your ways acknowledge him and he shall direct your paths. Don't trust in money.
21:12: Don't trust in governments. Don't put your trust in anything or anyone except the
21:19: Lord Jesus Christ, not only to secure your salvation and to keep you saved, but also to provide for you according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
21:32: So we have a few thoughts to share with you today about finances. And I think that you probably created this program today or designed it especially for me.
21:45: Joe happens to know that, in fact, if you listen regularly to Iron Sharpens Iron Radio, everybody in the audience knows, in the regular audience, that we are suffering greatly financially because at least a couple of our major financial supporters, the two biggest sources of financial support that we have for this program, have had to postpone any further support until further notice because their businesses have been slammed horribly by this coronavirus scare.
22:23: And as many people have repeated, including our president, sometimes the cure is worse than the disease.
22:33: So I am troubled by a lot of what is going on as far as a heavy -handed authoritarian government continuing to raise its ugly head during this.
22:47: But I want to give our listeners our email address.
22:52: It's chrisarnsen at gmail .com. C -H -R -I -S -A -R -N -Z -E -N at gmail .com.
22:59: Please give us your first name, your city and state, and your country of residence if you live outside the USA. And please only remain anonymous if your question involves a personal and private matter.
23:10: And I can see with a subject like this, there might be a lot of people that have personal and private questions that they want to ask about the trials they are facing through their own financial loss and loss of livelihood and so on, and they might not want to spread their own identity in connection to that.
23:32: But whatever it is, as long as it's a personal and private matter, you can remain anonymous.
23:38: But we ask of you, if it's a general question, a theological question, a doctrinal question, a practical advice question from a pastor, meaning
23:48: Joe Jackowitz, then please at least give us your first name, city and state, and country of residence if you live outside the
23:55: USA. And you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to go to the first break now so I don't have to interrupt you mid -sentence.
24:01: And so we look forward to receiving your emails. For Joe Jackowitz, don't go away.
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36:01: We are now back with Pastor Joe Jakowicz of Christ Bible Church in Pleasanton, California.
36:07: He's also the founder of First Love Radio, First Love Missions, and First Love Publications.
36:12: We are addressing our weekly Friday edition of Iron Trap and Zion Radio dedicated to the coronavirus.
36:22: And today, specifically, on the episode on April the 3rd, we are addressing how this all relates to finances.
36:31: And our email address is chrisarnson at gmail .com. chrisarnson at gmail .com.
36:38: Well, Joe, these are some fairly difficult questions.
36:43: In fact, for Christians to answer these questions, especially from those that are not yet believers, we might find ourselves tongue -tied, at a loss for words, only able to offer prayer and put our arm around people.
37:07: We might not have money to give away to people. Somebody loses their job, and they come to you as a
37:14: Christian because of this whole crisis going on, and they may be coming to you in sincerity, wondering what you have to say, or they might even be coming to you to challenge you because they don't think that you really have an answer, other than be warm and filled, as James warns
37:35: Christians against in his epistle, not to just give people false comfort by calling that out to them, be warm and filled, and not really doing anything for them.
37:48: But if you could, respond to that. Could you summarize the question for me?
37:56: Sure. Well, how do we respond to especially unbelievers when they are seeking answers about loss of income or loss of livelihood during something like this?
38:09: What would you say to them? Well, you have to turn them to Jesus Christ, the one who promises to provide for us for all of our needs in every situation.
38:21: There are times when God will test us, and he will take things away from us to challenge us concerning what our hopes are, what our priorities are, and what we're living for.
38:35: To get our attention and turn our attention to the Lord himself. So very often in either chastisement or in punishment or in trials, his purpose is to get our attention so that we would give our lives to him.
38:53: But if God says that in Matthew 6 .33, it's one of the first verses
38:59: I memorized, you can't get a better answer than that. For people who are wondering about why this trial has come upon the whole world, why have so many lost their income, their jobs, why are they suffering financially, and why are they beginning to feel deprivation and want because of the situation that we're in, is that we need to trust in the
39:26: Lord. When we turn to other people and they cannot help us, even those who are professing
39:33: Christians who are not in a position to help out, and these unsafe people get jaded or they misunderstand the situation, we can turn them to Christ.
39:48: Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things, these earthly things they need to live.
39:54: And don't you think during a crisis like this though, if you are not personally able financially to help someone, that you should start doing some investigation, making lists of Christian organizations and other ways that these people who come to you for help might be able to have their physical needs met, because as I already said,
40:20: James writes with disdain, in fact insinuating that those saying this have a dead faith, meaning that they're lost when they profess to believe in Christ, and then when people come to them for physical needs to be met, they just are told be warm and filled and nothing else is done.
40:39: Well, yeah, I think this is a time where the church is being brought to a higher level of challenge and trial in terms of how we are going to respond to people.
40:50: In the past, some believers may have always been in a position to help, but now many may not be there to reach out with food or to bring a homeless person to McDonald's or to give funds because they themselves will be in need.
41:10: And in that situation, they're not sinning by not giving them something they don't have, giving these people who are asking of them something they don't have, even if the other person accuses them of what
41:22: James talks about, of being hypocrites because they send them away with a blessing,
41:28: Godspeed, be warm and filled, but don't give them anything. God knows their hearts. He knows whether or not we have things to give them, to help them, food or money or whatever.
41:40: But in that situation, we still should bend over backwards. We should go the extra mile to try, as you suggest, to direct them to an organization, a food pantry, an institution, a social institution that might be able to help them.
42:00: But we should first do everything we can ourselves. Most of the time,
42:06: I think we can do something. If our heart is in it, where there's a will, there's a way. It's a rare situation when we can't.
42:14: But in that rare situation when we can't do something to help somebody who may need $500 to pay a bill and we hardly have $100 in our bank account, if we say, well, look,
42:28: I don't have that much money. I can give you $10 for food or $20 for food, but I can't help you with $500, just make an effort and bend over backwards.
42:39: Go the extra mile. Give something if you can. And that person will see that you're sincere and you're honest, and so that may go far to alleviate them from the temptation to think that you're a hypocrite.
42:55: We do have a listener, John in Bangor, Maine, who says,
43:01: I'm sure you've heard this many times, and it happens quite often, but if you are walking down the street or perhaps you're in your church doing some work and you get a knock on the door and someone looks like there is a possibility that they are a drug or alcohol abuser or perhaps they're just a total stranger and you're just fearing that they might use any money you give them for those purposes, how are we to respond in those situations to those asking for money?
43:36: Well, that was my response and my attitude when I was first confronted with so many homeless people when
43:44: I used to work as a bivocational pastor in San Francisco in the business district, and I would take the
43:51: BART train to work and I'd walk from the train station to my office a few blocks, and invariably at least one or more of homeless people would approach me, and the first year or two
44:03: I hardened my heart against them because I would either smell alcohol or I would judge them in my mind, but after a while the
44:12: Lord began to work in my thoughts and expand and enlarge the issue to be larger than just, well, if you reek of alcohol or if you look like a well -bodied person who can work, an able -bodied person that can work, then why aren't you out there looking for a job?
44:32: He allowed me to go past these thoughts to the place where I began to consider, is it really my place to judge them or bring up conditions in my mind for helping them, because those conditions are not there in the
44:48: Bible when the Lord commands us to help the poor. Now whether they are poor due to their own fault or not, these homeless folks, they still need help at the moment, and whenever you are asked to help, if it's within your ability to do so,
45:06: God says to do it. Yes, there is a place where we don't give somebody money when they obviously will take it because they've already indicated that they're going to use it for the wrong reasons to hurt themselves.
45:22: If they give you the impression that they're going to use the funds to hurt themselves or to squander it, then don't give it.
45:30: Now let me ask you to clarify something about that. Am I wrong? Did you say that you shouldn't automatically refrain from giving somebody money if they stink like booze or are stumbling and slurring their words?
45:45: Are we to give them money anyway if we have it? Well, I'm saying that there are other things you can do in that situation.
45:52: You can, if they say, Buy them a meal and take the money. Buy them a meal and so forth. But there are also times where maybe the man did take his last dollar that he received from people who gave him money as a panhandler or a homeless person, and he did buy a bottle of alcohol and drank it, but now he finds himself in a situation where he's starving, and he was foolish by buying this bottle of alcohol, and now he's in a situation where he, in his mind, is really going to take the money and buy something to eat, even though he reeks of alcohol.
46:31: In that situation, you and I, Chris, would have to make a judgment call. We don't know, obviously, that he would take the money and abuse it, unless he indicated somehow that he would, but we would have to make a judgment call.
46:48: There are many times I gave homeless people a dollar here, a couple of dollars there, when they smelled of alcohol, and they told me that they were going to buy food, and I said to myself at that point, this is a few years down the road, and having to deal with all the psychological and spiritual issues connected with giving to people who, on the surface, may not use the money wisely,
47:15: I came to a point, I said to myself, this guy's hurting, he looks bad, he smells bad, he smells of alcohol,
47:23: I wouldn't want to be in his place, and if he wants to take this dollar or two dollars that I give him and add it to a few more dollars and go out and buy alcohol with it, he already told me he's hungry, and so I'm going to give him the dollar to buy food, so in my mind,
47:39: I'm doing a good work for the Lord, I'm doing what God wants me to do, because this man told me he needs the money for this such and such a thing.
47:47: If he wants to go out after that and buy another bottle of alcohol and lie to me, that's between him and God.
47:56: But it wouldn't be very often that someone who reeked of alcohol would approach me like that, but even then
48:04: I had kind of worked through some of the issues in my mind and would still give him a dollar, because I wouldn't make a judgment on the spot at that moment that he was lying to me and he was going to go out and buy another bottle of alcohol, even though the external evidence, because he smelled of alcohol, pointed to the fact that he might.
48:25: I still didn't know for sure, and I would give him a dollar or two dollars, and I said to myself, look,
48:30: I make so much money per week, I have so much extra, you know, in this situation, kind of back and forth,
48:39: I'm debating whether or not to give it to him, what's a dollar going to kill me, even if I'm wrong?
48:45: But again, it would be in a situation where he would not tell me up front that he was going to use the money to buy alcohol, he told me he's hungry, or he needs to take a bus to get home, or whatever it is.
49:01: I can remember a humorous situation.
49:08: When I was at a gas station, and when going into the little convenience store that is attached to the gas station, there was a gentleman, a young man, in his twenties probably, who was on a bicycle, and asked me, could
49:24: I have a few dollars so I could get something to eat? And I said, well, how do
49:31: I know that you're not going to just use this money to buy drugs or alcohol? He goes, oh, trust me, man,
49:36: I don't even do drugs or alcohol, I'm an athlete, I can't risk destroying my athletic abilities by damaging my body with those things.
49:51: So I said, alright, I'm going to trust you, and I gave him probably three dollars, maybe five, and then he started riding his bicycle away.
49:58: I said, wait a minute, where are you going? Aren't you going in there to buy some food? And he said, I don't eat the stuff that they sell there, that stuff will kill you!
50:07: But anyway, I think he said, that stuff has by -products and all kinds of chemicals in it!
50:14: But I want you to continue, in your own words, anything that you have of import to say before we change subjects, obviously under the umbrella of finances.
50:28: As far as giving to... No, no, just continue on the subject
50:35: Okay. Well, I have some specific things to look at in terms of how to deal with money in general, and some practical tips from the scriptures on handling money.
50:53: But first I want to get into some general principles, which in the first place would be that we have to trust in God to provide for us.
51:02: Trust in God to provide for you. There's going to be a lot of pressure and trials and challenges for you and I as Christians in connection with the coronavirus in the coming weeks and months.
51:17: The economic import and implications of this worldwide pandemic and how they apply to our own individual lives are not going to go away very quickly.
51:31: And money in general is a huge issue in our lives right now with this pandemic.
51:37: It is always the case that money is either number one or number two on the top of our priority list in certain areas, certain ways.
51:47: But especially now when we're all challenged concerning how we're going to make ends meet in the coming weeks and months.
51:54: You yourself just mentioned on this program that you're challenged by it. And so money is a very, very big topic and a major test of our faith.
52:06: And it will continue to be a test of our faith. And so we have to approach money in a spiritual way, in a biblical way, if we're going to survive the challenges that we're confronted with in the coming months.
52:20: And the first one, as I said, is we have to trust God to provide for us. If we're able to trust
52:26: God with our salvation and the forgiveness of our sins and our very future and our lives, we can trust
52:33: Him to provide for us. And there's no greater text in the
52:38: Scripture than Matthew 6, verses 25 through 34, where the
52:43: Lord Jesus Christ Himself acknowledges in His teaching that money and food and the essentials of life and making a living are on the minds of people who don't know
52:59: God. It consumes them day in and day out, pursuing money. How are they going to pay their bills, even abusing money?
53:08: And He lays out some amazing truths here in Matthew 6, verse 25. In fact, we're going to have to return to Matthew 6, verse 25 after our midway break came by very quickly.
53:18: So, folks, this is our elongated break because Grace Life Radio in Lake City, Florida, requires of us this longer break so that they can air their own public service announcements localizing this program to Lake City, Florida, which is a requirement of the
53:35: FCC. So while they air their own public service announcements, we air our globally heard commercials.
53:42: And I ask of you, please use this time wisely by writing down as much of the information provided by our advertisers as possible so that you can more frequently and successfully patronize them.
53:52: And as I hinted before with Grace Church at Franklin, even if you hear a church advertisement and this church is hundreds of miles away and you know you're never going to visit it, why not just write to them and thank them for advertising on Iron Trip and Zion Radio and keeping us on the air?
54:14: And if you have extra money, send them a gift as a big way of thanking them for keeping
54:20: Iron Trip and Zion Radio on the air. But also, obviously, the other advertisers where you can actually physically take advantage of what they are offering, please try to patronize them as often as possible.
54:34: And don't forget to send in emails with questions for Joe Jackiewicz on the coronavirus pandemic.
54:41: And today, as you have already heard, it's specifically on finances. And the email address is chrisarnson at gmail .com
54:49: chrisarnson at gmail .com Don't go away, God willing, we're going to be right back after these messages from our sponsors.
55:04: As host of Iron Trip and Zion Radio, I frequently get requests from listeners for church recommendations.
55:11: A church I've been strongly recommending as far back as the 1980s is Grace Covenant Baptist Church in Flemington, New Jersey, pastored by Alan Dunn.
55:21: Grace Covenant Baptist Church believes it's God's prerogative to determine how He shall be worshiped and how
55:26: He shall be represented in the world. They believe churches need to turn to the Bible to discover what to include in worship and how to worship
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01:00:04: Linbrook Baptist Church on 225 Earl Avenue in Linbrook, Long Island, is teaching God's timeless truths in the 21st century.
01:00:12: Our church is far more than a Sunday worship service. It's a place of learning where the scriptures are studied and the preaching of the gospel is clear and relevant.
01:00:19: It's like a gym where one can exercise their faith through community involvement. It's like a hospital for wounded souls where one can find compassionate people in healing.
01:00:27: We're a diverse family of all ages. Enthusiastically serving our Lord Jesus Christ in fellowship, play, and together.
01:00:33: Hi, I'm Pastor Bob Walderman and I invite you to come and join us here at Linbrook Baptist Church and see all that a church can be.
01:00:40: Call Linbrook Baptist at 516 -599 -9402 That's 516 - 599 -9402
01:00:47: Or visit linbrookbaptist .org That's linbrookbaptist .org Iron Sharpens Iron welcomes
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01:02:10: Tony Costa, Professor of Apologetics and Islam at Toronto Baptist Seminary. I'm thrilled to introduce to you a church where I've been invited to speak and have grown to love,
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01:02:28: It's such a joy to witness and experience fellowship with people of God like the dear saints at Hope Reform Baptist Church in Corham who have an intensely passionate desire to continue digging deeper and deeper into the unfathomable riches of Christ in His Holy Word and to enthusiastically proclaim
01:02:46: Christ Jesus the King and His doctrines of sovereign grace in Suffolk County, Long Island and beyond.
01:02:53: I hope you also have the privilege of discovering this precious congregation and receive the blessing of being showered by their love as I have.
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01:03:11: or call 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 631 -696 -5711 largest settlement in the state's history.
01:04:37: In New York, his case involving a paralyzed police officer made the front page of the Law Journal. If you have a serious personal injury or medical malpractice claim in any state,
01:04:48: I recommend that you call Dan. Consultations are free. There is no fee unless you win.
01:04:54: Dan Buttafuoco's number is 1 -800 -669 -4878. 1 -800 -669 -4878.
01:05:02: Or email me for Dan's contact information at chrisarnson at gmail dot com.
01:05:08: That's chrisarnson at gmail dot com. This is
01:05:22: Pastor Bill Sousa, Grace Church at Franklin, here in the beautiful state of Tennessee.
01:05:27: Our congregation is one of a growing number of churches who love and support
01:05:32: Iron Sharpens Iron Radio financially. Grace Church at Franklin is an independent, autonomous body of believers which strives to clearly declare the whole counsel of God as revealed in Scripture through the person and work of our
01:05:49: Lord Jesus Christ. And of course, the end of which we strive is the glory of God.
01:05:56: If you live near Franklin, Tennessee, and Franklin is just south of Nashville, maybe ten minutes, or you are visiting this area, or you have friends and loved ones nearby, we hope you will join us some
01:06:09: Lord's Day in worshiping our God and Savior. Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions about Grace Church at Franklin.
01:06:18: Our website is gracechurchatfranklin .org. That's gracechurchatfranklin .org.
01:06:27: This is Pastor Bill Sousa wishing you all the richest blessings of our
01:06:32: Sovereign Lord, God, Savior, and King, Jesus Christ, today and always.
01:06:44: Charles Haddon Spurgeon once said, Give yourself unto reading. The man who never reads will never be read.
01:06:51: He who never quotes will never be quoted. He who will not use the thoughts of other men's brains proves that he has no brains of his own.
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01:07:19: Since its beginning in 2001, Solid Ground has been committed to publish God -centered,
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01:07:32: That's Solid -Ground -Books .com, and see what priceless literary gems from the past or present you can unearth from Solid Ground.
01:07:41: Solid Ground Christian Books is honored to be a weekly sponsor of Iron Sharpens Iron Radio. And please don't forget, every time you purchase books from Solid -Ground -Books .com,
01:07:51: you are helping Iron Sharpens Iron Radio remain on the air because they are a primary sponsor of this broadcast.
01:07:59: In fact, I want to thank Mike Gaydosh, founder of Solid Ground Christian Books, for adding, just as Grace Church at Franklin did in Franklin, Tennessee, an extra financial gift on top of their advertising bill.
01:08:16: So I just thank Mike from the depths of my heart. He's my very first pastor.
01:08:21: After my rebirth in Christ, he is the one that immersed me in the waters of baptism, and he's been a friend and mentor ever since.
01:08:31: And I just thank him from the depths of my heart. I can't thank him enough. And just remember, folks, with all the reasons that you have for gift -giving coming up, like Easter, and not far after, you're going to have
01:08:45: Mother's Day, you're going to have Father's Day, you have graduations, you have back -to -school gifts, anniversaries, all kinds of reasons why you typically give gifts, go to Solid -Ground -Books .com
01:09:00: and purchase those gifts there. Whether you're buying the gift for a Christian or a lost person, it might even be more important to buy it for a lost person, because something in that book from Solid Ground Christian Books might lead them to eternal life in Christ.
01:09:16: So just write down that website. Put it on your refrigerator. Put it somewhere where you see it every day.
01:09:23: Solid -Ground -Books .com. Before we return to Joe Jakowicz and our discussion on finances in the midst of a pandemic like the coronavirus,
01:09:35: I just have a couple of announcements to make. First of all, next week is a really phenomenal week of interviews.
01:09:44: We have my old friends on Monday, the 6th of April, my old friends
01:09:51: Stephen Atkinson and Mitch Tepper from Christian Witness to Israel, also known as CWI.
01:09:59: They will be on the program specifically addressing the coronavirus through Jewish eyes.
01:10:05: They are going to be addressing specifically not only how the
01:10:11: Jews in the community where they minister are responding to the coronavirus crisis, but they're also going to be discussing practical ways on evangelizing these
01:10:24: Jewish folks and leading them to the Jewish Messiah. So you don't want to miss that program.
01:10:30: It should be fascinating. On Tuesday, the 7th of April, my dear friend
01:10:36: Dr. Joe Moorcraft returns for part three of a discussion on his phenomenal book,
01:10:44: With Liberty and Justice for All, Christian Politics Made Simple. On Wednesday, April 8th,
01:10:50: Dr. James R. White, my dear friend going back to 1995, James R. White of Alpha Omega Ministries is going to be addressing the heretical dogma of Rome known as purgatory and penance and everything that's attached to that, the sacrament of penance so -called.
01:11:11: And that's on the 20th or near the 20th anniversary of his infamous, notorious debate with Father Peter Stravinskis on that very theme, a debate that I organized on Long Island, New York, so you don't want to miss that program.
01:11:26: And on Thursday, my friend Pastor Bill Shishko of the Haven Church in Deer Park, Long Island, New York, which is an
01:11:35: Orthodox Presbyterian congregation, he returns to the program. I don't quite know the subject matter yet, but whatever it is,
01:11:41: I'm sure Bill will do a phenomenal job. And then, of course, we have Joe Jackowitz, my guest today, returning for our
01:11:47: Friday edition of Iron Trip and Zion Radio, focusing on updates on the coronavirus and also giving biblical responses to this pandemic.
01:11:58: And also, folks, as far as we know, I mean, this could change, but as far as we know right now, the next free spring
01:12:08: Iron Trip and Zion Radio Pastor's Luncheon, as far as we know, it's still being held on Friday, May 29th, at the
01:12:15: Bongiorno Conference Center in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, featuring for the very first time Dr.
01:12:21: Conrad M. Beyway, pastor of Lusaka, Kibwata Baptist Church in Lusaka, Zambia, Africa, also the former chancellor and currently a lecturer at African Christian University.
01:12:33: As I have repeated many times, I truly believe, without exaggeration, he is the most powerful preacher alive on the planet
01:12:39: Earth. And he will be speaking, and not only will you hear him speak for free, but you'll be fed for free a sumptuous lunch by the
01:12:49: Bongiorno Conference Center, and you'll also be leaving with a heavy sack of books donated by major Christian publishers all over the
01:12:55: United States and the United Kingdom. And that's all for free, thanks to my dear, precious late wife, who is now in eternity with Christ, who came up with this idea and who began these luncheons with me back in the 1990s, and I have continued them for many years ever since, and after she went home to glory,
01:13:15: I relaunched them after relocating to Pennsylvania in her honor and memory and in tribute to her.
01:13:21: So if you'd like to attend on Friday, May 29th, barring any unforeseen continued bans on gatherings over 10 people, that's
01:13:33: Friday, May 29th at the Bongiorno Conference Center in Carlisle, send me an email to chrisarnsen at gmail .com,
01:13:39: chrisarnsen at gmail .com, and put luncheon in the subject line, and if you want to go to this luncheon, even if you are convinced it's going to be canceled, send me your email anyway, because this way
01:13:52: I'll have you on the list to remind you if a new date is required.
01:13:58: So don't just pass by my invitation. And by the way, again, this is only for men in ministry leadership, pastors, deacons, and parachurch organization leaders, etc.
01:14:10: So send me that email to chrisarnsen at gmail .com. Folks, as I have already said,
01:14:19: Iron Trip and Zion Radio is in great peril right now, financial peril, because we have temporarily,
01:14:27: I hope only temporarily, lost our two largest means of financial support because these two businesses have been slammed by the coronavirus scare, and they had to delay any further support for this show.
01:14:44: So I'm urging you, please, if you love this show and you don't want it to disappear, if you look forward to listening to it every day, especially if you're confined to your home and this is an important part of your day, as it must be for many people since in October alone over 41 ,000 people downloaded the archived recordings of this show off of the website, if this means a lot to you, this show, if you love the topics and the guests that we air that are sometimes rarely and sometimes never heard anywhere else, then please help us.
01:15:19: Go to irontripandzionradio .com, click support, then click click to donate now. You can donate instantly with a debit or credit card or mail in a check the old -fashioned way via snail mail to the address that appears on the screen.
01:15:31: And as I repeat every day, especially during this time of the coronavirus crisis, never siphon money away from your regular giving to your local church where you're a member in order to give to Iron Trip and Zion Radio.
01:15:44: Your church needs your support also now more than ever very likely because many churches are being slammed financially because the people aren't able to show up physically and they are either delaying or just not giving to their churches because they are not there and of course that is improper if you have the means to give, you are commanded by God to support your church.
01:16:10: And some people have just lost their jobs and they can't support their church and their churches are supporting them.
01:16:16: So don't funnel money or siphon money out of your giving to your local church in order to give to us.
01:16:23: And don't put your family in financial peril or crisis by giving to Iron Trip and Zion Radio.
01:16:30: Those two things are commands of God, but if you're blessed financially above and beyond your ability to obey those two commands, you have extra money that you're not using on all those recreational activities that you used to enjoy, like going to sporting events, movies, the theater, fine dining, all those things that you used to do that you're not doing.
01:16:49: Please use some of that money to help Iron Trip and Zion Radio exist if indeed you love the show.
01:16:56: Go to www .IronTripandZionRadio .com, click support, then click click to donate now. You can also advertise with us.
01:17:01: Send me an email to chrisarnsen at gmail .com. And as long as whatever it is you're advertising is compatible with what we believe, you don't have to believe identically with me, but you need to be promoting something compatible with what
01:17:12: I believe, then please send that email to chrisarnsen at gmail .com and put advertising in the subject line.
01:17:19: Also, folks, if you are not a member of a local Bible -believing church, you are living in rebellion against God.
01:17:25: You've got to rectify that. There's no such thing as a lone wolf, a lone ranger, a maverick
01:17:32: Christian, either just never going to church anywhere or just bouncing around from church to church and never joining any of them and never submitting to the local elders there.
01:17:42: That's not a biblical concept. You are living in sin by doing that. I can help you,
01:17:47: God willing, rectify that situation if you need help finding a church. I have lists of biblically faithful churches all over the world and I've already helped quite a number of people find churches for various reasons.
01:18:00: Sometimes it's to join them and become members of them. Sometimes it's when people are going on vacation. And I just offered a church, a
01:18:10: Reformed Baptist church, the information for that church, to a pastor who has church members stranded in India.
01:18:18: And it just so happens that I know of a Reformed Baptist church in the very city where these folks are stranded.
01:18:26: And a lot of times people have family, friends, and loved ones in different parts of the world that don't have a church of their own.
01:18:32: I have helped many in our audience all over the planet and I can help you, God willing. So send me an email to chrisarnsen at gmail .com
01:18:39: and put I need a church in the subject line. That's also the email address to send in a question to Joe Jackowitz on the coronavirus update that we are providing for today.
01:18:48: chrisarnsen at gmail .com. And Joe, I believe you were entering into Matthew chapter 6 before the break.
01:18:54: Yes, I was getting ready to begin reading this text at Matthew 6 beginning at verse 25 where Jesus says,
01:19:02: Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.
01:19:10: Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly
01:19:19: Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
01:19:27: So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They neither toil nor spin.
01:19:34: And yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
01:19:39: Now if God so clothes the grass of the field which today is and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you,
01:19:48: O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, What shall we eat or what shall we drink or what shall we wear?
01:19:56: For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
01:20:03: But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
01:20:11: Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.
01:20:17: Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. And so Jesus is teaching, don't worry about your basic needs.
01:20:25: Seek him first and his righteousness. If you're not a believer, pray and ask him to save your soul.
01:20:33: Repent of sin. Turn from the wicked ways by his grace. Trust your life, your heart, your future, your needs, your everything, into his wise, compassionate, faithful hands.
01:20:47: And he will save your soul. Read the scripture. Begin reading the Gospel of John in the Bible. And look away from the fear and the pressure about things connected with money.
01:21:00: And seek the Lord. Doesn't the Bible say, Man shall not live for bread alone, but by every word which proceeds out of the mouth of God?
01:21:09: And so in this text that we just read, Jesus is teaching, look, don't worry about your future.
01:21:15: Focus on your salvation. And make that the number one priority of your life.
01:21:21: And the Lord will take care of everything else. The perspective in here is very important because the
01:21:28: Lord Jesus compares the worldly mindset, the worldly orientation, which is around money, people focusing on money, worrying about food and clothes and this and that, versus the spiritual mindset.
01:21:42: The orientation that Jesus points people in the world to is the
01:21:48: Lord himself, is himself, Jesus, who said, I am the way, the truth, and the life.
01:21:54: No man comes to the Father but by him. He says, look, tomorrow has its own problems, but even then, he teaches that God will be with you and he will take care of you.
01:22:06: He uses these beautiful analogies to underscore his point that if birds are fed and they don't worry, people are more important to God than animals.
01:22:18: We are all made in God's image. He certainly will take care of us. And so one of the major points is that worry never improves our situation.
01:22:29: How can we increase our financial situation one inch, one penny, one dollar, by sitting around worrying about it?
01:22:37: He basically says set those issues of needs aside as important as they are and seek first, seek
01:22:45: God, seek the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation, the very one that has provided for you and all of your needs to that very moment all of your life.
01:22:55: He has provided for you. He's given you the ability to make money. He's kept you healthy. He's provided so many other wonderful things.
01:23:03: Set those issues aside for a minute. You can trust him for your future needs and seek him with all your heart.
01:23:09: And so the first point is we are to trust in God. The call goes out by the
01:23:16: Lord Jesus Christ in the Scripture. To trust in the Lord, focus on your salvation.
01:23:21: If you are a Christian, continue to serve him and seek him and make him number one in your life.
01:23:28: He will continue to provide for you. You can trust him. The second point I wanted to make concerning finances in general is
01:23:36: God will meet your needs, not your wants. In Philippians 419 it says,
01:23:42: And God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus. God doesn't promise to give us what we want, but as we read here in Matthew 6, he promises to give us what we need.
01:23:54: We need food. We need air. We need clothes. We need a roof over our heads. He promises that.
01:24:00: And thirdly, always give to God's work.
01:24:06: We read in Luke 6, 38, Give and it will be given to you. Good measure pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.
01:24:15: For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. Again we read,
01:24:21: Honor the Lord with your possessions and with the firstfruits of all your increase, so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow with new wine.
01:24:31: Proverbs 30, verse 9. We're promised in 2 Corinthians chapter 9 that God will make all grace abound toward you, that you always having all sufficiency in all things may abound to every good work.
01:24:48: So what God is saying, that even with those who are poor financially, who are believers,
01:24:55: He will not only meet your needs, but He'll make sure He gives you a little extra so that you can serve
01:25:01: Him, so that you can give to your church, so that you can give to good ministries like iron sharpens iron.
01:25:07: These are commands in the Scripture. You say, what does that have to do with financial principles? Well, the
01:25:13: Bible says it's more blessed to give than to receive. And so part of our financial stewardship is not only to pay our bills and to honor our commitments financially to those that we gave them to, but also
01:25:27: God is number one on the list. The Bible has a lot to say about firstfruits.
01:25:33: In other words, that we're to give God of the best and the firstfruits of what He gives to us, and not hoard money that we have for selfish reasons.
01:25:43: We're to give to God's work. And as Chris always says on this show, give to your church first, especially now.
01:25:51: And this is a very relevant point, because the coronavirus has put a lot of pressure on churches.
01:25:57: In the past, we took for granted the convenience of going to church, putting our money in the offering box or the offering plate, however they collect the funds, and it was a done deal.
01:26:08: We wrote the check out, or we brought our cash, or you sent it in, maybe by PayPal.
01:26:14: But now, since many of us, most of us I dare say, have not been able to attend a worship service for three to four to five weeks, and so we have to go out of our way to make sure that our local church receives our offering, our financial gifts, so that they can continue to do the work that God has called the church to do.
01:26:36: It's the member's obligation. It should be the joy and delight of the members to worship
01:26:42: God through the giving of our gifts to the Lord. And if you give your financial gifts in love to God, as an act of worship, and in faith,
01:26:52: God accepts that as doing good unto him. For God is not unjust to forget your work and your labor of love, which you have shown towards his name, in that you have ministered to the saints and do minister.
01:27:08: That's Hebrews 6 .10. And then making sure that you mail in your gifts to the church, or somehow, some way, call the church and make arrangements to give your offerings so that the pastor, the elders, those who are preaching the gospel can live of the gospel and don't muzzle the ox, so that they can continue to do their work.
01:27:30: Also, ministries like Chris Arnzen. Folks, if you knew the work, the critical, vital, hugely significant and important work that Chris Arnzen does, he would not have any financial need right now.
01:27:47: And so I would encourage you to give to Iron Sharpens Iron, because there are so few programs with the quality of the content, the topics that are discussed are second to none, they're weighty, they're in -depth, they're
01:28:03: Bible and Scripture oriented. The quality of the interview, again, is second to none.
01:28:09: And so we would encourage you, if after taking care of your local church you have funds left over, even a little bit, the
01:28:19: Lord sees it. Remember the parable of our Lord Jesus Christ, where he saw the
01:28:26: Pharisees throwing in their bankrolls, their thousands, as it were, into the offering box, but the widow came with her two mites, but she gave with a heart of love, an act of worship.
01:28:38: God received and accepted her giving more than the Pharisees, because she gave it with joy and with love to God.
01:28:47: And so it wasn't the amount per se. And usually those who give as an act of worship are generous.
01:28:53: If you would give the same way, well, I'm not going to send Christianity funds because I can't give $100 or $1 ,000.
01:28:59: Look, give what you can. These are hard times. I know. But give what you can.
01:29:05: Pray about it. Bring it to the Lord. And ask the Lord what your part would be in maintaining this ministry, because the world needs to hear these programs
01:29:14: Monday through Friday at 1 Pacific and 4 Eastern. Iron sharpens iron.
01:29:20: The world needs to hear these programs more than ever before, because of the spiritual need.
01:29:28: And so I have a few more things, Chris. Should I stop here? No, actually continue.
01:29:35: Okay. So God will meet your needs, not your wants. Always give to God's work. Next, ask him to provide.
01:29:43: So often we don't have because we're not asking. We read in James 4, remember this verse?
01:29:49: You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive because you ask amiss that you may consume it on your lusts.
01:29:57: And so asking frequently, as well as asking with the right motive, will assure us of getting an answer from God.
01:30:07: Didn't the Lord say in Matthew 6 in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Lord's Prayer, give us this day our daily bread?
01:30:15: In the context, he teaches us how to pray by laying out the elements of prayer. And one of those vital elements of our daily prayer should be,
01:30:23: Lord, give us our daily bread. Provide for us. And so in this coronavirus atmosphere of great derision and concern about where the finances are going to come from, how are we going to be provided for in the future,
01:30:38: God tells us to ask. Ask him every day. Make it a daily part of your petitions.
01:30:44: Just don't ask him for things. Make sure you worship him. Make sure you adore him.
01:30:49: Make sure you recognize his sovereignty, his majesty, his glory. Ask the
01:30:54: Holy Spirit to help you to pray as you ought to pray, because we don't know how to pray as we ought.
01:31:00: And so ask him to provide. The Lord says, ask, and it will be given to you. Seek, and you will find.
01:31:06: Knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds.
01:31:12: And to him who knocks, it will be opened. Or what man is there among you? If a son asks for bread, will he give him a stone?
01:31:18: Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your
01:31:28: Heavenly Father give good things to those who ask? The next thing is resist the love of money.
01:31:36: Godliness with contentment is great gain, 1 Timothy 6 says. And there is so much love and affection and lust going on for money today.
01:31:49: Money is not the ethos and the center and the priority of the
01:31:56: Christian life. It is not. It is a necessary thing. We need to earn money to pay our bills, but we're commanded to use our discretionary funds, whatever is left over after our fixed expenses are paid for the work of the
01:32:11: Lord, especially well -to -do people. And of those of you who are listening, have been blessed by God with a gift or a skill to be able to earn a significant amount of money, read 1
01:32:23: Timothy chapter 6. You did not get a gift from God to earn money randomly speaking.
01:32:31: God gave that to you so that the money that you earn after you pay your bills, you also are to be content with such things as you have in terms of the basics, but then use your funds for the advancement of the kingdom, like sustaining programs like Iron Sharpens Iron, for example.
01:32:50: And then let me move on to give you some practical tips in this day and age of worldwide pandemic on handling money.
01:33:03: Some people cannot handle money, Chris. Some people had to learn the hard way by being in debt for many, many years before they finally got out of debt, and they promised
01:33:13: God that they would never go back into that situation before. Being in debt is pure misery for many, many people, especially believers who feel guilty over it and who know the verse in the scripture where it says,
01:33:27: Oh, no man anything but to love one another. The first practical tip is establish priorities.
01:33:34: You know, the Bible is an incredibly useful source of guidance on money issues.
01:33:40: There are many basic financial concepts that are as relevant today as they were when the
01:33:46: Bible was written. And making sure you identify your financial priorities is important.
01:33:54: We read in Proverbs 24 and verse 27, prepare your work outside, make it fit for yourself in the field, and afterward build your house.
01:34:06: Now on the surface, this doesn't seem to be talking about financial priorities, but if you look at the verse carefully, it does.
01:34:13: It describes building your house and working in the field. Two different things.
01:34:19: And so this is a metaphor. These are metaphors. And therefore it makes sense financially to work in the field first to have the money to be able to build the house and then maintain it.
01:34:35: But if you build the house first and don't have an income stream to maintain a household, then you will have to give up your house.
01:34:44: And so work and earn money so you can get the house. So what God is saying, look, establish the priority of developing a good work ethic so that you can maintain your household.
01:34:57: Make sure you have enough funds to pay your fixed bills and live within your means, or even better, live beneath your means.
01:35:06: Establish your financial stream of income, live within those means, and secondly, create a budget.
01:35:14: You know that parable where Jesus said in Luke 14, which of you intending to build a tower does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it, lest after he has laid the foundation and is not able to finish all who see it, begin to mock him, saying this man began to build and was not able to finish.
01:35:33: So create a budget and live within it. If you have difficulty living within a budget, practice, practice, practice maintaining a budget.
01:35:44: Things will get better as you practice. The easiest thing to remember about budgeting is there are fixed expenses first, which are regular bills that are due on a regular schedule, monthly or every other month.
01:35:58: They're fixed because they don't change. Those bills come in regularly every month or week or whatever it is.
01:36:05: Bills like rent, mortgage, utilities, insurance, food, clothes, car maintenance, and so forth.
01:36:12: Secondly, there's variable expenses. These are occasional bills, and including ones that are unexpected, that are not part of your budget.
01:36:21: And thirdly, there's discretionary spending. That's the things you want but don't need.
01:36:27: If you have the money for something you want, like a 20th pair of shoes, you know, we have so much abundance in America.
01:36:36: Okay, if after paying your fixed expenses and variable expenses and savings, you go ahead and buy it, you know, if your conscience doesn't bother you when buying it.
01:36:48: Do you think Imelda Marcos is listening to the show today? The other thing, the fourth thing is not only fixed expenses, variable expenses, discretionary spending, which is the money you have left over after everything is taken care of financially.
01:37:05: Then you have savings. Start a savings account. And I would suggest you have a fund for all four of these things, the fixed, variable, discretionary, and savings.
01:37:16: You can use budgeting software like Quicken. That's very helpful or something else.
01:37:23: And I can go into a lot about budgeting, but I want to move on to be able to get a few more points and what does our time look like, okay?
01:37:30: Well, actually, we should go to our final break right now so I don't have to interrupt you. Okay. And we do have a few listeners waiting to have their questions answered.
01:37:40: Okay. So, folks, if you want to get in line and have your question asked and answered, too, by our guest today,
01:37:49: Joe Jackowitz, please send in your e -mail immediately because we're rapidly running out of time. ChrisArnson at gmail .com.
01:37:56: ChrisArnson at gmail .com. Don't go away. We'll be right back. The coronavirus pandemic has rapidly changed our way of life, bringing so many uncertainties.
01:38:06: When will it end? Why do disasters like this happen? How do we deal with anxiety, fear, and the like?
01:38:13: Well, join us each Friday on the program Iron Sharpens Iron with your host,
01:38:18: Chris Arnson, and Pastor Joe Jackowitz as they explore God's Word for answers to this and other of life's related issues.
01:38:27: Tune in at firstloveradio .org. That's firstloveradio .org.
01:38:34: Each Friday at 1 p .m. Pacific, 4 p .m. Eastern. That's Iron Sharpens Iron on firstloveradio .org.
01:38:42: Friday's 1 p .m. Pacific, 4 p .m. Eastern to hear what the Bible has to say about pandemics and how we should respond.
01:38:54: When Iron Sharpens Iron Radio first launched in 2005, the publishers of the
01:38:59: New American Standard Bible were among my very first sponsors. It gives me joy knowing that many scholars and pastors in the
01:39:07: Iron Sharpens Iron Radio audience have been sticking with or switching to the
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01:39:44: Historical Bible Society, and the NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Pastor Josh Miller of Grace Bible Fellowship Church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the
01:39:54: NASB is my Bible of choice. I'm Joe Bianchi, president of Calvi Press Publishing in Greenville, South Carolina, and the
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01:40:47: Every day at thousands of community centers, high schools, middle schools, juvenile institutions, coffee shops, and local hangouts,
01:40:55: Long Island Youth for Christ, staff and volunteers meet with young people who need Jesus. We are rural and urban, and we are always about the message of Jesus.
01:41:04: Our mission is to have a noticeable spiritual impact on Long Island, New York, by engaging young people in the lifelong journey of following Christ.
01:41:12: Long Island Youth for Christ has been a stalwart bedrock ministry since 1959. We have a world -class staff and a proven track record of bringing consistent love and encouragement to youths in need all over the country and around the world.
01:41:26: Help honor our history by becoming a part of our future. Volunteer, donate, pray, or all of the above.
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01:41:49: that's liyfc .org. I want to tell you about a man
01:42:06: I have personally known for many years. His name is Dan Buttafuoco. Dan is a personal injury and medical malpractice lawyer, but not the type that typically comes to mind.
01:42:17: Dan cares about people and is a theologian himself. Recently, he wrote a book titled, Consider the
01:42:23: Evidence for the Bible. Ravi Zacharias wrote the book, Dan also has a master's degree in theology.
01:42:30: Dan handles serious injury and medical malpractice cases in all 50 states. He represents many
01:42:36: Christians in serious injury matters all over the country. Dan is an exceptional trial lawyer.
01:42:43: He wrote the test for the National Board of Trial Advocacy, and currently his firm has over 100 cases that have settled for $1 million or more, and in approximately 10 different states.
01:42:56: In Illinois, his lawyers had the 4th largest settlement in the state's history. In New York, his case involving a paralyzed police officer made the front page of the
01:43:06: Law Journal. If you have a serious personal injury or medical malpractice claim in any state,
01:43:13: I recommend that you call Dan. Consultations are free. There is no fee unless you win.
01:43:19: Dan Buttafuoco's number is 1 -800 -669 -4878. 1 -800 -669 -4878.
01:43:27: Or email me for Dan's contact information at chrisarnson at gmail dot com.
01:43:33: That's chrisarnson at gmail dot com. Hail the power of Jesus' name.
01:43:45: This is Pastor Bill Sousa, Grace Church at Franklin, here in the beautiful state of Tennessee.
01:43:51: Our congregation is one of a growing number of churches who love and support
01:43:56: Iron Sharpens Iron radio financially. Grace Church at Franklin is an independent, autonomous body of believers which strives to clearly declare the whole counsel of God as revealed in Scripture through the person and work of our
01:44:13: Lord Jesus Christ. And, of course, the end of which we strive is the glory of God.
01:44:19: If you live near Franklin, Tennessee, and Franklin is just south of Nashville, maybe 10 minutes, or you are visiting this area, or you have friends and loved ones nearby, we hope you will join us some
01:44:32: Lord's Day in worshiping our God and Savior. Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions about Grace Church at Franklin.
01:44:42: Our website is gracechurchatfranklin .org. That's gracechurchatfranklin .org.
01:44:51: This is Pastor Bill Sousa wishing you all the richest blessings of our
01:44:56: Sovereign Lord, God, Savior, and King Jesus Christ today and always.
01:45:19: Listening to Christian radio can be a big gamble spiritually. Even many of the major Christian networks that include excellent biblically faithful teachers on their lineup sadly often also include the worst of doctrinally dangerous heretics.
01:45:34: If you are a lover of the doctrines of Sovereign Grace, you need not fear listening 24 hours a day to FirstLoveRadio .org.
01:45:42: They feature Christ -centered programming from Reformed pastors and teachers you can rely upon for theological soundness and biblical faithfulness, such as Dr.
01:45:51: W .R. Downing, Dr. Peter Masters, Pastor Joe Jackowitz, Pastor Robert Gifford, Al Martin, Edward Delcor, and more.
01:46:01: FirstLoveRadio .org also livestreams my Iron Trepans Iron Radio program daily.
01:46:07: Please stick around on FirstLoveRadio .org after Iron Trepans Iron Radio is over to continue being blessed by the unwavering proclamation of the gospel of Sovereign Grace.
01:46:18: Spread the word about FirstLoveRadio .org. Hi, I'm Buzz Taylor, frequent co -host with Chris Arnzen on Iron Trepans Iron Radio.
01:46:42: I would like to introduce you to my good friends Todd and Patty Jennings at CVBBS, which stands for Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service.
01:46:49: Todd and Patty specialize in supplying Reformed and Puritan books and Bibles at discount prices that make them affordable to everyone.
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01:47:02: Christian books and Bibles at the best possible prices. Unlike other book sites, they make no effort to provide every book that is available because, frankly, much of what is being printed is not worth your time.
01:47:15: That means you can get to the good stuff faster. It also means that you don't have to worry about being assaulted by the pornographic, heretical, and otherwise faith -insulting material promoted by the secular book vendors.
01:47:28: Their website is CVBBS .com. Browse the pages at ease, shop at your leisure, and purchase with confidence as Todd and Patty work in service to you, the
01:47:39: Church, and to Christ. That's Cumberland Valley Bible Book Service at CVBBS .com.
01:47:46: That's CVBBS .com. Let Todd and Patty know that you heard about them on Iron Trepans Iron Radio.
01:47:54: And don't forget, folks, you can call CVBBS .com Monday through Friday between 10 a .m.
01:48:02: and 4 .30 p .m. Eastern Time only at 800 -656 -0231. 800 -656 -0231.
01:48:10: That is the only time that the phone line is manned. That's 10 a .m. to 4 .30
01:48:15: p .m. Eastern Time Monday through Friday. There is no voicemail, so only call that number during those hours and days.
01:48:23: And as I've recommended before, please, since they are only a book distributor and not a publisher, before you go to CVBBS .com,
01:48:32: go to Solid -Ground -Books .com, the website of Solid Ground Christian Books. Make a long list of books that they publish that you want to purchase, and then go to CVBBS .com
01:48:43: and purchase them there because CVBBS .com carries all of Solid Ground Christian Books' titles, and if they happen to be out of stock of a title or two, they will order them for you.
01:48:56: Also, I just want to quickly thank Kurt Daniel, Dr. Kurt Daniel, who was my guest yesterday to discuss his monumental 900 -page book,
01:49:09: The History and Theology of Calvinism. I want to thank him for contacting me during the station break because he wants to use the services of Post -Tenebrous
01:49:19: Lux Bible Rebonding, the advertiser that you hear a lot on Iron Trip and Zion Radio, who does masterful
01:49:27: Bible rebonding. Thank you so much, Dr. Daniel, for responding to one of our advertisements and knowing how big of a book collector and seller you are.
01:49:41: I'm sure you're going to give Jeffrey Rice at Post -Tenebrous Lux, that's PTLBibleRebonding .com, a lot of business, and I will pray to that end.
01:49:50: And lastly, I want to give a shout -out to Richard in Salt Lake City, Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, for giving me a laugh.
01:49:59: He says, I believe there is a rye bread apocalypse. And the reason why it made me laugh is
01:50:06: I keep returning to Walmart every other day or so to see if they have any rye bread in stock, and they have mountains of white bread, but no rye bread.
01:50:18: It seems to be very popular, and people are hoarding it. So it just gave me a chuckle. Before I go to any listener questions for you,
01:50:27: Joe, why don't you continue what you were saying before the break? By the way, another reason why they may be out of rye bread is because of the coronavirus, and there's been a lot of folks laid off from the bakeries.
01:50:38: As a matter of fact, anecdotally, I went to the supermarket a couple of days ago looking for sourdough bread, which originated just a few miles from here in San Francisco, and they were out of sourdough bread.
01:50:55: Wow, I love sourdough bread. That was fresh on my mind, so you brought that up. Okay. Okay, so I'm going to wrap things up here concerning financial principles that we need to keep in mind during the coronavirus as we will need to make adjustments in budgeting.
01:51:11: Income will be lower. Those of you who will receive a government check, $1 ,200 a person, $2 ,400 for a husband and wife family, $500 for each child.
01:51:24: And, of course, you've been laid off or you've been permanently let go. Again, this whole idea of employment, whether you're going to return to your previous job or have to start looking for another job, the income flow needs to keep coming in so that you can pay your bill.
01:51:40: You may have to make adjustments in terms of your financial commitments. You may need to cut back on some things, so maybe cable
01:51:50: TV, or if you have a landline, you may have to cancel that and stick with your cell phone.
01:51:56: You're needing to really look at your financial outflow and what's coming in and adjust your budget.
01:52:03: And so along those lines, it does well to remember that we're not to have our life revolve around money, so that even if there is a change in our income, it's not going to destroy our lives because our love and our affection and our lives are in the hands of Christ and for the
01:52:25: Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul says, I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.
01:52:32: I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well -fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
01:52:41: I can do all this through him who gives me strength. In verse 19 of Philippians 4, he says, and this is a promise, and my
01:52:51: God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.
01:52:57: So even though we're tested and tried in the fiery fire of affliction, our faith is being stretched, yet the
01:53:05: Lord wants us to return to the source of our life, the Lord Jesus Christ, to look to him to make up the difference where we are lacking in our budget, to provide for us in the future, to put food on the table, pay the rent, pay the mortgage.
01:53:23: Look to him, the one who has provided for us. No matter how bad things are, believe that God will provide for you.
01:53:33: Cast all your care upon him, for he cares for you. Okay, we have
01:53:38: Arnie in Perry County, Pennsylvania, who asks, Aren't all these promises and efforts at giving comfort to the listeners today only intended for Christians?
01:53:51: Because I don't know of any biblical passage that would promise what you are saying to those who reject
01:53:57: God. I could see your confusion how we may have woven some of the promises in with the unsaved as well as the saved.
01:54:08: Obviously, Matthew 6 .33 is a promise for those who are looking for finances, looking for financial blessing, to not be focused on that, but to seek first the kingdom, to seek the
01:54:26: Lord for his own sake and for the sake of the need for forgiveness and salvation in your own life.
01:54:33: But yeah, most of the promises that I have laid out are for believers, for sure.
01:54:41: And that's who I was primarily addressing today, is for believers. But God promises also unbelievers to provide for them, but he tells them to set aside as a main priority and main focus of their lives the pursuit of money and material possessions, but to pursue
01:55:03: God and to trust God with their lives and with their salvation and these other things he will take care of.
01:55:11: We have Christopher in Suffolk County, Long Island, New York. What a great name.
01:55:19: He says, Must not we be very careful not to imitate
01:55:25: Job's friends by speaking biblical truths to people, but in an improper way and at an improper time.
01:55:35: Don't you agree that when people come to us for help with physical needs we are not to just glibly say to them,
01:55:42: God will provide for your needs? Aren't we supposed to, as James warns us, help people physically or we should not have any confidence that we are truly saved and we have a dead faith?
01:55:57: Right, well, this is not a one -dimensional issue when people come to us asking for our help we just give a glib response, be warm and filled, or some other response that's just a single thing.
01:56:10: There's several things we need to keep in mind. The overriding dynamic that guides us in such situations is the wisdom of God.
01:56:21: You may have knowledge, you may be able to say, have a great time, I'm sorry I can't help you, be warm and filled, but that may not be the right thing to say at that time and that may be said to them very quickly without pursuing or thinking about alternatives to be able to pursue in helping these people out.
01:56:42: So certainly we need wisdom from God to size up the situation. When someone comes to us and asks for help we need to understand who the person is.
01:56:52: Are they a believer, a non -believer? What their need is? What are the alternative sources that we can direct them to if I myself do not have funds to help or what they're looking for?
01:57:04: We need to keep several things in mind and not give a one -dimensional response. Absolutely.
01:57:10: And I want you to have two minutes just to summarize what you most want etched in the hearts and minds of our listeners today.
01:57:16: Well, I would say that when you're looking at a budget you need to establish priorities, you need to create a budget, create an emergency fund, you need to avoid debt, and you need to make a financial plan.
01:57:36: But one of the most important elements that I did not have time to talk about is to give you prayer tips especially in the coronavirus of today when finances are a big issue.
01:57:47: I would encourage every believer listening to pray daily for God's provision. Number two, to pray for wisdom as you are looking for guidance about future income.
01:57:58: Thirdly, to pray for other people. Intercede for others now that we have more time while we're shut in and locked down.
01:58:05: And number four, use this time to get close to God. And in closing, if I could just take one minute after that summary and encourage people to tune in this
01:58:16: Sunday for our Sunday sermon, you're welcome.
01:58:21: We will live stream it at FirstLoveRadio .org at 1 p .m. Pacific Time.
01:58:28: We will also be on Facebook. We will Facebook it on video as well as YouTube Live.
01:58:34: So if you like YouTube Live, we're going to come to you 1 o 'clock on Sunday and then next
01:58:39: Wednesday at 7 p .m. on all three of those media platforms for our
01:58:45: Bible Talk program. And then if you're interested in publications, go online to our publications ministry,
01:58:53: FirstLovePublications .org. That's one word, FirstLovePublications .org.
01:58:58: Great. And don't forget about Christ Bible Church in Pleasanton, California, the church where yesterday
01:59:04: Joe Jackiewicz serves as pastor. It's ChristBibleChurch .org,
01:59:10: ChristBibleChurch .org. Thank you so much, Pastor Joe, for being such an excellent guest, for being so informative, for being a good friend to me personally.
01:59:20: I want to thank everybody who listened today, especially those who took the time to write. I hope you'll all have a safe and blessed and happy weekend and Christ -honoring
01:59:29: Lord's Day. And I hope you all always remember for the rest of your lives that Jesus Christ is a far, far greater