Why I Don't Support Faith Promise Missions Giving

If I would title this anything it would be “Faith Promise Missions Giving”

Philosophy and traditions starving the Body of Christ at home to win the lost abroad

“Cursed be he that doeth the work of the Lord Deceitfully...!”

I can say with absolute surety, that giving in the word of God is intertwined with early and modern day Christianity in the NT. Let it be emphatically stated that giving is not in question whatsoever.  What I am examining is our methods and principles of giving.

Faith Promise has become so wrapped in Fundamentalism, and such a part of church traditions, if supporters of it were not making it a mandate or doctrine of the local church, the fuss would be minimal.  But this is not the case!  

I am straining at this gnat because people have made this “gnat” doctrine!  And they are nothing more then works and ideas of men. They say they are not forcing any one to give, but they say things like “we don’t require you to practice it but all our members do it”.  It is the join or die mentality.  And this is why I choose to deal with such a dividing topic!

It has been chronicled in A.B. Simpson and the Pentecostal Movement:, by Charles W. Nienkirchen that A.B. Simpson, the man with the original idea of “faith promise giving” was a full blown Pentecostal, which explains the hold they have on the Christian Missionary Alliance today. He also largely emphasized world wide evangelism in his preaching.  

Because of his influence and is fund raising prowess, many Nazarene churches, Church of God churches and Pentecostal churches today use “faith promise giving” largely in their missions giving techniques as equally and as long as Baptist churches have.  We all use the same phrasing, handouts, teachings, Faith Promise cards, etc. So how Independent are we really?

Oswald Smith in 1928, a Presbyterian minister, used a local Baptist church in Canada as his drawing board “upon hearing of this new method of systematic and structured giving”.  He tried out this new “fund raising gimmick”, which he got from Simpson, with Peoples First Baptist, (originally called Cosmopolitan   Tabernacle) in Toronto, Canada.  The church is still operating and there statement of faith has the following in it till this day, and carries on J. Oswald’s Smith legacy of fulfilling a great commission, reforming nations, and Faith Promise. Look at what Oswald Smith believes about a great commission; 

Any church that is not seriously involved in helping to fulfill the great commission has forfeited it’s right to exist.  If God wills the evangelization of the world, and you refuse to support missions, then you are opposed to the will of God.

We believe that the Christian is called with a holy calling to live and identify with and serve through a local church to fulfill the great commission to go, teach, baptize and do the Lord's work until He returns.”

The Great Commission, We believe that, until the return of Christ, it is the Christian's privilege and duty and the supreme task of the Church to evangelize the world (Matthew 28:18-10; Acts 1:8). Every subsidiary ministry of The Peoples church must actively support the work of world evangelism (Acts 5:42).”

This is where faith promise came from.  This is the origin of it. Right here.  It is not a Biblical principle.  The idea was founded by men.  The idea is, get a certain amount in your mind, $10, $100, $1,000, $10,000, $50,000, $100,000, $500,000, pledge it or Promise to give, of what you do not yet have, while having faith in God that he will give you that desired amount.   

Now, at best, faith promise is a “bait and switch financing tactic.”  A lost man has enough sense to recognize this and call it what it is.  Faith promise concepts teaches the giver to vow unconditionally of income not yet realized.  

You are expected to pray daily for a year, several times a day, reminding God of your pledge, sort of holding him to it, and reminding him of your vow, as if he doesn;’t remember what you vowed or pledged. “The squeaky wheel gets the grease!” philosophy.    

I’ll show you what I mean.  These are just a few samples of Independent Baptist men and others who use faith promise in their ministries.  Take it from the horses mouth.  Listen to their own words, and where they hold this dogma, guide, program, or whatever it is they are calling it these days. The following quotes are excerpts taken from Great Commission or Faith Promise Missions Conference or Statements of Faith from Independent Fundamental Baptist Churches.

As a Bible-based program, it not only provides funds for missions, but also advances every objective of the local church’s missions program. Faith promise offers two great advantages over other methods. First, it elevates the church’s mission program to the place of prominence the Great Commission deserves. 

“In addition to regular tithes and offerings,”

“The Faith Promise Offering for Missions is the amount you promise to give by faith, above your tithes, during the coming year to the world-evangelization program of your church.”

Faith Promise giving makes us channels of blessing. In His covenant with Abraham, God said that through Abraham's descendants, "all peoples of the earth would be blessed." (Genesis 12:3) Faith Promise giving is a way of handing on the blessing.

By giving to Faith Promise faithfully, God's word will go out over all the world through our Missionaries

“The Faith promise offering is not a clever gimmick of men.  The principle of faith-giving, even promising to give, is set forth in 2 Corinthians  8, 9”

Other excerpt reads, 

What is the aim of the Faith Promise?  Its sole purpose is to support the work of world evangelism which is commanded by our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  Mark 16:15

"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth." Acts 1:8 - Faith-Promise Missions is an integral part of our church ministry.”

The "faith" in Faith-Promise Missions involves each individual making a commitment to give a predetermined amount to missions systematically and regularly by faith. Each individual is encouraged to pledge an amount that will have to be provided by God and give it as He provides.

“The missions conference is to serve one purpose, to get you burdened to give more to missions.”

It is a common theme in thousands of churches.  Many times slipped right into statements of faith.  They use the scripture to bolster it of course. You see the prominent position it holds so it is not a small matter unworthy of debate.  Faith promise as a practice goes is either loved or despised in the Independent Baptist churches.   

The most disturbing element and danger associated with Faith promise is the continual teaching that it is a Biblical principle set forth in the word.  You don’t hear much about it’s origins or the men behind it, because everyone is led to believe it is a biblical principle.  

Everyone is told, “It works”, and you need to just “Try God out”, but it all sounds like the same ploys TV evangelist pride themselves in.  The originators of it even recognized it as a “missions fund raising concept!” Soon after, they begin to make the scriptures teach it in likeness.    

Like any other group, they have to maintain a appearance of biblical resemblance.  They pass this stuff out to allow people to become familiar with it before any conference actually happens.  They have scripture on the pamphlets to have the appearance of doctrine.  So on many Faith Promise websites or handouts in our churches, they may give you a list of verses that deal with principles of giving in both OT and NT.  Ranging from tithes, offerings, and oblations etc, so they can take you right to 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, and say, and here is Faith Promise in the NT.  

This is how they do it. This is how the con is done.  A good con, when implemented will have men following it who don’t even know it is a con. It because they trust the system in place.   They have a title that says something like, “Verse on Missions”, or “Christian Missions in the Word of God”, or “Harvest Passages”, or “Examples of Giving all through the word of God” and so on.  

For some, anytime men sees faithfulness or anything having to do with stewardship, it becomes about faithfulness and stewardship relevant to the traditions that are usually set up as landmarks in our churches, like Faith Promise or Tithing. Faithful in THOSE areas. In my estimation, this is not maintaining biblical integrity. This is the M.O. (method of operation) of a private interpreter of scriptures.

So they take Biblical verses dealing with giving (2 Cor. 8-9), misapply, twist, and make and compare biblical passages all over the word of God to fit the doctrine of missions giving and Faith Promise.  When that does no work, they have some church fathers or men from the 1800s ready to use as backup.

“We hold a church business meetings, and at this meeting, several things are discussed”

1. The results of our faith budget and our future budget.
2. The prospect missionaries that pastor recommends.
3. We vote in accordance to our Faith Promise.

Now they can doctor it up to sound how they want, but this is exactly how it goes down in many churches.  The money comes in, no matter the amount, and no matter if the goal is met, the men in power, usually the pastor, then decides where to implement the appropriate funds.  You are just expected to be ok with that because God will bless you for just giving, again, a OT concept.  Once you give, it’s with God, leave it with him and all this mumbo jumbo.  

Totally ridiculous by the way, that I am expected to this give to someone whom I do not want to.  It would not be cheerful.  I don’t agree with them.  Why would I be expected to give blindly? God does not want me to waste my money!  

Of course it is always explained and understood that all this is done through prayer and for the work of God, to propagate a commission of going into all the world.  So the idea and what the people are led to believe is that the funds are going to “where God wants the money sent.”    Sounds so simple doesn’t it?  Like God is in these meeting going, “Pastor, send this money to this man.”  Look, these men may have the Holy spirit, but they are presenting a false picture.

Pastors and preachers sometimes even talk as if they somehow have no idea where the funds are going to.  “This is God’s money, and it will go to God’s men!”  “God bless this money”. But they decide where to send it, and how much!  It’s posturing, regulating and double talk just like in politics.  It goes to those who believe like they, who support faith promise, who recieve generations and support from it, who believe the mission philosophy and who can keep the machine running, thats it!

I have been in those meetings where the money is divvied out.  Reality shows that it is just simply men sending money to whom they are choosing to send money to.  It’s like “party giving” in politics, only it’s for the (vague) ministry “Just give for the greater good”, “just give to God and the Church and let God bless”.

In many churches, it’s never a vote.  It is never discussed with the elders or men of the church.  If you attempt to find out where funds went, they treat you like a 3 headed dragon and point out that you are questioning the Lord’s anointed and you may be guilty of being rebellious, committing the sin of witchcraft.  

If you attempted to question the man’s uses of the money, you are nosey, and you are “busy in other mens matters.”   A hierarchy, or a oligarchy will always have a label that will fit the dissenter.  There is always a title ready for the skeptic.  There is always a biblically charged scorn prepared for a rebel.  There is always a verse ready to cut down the other brother for questioning.  

In fact, in some churches, if you don’t “participate” in the faith promise, this may be pointed out, and you will be asked to meet with the pastor after service one day; he will call you a maverick or dissenter.  You may get hauled into the office and asked why you don’t go with the flow.  This has happen to several thousands of Christians, including myself.

This is not me being stingy with my money, but why would I give my money to a big question mark?  Why would God give me discernment to not approve of a missionary?  He does and has several times.  Huge red flags, I don’t make issues about it, but good missionaries are VERY rare.  I don’t go to the pastors and say, this guy is really giving me bad vibes.  It’s their business, but I am not mandated to give my money to a pool that goes to men such as that.  This is what Faith Promise perpetuates!

Who could expect anyone to do that, just give their money to a funneling machine of ministry.  What, because some guy says he is Christian and he has a call?  We are so stupid and wasteful sometimes, blindly throwing away money that God allowed us to earn so that we CAN give, to go to men who may not even believe the word of God, or have their salvation down.  Absolute strangers with a entirely different view on many fundamental things. To give to a man simply because he professes a call is irresponsible!

“But they are brethren!” To that I say “SO?” Where do you see Paul advising to give money to people who are preaching a different gospel, or manipulating their flocks?    Where do you see in the word of God to give to men that are defrauding sheep and  doing the work of the Lord deceitfully? Where is this sentiment in the word.  How is that being a wise and good steward of your money.

Are we so naive to think our most beloved IFB churches cannot be infiltrated by con men, swindlers, Pharisee's, and common grifters.  Many of our things we do with money is a attraction to men hell-bent on making it.  Confidence scams are prevalent today among us, and many of these men I’m afraid are on the “long con.” 

Men are doing today with Faith Promise Missions and Tithing what Paul and the early church considered foreign. Works have been set in motions for so long, that men don’t even consider a change. They don’t even view their practices as questionable.  We match up with Presbyterians on this stuff before we would align with Paul.  

Imagine a unbelieving lucre-loving charlatan that someone invited sitting in our Missions conferences, seeing man after man stand up, talk of a life changing call to go to the regions beyond, driving from church to church collecting monthly support for necessary uses, moving to some far away land, living in well protected compounds and speaking a lot of religious mumbo jumbo to indigenous people around him, and that is if he can speak the language.  This is how he (a unbeliever) views it.  This is not said to disrespect the truest of the missionaries that I have had the pleasure in knowing, but to show that this may be the reason why we shouldn’t attempt to meet all their needs through faith promise.

“But it’s working brother!” Is our prosperity proof of our obedience to God? When it comes down to faith promise, it may be working, and may be bringing in manna from heaven and all the support they could want.   Is pragmatism our evidence? Are these the examples we follow? 

Pastors who have adopted it routinely point to the fact alone that it works as if that is the sole reason for continuing.  “The money coming in now is so far exceeding what we have ever dreamed. To God be the Glory”  This logic is dangerous, and is not grounded enough to be our justification for continuing in our traditions or any traditions.  

The same argument could be made for a number of worldly establishments.  Many people could make MUCH more money, they may have to bend some rules, change some things, maybe even twist some laws and find loopholes.  So what if it works and you are seeing lucre increase from 700 to 700,000.  Profit is proof of nothing when talking about FAITH and the working of God, but evidence only to the fact that this is a system that may or may not raise funds. 

What does that say of mans attitude towards the word of God, of which we are supposed to derive our convictions and standards. The reality exist, it is commonly reported today of preachers, missionaries, evangelist, and others using God and giving to get wealthy and simply live life off of the ignorance of the masses.    A con man operates the same exact way.