PANHANDLING PREACHERS

By Ryan Hicks

I have been to a number of ministers' meetings and conferences and it is appalling how some "ministers" abuse their power in the gospel to get freebies. They expect if they mention their church or wear weird "priest" clothing that this will get them a free meal or better service. How many times have I heard you ministers say that it is good to beg in such a way because you are being wise as serpents. No, you are being devils. You are merely greedy and cheap panhandlers. You are no different than the homeless person begging for change on a street corner, except they have more self respect than you do and are less offensive to God and man than you.

Preachers have went into stores and talked about how offerings are down and they really need something and end up talking the store owner into giving them a discount. They do not need the discount, nor do they deserve it. Why should the store owner lose money and the preacher take food and clothing from the store owner's family because they are greedy and cheap beggars? There is no indication of any saint in the Bible ever going around getting discounts and freebies from merchants because they claim to serve God. Preacher, PAY FOR YOUR ITEMS LIKE EVERYONE ELSE! STOP BEGGING AND BRINGING SHAME TO THE GOSPEL OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST! STOP CAUSING HIS NAME TO BE BLASPHEMED AMONG THE HEATHEN!

So you think you are called of God to be a societal parasite and lazy gospel abuser? You panhandling preachers, next time you want to go to a store why not thank the store owner for their store, and, GASP, pay the price everyone else pays for the items you buy? Stop using the gospel as an all purpose discount club card. If you cannot pay your way through life on the money your ministry pays (if you choose to leach off of the saints) then do what most men of God do and get a job. Paul was a tentmaker (Acts 18:1-3) and never complained about not getting discounts and freebies because he was Christ's minister. Instead of begging, a true man of God labors for their wages and does not leach off of everyone they can find. They are blessings to the saints and sinners, not burdens.

Some of these panhandling preachers have said, "Well, I invite the store owners to my church." That is truly an amazing thought. The devil does not even bother to go to your dead church knowing his work is done there, and you think that the store owner wants to go and hear you, panhandling Pastor No-Money, preach to them when you cannot get your financial affairs in order? Do you mock God more by telling them how you believe in prosperity as you beg for a discount or freebie? Many of these sinners view their helping you out as appeasing God, thus you are directly propagating their delusions of salvation apart from Christ. You through your begging are by your actions preaching a false gospel to the store owner. You have no love of God for the store owner you essentially are stealing from. You do not love them as you love yourself, otherwise you would pay full price or more than full price to be a blessing to them.

Romans 13:10
10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Galatians 5:14
14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

James 2:8
8 If ye fulfil the royal law according to the scripture, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself, ye do well:

If you are foolish enough to actually think your begging may win that person that you are leaching from to the Lord, then you are a delusional apostate. Those people have no respect for you. They see how your god does not supply your need (Cp. Philippians 4:19). They see how you have to demean yourself and beg for discounts in the name of your false gospel (while they work hard to earn their living). No one respects such false ministers, and they certainly do not want to have anything to do with any religion or belief system that makes its ministers into panhandlers. "Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame" (1 Corinthians 15:34).

Jeremiah 22:13
13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that useth his neighbour’s service without wages, and giveth him not for his work;

Psalms 112:1-5
1 ¶ Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments.
2 His seed shall be mighty upon earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed.
3 Wealth and riches shall be in his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever.
4 Unto the upright there ariseth light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous.
5 A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion.

Jesus said, "Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away" (Matthew 5:42). He does not tell us to be the ones borrowing and begging. Paul said, "I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive" (Acts 20:35). Do you bless and give or do you simply receive?

Matthew 6:1-4
1 ¶ Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them: otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven.
2 Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
3 But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
4 That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.

You should be out giving alms, not taking alms. The fact that many ministers are this way and have no shame in begging and abusing the gospel to get some freebies shows how many are fallen from salvation. You should be out blessing and giving, not busy hording up and receiving. Any true ministers and saints of God will be blessings to people, and not a burden. Check your heart today and then answer this question, "Which are you? Are you the burden and abuser of the gospel, or are you the blesser and confirmer of the gospel?"