Taxing Our Sons

“What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?” (Matthew 17:25)

If one of our sons or daughters needs to use our house or land, any of us would let our children use it without paying a usage fee beyond the basic costs. So, we might expect them to put gas in the car, clean up beforehand, put up the decorations and clean up afterwards. But, we wouldn’t charge them rent like we would a stranger with whom we have little or no relationship. On the other side of the coin, our children cheerfully do many things for us which we could not afford otherwise.

Decades ago, many churches charged a pew tax to their members. This eliminated a great deal of financial uncertainty for the church leadership. In contrast, we now take a more scriptural approach of depending on God to provide through free-will offerings. If someone and especially a member comes with a special need for counsel, most churches will attempt help with that need in some way without charging for the service. The people involved are freely offering their time or are part of the paid church staff. We depend on God to provide for these resources through free-will offerings. But, when it comes to "things" our attitude is often a little different.

For instance, many times there is a fee to use the church building for certain special functions. This fee is somewhat understandable for strangers but how much of a fee should be charged to members? Even with strangers we should have a generous spirit. When we needed a place for a piano recital, various churches would allow us to use their facility and piano for prices ranging from free, to a small donation, to a fee of hundreds of dollars ("It's our policy. No exceptions.") Of course, we were strangers to these different churches. But, their attitude certainly communicated. The one we ended up using had a staff that communicated generosity and even gratefulness for us being there. Their attitude undoubtedly encourages cheerful donations.

Some churches take advantage of times of grief or celebration to build God's kingdom and some to help with the church budget. Some church fees for weddings are in the same ballpark as commercial facilities that are in the wedding business. Many churches seem to take the attitude of, "How much can we charge?" while others are asking, "How little can we charge?" What is the result? Members of churches will be more likely to use other facilities that offer more services, scenery or economy. In contrast, it seems like churches should have a policy that encourages involvement, cooperation and interaction of the Body in funerals and weddings. Low financial obstacles encourage growth of relationships, participation and body-life in these activities. There probably ought to be a charge to cover unusual costs. But, the question should be “How little can we charge?”

Several years ago, when our baby boy died and we needed a place in Dallas for a Memorial service, Larry James, the preacher at Richardson East Church of Christ let us their auditorium (fee-free) even though we were not members. The loving, generous attitude demonstrated by him and other of the church leaders was a significant factor in our family's perspective toward that church. A church that is actually a family should be doing similar things for one another wherever possible. Leadership attitudes of cheerful generosity, support and love encourage church members to cheerfully give free-offerings of their time, talents and lives. A church of cheerful givers will soon attract the attention of neighbors, co-workers and relatives. In contrast, pew taxes and building usage fees don't attract anybody. Are we taxing our sons?

Project:
Consider:
As sons of the King, are we cheerful givers to the family?
As church leaders, what message are we communicating by our policies?
Let's beg God for His perspective.