Churches that are based on the structure that was pioneered by the Emperor Constantine are fiendishly expensive to run. Constantine did not mind making them money-hungry because he was a man with lots of money. This gave him control of what happened in the churches because he who pays the piper gets to call the tune.

One of the glorious things about returning to the simple church that is described throughout the book of Acts is that it costs us next to nothing. We don’t have to spend any money on maintaining big church buildings, since most believers already rent or own a home. Nor do we need to spend our money on paying pastors. The size of a living-room ensures that House Churches need to multiply before the task of pastoring the gathering ever becomes a full-time role. When Phil visited India recently to spend time with the Bhojpuri disciple-makers, he asked one of their most fruitful church leaders how he manages to fund his work among Hindus and Muslims. His response was disarmingly simple:

“I live in a farming community. When I began asking the Lord how I could serve him as a disciple-maker, he opened my eyes to a business opportunity. I noticed that the farmers in my community spent almost as much time seeking to sell their produce as they did growing it. So I hit upon a plan. I built a storeroom next to my house and I told the farmers that I would pay a reasonable price for any produce that they left for me on the shelves. Then, from 5 o’ clock to 8 o’ clock in the morning, I invited all of the local shopkeepers to come and buy their produce from my storeroom. I suppose you could say that I became the village wholesaler. I don’t need a lot of money to support my simple lifestyle, so by the time the shopkeepers leave to open up their stores at 8 o’ clock each morning, I have made enough money to be able spend the rest of the day making disciples. What is more, I build so many contacts through my wholesale business that I never run out of people to visit and to share the Good News with.”

The outworking of this might look quite different in the West but the basic principle remains the same. The believers in House Churches do not need to pay for church buildings or church pastors, so they are free to give their money directly to the two places where the New Testament says that our money should go – to help brothers and sisters in need and to fund workers in pioneer missions. As disciple-makers seeking to honor the Lord with our money, this is good news! God has delivered us from paying for properties, programs and preachers, but with this freedom comes a need for greater discipline. We need to plan our giving well.

The Apostle Paul gives clear directions for this in 1 Corinthians 16:2. “On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.” Paul is not saying here that the believers should tithe to their churches on a Sunday. Quite the opposite. He is saying that they should set aside a sum of money personally. They should create a “giving pot” at the start of each week so that they are ready to give in whichever sudden ways the Lord might prompt them.

Our primary giving should be to help those in need within our House Churches and in the wider community around our House Churches. See Acts 6:1; 1 Corinthians 16:1; 2 Corinthians 8:1-9, 8:13-15, 9:1; Galatians 2:10; 1 Timothy 5:3, 5:16; James 1:27, 2:15-17.

Beyond this, we should also give to pioneer missionaries who are working hard to see disciple-making movements in new places. There are one or two verses in the New Testament to suggest that a few static workers might be included within this number, but our main focus ought to be on funding those who have left their homes and businesses behind to take the Gospel to new places. Our giving enables them to do this, and it also stops them from seeking to benefit financially from the disciples they are making. See Luke 8:1-3; Acts 20:26-35; 1 Corinthians 9:7-18; 2 Corinthians 11:7-9, 12:13-14, 12:17-18; Philippians 4:10-19; 2 Thessalonians 3:6-12.

None of this requires a budget committee, a finance department or a fundraising campaign. Generous giving becomes as simple as the House Churches themselves. It also carries with it a wonderful promise from the Lord:

“You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” (2 Corinthians 9:11)