Dave Ramsey The Great Misunderstanding (Class 13 of 13)

The thirteenth and final chapter of Financial Peace University deals with giving from a traditional conservative Protestant viewpoint. Dave Ramsey believes that if the student follows the instructions found in his class materials, they will generate a surplus of wealth. He also believes that the Bible teaches a family with surplus wealth has a sacred responsibility to give generously, not just to their church, but in all their dealings. Dave Ramsey considers generosity the final key to financial peace.

Dave Ramsey, as a Christian, believes that God owns everything. He is just a steward of the wealth that God has chosen to let him manage. He believes that God is a generous giver, so generous he was willing to give us his only begotten Son. In giving we are reminded we are not the owners, in giving we praise and worship our God, in giving to God we are engaging in spiritual warfare in heavenly places.

Dave Ramsey believes that the tithe is the basic Biblical instruction for giving. Dave Ramsey defines the tithe as 10% of gross income given to the local church. He considers that anything over that can be given to other worthy causes but it is an offering, not a part of the tithe. Of course he uses the standard arguments that the tithe is pre-law, Abraham’s gift to Melchizedek. He uses all the standard scriptures to support his teaching on the tithe. However, he does allow that other interpretations are allowed to exist within the pale of Christian orthodoxy.

More interestingly, Dave Ramsey encourages his viewer to engage in random acts of kindness whenever the opportunity presents itself. Leave $100 tip to the waitress working on Christmas day. Help someone with their college expenses. Change a tire for some stranded motorist. This presentation is littered with stories of men and women who found opportunities to perform amazing charitable acts.

The Clay Walker song, The Chain of Love, sums it up nicely. Sorry you have to cut and paste. I still can't figure out how to put a hot link into these posts.

Enjoy.

http://www.metacafe.com/watch/wm-A10302B0000062755H/clay_walker_the_chain_of_love_official_music_video/

1 Corinthians 13:3 (NASB)

“And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.”

Leviticus 27:30 (NKJV)

“And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s. It is holy to the Lord.”

Deuteronomy 14:22 (NKJV)

“You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year.”

Malachi 3:10 (NKJV)

“Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in
My house, and try Me now in this,’ says the Lord of hosts,
If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.”