Sermons & Devotionals by Roger Hertzler

A teacher at a Bible school for young people stands up and announces, “In our class on Christian Stewardship today we are going to look specifically at the subject of financial management and some Biblical principles about how we are to handle money.” He then goes on to teach about long-range planni... Read More

Perhaps after reading the definition of this doctrine in chapter 2, you are ready to throw this book aside and reject it as a bunch of nonsense. “Of course I don’t believe such a doctrine,” you might be thinking. “I’ve never heard it taught in my church, so it must be just another new heresy coming ... Read More

If we are going to be looking into God’s Word for answers in this study, it seems we ought to establish from the outset some basic principles on how to interpret what we read. So here are a few of the principles I intend to follow, to the best of my ability. 1. To accept as the correct interpretatio... Read More

Two commands of Jesus serve as the primary pillars on which this doctrine of nonaccumulation is built. The first is found in the Sermon on the Mount, in the sixth chapter of Matthew. Here, Jesus gives this command: Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth (Mt. 6:19). I had always heard Matthew 6... Read More

In this chapter, we look at the second of the two primary commands on which the doctrine of nonaccumulation is built. But before I give you the reference for this verse, please take a little test regarding your Bible knowledge. In chapter 4 we discussed how we are to know which of Jesus commands are... Read More

So far, we have looked at the two main commands of Christ on which the doctrine of nonaccumulation is built: 1. Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth (Mt. 6:19). 2. Sell that ye have, and give alms (Lk. 12:33). But how do these two commands stand up when we compare them with the rest of the N... Read More

The year 1525 marked the beginning of one of the most powerful revivals in the history of the Christian church. Beginning with three men who baptized each other contrary to the teachings of the state church, this revival swept through Europe like a wildfire. Stressing a renewed focus on Christ as Lo... Read More

Jesus commands in Luke 12:15, “Beware of covetousness.” What does He mean? “Covetousness” has traditionally been interpreted to mean “a desire for something that belongs to somebody else.” Although that certainly is a dangerous desire, it is not exactly what Jesus is warning us to beware. Rather, th... Read More

When we are given a command by God, we shouldn’t have to ask the reasons why. The simple fact that God has commanded it ought to be enough for us. However, God in his mercy has given us a number of reasons why we should obey the doctrine of nonaccumulation. It keeps our heart on things above For whe... Read More

One passage of Scripture often used in an attempt to refute the doctrine of nonaccumulation is the story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1–11. After they had sold some land and brought part of the money to the apostles, this couple lied and said they had brought all of the money. Peter’s response ... Read More

There probably is no passage used more frequently to justify the accumulation of earthly wealth than the Parable of the Talents. In this parable, found in Matthew 25 and Luke 19, Jesus tells of a master who was going to be taking an extended trip into a foreign country. Before he left, he divided up... Read More

The Parable of the Talents obviously is not a lesson on financial stewardship. However, this doesn’t mean that Jesus does not teach on this subject. Nor does it mean that He doesn’t give any parables that deal with the subject of economics. On the contrary, Jesus gives a tremendous amount of instruc... Read More

Despite the abundance of support in Scripture for the doctrine of nonaccumulation, there will always be people who use Scriptures and logic in attempts to disprove it. Here are a few of the more common objections some have used. Paul wrote about the rich in 1 Timothy 6:17–19 as though they were part... Read More

The doctrine of nonaccumulation has for so long been divorced from American Christianity that the renewed teaching of it sounds to many of us like pure heresy. But this was not always the case. This doctrine (whether it was called a “doctrine” or not) has been an important part of the teaching of ma... Read More

In most cases when an unfamiliar doctrine is being taught, the chances for misunderstanding abound. The following discussion deals with a few of the misunderstandings you likely will face if you begin to teach this doctrine to those who have not yet accepted its message. What the doctrine of nonaccu... Read More

Most Christians know the story of the rich young ruler very well. Yet, if you asked them what this man’s problem was, most of them would give approximately the same answer. They would shake their heads sadly and reply that this man simply loved his earthly possessions too much. Although it is certai... Read More

Before the doctrine of nonaccumulation can take its rightful place in our lives, it must first win the battle against its greatest enemy. This enemy, if not completely destroyed, will become an insurmountable barrier to the acceptance of this doctrine. It doesn’t matter how many Scriptures there are... Read More

Although the message of this book is primarily doctrinal (what the doctrine of nonaccumulation is and whether or not it is true), we do want to spend a little time discussing some of the practical applications of this doctrine. After all, Jesus’ goal in giving us these commands is to change far more... Read More

Imagine this scene. It is Judgment Day, and from way back in the line of all the world’s billions, you see Jesus sitting on the throne of His glory, dividing the people into two groups, “as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.” The news soon makes its way back to you that the criterion for t... Read More

The following story is an imaginary account about a man who was a wise investor by this world’s standards. If the financial experts of our time read this story, they all would agree that this man certainly knew what he was doing when it came to investing on this earth. They would lift him up as a pr... Read More