It has long been my contention that Christians and churches need to be very careful when it comes to their "theology" of fundraising. Is there any place in scripture where we see a redeemed church asking (raising) for money from an unredeemed world? Is God glorified when the church goes out into its lost community and asks for funds to send a mission team to another location to tell the lost about Christ?
In my ministry context (Michigan), it is very common to see churches hold rummage sales for mission projects, bingo and auctions to help meet the church's financial needs, and sell tickets to a fish fry to raise money to meet a variety of needs. Are those legitimate methods, according to scripture, to find the monies to support the church and its work?
What do you think?
I would argue that the financial plan laid out in scripture for a missional church would be to provide for the church’s financial needs through the tithes and offerings of God’s people. Even for mission trips, etc. My argument is that young people (or adults) do not need to do fundraising activities that put them in the position of asking lost friends and neighbors for money for their mission trip. To have a fundraising effort that focuses on the church community would be acceptable since any donations received from the congregation would be like an offering to the mission effort.
In other words, the redeemed supporting the redeemed seeking to reach the unredeemed … regardless of the mission being to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, or the remotest part of the earth.
bobby gilstrap