Gospel Patroness

In 2013 John Rinehart wrote a stimulating little book called Gospel Patrons about wealthy individuals who used their financial resources to fund the ministries of famous Christian leaders. The patrons are rarely acknowledged but their generosity has had lasting influence. Another such person is Margaret Baxter nee Charlton. Margaret (1636-1681) married the famous C17 English puritan Richard Baxter (1615-1691) in 1662 despite there being a twenty-year gap in their ages. His literary output was so large that some called him ‘scribbling Dick’.  With Margaret he enjoyed a very happy union.

She had been born into wealth, but Richard was raised in humble circumstances. In ministry while Richard had had security and positions of influence, the Restoration of Charles II in 1660 meant that for most of the rest of his life, he was in dire financial straits and often persecuted by ecclesiastical authorities for his nonconformity.

Margaret became a gospel patroness using her money to support his ministry in a range of ways. She funded chapels and rented rooms where her husband could preach. She supported him when his persecution was most acute often living with him in dwellings that were far below the station her class would naturally accept. She gave the home financial stability when her husband was not permitted to earn an income and gave him the means to undertake his prolific writing output.

She exhibited magnificent generosity to the poor supporting them and establishing schools to pay for the education of their children. Margaret also undertook to financially support others, such as a certain preacher Mr Seddon and his family when Seddon was cast into prison for gospel ministry. In all of this she became an unlikely flag bearer for women’s public ministry in an era where women were far less prominent.

Sadly, she died relatively young, probably of cancer. She followed her master, Jesus who the apostle Peter describes, among many other things, as one who ‘went around doing good.’ (Acts 10:38). More importantly her generosity sprang from a total commitment to Christ. As a teenager she had been much interested in the life of the world and disliked a piety that appeared too serious. But that all changed in the late 1650s under Baxter’s preaching in Kidderminster and she soon came to a robust commitment to Jesus. This was the well spring of her new character.

On her death Baxter reflected on her life and his sorrow in a short work entitled A Breviate of the Life of Margaret Baxter which is available to download through a simple google search. My engagement with this material has come by reading A Grief Sanctified by J.I. Packer which discusses Baxter’s marriage to Margaret and the principles that made it so strong.

Margaret stands as an example to all of us, as a person totally committed to Christ and one who used her earthly goods in His service. Everyone can be stimulated by her generosity but especially those who have more of this world’s goods than they possibly need. If that is you, look for opportunities to become a gospel patron or patroness.

For more about raising resources for ministry, see my book Giving Generously https://givinggenerously.com/

Resourcing the Tabernacle

Guidance for raising resources for God’s work can be found in numerous places in the bible. Some of those valuable references are in sections that are often rarely read or skimmed over. In my youth I remember reading and hearing stories in the book of Exodus about the burning bush, the plagues on Egypt, the Passover, the crossing of the sea, the manna in the wilderness and the Ten Commandments and the episode of the apostasy in the desert. But then I would lose interest in details of the sanctuary and priesthood and would jump chapters, even whole books, to get into the action material of Joshua. Yet in the latter section of Exodus is a fascinating account of the raising of resources for the tabernacle. It is given in two sections.

First there is the command to raise the resources (Ex 25: 1-9). Then secondly, after the sorry incident of the golden calf the actual carrying out of the commands is recorded Ex 35:4-36:7. There is much to absorb in these sections that are not our favourite quiet time reflections. And there are a number of principles for raising money for ministry that can be discerned. These are just a few.

1. Moses as the leader gets the job of communicating the command (Ex 25:1). Raising resources is simply part of the leadership role. Ministers can’t dodge it.
2. The appeal is made vigorously but not coercively. The material was to be received from each man ‘whose heart prompts him to give (Ex 25:2).’ This principle is one of the important takeaways here. It is repeated again and again. When the people bring their offering, it is ‘everyone who is willing’ (Ex 35:1, 21, 26, 29). There is no place in any Christian raising of money or resources for manipulation, coercion or tricky and underhanded dealings.
3. The work had a divine purpose. It was to be a sanctuary so that God would dwell among his people. When people today raise money for ministry it is vital there is a spiritual purpose. When Figtree Anglican Church built a new auditorium we tried to make this very clear. We asked every member to write on a piece of paper someone who they would be praying for that God would save. We then collected the names, placed them in a box and interred it underneath the spot where the pulpit would be. This ‘burial’ was filmed and showed to the congregation to demonstrate that the building was to advance God’s kingdom, not merely an architectural fantasy.
4. God’s hand must be in the project. In Exodus the Lord gives Moses explicit instructions on the precise details of the tabernacle (Ex 25:9). I must confess I wish we, at Figtree, had such precise direction. We had a complicated site and eventually three different architects to get a final design. However, we did have astonishing confirmation on multiple occasions that God’s hand was with us as seemingly insurmountable obstacles melted away. It goes without saying that seeking God’s leading in prayer is crucial.
5. Congregational buy-in is essential. After the punishment of the Israelites after the apostasy with the Golden Calf it is perhaps not surprising that the people were obedient and participated in the making of the tabernacle. The Israelites responded as a community, bringing materials, offerings, using gifts and talents, training others. You can get a sense of this sort of engagement in the movie Witness where the whole Amish community bands together to build a barn. Churches that have a large tradie demographic often can reduce the cost of a project by such donated expertise. At Figtree we weren’t too well represented in this segment and the build was done by outside professionals. But there was a wonderful involvement by many talented people who gave expertise in sound, lighting, project management, finances, liaising with architects and on and on and on. Without such involvement and alignment from the people who will give the money and make the project happen, such an enterprise will invariably fail.
6. As a preacher I have always been drawn to the conclusion of the campaign (Ex 36:6-7). The people responded with great generosity to the extent that they brought more than was needed and so Moses told them to cease. Perhaps it is a preacher’s fantasy but I have always relished imaging a giving campaign where I could stand up before my congregation and say, ‘Stop! Stop giving! We have enough. We don’t need any more!’ As Buddy Holly sang, ‘Now that’ll be the day!’

For more on raising resources for ministry see my book Giving Generously. https://givinggenerously.com/