The Treasures of Cirta

by R. Herbert | Dec 15, 2025 | Giving

At this time of year, many people involve themselves in exchanging gifts with family and friends, but when it comes to wider giving they may only go as far as giving small change to store charities, or making one-time “end-of-year” tax deductible charitable gifts. But the Bible and the history of the Christian Church show that real giving is much broader and deeper than these surface level aspects of generosity.

Sadly, many people take the attitude that if they gave recently, they are “off the hook” – an “I gave at the office” attitude of only giving occasionally and when necessary. Some have even misused Jesus’ statement that “the poor you will have always with you” (Matthew 26:11) as if it means we need not give to them; but Jesus was simply quoting the scripture that says “There will always be poor people in the land” (Deuteronomy 15:10–11), and the emphasis of these verses is that there will always be a need to give.  As a result, if our giving is truly generous it will be continual. History provides an inspiring example of such true Christian giving.

During a great persecution of Christians enacted during the latter part of the reign of the Roman emperor Diocletian (AD 284 to 305), Imperial troops were sent to seize the possessions of a church in the city of Cirta (present day Constantine in Algeria) in North Africa.  The soldiers were doubtless delighted to find some items of gold, silver, and bronze – the chalices, urns, lamps, candlesticks and other small items used in the church’s worship services. The exact value of these metal objects is not known, but it is clear that they did not represent substantially more than what was in use by the church in its day-to-day functioning.

However, the soldiers were suspicious that there were so few books in the church, so they searched the homes of the church leaders and found a total of 37 manuscripts, which the Christians had hidden.   Clearly, the manuscripts regarding the faith were of much greater value in the eyes of these Christians than the gold and silver furnishings that had been left in plain sight in the church.

But in an inner storeroom within the church building the soldiers also found goods of a different kind.  An Imperial document dated May 19, AD 303, lists these hidden-away treasures: 82 women’s tunics, 38 capes, 16 men’s tunics, 13 pairs of men’s shoes, 47 pairs of women’s shoes, and 19 peasants’ wraps (Journal of Early Christian Studies, 16:3, 2008, 341–369, p. 350).  These carefully amassed items of clothing were being collected to help the poor, the widows, and the destitute of the city.  Certainly the church had a few valuable vessels for use in its worship, but the value of the items was appropriate for their intended use (2 Timothy 2:20).  What is clear is that the treasures of this church were its documents of faith, and what was being amassed was being gathered for others.

Surely, this has often been the case.  For every church infected with the spirit of mammon there have been others – and frequently many others – infused with the heart of Christian giving.  Although Acts 5 itself gives prominent mention to the cautionary record of Ananias and Sapphira, we should remember that their story follows directly on the heels of the statement that:

God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to anyone who had need (Acts 4:33-35).

Sometimes we need to remind ourselves of these facts of history when we are dismayed by the failings of some in our own age who use Christianity for personal gain (1 Timothy 6:5).

The story of how the Christians of Cirta collected great quantities of goods – clearly in an organized and ongoing way – for continuing distribution to the poor also carries an important lesson.  The gathering for others by those Christians was not moved by some urgent but momentary event, but was evidently based on giving in a continuing manner to help with the ongoing needs of many.  Ongoing giving of this type is one of the clearest aspects of generosity in the Bible.  It is the kind of giving God instituted in the Old Testament tithing system, including the so-called third tithe which was given by Israelites every third year to help the less fortunate and those in need (Deuteronomy 14:28–29). In the New Testament, this kind of ongoing giving is implied in Jesus’ words:

Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth … But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven … For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also  (Matthew 6:19-21).

In these words, the expression “store up” does not mean to simply put aside in one single action; it means to put aside, hoard, or build up in a continuing manner. That is a central part of true generosity – that we never allow ourselves to feel that we have helped at some point so need not do more. Generous giving is continually giving as we are able and as long as there is a need (2 Corinthians 9:11).

Another reminder we can take from the story of Cirta is that it is good to remember physical things are never our most valuable possessions.  The most important treasures of the earliest believers, of the Christians of Cirta in AD 303, and of many churches throughout history were really their faith and their love for God and for their neighbors. These too were treasures the Christians of Cirta shared with others continually.  We should pray that  our true treasures are the same – and that we will not forget to continue to share them, also.

*The material in this blog post was condensed from one of the chapters in our free e-book, The Way of Giving. You can download a copy without charge here.

The Other Side of the Tenth Commandment

by R. Herbert | Dec 1, 2025 | Giving

The Ten Commandments are fascinating from many perspectives, some of which we may not be aware of, no matter how familiar we may be with these laws.   A good example of this is the fact that each commandment is not only instructive in its obvious meaning and application, but many of the commandments have a “second side” – a different aspect of the principle they teach that is equally valid yet often overlooked.

Take the tenth commandment – “You shall not covet…” (Exodus 20:17), which we usually understand as wrongful desire of something that is not ours. This is the sense of the principle that Jesus combined with the commandment against adultery – saying “anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” Matthew 5:28).  Understood this way, coveting applies to our desire for things that we do not have – someone else’s, house, mate, or whatever.

But there is another aspect to coveting that is almost the exact opposite of wanting something belonging to someone else: being unwilling to let go of something that is ours.   An Old Testament example of this is found in the story of Nabal, the rich but unthankful and ungiving man who refused to give David and his men food after they had helped him (1 Samuel 25). Although he is described as being “very rich,” Nabal would not part with any of his property and is said to have suffered a heart attack when he found out that his wife had given away some of his ample food supplies.

In the New Testament we have a similar story of the rich you man who said he would follow Christ, but who turned away when Jesus suggested he give what was his to those in need.  Another famous New Testament example, of course, is that of Ananias and Sapphira, in Acts 5:1-11, which tells of a couple who, after selling a piece of property they said they were giving to the church, lied about the amount they gave because they wanted to keep some back. 

In all these stories, and many more in the Bible, we find examples of individuals who had more than they needed, yet who could not bring themselves to give away even part of what was theirs. This is simply the “reverse side” of coveting – of wrongfully wanting what is ours to the point that we will not or cannot give it even to those in need. That is why Proverbs 11:24 tells us: “One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty.” What the proverb calls “withholding unduly” is the inability to give that is simply another form of coveting.

That is why Jesus warned his disciples “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed [or “covetousness” as many versions translate this word]; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions” (Luke 12:15). Notice that in saying this, Jesus warned against “all kinds of greed” and was speaking not only about things that people did not have and coveted, but also things that they had.

Paul, too, warns us that we should not give “reluctantly or under compulsion” (2 Corinthians 9:7). If we are reluctant to give, or even if we give, but our hearts are not in it, we can be guilty of coveting.  Certainly, that is an attitude that does not please God – as Paul also tells us in the same verse, “God loves a cheerful giver.”

So the principle of not coveting is far wider than we often presume. Just as much as it forbids our wanting something that is not rightfully ours, the tenth commandment implies that we are equally responsible not to covet by being unwilling to help others by giving of what we have.