If we don't tithe, we rob God. Yet every Sunday when the offering plate is passed, we witness one of the most serious robberies in our cities. Our newspapers don't carry the story and no one files a complaint at the police station. Yet we rob God, because "the tithe is the Lord's (Lev. 27:30). We give God what is His when we tithe.
Tithing is an Act of Love. We measure our love to Christ by the obedience of giving our tithe, "He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me" (John 14:21). But our love goes beyond Christ. It extends to our church and our pastor. Paul asks for those in Corinth to prove their love to Him. "Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see that ye abound in this grace also (the grace of giving). I speak not by commandment, but by occasion of the forwardness of others, and to prove the sincerity of your love" (II Cor. 8:7,8).
Tithing Recognizes God's Ownership of Our Lives. The tithe is described in the Bible as the firstfruits, meaning, a tither gives to God the firstfruits to be harvested. The book of Proverbs commands "Honor the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase" (3:9). If we put God first in our lives, He will honor us (Matt. 6:33). We can tell others that we belong to God, but our deceitful heart can lead us astray (Jer. 17:9). However, we demonstrate our dedication when we tithe. We give Him the firstfruits because He is first in our lives.
Tithing is Good Business. When you tithe for the right reasons, you have gone into business with God. When you invest one-tenth of your income with God, He promises "to open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it (Mal. 3:10). God will not be any man's debtor, He will keep His promise.
Tithing Will Keep Us From the Lust of Money. Those who don't tithe are not only disobedient, but they demonstrate a greater love of money than of God. "For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (I Tim. 6:10). But those who will weekly deposit their tithe in God's bank reveal their faith in God to take care of all their needs.
Tithing Helps the Church Carry Out the Great Commission. The church is commanded to go into all the world and preach to every person, baptizing the converts and teaching the commands of Christ. This requires money to print tracts, purchase radio and TV time, erect buildings, provide salaries for God's servants and carry out the countless other expenses associated with the ministry. A tithing church can pay its bills and expand its outreach. A tithing church will not have to beg for money and plan gimmicks to raise its budget. A church of tithers will have willing workers, "Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" (Matt. 6:21), because a church of tithers will have the hearts of its people to carry out the Great Commission.
Have a great Thursday!
-Pastor
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1 comment:
God gave His definition as a tenth of crops and animals which came from God's hand, not man's income. God NEVER commanded anyone to tithe on anything that man made or earned. Leviticus 27:30-33.
The ordinances (instructions, or laws) for The Lord's Tithe are in Numbers 18. God gave strict orders to take His tithe to the Levites. God NEVER changed that command. Anyone who takes God's tithe to anyone other than the Levites is being disobedient to God's Word.
There are others tithes in the Bible such as the Festival Tithe and the Tithe for the Poor. It is The Lord's Tithe that churches pattern their teaching after.
Church leaders ignore God's definition of His tithe, and ignore God's ordinances for His tithe. They change the words to fit their pocketbook. This is nothing but manipulation of God's Word. They are false teachers.
The Bible CLEARLY SHOWS that the tithe ENDED at the cross in the Book of Hebrews. In the first nine verses of Hebrews 7 the words tenth or tithes appears SEVEN TIMES. The ONLY place in the Bible, after Calvary, that tithing appears is in Hebrews 7.
In Hebrews 7:5 we are told that Levi (the Levites) took the tithes under the law. In Hebrews 7:12 we are told that when the priesthood changes, the law will change. Hebrews 7:18 is telling us that Numbers 18 was disannulled. Numbers 18 established the Levitical priesthood, and part of that establishing included tithing. When the Levitical priesthood ended (at Calvary, or at least in the year 70AD when the temple was destroyed), all laws that established that priesthood were canceled. If Numbers 18 wasn't canceled, we would still be under the Levitical priesthood.
Those who argue they didn't have money or income then really need to study the scriptures. They had money and wages, even in Genesis. The farmers had income from barter exchanges, and they had markets to buy and sell as proven in Deuteronomy 14:24-26.
Those who argue Malachi 3:8, robbing God, need to start with verse 7. God is talking about His ordinances in Numbers 18 which we learned were disannulled according to Hebrews 7:18. Also, if you start with Malachi 1, you will see that God is speaking to the priests, not the people. The priests robbed God of the tithe (Nehemiah 13) and the priests robbed God of the offerings (Malachi 1).
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