Tithing

"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it." (Malachi 3:10).

The Old Testament

The word "tithe" is translated from the Hebrew word "ma'ser", which means literally "a tenth part." Under the law of Moses, the people of Israel were commanded to give a tenth of their income, and of the production of their land, including livestock and crops. In the law, we read, "And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's: it is holy unto the Lord. And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord." (Leviticus 27:30-32). This tithe was to used to provide for the priests and the Levites, and to help the poor, orphans and widows, whose care has always been in God's heart.

Everything that we own, every blessing we have, even each breath we take, is a gift from God. Tithing is returning only a tenth of what God has given us in thankfulness and gratitude. "All the earth is mine." (Exodus 19:5). "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein", proclaimed David the Psalmist (Psalms 24:1). John the Baptist declared, "A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven." (John 3:27). Paul said to the people of Athens, "God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things." (Acts 17:24-25).

In addition to tithes, the Israelites were commanded to also bring offerings to the Lord. These offerings, described in the first seven chapters of Leviticus, were mostly in the form of sacrifices. There was the burnt offering, the meat offering, the peace offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering. There was also freewill offerings where people gave for special projects, such as the building of the Tabernacle (Exodus 35-36), the upkeep and repair of the temple (2 Kings 12:9-10), and the reconstruction of the temple during the reign of Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 31:5-19).

There were times in the Old Testament where people held back in their giving, some even building their own homes while God's house lay in ruins. In the days of Haggai the prophet, many people were suffering financial hardship because of their neglect of giving to the Lord. Farm and livestock production went down and a severe drought came upon the land. "Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye are have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes..... Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the Lord of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste." (Haggai 1:6,9).

Again in the days of Malachi, the people withheld their giving. God said to them, "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation." (Malachi 3:8-9). But, then God gave a wonderful promise. "Prove me," God said to them. "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and see if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes..... And all nations shall call you blessed." (Malachi 3:10-12).

The New Testament

Many principles of tithing learned in the Old Testament can be carried forward to today. All the blessings we have are given to us of God, and we should tithe out of gratitude and love to God. We should give cheerfully and willingly, and not out of a sense of obligation or begrudgingly, or even giving expecting to reap some glorious financial benefit. Even in the time of Moses, God instructed him, "Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring me an offering; of every man that giveth it willingly with his heart ye shall take my offering." (Exodus 25:2). This philosophy is true today, for Paul told the Corinthians, "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver." (2 Corinthians 9:7). God will reward our tithing based upon the proportion which we give to Him. "He which soweth sparingly, shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully." (2 Corinthians 9:6).

The priests in the temple of the Old Testament lived off the tithes that were brought in. Today, as well, the needs of preachers of the gospel are to be met by the tithing and generosity of the saints. Paul said, "Do ye not know that they which minister about holy things live of the things of the temple? and they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar? Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel." (1 Corinthians 9:13-14). Paul instructed the churches at Galatia and Corinth that they should collect all tithes on the first day of the week, which is how the modern churches came to gather offering during Sunday services. "Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him store, as God hath prospered him." (1 Corinthians 16:1). Paul cared so deeply for the churches, and wanted so to see them grow in the Lord, that he instructed them to give, "Not because I desire a gift; but I desire fruit may abound to your account." (Philippians 4:17).

Of greater importance to God is the sacrifice a person makes, and not the monetary value or the amount. In Luke 21:1-4, we read the account of Jesus watching as the wealthy placed their gifts into the treasury. Then a poor widow came and gave two mites, about 1/2 cent. Jesus said concerning this widow, "Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all: for all these have of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God; but she of her penury (poverty or deficiency) hath cast in all the living that she had." The rich were giving just what was required, and it was costing them no sacrifice. But the poor widow gave everything she had. This same principle can be applied to our service for the Lord. He does not judge our service to Him by its size or success, but by our dedication and sacrifice.

Jesus related the story of a man who was leaving on a journey into a faraway country. He called together his servants, "And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey." (Matthew 25:15). A talent was about one thousand dollars which weighed a talent, and varied according to the currency used. A talent of silver weighed 100 pounds and a talent of gold weighed 200 pounds. When the man returned from his journey, the servant to which he gave 5 talents doubled his money and now had 10 talents. The servant with 2 talents done likewise, doubling his money and how had 4 talents. But the servant with one talent dug a hole and buried the talent, not even considering to at least take it to the exchangers to make some interest on the talent. To the first two servants, the man declared, "Well done thou good and faithful servants; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord." But to the other servant, the man was angry, "Take the talent from him and give to the one who has the ten talents. For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him. And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth." (Matthew 25:28-30 NIV).

Jesus teaches here that He will call us into account to answer for the blessings He has given us and how we used them. Our position and inheritance in Jesus' future kingdom will be determined by our faithfulness and dedication to Him now. Jesus compared Himself and us to a vine with branches. "I am the vine, ye are the branches," He said. "Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away..... Herein is my Father glorified that ye bear much fruit." (John 15:1-8).

Matthew Henry says in his commentary, "Christ keeps no servants to be idle: they have received their all from him, and have nothing they can call their own but sin. Our receiving from Christ is in order to our working for him. The manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. The day of account comes at last. We must all be reckoned with as to what good we have got to our own souls, and have done to others, by the advantages we have enjoyed. It is not meant that the improving of natural powers can entitle a man to Divine grace. It is the real Christian's liberty and privilege to be employed as his Redeemer's servant, in promoting his glory, and the good of his people: the love of Christ constrains him to live no longer to himself, but to Him that died for him, and rose again. Those who think it impossible to please God, and in vain to serve him, will do nothing to purpose in religion. They complain that He requires of them more than they are capable of, and punishes them for what they cannot help. Whatever they may pretend, the fact is, they dislike the character and work of the Lord. The slothful servant is sentenced to be deprived of his talent. This may be applied to the blessings of this life; but rather to the means of grace. Those who know not the day of their visitation, shall have the things that belong to their peace hid from their eyes. His doom is, to be cast into outer darkness. It is a usual way of expressing the miseries of the damned in hell. Here, as in what was said to the faithful servants, our Saviour goes out of the parable into the thing intended by it, and this serves as a key to the whole. Let us not envy sinners, or covet any of their perishing possessions."

A story ...

Sometimes a point can be best made with a story or illustration...

Here is a true story about a nine year old boy who lived in a rural town in Tennessee. His house was in a poor area of the community. A church had a bus ministry that came knocking on this door one afternoon.

This child came to answer the door, and greeted the bus pastor. The bus pastor asked if his parents were home and the small boy told him that that his parents take off every weekend and leave him at home to take care of his little brother. The bus pastor couldn't believe what the kid said, and asked him to repeat it. The youngster gave the same answer and the bus pastor asked if he could come in and talk with him. They went into the living room and sat down on an old couch with the foam and springs exposed.

The bus pastor asked the kid, "Where do you go to church?" The young boy surprised the visitor by replying, "I've never never been to church in my whole life." Then the bus pastor pastor said, "Well, son, more important than going to church, have you ever heard the greatest love story ever told?" and then he proceeded to share the Gospel with this nine year old boy.

The young lad's heart began to be tenderized and at the end of the bus pastor's story the bus pastor asked if the boy wanted to recieve this free gift from God. The youngster exclaimed, "You bet!" The kid and the bus pastor got on their knees, and the lad invited Jesus into his little heart and received the free gift of salvation. They both stood up, and the bus pastor asked if he could pick them up for church the next morning. "Sure," the nine year old replied.

The bus pastor got to the house early the next morning, and found the lights off. He let himself in and staked his way through the house, and found the little boy asleep in his bed. He woke up the little boy and his brother, and helped them get dressed. They got on the bus, and ate a donut for breakfast on their way to church.

Keep in mind that this boy had never been to church before. The church was a real big one. The little kid just sat there, clueless of what was going on. A few minutes into the service these tall guys walked down to the front, and picked some wooden plates. One of the men prayed, and the kid with utter fascination watched them walk up and down the aisles. He still didn't know what was going on. All of a sudden like a bolt of lightning, it hit the kid, what was taking place. These people must be giving money to Jesus!

He then reflected on the free gift of life he had received just twenty-four hours earlier. He immediately searched his pockets, front and back, and couldn't find a thing to give Jesus. By this time the offering plate was being passed down his aisle. With a broken heart he just grabbed the plate and held onto it. He finally let go and watched it pass on down the aisle. He turned around to see it passed down the asile behind him. His eyes remained glued on the plate as it was passed back and forth, back and forth all the way to the rear of the sanctuary.

Then he had an idea. This little nine year old boy, in front of God and everybody, got up out of his seat. He walked about eight rows back, grabbed the usher by the coat, and asked if he could hold the plate one more time.

He took the plate, sat it on the carpeted church floor and stepped into the center of it. As he stood there, he lifted his little head up and said, "Jesus, I don't have anything to give you today, but just me. I give you me!"

Some final thoughts...

It grieves me to see people in churches who have talents and abilities, but are not allowed to use them for the Lord. To the opposite extreme, it grieves me when people are made to feel guilty if they do not volunteer for every job, and are not at the church every time the doors open. I've seen so many Christians become burned out over their "forced labors." It grieves me to see preachers and ministries placing so much importance on tithing and giving, stressing it to the point that people feel guilty and shameful if they cannot give. It also grieves me when preachers take advantage of the poor by promising great financial gain if they give to their ministry, and promising ruin if they do not. God wants us to give with a cheerful and willing heart and not out of necessity, selfish gain, or grudgingly. Like all of the other commandments and words of the prophets (this includes tithing), Jesus said that they all hang on these two commandments, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind..... Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." (Matthew 22:36-40).

The motivation behind everything we do, every act we commit, should be out of love for God and love for our neighbor. Don't let anyone place a guilt trip on you concerning your tithing, and don't let anyone tell you to whom you should give. That is between you and God. Pray and ask God to direct you as to how much you should tithe to the church you attend. Pray concerning other ministries, and pray before giving that God will direct you to give to ministries that will best use the funds to further God's kingdom, by helping the poor and those in need, and by spreading the Gospel of Christ. Secondly, don't let anyone place a guilt trip on you concerning your talents and abilities. God has given you abilities and desires for you to work and labor for Him, and will place on your heart what work He wants you to do. Don't let others override the burden God has given you, and don't let others tell you what they feel God wants you to do.

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