Tithe

Jesus says, “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices–mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law-justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”

Jesus was not discouraging the practice of giving. He was reminding religious leaders that giving was about more than just money. Giving to God was about a person’s heart. It was one of the many ways a person could offer their lives and dedicate themselves to God.

This sentiment echoes another time Jesus expressed frustration with the practices of the Pharisees and leaders of the law. In Matthew 15:8-9 Jesus says, “These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men.” More than anything, Jesus is after the hearts of men and women. Financial giving only mattered to God when it was done with a worshipful heart.

 

[Brother in Christ (JC)]

Don't mix things up. Nobody is arguing about Jesus being raised from dead, the first fruit of those who have fallen asleep sleep.
By the grace of God, I give joyfully and cheerfully to the work of God, to needy and even pay hospital bills for people in my own little way, (I don't mean to boast of that). But that wouldn't stop me from obeying God who says "bring ye all the tithe into my store house..." Tithing is different from other offering and giving which is what every child of God should enjoy doing, Christ being our example.
I am not surprised anyway (1Timothy 4:1-3). May the holy Spirit help us to make it to the kingdom of God in Jesus Name.

Amen may He indeed guide us.
Interesting though, I was not mixing the two up. Look at the old covenant. The old covenant was a mere shadow of a better covenant to come. It was created by the hands of man but not so with the new. We have left many of the old practices behind as alluded to in Hebrews 9. It clearly points the old practices being done away with. The old covenant tithing practices prevented the penniless from truly participating in this ordinance. How can they tithe if they don't have any money? Praise God, Jesus came and He did not discriminate the poors. We have a better covenant through Jesus that anyone, can participate in every aspect, regardless of their financial limitations. Our devotion, our praises and our worship is personalize to our Father through Jesus. Tithing is the same. My tithing stems from my heart and Jesus filters my action. I'm not concern with man's old version of tithing but I adhere to Heavenly tithing which is the Mediator of my heart, and which is under the new covenant. That is what I meant when I said that the old covenant was based on obedience through the letter of the law, while the new is based on obedience through the Spirit (Jesus) of the law. Faith, Love, peace and many more are found in the spirit.
Give from the spirit and give joyfully and abundantly. Anyone who does not support (in broadest application of the word- not limited to a fraction of one's wage) their assembly needs prayers.

 

[The Encourager]

Don't mix things up. Nobody is arguing about Jesus being raised from dead, the first fruit of those who have fallen asleep sleep.
By the grace of God, I give joyfully and cheerfully to the work of God, to needy and even pay hospital bills for people in my own little way, (I don't mean to boast of that). But that wouldn't stop me from obeying God who says "bring ye all the tithe into my store house..." Tithing is different from other offering and giving which is what every child of God should enjoy doing, Christ being our example.
I am not surprised anyway (1Timothy 4:1-3). May the holy Spirit help us to make it to the kingdom of God in Jesus Name.

In conclusion​

Those who believe in Christ have the blessing of Abraham. They are justified by faith in Jesus.

We are not bound by the law of tithe.
However, we are under the law of love. We must give consistently as a testimony that God has blessed us.

We must take care of the house of God and of his minsiters.

We must not be made to give by force or compulsion.

Those who choose to give a tenth of their salary, should do it out of love and not out of compulsion or condemnation.

When we are generous, God enlarges our capacity so that we can be more generous. We also receive so much more blessings as a result of thanks givings getting before God.

 

[The Encourager]

Tithe in the New Testament​

The issue of tithe in the New Testament is one of great concern among many people and I would like to address it from the perspective of the scriptures.
A lot of Christians are living in fear, that if they fail to tithe then they will fall under a curse. Some people have formed a transactional relationship with God, where they say, “I pay my tithes, so why am I not getting married?” They feel God owes them certain blessings because they have paid their tithes.

Then we have the other side. They don’t believe in tithes and they don’t give anything to the church of God. They go to church, sit on benches that need to be maintained, where electricity and water bills need to be paid, where toilets need to be cleaned where the pastors need to travel and take care of their families and these people will go and expect to have all the benefits of the church without contributing anything.
Who have people who say, they are not giving because they are waiting to be led to give. They don’t help the poor, they don’t help the church. Some say, I don’t give because I have nothing to give.
Some people feel like the church owes them, like Pastors owe them. They can call the minister of the gospel to their house because someone is sick, and don’t consider that he needs transport, and also needs to eat.

We will look at what the scriptures say about all this.

The Law of Tithe
In Leviticus 27 the bible gives us a law of tithe. Under this Law, a tenth of all that a person has, belonged to God.
In Numbers 18, God instructs that the children of Levi would have no inheritance in Canaan and as a result, they would collect and eat the tithe on his behalf.
They were not allowed to own any property in Canaan.
You did not choose to be a Levite, you were born one.
In Deuteronomy 14, the Israelites were taught how the tithe was to be spent.
They were to tithe yearly.
For 2 years, they would take their tithes to the temple, when you arrived at the temple, you would have a big feast with your family and the poor and the levites together and you would eat and enjoy. The rest you would leave at the temple.
Every third year, the tithes were supposed to remain in your villages. You would gather the poor, the orphans, the widows, and tye Levites in your villages and you would eat and enjoy and feast on your tithes with them.

Deuteronomy 14:22-23, 27-29 (NET)
22 You must be certain to tithe all the produce of your seed that comes from the field year after year.
23 In the presence of the Lord your God you must eat from the tithe of your grain, your new wine, your olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the place he chooses to locate his name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always.
27 As for the Levites in your villages, you must not ignore them, for they have no allotment or inheritance along with you.
28 At the end of every three years you must bring all the tithe of your produce, in that very year, and you must store it up in your villages.
29 Then the Levites (because they have no allotment or inheritance with you), the resident foreigners, the orphans, and the widows of your villages may come and eat their fill so that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work you do.
In Malachi Chapter 3, the priests who were in charge of the temple were no longer bringing the tithes and offerings to be used in the temple, so God tells them that they were robbing him.

Malachi 2:1-2 (NET)
1 “Now, you priests, this commandment is for you.
2 If you do not listen and take seriously the need to honor my name,” says the Lord who rules over all, “I will send judgment on you and turn your blessings into curses – indeed, I have already done so because you are not taking it to heart
.
Malachi 3:10 (NET)
“Bring the entire tithe into the storehouse so that there may be food in my temple. Test me in this matter,” says the Lord who rules over all, “to see if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until there is no room for it all.
………..
That is the law of tithe as given in the old covenant.

Redeemed from The Curse of the Law​

The Law of Moses came with a curse, such that if you did not follow it, you would be curse.

Deuteronomy 11:26-28 (NET)
26 Take note – I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse:
27 the blessing if you take to heart the commandments of the Lord your God that I am giving you today,
28 and the curse if you pay no attention to his commandments and turn from the way I am setting before you today to pursue other gods you have not known.
So under the covenant of Moses, those who failed to honour the Law of tithe, would fall under a curse.
However, when Jesus Christ died, the curse was removed.

Galatians 3:13-14 (NET)
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us (because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”)
14 in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham would come to the Gentiles, so that we could receive the promise of the Spirit by faith.
What Paul is saying is that, because the curse of the law was removed, the blessing of Abraham comes onto gentiles, not because they are following the works of the law, but simply because they have believed in Christ.
If you believe in Jesus Christ, that he died for you on the cross, the blessing of Abraham is on you. There’s nothing more you can do to add to it. Simply believing is enough to receive Abraham’s blessing.
So you don’t need to follow the law of tithe inorder to receive the blessing of Abraham.

And if you fail to pay the tithe, God will not curse you. However, you can place yourself under a curse. Paul warns Christians who are seeking to be declared righteous before God, by following the law that they are placing themselves under a curse. Because God does not declare anyone to be righteous by the fact that they are following the law.

Galatians 3:9-11 (NET)
9 So then those who believe are blessed along with Abraham the believer.
10 For all who rely on doing the works of the law are under a curse, because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not keep on doing everything written in the book of the law.”
11 Now it is clear no one is justified before God by the law, because the righteous one will live by faith.
What Paul is saying here is that, once you take one thing from the Law, you are now bound to do everything that is in the law. And if you fail to continue doing every last thing in the law, you put yourself into that curse.
So as a result, its best not to go into the law at all. In Christ we have redemption from the law.
If you take the law of tithe, and begin to practice it, God can not justify you because you are a good tithe payer.

The Law of Love​

In the New Testament we are governed by the law of love.
Romans 13:8 (NET)
Owe no one anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.
Love by nature gives. So a person who submits to the Law of love must be a giver.
The new testament gives us guidelines on how to give.

Principles of Giving​

1 Corinthians 16:2 (NET)
On the first day of the week, each of you should set aside some income and save it to the extent that God has blessed you, so that a collection will not have to be made when I come.
From this scripture we learn a few principles.

1. Give consistently​

Paul was asking the church to set aside money on the first day of every week. This is because that’s when they would meet.
It teaches us to be consistent in our giving to the church.

2. Give as God Prospers you​

Scripture is saying, give to the extend that God has blessed you. Which means you are not giving to try and earn the blessing of God, you are giving because you are recognizing that God has blessed you.
There is no percentage given here, but even in the New Testament, you are expected to give to the house of God according to the extend that God has blessed you. Give more when God has blessed you more.
In this case, a person who decides to give a tenth of their salary does well. As long as they know that they are not doing it because of the law of tithe, but simply because it helps them to be consistent and to give as God prospers.
However they should know that when they fail to pay that ten percent, God does not curse them. They also know that they are not giving to try and earn God’s love, or favour. They are giving because they are blessed.

3. Everyone has something to give​

Everyone in the New Testament is blessed, and therefore everyone has something to give.
2 Corinthians 9:7-8 (NET)
7 Each one of you should give just as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, because God loves a cheerful giver.
8 And God is able to make all grace overflow to you so that because you have enough of everything in every way at all times, you will overflow in every good work.

4. Give out of Love​

Don’t give because you feel forced to give. Such a gift is an insult to God.
Even if you give everything you have and don’t do it out of love, to God it counts as nothing.
1 Corinthians 13:3 (WEB)
If I give away all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but don’t have love, it profits me nothing.
[09:10, 5/12/2019] charlesmaungwa: 2 Corinthians 9:10-14 (NET)
10 Now God who provides seed for the sower and bread for food will provide and multiply your supply of seed and will cause the harvest of your righteousness to grow.
11 You will be enriched in every way so that you may be generous on every occasion, which is producing through us thanksgiving to God,
12 because the service of this ministry is not only providing for the needs of the saints but is also overflowing with many thanks to God.
13 Through the evidence of this service they will glorify God because of your obedience to your confession in the gospel of Christ and the generosity of your sharing with them and with everyone.
14 And in their prayers on your behalf they long for you because of the extraordinary grace God has shown to you.

5. God will restore what you give​

The scripture is reassuring those who give that God will not leave them in lack. When God sees that you are a generous giver, he gives you more so that you can continue to give more.
When you give, people will give thanks and all those prayers will benefit you in an abundance of blessings.

6. Take care of those who feed you with spiritual things
Romans 15:27 (NET)
For they were pleased to do this, and indeed they are indebted to the Jerusalem saints. For if the Gentiles have shared in their spiritual things, they are obligated also to minister to them in material things.
1 Corinthians 9:7-11 (NET)
7 Who ever serves in the army at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat its fruit? Who tends a flock and does not consume its milk?
8 Am I saying these things only on the basis of common sense, or does the law not say this as well?
9 For it is written in the law of Moses, “Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain.” God is not concerned here about oxen, is he?
10 Or is he not surely speaking for our benefit? It was written for us, because the one plowing and threshing ought to work in hope of enjoying the harvest.
11 If we sowed spiritual blessings among you, is it too much to reap material things from you?
……….
People in ministry should not have to serve at their own expense. We should take care of their expenses.
If they have ministered to you spiritual things, they have a right to receive material things from you.
However, you also are not supposed to give them under compulsion or by force. You are to give only as much as you are happy to give.

In conclusion​

Those who believe in Christ have the blessing of Abraham. They are justified by faith in Jesus.
We are not bound by the law of tithe.
However, we are under the law of love. We must give consistently as a testimony that God has blessed us.
We must take care of the house of God and of his minsiters.
We must not be made to give by force or compulsion.
Those who choose to give a tenth of their salary, should do it out of love and not out of compulsion or condemnation.
When we are generous, God enlarges our capacity so that we can be more generous. We also receive so much more blessings as a result of thanks givings getting before God.

 

[The Encourager]

1 Corinthians 15:20-23​

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.

My tithing belongs to the Father and I try my best to joyfully give this tithing to Him through Jesus. The old established obedience through the letter of the law but the new establishes obedience through the Spirit of Jesus. You want to follow Jesus? Count the cost. I'm giving up much more than 10%. Jesus is my Anchor. I live no more ( God keep me strong). That is our tithes! I will not reduce my gift of Love to God through a percentage of currency.
Please go in peace and pray over the matter.

In conclusion​

Those who believe in Christ have the blessing of Abraham. They are justified by faith in Jesus.

We are not bound by the law of tithe.

However, we are under the law of love. We must give consistently as a testimony that God has blessed us.

We must take care of the house of God and of his minsiters.

We must not be made to give by force or compulsion.

Those who choose to give a tenth of their salary, should do it out of love and not out of compulsion or condemnation.

When we are generous, God enlarges our capacity so that we can be more generous. We also receive so much more blessings as a result of thanks givings getting before God.

 

[Brother in Christ (JC)]

In conclusion​

Those who believe in Christ have the blessing of Abraham. They are justified by faith in Jesus.

We are not bound by the law of tithe.

However, we are under the law of love. We must give consistently as a testimony that God has blessed us.

We must take care of the house of God and of his minsiters.

We must not be made to give by force or compulsion.

Those who choose to give a tenth of their salary, should do it out of love and not out of compulsion or condemnation.

When we are generous, God enlarges our capacity so that we can be more generous. We also receive so much more blessings as a result of thanks givings getting before God.

Thank you Sister. Love which is from the spirit.

 

[Sunday Chukwuma]

In conclusion​

Those who believe in Christ have the blessing of Abraham. They are justified by faith in Jesus.

We are not bound by the law of tithe.
However, we are under the law of love. We must give consistently as a testimony that God has blessed us.

We must take care of the house of God and of his minsiters.

We must not be made to give by force or compulsion.

Those who choose to give a tenth of their salary, should do it out of love and not out of compulsion or condemnation.

When we are generous, God enlarges our capacity so that we can be more generous. We also receive so much more blessings as a result of thanks givings getting before God.

Thanks so much. And God bless you abundantly.

 

[Sunday Chukwuma]

Amen may He indeed guide us.
Interesting though, I was not mixing the two up. Look at the old covenant. The old covenant was a mere shadow of a better covenant to come. It was created by the hands of man but not so with the new. We have left many of the old practices behind as alluded to in Hebrews 9. It clearly points the old practices being done away with. The old covenant tithing practices prevented the penniless from truly participating in this ordinance. How can they tithe if they don't have any money? Praise God, Jesus came and He did not discriminate the poors. We have a better covenant through Jesus that anyone, can participate in every aspect, regardless of their financial limitations. Our devotion, our praises and our worship is personalize to our Father through Jesus. Tithing is the same. My tithing stems from my heart and Jesus filters my action. I'm not concern with man's old version of tithing but I adhere to Heavenly tithing which is the Mediator of my heart, and which is under the new covenant. That is what I meant when I said that the old covenant was based on obedience through the letter of the law, while the new is based on obedience through the Spirit (Jesus) of the law. Faith, Love, peace and many more are found in the spirit.
Give from the spirit and give joyfully and abundantly. Anyone who does not support (in broadest application of the word- not limited to a fraction of one's wage) their assembly needs prayers.

Thanks a lot. Remain blessed dear.