There are lots of forums in which people rail vehemently against tithing; believing it to be under the Old Testament law and done away by the New Testament. They do not believe tithing is a priority in a Christian’s life nor that is part of pleasing God and helping to expand His will in the lives of people in our communities and around the world.
I have seen vitriol that judge preachers to be non-Christian, heretics, money-grubbers, and Hell-bound when they teach tithing as a current practice. However, there are charlatan preachers that do not teach tithing. In fact, there are scam artists in every microcosm of life. We need to learn to avoid them all, yet teaching tithing is not a measurement. However, with all the vitriol it's no surprise that 80% of regular church attendees do not tithe, 37% do not give any more than a few dollars per year to the church they attend, and the average giving for all proclaimed Christians is at an all-time low of approximately 2.4% of annual income.
Even with giving at such an anemic level, most people expect an awful lot from the local church they attend and from the universal body of Christ (the Church) when they and others in the community have problems. They believe the church should be all things to all people in need and thus should be able to meet the needs of the members and communities when their personal or local economies are in turmoil.
The problem with this thinking is that they expect the church to do too much when they are unwilling to give a proportionate share of their income to the Church but are more than willing to consume upon their own lusts, spending the lion’s share of the money God entrusts to them on their desires. Wanting the church to be all things to all people, they should be more than willing to give the share instructed by faith toward spreading the gospel throughout the earth and toward disciplining believers to sharpen one another for the work of ministry.
Certainly, the Lord can move supernaturally to accomplish His will, yet He chose believers as His body that would bring forth His will in the earth by doing those things like tithing and giving and being involved in the church and in the marketplace in a way that accomplishes His purpose. In many instances, scripture points out that His super power is ushered in by our natural obedience to His principles for living and giving.
When a church has an overwhelming number of members who won’t tithe and give offerings then that local body will be limited in the endeavors and services that it can provide members and outsiders. And, it will generally be limited in ushering in God’s super-natural power to help accomplish the purpose He desires for it to pursue. The lack of His super-natural power in their endeavors is not a result of the amount of money that one gives or a Church collects, but rather their obedience to His principles in proper proportion to the income He entrusts to them.
By faith Abraham tithed and Jacob also. Do we really believe that the grace, faith, and spiritual freedom provided in New Testament time leads us to support the spread of the gospel with less than a faithful amount as shown by Abraham the father of our faith that he obviously imparted to His children’s children.
I understand that believers are not under the Old Testament law of tithing and thus are not responsible for giving the three types of tithes required by that law. And, I do believe that in the present age we have the ability to not prioritize the tithe into our lives and money management and we will not be instantly struck down by God or stoned by other believers for not doing so. Yet, these beliefs should not lead anyone to think that God desires that we do less in the New Testament time to spread His Word, knowing that the end of this present age is near and that our ministry will help determine whether men hear the gospel, come to Him, inherit eternal life, and bypass Hell.
That is why I believe that the scripture shares, in both Old and New Testament, the example of the father of our faith, Abraham, and his giving of the tithe to Melchizedek the high priest (a signification of Christ). In the New Testament it is specifically communicated that people give tithes to men on earth, yet “the One of whom it is witnessed that He lives” receives the tithe that we give. The concept that “He lives” is one for New Testament believers and indeed the Church to understand and gravitate toward in terms of honoring Christ by presenting back to Him a meaningful portion of what He entrusts to us. After all, Jesus Chris is the One of whom it is witnessed that He lives.
Tithing does not make you spiritual, nor does it necessarily show you are saved, nor can it or anything else you do ever earn you eternal life – that is a gift from Christ received by acceptance of Him as Savior. However, I believe that scripture is clear that there are commands given to us that live in the Age of Grace by faith (see Matthew 28:19-20 and Romans 8:2). Tithing is one of the commands that the Lord knows will help you eliminate the love of money and material things from our hearts and become disciplined to put a greater focus upon using your life and money in a way that glorifies Him and spreads His gospel throughout the earth.
Please pray for this ministry and email any questions. May God bless you richly as you follow His plan!!!
Genesis 14:20, Genesis 28:22, Matthew 23:23, Hebrews 7:8
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