WHY ARE YOU TITHING…GUILT OR IGNORANCE ?
By Lafe Tolliver
What difference would it make in your relationship to God and in your giving of supporting works of Bible based ministries if the “tithe” (I will use this term to mean ten percent of one’s gross monetary income) was determined not to be a requirement or a doctrine for the saints (born again believers) of God under the New Testament?
Would you give more than the proverbial “ten percent” tithe or would it be less? Would it liberating to know that the tithe was never intended to be a mandatory requirement of New Testament giving but rather God had a higher design in mind that does not include the taking out of context the “proof” verses of the priesthood of Melchizedek and his encounter with Abraham (Genesis Chapter 14) or the incessantly quoted Malachi 3:8-10 or Luke 6:38?
If it could be shown that sound Bible doctrine does not include tithing as a obligatory principle of New Testament living or giving, would you be relieved or full of guilt or even anger for being mislead by preachers and teachers who did not thoroughly examine the scriptures in order to make certain that tithing was a doctrine approved or taught by Jesus or expounded upon by the apostles?
The basic premise of this two part article is that the tithe was originally instituted by God for the support of the Temple Levites whom were not apportioned any land along with the other eleven tribes (Numbers 18:23-24; Deut 14: 27-9). As such, God made provision for their physical sustenance via a tithe being paid into the
Malachi, which is the last book of the Old Testament and the last of the prophetic books, indicates via a careful reading of the context of the scriptures that the priests who served the Levites became corrupted and stopped bringing the whole tithes to the
As punishment for their acts of theft, God cursed the land and the corrupt priesthood and withheld the rainfall from
When they (the priests) stopped stealing from the
Basic Bible research would indicate that the Old Testament tithe(s) were not “paid” in gold or silver but rather the tithe or the “tax” was on the increase from both foodstuff and the herds of the Israeli people. Sample verses include: Lev 27:30-1, Numbers 18:27 Deut. 12:17 and Malachi 3:10.
Money was not the normative exchange currency even though Christ and the apostle in the New Testament could have mentioned this as an obligatory/required tithe or an offering but they did not do so.
Since
Malachi was the last voice before we had the 400 year “blackout” of no word from God until John the Baptist (also a prophet) came on the scene. From the prophetic words of John the Baptist and until the final Book of Revelations, there is no church doctrine endorsed by either Jesus Christ or the Apostles regarding the tithe being a church doctrine or a requirement for the born again believer. None!
The giving or tithing of money was never a linkage to the covenant with God. The linkage was and will be his grace towards us and tithing and/or giving an offering was not and is not a requirement for either salvation or being blessed of the Lord. Titus 3:7; Romans 3:24; Romans 11:6.
When Jesus came as the exact image of the Father (John 1:1-3) and by his perfect life and until his death at
Grace and the provisions of the New Testament did not appear until Jesus died at
Jesus does not want a paltry ten percent but rather he is seeking 100 % of everything of his followers. I Corinthians 6:20. Tithing (or as we commonly refer to it as a tenth of our gross income) is less than full commitment to the
Regrettably, I have sat under ministries wherein the pastor would literally “rant and rave” about we “owing” the tithe or ten percent and it was our offerings which would “determine” the blessing of God!
Such spiritual gibberish from the pulpit! I also heard the unsupportable doctrine of Christians being under a curse if we did not give or bring a tithe and an offering. No scripture…(save for the mis-applied Malachi chapter 3) just a lot of pulpit hoopla, emotionalism and scriptures taken out of context meant to place people in fear of losing their status with God (as if we could be separated from the love of God by such poppycock). Romans 8:37-39.
Think about it. We, the followers of God informing God that our tithe will bless Him and that our offerings will require or demand a flow of financial blessings to us from Him. Again, another non scriptural rendering of Malachi chapter 3.
The tithe is not our connection to the N.T. covenant but rather the shed Blood of the Lamb of God is. It is a blood connection…not a monetary connection! God never made financial blessings or prosperity his sign of favor to any believer. If you think so, read the verses of the Apostle Paul and his life and fortunes or misfortunes and see where he was financially “blessed” for all of his travails with the early church. 2 Corinthians 11:16-29.
I am sure the Word of Faith adherents would say that Paul did not have enough faith to believe God for his various manifold problems including his bouts of poverty or lack. The greatest in the kingdom are those who serve and it is not due to their gifting or talent in acquiring mammon. Matthew 20:26.
Real prosperity in God’s eyes is holiness and the increase in the fruits of the Spirit so that we are more and more conformed to his image (Colossians 1:10; Matthew 7:20 and Ephesians 1:11-18) and not to the bangles and lures of the Wall Street money hype or Madison Ave., and their “buy…buy…buy” slogans.
The standard of giving for the born again believer is found at 2 Corinthians 9:7 where the believer is to give cheerfully and as he has so purposed in his heart and according to how God has blessed.
The original tithe in
In Malachi, when the priests became thieves and did not account for the turning in of the tithe to the
We are now the royal priesthood ( I Peter 2:4-5) and we do not tithe to each other and nor is there a local
This curse is not a transferable concept to the New Testament since according to Galatians 3:10 we are not under the law and if we try to fulfill the law in one aspect, we are guilty if we do not fulfill the law in all of its 613 requirements! Romans 11:6. It is a wonder that the tithe grabbing pastors and preachers strangely do not mention that portion of Galatians but since it does not fit their financial planning, it is conveniently omitted.
Without proper examination of scripture (Acts 17:11) the church has erroneously assumed that the tithe was affirmed by Jesus for the New Testament believers. It was not. The doctrine that was once and for all delivered to the saints (Jude) does not and did not include tithing as a mandatory doctrine to be followed by believers. God’s standard of giving is more expansive than a confining ten percent or a tithe. Matter of fact, if we were to scrupulously follow the Old Testament law as to tithing, it would be more around a third of our “assets” not including special givings or offerings including the Levitical tithe, the tithe for the poor and the feast tithe. See for example: Leviticus 27:30.
The charlatan prosperity teachers enjoy merchandising the saints of God ( 2 Peter 2: 1-3) with the buttery statements of giving to God (in reality to their own personal kingdoms); and as their vain promise to you, they state that you will in turn reap enormous financial rewards.
Such tomfoolery has been accepted by too many gullible but sincere saints who give to God in such a manner that they believe God is obligated to give to them. Wrong. It won’t happen since you are giving with wrong motives. God is not a slot machine….just put in a dollar in the offering plate and out comes five dollars.
Those false prophets and teachers and ministries that intentionally corrupt the Word of God with their flim flam of fleecing the flock for their own personal aggrandizement will face the wrath of God at the day of judgment for they attempt to make the Word of God of no effect and worse yet, they are trying to add to scripture their own twisted interpretations so that they may benefit at your expense. Flee such doctrine and such expositors! 2 Timothy 2:15.
PART TWO
One of the many gross misconceptions of the so called “mandate” given by many of today preachers and teachers and televangelists is that you are required by the Word of God to give a tithe which is now commonly accepted as one tenth of one’s gross income.
Regrettably, these proponents of the tithe conveniently omit to tell their audience that giving ten percent is not a requirement for one’s salvation or a requirement for “good standing” with God nor is it a badge of righteousness by which one can impress God.
One of the major tenants of this non-defensible position on the tithe is the argument that father Abraham gave the tithe before the law and as such, the tithe is superior to both law and grace. Wrong!
If you read the scriptures at Genesis, Chapter 14, you will notice that father Abraham did not tithe out of his income or possessions but rather he gave what he won in battle with the four named kings. Abraham was already rich before the giving of this “tithe” and as such the giving of this “tithe” did not make him wealthy. See Genesis Chapter 13. Plus, if you allow scripture to interpret scripture, you will also notice that nowhere else is it ever mentioned about this act of honor as done by Abraham to Melchizedek is to be construed as on ongoing requirement that is binding upon New Testament believers.
Nor was this concept of tithing ever transferred to the New Testament by any of the prophets or authors of the accepted canons. Even Jesus did not comment on this act of honor as being a requirement for believers. When Jesus spoke in Matthew 23:23 about the Pharisees tithing off of the cumin, dill and mint, it was because Jesus was a Jew speaking to Jews about Jewish law (remember the tithe was instituted under the law…not under grace). He was not condoning the acts of tithing for those under grace since he had not yet gone to the Cross and thus by his death and resurrection ushered in the New Testament.
News flash!! Jesus did not tithe since he was a carpenter and a tithe was not required from non produce or husbandry/vineyard based income.
The other misconception is the improper use of the word…”first fruits.” First fruits is not the tithe and the tithe is not the first fruits. First fruits refers to grain offerings. Leviticus 23:10, 17 and Revell Bible Dictionary page 383. If one is going to go back under the law and pull out the “tithe chestnut” then you are duty bound to pull out the rest of the laws as found in the Old Testament including dietary, marriage, sacrifices, slavery, debt, dress, justice and worship requirements. In other words back to legalistic bondage.
Tithing was used by God as a tax for purposes of both temple maintenance and as a means to provide for the widows, the orphans and the stranger in the land. Deuteronomy 14:28-29 and Revells Bible Dictionary at page 982.
Also, there were three tithes but yet modern day preachers and teachers seem fixated on the one that deals with money; and as a matter of fact, that particular tithe was not in the form of currency of gold or silver! See Numbers 18:21,24 and Deuteronomy 14: 22-24 and Deuteronomy 14: 28-29.
One tithe as found at Deuteronomy 14:26 even allowed for the bringer of the tithe to consume or eat the goods and wine that the tithe could buy and that person was to eat it with merriment and with others!
When was the last time your pastor told you to spend your “tithe” on some good wine and table fixings and invite over a crowd and give God the praise while you “chow down?” It is in the Word. Read it for yourself. Don’t take my word for it. Be a good Berean and examine the scriptures. Acts 17:11.
What then is the standard of giving for the believer? It is found at 2 Cor 9:6-11. Understand that the tithe is not being dismissed as antiquated. It is being dismissed as being substandard! We are bought with a price (1 Cor. 6: 19-20) and as such we are not our own.
That being so, God has a total and complete demand on all of our worldly goods including the both the ten percent and the remaining 90 percent of our income. As God has blessed, you, in prayer and thanksgiving to God, must get the mind of God for yourself and give according. Not according to please a pastor or a church budget but in obedience to what God has told you about how he has blessed you in your weekly, bi-weekly or monthly income.
Can you continue to give ten percent of your income….gross or net? Sure. Can you give more or less than the ten percent? Sure. What makes the difference? As you know and understand the leading of the Holy Spirit and as you are in fellowship with God, what is He telling you to give? It can vary from payday to payday and can be different if you work piecemeal or on a commission or straight salary or if you receive other sources of income be it social security, pension, rent receipts, dividends from stocks and bonds or annuities.
Do you believe that you should give when you are in dire straights with other creditors or do you believe that you should witness by paying down or off your creditors and then giving more to the kingdom? See I Timothy 5:8 for that answer.
The widow’s mite example (Mark 12:42) is not the standard for regular New Testament giving because if you always gave everything you had at all times, you would not be able to render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s (today, known as your local and state and national obligations to pay government imposed obligations). Matthew 22:21.
Where the Lord is, there is liberty (2 Cor. 3:17) and that same liberty (not feelings of oppression or guilt) should be manifested in your giving. When you understand and can internalize that God does not need your giving (Psalms 50:10)) and that giving allows you to develop a characteristic of God which is that of a giver, you should begin to “un stress” about this bogus issue of tithing and walk in liberty.
When the shrill voice of the televangelist comes on and tells you a lot of hocus pocus that if you give ten dollars and they will in turn send you an anointed penny from the
Giving a tithe as a means by which you are going to try to twist God’s arm to bless you will not work. God never said…”put in ten and I will give you one hundred. The scripture at Luke 6:36-38 does not refer to money but rather to the reaping of righteousness and your growth in God.
If God had a sure fire money plan by which the saints of God could, without a miscue, give God money and he in turn would be obligated to give back a set formulaic amount, would not the entire world church be “rolling in dough?”
God’s money plan includes the concept of stewardship by which we as born again believers are held to give an account of the material goods and responsibilities placed with us by Jesus. Luke 12: 42-48 clearly indicates that we will have to “fess up” as to what we have done with the privileges and benefits Christ gives each one of us regardless of your station in life.
God’s blessing plan is that you as a steward are operating under proper principles of sowing and reaping and your life is in line with the Word of God.
As for those persons who by guile and ruse have merchandised the Body of Christ (2 Peter 2:3) with their shameless flim-flam…God will see to it that they get their just desserts. Again, you will also note that whenever stewardship is mentioned in the Word of God that tithing is not mentioned or demanded or assumed. Why? It is a non issue because it is not a requirement for santification or holiness or fellowship with God. This is a blood covenant that Jesus set up with us…not a money covenant. If Jesus has your heart and motives, the money giving issue is a no brainer. You will want to give because you love him who first gave himself to you. John 3:16.
Jesus did not come to Earth to die to make Christians rich or that every time Kenneth Hagin or Oral Roberts or Creflo Dollar or Benny Hinn or Joyce Meyers speak that you will sacrifice your rent or car payment to build their personal kingdoms but rather he came to die so you could be reconciled back to the Father. John 3:16.
Born again believers have an indwelt urge as governed by the Holy Spirit to give of their material blessings to the advancement of the local assembly or fellowship and the gospel of Jesus being propagated. Matthew 13: 44-45.
If tithing was such an important principle and if I was Christ, after my resurrection, I would be hammering tooth and nail to the disciples and the apostles about making sure the early church was rooted and grounded in tithing requirements. But Christ did not do so because it was legalistic and bondage to set a minimum or maximum as to the precept of freely ye have received….freely ye shall give….Matthew 10:8.
What happens if and when the saints of God fall short on their material needs and the local assemblies are hard pressed for cash? Simple. God is the builder of the church and He alone is able to manifest all grace and blessings to us so that we can carry out his great commission and fulfill the normal and necessary needs of the people of God. If we are “sweated” so that we are in temporary lack, could it be a lesson in faith and or to tighten up our stewardship?
Our part as believers is to walk by faith (2 Cor. 5:7) and to seek the will of God in all things including our giving. God’s responsibility is to meet our needs when we conform to his word and our motives are not suspect.
Are their examples in the New Testament of the saints being in deprivation and yet God manifested himself and supplied their needs? Sure. God gets the glory when we as individuals and as local assemblies realize that but for the moment by moment grace of God we are all without a hope and a prayer. The same goes for our finances.
The Apostle Paul was a study in deprivation (I Cor. 4 and 2 Cor. 6:3-10)) but yet he was more than a conqueror in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:37)…including his finances being at times, “not in the black.”
Saints of God, the question is not the tithe because the tithe represents being under the law and the tithe was a tax as it were. The question is what is God saying to you right now about your current finances and what is he saying to you about your current level of stewardship and giving.
You want to still give ten percent? Great! Go ahead but do so with the knowledge that God is not demanding that if you do not give ten percent you are under any nonsensical curses or that your arm is going to fall off or that your cat is going to be hit by a car or that you are going to suffer a bout of leprosy. That is guilt/fear preaching coming from ignorant (lack of knowledge) expositors of the Word. I Timothy 1:5-7.
Give freely, knowingly, abundantly, regularly, joyfully and cheerfully and with purpose and with Godly direction….therein is the blessing…material or otherwise.
Lafe Tolliver, Atty.
For comments or questions, contact me at: Tolliver@Juno.com
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