There is a favorite Bible verse that many Christian leaders tout when
the monetary is needed to fill the coffers of the church. The pastor will say
that this is a form of worship and that God has commanded us to faithfully
tithe; if we do not, we will not receive God’s blessing and His work cannot
continue to function as it should. The tithe speech has been done in so many
different ways you would think that they used the same marketing tactics as a
used car lot.
The pressure and coercion concerning tithing has put many into
unnecessary pressure and bondage. The problem is that the money that is given
goes towards paying the large overhead costs of the church building which
include the salaries of the pastoral staff.
The church could not function
without these two most important things, right?
Fortunately, for those who feel that tithing to the modern church does
not feel quite right, you are correct. The tithe has been abolished and if
Scripture is truly heeded as God has intended, there would be no one in the
church today practicing the abolished Biblical tithe of the Old Testament.
The history of the tithe comes from ancient Israel where God instituted
a three part taxation system.
A portion from the products of the land were to support the Levite
priests because they had no inheritance in Canaan.
For the tithe of the people of
Israel, which they present as a contribution to the LORD, I have given to the
Levites for an inheritance. Therefore I have said of them that they shall have
no inheritance among the people of Israel.” – Numbers 18:24
A tithe from the produce of the land would go towards a festival tithe
to sponsor religious festivals that were held in Jerusalem.
“You shall tithe all the yield of
your seed that comes from the field year by year. And before the LORD your God,
in the place that he will choose… - Deuteronomy 14:22-23
Thirdly, a tithe from the produce from the land would go towards
widows, orphans, strangers, and local Levites every third year.
At the end of every three years
you shall bring out all the tithe of your produce in the same year and lay it
up within your towns. And the Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance
with you, and the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow… - Deuteronomy
14:28-29
God commanded three tithes:
On that day men were appointed
over the storerooms, the contributions, the first-fruits, and the tithes, to
gather into them the portions required by the Law for the priests and for the
Levites according to the fields of the towns… - Nehemiah 12:44
There is a similarity of the Biblical tithe of the Old Testament with
the taxation systems we have today. Their purposes are quite similar; tax money
goes towards government personnel instead of the Leviticus priests, monetary
goes towards holidays instead of Jewish festivals, and programs for the poor
and unprivileged have the same purpose as for the widows and orphans.
Then Jesus Christ died on the cross, the ceremonial laws that the Jews
were obligated to uphold concerning tithing were abolished, that is why there
is no evidence of tithing in the New Testament.
And you, who were dead in your
trespasses and the un-circumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with
him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt
that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to
the cross. – Colossians 2:13-14
It should be clear that tithing belonged to Israel when they were under
the old covenant. In the Early Church there was a different kind of stewardship
when it came to the monetary, which was not out of duty and compulsion, but out
of a cheerful heart and one’s own ability to do so.
When a leader in the church starts preaching this verse from the
pulpit, it is important to be able discern it in the right context.
Will man rob God? Yet you are
robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and
contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole
nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food
in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will
not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until
there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not
destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not fail to
bear, says the LORD of hosts. – Malachi 3:8-11
…their abundance of joy and their
extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For
they gave according to their means… - 2 Corinthians 8:2-3
So I thought it necessary to urge
the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the gift you have
promised, so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction. – 2
Corinthians 9:5
Each one must give as he has
decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a
cheerful giver. – 2 Corinthians 9:7
From these few verses in the New Testament, it is clear and distinct
that tithing from the Old Testament has no connection with the practice of the
Early Church. A closer inspection of the verses in Malachi reveal who the
recipients of the tithe are.
Is the tithe to the salaried
pastors and clergy of the modern church, or was it intended for the poor,
widows, and orphans?
The tithing message is a corrupt man-made tradition to coerce the
masses into emptying their wallets to promote the corrupt man-made traditions
of the institutionalized modern church that is run like a business. The purpose
of giving in the New Testament was never for salaries and business costs.
The modern church has corrupted what cheerful giving is all about by
suppresses the love of what giving generously to all believers means. If a
pastor demands a tithe, then we are to give to each other, not to his agenda
for the congregation. The tithe is not a legal requirement or is it obligatory.
Why do many ministries make
others feel that they are not following God’s command by not tithing?
It is no longer a command of God, and is not binding on an individual. The
corruption of God’s Word has oppressed many in the modern church today. Many
who are struggling with their finances feel obligated to give beyond their
means because they are being told that they are robbing God, or feed into the
delusion of the Prosperity Gospel. Even in the Old Testament, the tithe was a
blessing to the poor, not a curse. Many are being thrown deeper into poverty
all in the name of the “Good News,” while the wealthy and prosperous Christian somehow
believes that they are being “blessed” by giving ten percent or more. Tithing
makes the wealthier person feel good about themselves, but gives the poor a
guilty conscience. Unfortunately, both are in delusion believing that they are
obeying God and being “good” Christians. The reality is that tithing has
nothing to do with devotion to Jesus Christ, but is historically proven as a
means to pay the salaries of those in the institutional church offices.
Salaries run against the new covenant of Jesus Christ because it takes
from the flock.
I coveted no one’s silver or gold
or apparel. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my necessities
and to those who were with me. In all things I have shown you that by working
hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord
Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” –
Acts 20:33-35
When there are professional paid clergymen, the modern
institutionalized church immediately elevates them above the rest of the
believers. They are considered paid professionals within the brotherhood of
believers in Jesus Christ. All believers are “living stones” and functioning
priests in the body of Jesus Christ; therefore, a salaried minister is not
needed, and occupies an unnecessary position and unknowingly interferes and stifles
God’s plans for His church. It is time to wake up from this man-made delusion
that salaried pastoral positions are Scriptural.
To be blunt, most salaried pastors are slave to the masses as
"people pleasers" who are always in fear of saying the wrong thing,
especially to the heavy tithers in the audience because their jobs may depend
on giving the people what they want to hear. The collateral damage on those who
are under the bondage of the modern church system can be seen in the members of
their immediate families. The idolatry to this system has wreaked havoc on
marriages and their children as well as their congregation of believers.
Tithing is an Old Testament practice that no longer applies to the
church today. It is an old and obsolete practice. It is time to break free from
the oppressive system that is being promoted in the modern church.
There is freedom in a group of people who want to freely and cheerfully
give to one another with no strings of guilt, obligation, or manipulation
attached to it. These are the principles that define the true body of Jesus Christ.
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