Hello All,
I'll be releasing my second book entitled Believers with Benefits: Tithing Testimonies very soon. I'd like to find out what people believe about tithing. I've heard many reasons for why people should or should not tithe. I have also heard many reasons for why tithing should be dismissed altogether. What do you think about tithing? Do you think it's a church scam or a Godly plan? Why? Please be respectful and provide proof/evidence where you can.
I look forward to reading your thoughts.
Jubilee
Tithing, when approached with the proper perspective, can no doubt be both a means for Christians to honor God and for God to bless them in turn. But the key phrase in the preceding sentence is "proper perspective."
ReplyDeleteTithing in general was an Isreal-specific institution, and for that reason is not mentioned in the NT, even when Paul had the perfect opportunity to recommend it in his discussion of giving at Corinth (2 Cor 8). Instead, Paul encouraged but did not command them to give according to their means and with the right heart.
With this in mind, it needs to be understood that the usual understanding of tithing as “10% of annual income …pssst, before taxes" propounded by many churches is completely arbitrary and not obligatory. I outline some reasons here: http://youhavehearditsaid.wordpress.com/2012/12/18/the-tithing-conspiracy/. That some Christians even treat tithing as propitiatory earns a mention for being among the vilest of pagan beliefs and practices.
However, should a Christian decide that 10% is within his or her means, and could with a pure heart offer that to God, then by all means--tithe! But those who are financially strapped, wisdom and liberty of conscience permits reserving finances for the fulfillment of other *obligations* before God (e.g., care of the family). What this also implies, to be clear, is that Christians who can live well within their means might want to consider giving more than %10, for "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked" (Luke 12:48).
Hi C.A.M. :-),
ReplyDeleteHappy New Year!
Thank you for being the first to respond on the first day of the New Year! I am encouraged! I totally agree that tithing should be approached with the proper perspective and that it definitely is a heart thing. I also agree that you cannot give 10 percent of what you don't have. As a college student, I didn't always have a tithe but God would always bless me with "seed" to sow and I believe it was because I had a desire to give in my heart. God is so Awesome and faithful that He blessed me with a great job at a young age so that I could continue to be blessed and be a blessing to others and to His Kingdom. I don't believe that God adds increase to folks who do not honor Him with a portion of what He has already given them. My dad taught me about tithing when I was just a young girl and I have only ever given 10 percent of whatever God blessed me with as a way of saying "Thank You" and to acknowledge God as my source. In my book which is soon to be released, Believers with Benefits, I give several examples of how God has blessed my family and I financially in unprecedented ways. I can only attribute these blessings to God's grace, mercy and the fact that we are faithful in giving (sowing seed, offering and tithes). I have only seen blessing as a result to my response to the tithing principle. God always honors His word and God prompts us to "try/prove Him and see if He would not open for us the windows of heaven and pour out for us such a blessing that there will not be room enough to receive (Malachi 3:10). I have chosen to do this by way of tithing. As a result, I have seen these kinds of blessings in my own life over and over again. I think that we should bless God's Kingdom with whatever He has blessed us with (money, time, talent) and tithing is a great start.