<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices\u00e2\u20ac\u201dmint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law\u00e2\u20ac\u201djustice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> (Matthew 23:23-24)<\/p>\n Wow.<\/p>\n I was just looking for a scripture on tithing. I wound up in a shouting match with Pharisees. But let me tell you how this all started.<\/p>\n Remember my last letter? We had just finished up an eleven week series on \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcthriving in tough times\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> and at the end of the letter I made the comment that I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have a clue on what we should discuss next, but that I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d go ask (Him). A few hours after the letter went out a suggestion came in.<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I have an idea about what to write next about! Tithing! Your thoughts please! If it is that the Lord so leads you. <\/em><\/p>\n Given these tough economic times – churches are feeling the pinch and thereby pinching their parishioners. As we have already discussed privately through emails – I find no evidence for tithing 10% in the New Testament at all. Why not share with the rest what you believe the Bible says on the topic? God bless! Carol\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em><\/p>\n *****<\/strong><\/p>\n At first I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t want to tackle this. Do I really need to poke my thumb in the eye of the establishment? Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t I do that enough already? I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m not a pastor or an elder or a church accountant. And I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve never been accused of being an expert on church doctrine. Tithing is a church thing (boy, did I find out how true that<\/em> statement is). So I really don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have a horse in this race \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 do I?<\/p>\n But tithing is also a money thing and I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m always talking about money. The reason I talk about money so much is that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re so hung up on money; most of our waking thoughts and decisions revolve around it and our obsession with it tends to screw up more important things in our lives.<\/p>\n There\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s something more important than money? Yeah, I know it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a shock, but it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s true. There are things in our lives right now that will last forever and things that won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. Money is one of the things that won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. Those things that do last forever should never be at the mercy of those things that don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t.<\/p>\n If tithing is a church thing and a money thing, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s probably a biblical thing too. So I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d better look into it. For an amateur, I think I have a pretty good idea of what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in the Bible. Of course, every time I actually look in the Bible I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m disappointed by how little of it I really do know. Tithing was like that.<\/p>\n What I figured I knew about tithing probably isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t very different from what a lot of folks think they know about tithing. You give 10% of your money (up front \u00e2\u20ac\u201c not after expenses) to the church \u00e2\u20ac\u201c that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the part you owe God. Tithing is biblical \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s got to be, or else we wouldn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t get the tithing sermon when things around the parish are tight. And, as Carol put in her note, now that we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in tough economic times, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153churches are feeling the pinch and thereby pinching their parishioners.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em><\/p>\n So, according to the Bible, are we supposed to tithe 10% to the church? Well, tithing is biblical; according to Strong\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Concordance \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctithe,\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctithes,\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> or \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctithing\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> shows up thirty-nine times \u00e2\u20ac\u201c thirty-two in the Old Testament and seven in the New. On the other hand, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcPhilistine\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> or \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcPhilistines\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> shows up 285 times – all in the Old Testament. \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcPhilistines\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> are statistically 7.3 times more biblical<\/em> than \u00e2\u20ac\u02dctithing\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>.<\/p>\n But I can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t remember the last time I heard a really good sermon on Philistines<\/em>. My father was a preacher and he called me a Philistine when I exhibited less than exemplary table manners, but other than that, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t remember a lot of pulpiteering on the subject. The reason that Philistines are so unfairly underrepresented compared to tithing may be that Philistines are more or less irrelevant to church finances.<\/p>\n Another reason that we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t hear a lot about Philistines in church may be that they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not mentioned once in the New Testament \u00e2\u20ac\u201c they may be more or less irrelevant to the church. A good example of what not to do, maybe, but not a people we deal with on a regular basis like the Israelites did.<\/p>\n It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s unfair to lump Philistines and tithing together in the same basket; I know that. And it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s sure unfair to imply that pastors only preach on tithing for the money. But they do.<\/p>\n Tithing isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t really as irrelevant as the Philistines, is it? All thirty-two Old Testament mentions are telling the Israelites how and when to tithe and what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s going to happen to them if they don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. A passage in the third chapter of Malachi is a tithing sermon favorite:<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153But you ask, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcHow do we rob you?\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the whole nation of you \u00e2\u20ac\u201c because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> (8-10)<\/p>\n Using the scripture above in a tithing sermon, we church members are supposed to be the Israelites robbing God and the church is supposed to be the storehouse. Problem is, Malachi was talking to real Israelites about bringing real food into a real storehouse. He wasn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t talking to Christians about bringing cash into church. We just apply the passage that way.<\/p>\n What about those seven mentions in the New Testament? We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re New Testament people, that makes it relevant to us right? I checked into that.<\/p>\n Technically, Jesus only mentioned tithing twice; once in Luke 11:42 (Matthew 23:23 is a repeat) and once in Luke 18:12. Neither mention was complimentary – he was beating up the Pharisees for the hypocrisy of their tithing. The balance of tithing mentions (in Hebrews) is part of a short passage recounting Abraham giving a tithe of war spoils to a priest named Melchizedek (which is a pretty interesting story in itself and we can discuss it if you guys want a \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcTithing Part II\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em>).<\/p>\n The verdict? Bad news. Tithing is not a New Testament teaching. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not a church teaching (at least it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not supposed to be). It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s an Old Testament teaching and it was for the Israelites. It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s as irrelevant to Christians (at least the Gentile ones) today as eating pork and circumcision. My advice to pastors? Never preach another sermon on tithing. My advice to parishioners? Never pay another tithe to the church. You\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not supposed to. Tithing died with the Law.<\/p>\n Before you get all worked up, let me mention one other thing.<\/p>\n Jesus came to fulfill the Law, not do away with it. Jesus didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t kill the Law, he made it irrelevant. <\/span>The Law says \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcThou shalt not kill.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> Jesus said that even if you call your brother \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcempty head\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re in danger of the fire of hell. The Law says, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcDo not commit adultery.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em> Jesus said that if you even look at a woman in lust, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve already committed adultery in your heart. The Law says bring ten percent of what you own to the priests. Jesus said, \u00e2\u20ac\u02dcgo and sell everything you have and give it to the poor.\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em><\/p>\n Nobody preached about tithing in the early church because it was irrelevant.<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> (Acts 2:44-45)<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153There were no needy persons among them. From time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he has need.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> (Acts 4:34)<\/p>\n We lost that somewhere along the way. The church became The Church<\/em> instead of you and me. The Catholic Church (which was The Church<\/em>) reinstituted the tithe back in the seventh century as a way to finance buildings and get people paid. The Baptists (who weren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t around in the seventh century) reinstituted tithing in the 1870\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s. Tithing as a church doctrine is a man thing, not a God thing.<\/p>\n But giving<\/em> as a church doctrine is a God thing (there\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot more<\/em> to be said on that subject).<\/p>\n Tired of tithing sermons? Here\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a cure \u00e2\u20ac\u201c give. When you were born again in Christ, you died to this world. You don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t own<\/em> anything. If you can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t give up one tenth of what you think you possess, you deserve the tithing sermons. And if your pastor actually experienced church members giving away 10% of what they earned, tithing sermons would fall into extinction faster than the Dodo.<\/p>\n *****<\/strong><\/p>\n One last thing \u00e2\u20ac\u00a6 Don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t sell old Malachi short. The Law<\/em> requiring tithing may be irrelevant to us but the principle<\/em> isn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t. I loathe preacher clich\u00c3\u00a9s, but this one\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s got me backed into a corner. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153You can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t out-give God.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em> What can I say? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s true.<\/p>\n \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Test me in this, says the Lord Almighty, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices\u00e2\u20ac\u201dmint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law\u00e2\u20ac\u201djustice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[585,134,586,43,16,186,8,276,83,458,540],"tags":[74,750,749,748,120,874,599,511],"class_list":["post-190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-courage","category-faith","category-fear","category-heaven","category-love","category-money","category-peace","category-prayer","category-suffering","category-thriving-in-tough-times","category-trust","tag-abraham","tag-hypocrisy","tag-luke","tag-malachi-8-10","tag-matthew","tag-money","tag-philistines","tag-tithing"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=190"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/190\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gotpotential.org\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}