Tithing

Stevelee44 said:

I am just sharing my beliefs. I am not here to argue legalism. Tithing is from the heart.....Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.
Luke 6:37-39

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First, there is NO scripture showing that tithing is from the heart. That's made up garbage by pastors who want your money.

You have taken Luke 6:37-39 totally out of context. It isn't talking about giving money. Read the whole chapter.

Being Spirit led instead of following what the Pastor says or following OT laws, I find myself giving closer to 30% of my income on a regular basis. Tithers mistakenly believe that when they give 10%, the other 90% is theirs to do as they please. That is not Biblical.

Tithing is for those who want to keep 90% of their income. They are the stingy ones. It's when you understand that the OT tithe never came from income, and you understand what the NT teaches about giving, your giving will increase.

I just want to pop in a say something real quick....

Both sides of this debate have given me something to think about and have taught me little bit about the issue of tithing. Its this kind of debate and give and take about issues that I wish was more prevalent in the church. You all have made me pause and really think and question what I know about this subject. Thanks!

koshka said:

Truth about tithing - it is not for the church! - by Colin Lyne

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As I said in my post a few spots in the thread before this, the mistake many make is in seeing no connection between the Old Testament and the New. Mr. Lyne makes the same error.

WHatevber you choose, don't tithe because you feel you have to. Tithe because you want to!

xfreakazoidx said:

WHatevber you choose, don't tithe because you feel you have to. Tithe because you want to!

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Which tithe are you referring to? I don't believe you could tithe today, per the Biblical definition of tithe, whether you want to or not. But you CAN give a tenth of your income if you wish. However, don't confuse that tenth with the Biblical tithe because it has nothing to do with it.

But if you really want to tithe, read Deut. 14:22-29 and follow those instructions.

Don't tithe, because GOD doesn't need your money.

And HE is not served by human hands, as if HE needed anything, because HE himself gives all men life and breath and everything else. Acts 17:25

All tithing will do is set your life backward.

It was ever only food to the priests.
The priests are now you and me. 1 Peter 2:9

It is simple, the church makes in complicated because they need your money.
But GOD doesn't!

-eric

The Exchanged Life

I meant the 10% of your money thing.

Don't tithe, because GOD doesn't need your money.

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Um, while I understand your point. If you don't give money to your church. How does the pastor get paid? How do people afford mission trips? Where do people go for sunday service?

I realize some denominations kind of force you to tithe for selfish reasons. But not all churches all like that.

xfreakazoidx said:

If you don't give money to your church. How does the pastor get paid? How do people afford mission trips? Where do people go for sunday service?

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Free-will offerings. We are under a HIGHER STANDARD than the OT tithe.

The New Testament teaches generous, sacrificial giving, from the heart, according to our means. For some, $1 might be a sacrifice, while for others, even giving 50% of their income might not induce a sacrifice. In the Old Testament, ONLY the farmers tithed, and it was a tenth. The New Testament teaches the principle of equal sacrifice instead of a tenth. Equal sacrifice is much harder to achieve, if not impossible, than giving a tenth.

Free-will offerings. We are under a HIGHER STANDARD than the OT tithe.

The New Testament teaches generous, sacrificial giving, from the heart, according to our means. For some, $1 might be a sacrifice, while for others, even giving 50% of their income might not induce a sacrifice. In the Old Testament, ONLY the farmers tithed, and it was a tenth. The New Testament teaches the principle of equal sacrifice instead of a tenth. Equal sacrifice is much harder to achieve, if not impossible, than giving a tenth.

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Ah ok I get what your saying. My bad! I agree wtih you. As much as I hear 10%, most christians from the churches we go to say theres no set percentage. I still give 10$ just because I don't really use my money for anything else.

Proverbs 3:9
Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; -

blankCrossfire said:

Proverbs 3:9
Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; -

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Proverbs 3:9 (KJV) “Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:”

The verse reads HONOUR the Lord with thy substance (wealth), not give to the Lord your wealth. The verse does not say honour the Lord with a tenth of your wealth, or give to the Lord a tenth of your wealth.

How does one honor the Lord with their wealth? I believe the best way I can honor the Lord with my wealth is to be a good steward of that wealth and use it to glorify the Lord the best I can.

The verse reads AND with the firstfruits of all thine increase. In other words, HONOUR the Lord with the firstfruits of all your produce, or crops (Hebrew word definition). Doesn’t say give to the Lord the firstfruits of your produce, or crops. That comes later in the Word.

For those who say that all thine increase can also mean all your income, read the next verse:

Proverbs 3:10 (KJV) “So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.”

Verse 10 makes it clear that increase in verse 9 is referring to the crops and not income.

Leviticus 23:10 (KJV) “Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:”

The above verse tells us that the Children of Israel were commanded to take the firstfruits of their harvest to the priests.

Numbers 18:21 (KJV) “And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation.”

The above verse tells us that the Children of Israel were commanded to take the tithe to the Levites.

Nehemiah 10:37 (KJV) “And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage.”

Nehemiah 10:37 confirms that the firstfruits were taken to the Temple for the priests, and the tithe was taken to the Levites who lived in the Levitical cities.

Now, IF you insist that Prov. 3:9 is a principle and that we should apply it to our income, consider what the New Testament says:

2 Timothy 2:6 (KJV) “The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits.”

1 Timothy 5:8 (KJV) “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”

Using the above principles, the New Testament makes it clear that we are to use the FIRST of our income to take care of ourselves and our family. We are talking about needs, here, not just anything we want. Then we should give generously from what is left.

Now, are we to follow the OLD, or are we to follow the NEW AND BETTER?

No offence to alot of these folks but tithing IS still a big principle. The act of it itself is giving what belongs to god. The tithe is the firstfruits. As christians, our money in general belongs to our lord. Your money can be either be cursed, or blessed. God considers the thite holy. the word holy means "set apart". So when the first ten percent is to be set apart for the lord. It is not for me to determine what to do with it. It is GODs tithe. Tithing is not some crime boss type deal where you give the boss ten percent for proctetion money. But with the first ten percent blessed. God blesses the rest of the 90 and multiplies it. Tithing is a heart and trust matter. You'd be suprised, but the reason many christians are broke is ALWAYS because they dont tithe.

LekryceMack said:

No offence to alot of these folks but tithing IS still a big principle. The act of it itself is giving what belongs to god. The tithe is the firstfruits. As christians, our money in general belongs to our lord. Your money can be either be cursed, or blessed. God considers the thite holy. the word holy means "set apart". So when the first ten percent is to be set apart for the lord. It is not for me to determine what to do with it. It is GODs tithe. Tithing is not some crime boss type deal where you give the boss ten percent for proctetion money. But with the first ten percent blessed. God blesses the rest of the 90 and multiplies it. Tithing is a heart and trust matter. You'd be suprised, but the reason many christians are broke is ALWAYS because they dont tithe.

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You've been listening to a pastor, NOT reading your Bible, because what you said is 100% wrong. It is not Biblical.

First, the tithe NEVER came from the firstfruits. The tithe was NEVER the first of anything. Just lies you have been taught in church. Let's look at the scriptures:

Leviticus 27:32 - the tithe is the TENTH ONE that goes under the rod. The LAST ONE out of every ten, not the first.

In Nehemiah 10:37 we learn that the firstfruits were taken to the temple for the priests, and the tithes were taken to the Levites who lived in the Levitical cities. Therefore, we see that firstfruits have nothing to do with the tithe.

Your money can't be cursed or blessed. There is no more curse. The curse was for the Nation of Israel, not the individuals. Galatians 3:13 “Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us…”

Yes, God considers the tithe Holy. But read God's definition for His Holy tithe in Leviticus 27:30. A tenth of the CROPS is Holy unto the Lord. NOT money. NOT from income.

I have NEVER tithed in my life and I have been blessed beyond my dreams. I paid CASH for a brand new house a few years ago. I paid CASH for a brand luxury SUV two years ago. I have NO debts but have money in the bank. I don't follow Old Testament laws that were nailed to the cross.

Malachi 3:7 (KJV) “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ORDINANCES, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?”

ORDINANCES NAILED TO THE CROSS:
Colossians 2:14 (KJV) “Blotting out the handwriting of ORDINANCES that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;”

I am blessed because I have faith and follow the New Testament teachings. The New Testament teaches generous, sacrificial giving, from the heart, according to our means. For some, $1 might be a sacrifice, while for others, even giving 50% of their income might not induce a sacrifice. In the Old Testament, ONLY the farmers tithed, and it was a tenth. The New Testament teaches the principle of equal sacrifice instead of a tenth. Equal sacrifice is much harder to achieve, if not impossible, than giving a tenth.

Why do you think God gave us His Holy Spirit?

You have been drawn into the prosperity gospel which is a false gospel.