Is Tithing even necessary?

Again, the "tithe" was to support the Levites. The Priesthood of Aaron collected the tithes to support the Levites (Numbers 18:28). And Levites weren't driving around in their personal cars or private jets let alone living it up wealthily.
But anybody else money isn't mine.

Boomboomchucka said:

Personally, I believe poverty is difficult to come by in the U.S. today. Poverty is from poor decision making, indulgences, abuses, and lack of financial management. If anybody has food and shelter, they should learn to be content. The government very much takes care of those things today.

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I can't believe you've gotten very involved with people in need if you think that.

No, it's not always, not even usually, "poor decision making, indulgences, abuses, and lack of financial management."

I'm only peripherally involved myself, but enough so that I recognize all too often, "There but for the grace of God go I."

Strong in Him said:

Me neither.
I see you're in the NW by the way; me too.

A tithe is 10%. If Christians have decided that is what they want to give, they should.
But tithing, in the OT, was always food. So for a church to say that their members should tithe Biblically and then talk about 10% of income to be given to the church, is incorrect.

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Not only was it always food, but God said explicitly that the tithe was not to be money.

“If the distance is too great for you… then exchange your tithe for silver, and take the silver with you… Use the silver to buy whatever you like: cattle, sheep, wine… Then you and your household shall eat there in the presence of the LORD.” Deuteronomy 14

RDKirk said:

I can't believe you've gotten very involved with people in need if you think that.

No, it's not always, not even usually, "poor decision making, indulgences, abuses, and lack of financial management."

I'm only peripherally involved myself, but enough so that I recognize all too often, "There but for the grace of God go I."

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Involved, I've served food to the homeless and observed come around benefit day most are not seen again for a week or two until their money runs out - in the meanwhile they end up in all sorts of trouble. Let me ask you something, if for example, everybody receives enough for food weekly or monthly and some run out before the end of the week or month do you believe that some live in poverty? If I for example wanted to kill most, I'd give them unlimited money, so they'd drink themselves to death or overdose. Am I talking about everybody? No!
Americans don't know the difference in general anymore between necessity and luxury let alone desires and wants.
"There but for the grace of God go I." And I haven't for example any understanding on how such grace equates to supplying American toys to remote African children, that is, other than ushering in Capitalism from the land of excess. Perhaps the Prosperity preachers use the secular holiday Christmas to open the door for opportunist?
Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-Capitalism, but one thing hasn't anything to do w/ another.

Boomboomchucka said:

Involved, I've served food to the homeless and observed come around benefit day most are not seen again for a week or two until their money runs out - in the meanwhile they end up in all sorts of trouble. Let me ask you something, if for example, everybody receives enough for food weekly or monthly and some run out before the end of the week or month do you believe that some live in poverty? If I for example wanted to kill most, I'd give them unlimited money, so they'd drink themselves to death or overdose. Am I talking about everybody? No!
Americans don't know the difference in general anymore between necessity and luxury let alone desires and wants.
"There but for the grace of God go I." And I haven't for example any understanding on how such grace equates to supplying American toys to remote African children, that is, other than ushering in Capitalism from the land of excess. Perhaps the Prosperity preachers use the secular holiday Christmas to open the door for opportunist?
Don't get me wrong, I'm not anti-Capitalism, but one thing hasn't anything to do w/ another.

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And to add, I've observed and experienced enough to be involved today. Last time I involved myself was a year ago outside a Walmart where a woman was peddling a child for money. In the store I purchased bread and water (1 gallon) and on the way out approached the woman and asked would you like bread and water? She said, no, the jug is too big. The day was hot and I pointed to the child and said, "are you going to ask if your child is thirsty?" She waved me off and said do not worry about it. I had no problem directing her to Human Health Services, meanwhile, probably what was happening was a bunch of interns were parked nearby writing their papers for classes on how greedy Americans are. People don't know what poverty is and others lack any discernment whatsoever.
I've read that chocolate makes people feel good because it releases the feel-good drug called endorphins. I say a lot of things make people feel good, like giving, gambling, alcohol, drugs, taking unnecessary risks etc. What has any of this to do w/ Missions or Evangelism?

Boomboomchucka said:

And to add, I've observed and experienced enough to be involved today. Last time I involved myself was a year ago outside a Walmart where a woman was peddling a child for money. In the store I purchased bread and water (1 gallon) and on the way out approached the woman and asked would you like bread and water? She said, no, the jug is too big. The day was hot and I pointed to the child and said, "are you going to ask if your child is thirsty?" She waved me off and said do not worry about it. I had no problem directing her to Human Health Services, meanwhile, probably what was happening was a bunch of interns were parked nearby writing their papers for classes on how greedy Americans are. People don't know what poverty is and others lack any discernment whatsoever.
I've read that chocolate makes people feel good because it releases the feel-good drug called endorphins. I say a lot of things make people feel good, like giving, gambling, alcohol, drugs, taking unnecessary risks etc. What has any of this to do w/ Missions or Evangelism?

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When I say I've been involved "peripherally," I mean that I've been working with agencies although not being an employee of those agencies. In Illinois I worked with Salvation Army. Here in Texas I'm working with an agency that has close ties to my church, primarily imputing case data.

They work with people long-term, not just occasional hand-outs. A lot of their effort comes from the shuffle of getting people from one program to another. There is no single pipeline. It's a hodgepodge of programs one month, then next month it's a different hodgepodge of programs. There may be one a housing program that a family may qualify for, but it will take nine months for that to happen, and in the meantime they're traipsing from one shelter to another (and all of them are miserable). They never get to a point we can say, "You're taken care of for the next six months." It's like crossing a rushing river in winter, leaping from one ice flow to another.

You see mental deterioration set in over time, from hopefulness at the beginning to despair after a few months, and then to a dark hopelessness that is truly a mental breakdown.

And what starts it? It can be the simple loss of a job, being injured with lousy medical coverage, and in this economy not being able to find a job that will pay their rent. Then comes eviction, and after eviction the rules are set up that they can't get approved for another rental even if they have a job. So, they're working and still living out of their car or in a shelter.

RDKirk said:

Then you and your household shall eat there in the presence of the LORD

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In other words, keep a savings account for times of need

timothyu said:

In other words, keep a savings account for times of need

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The need of the Body of Christ that the Holy Spirit points out to those who are listening.

timothyu said:

In other words, keep a savings account for times of need

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How do you make the text say that?
Jews were to take their tithe - food - to the Temple to be blessed by God. Then they were to sit down and eat their own tithe, giving thanks to God for his goodness.

rebornfree said:

I'm in the UK and have not often heard sermons on tithing.

Not all churches in the UK have Government funding. However, as with all charities, tax payers can Gift Aid so the church gets a further 25% on the tithe of tax payers. If we don't tithe how can churches pay their bills, minister to the community and reach the lost?

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I think that was what the pastor was saying was that, we use services, so it's right to contribute but we aren't obliged to a percentage i.e. 10% of earnings.

timothyu said:

In other words, keep a savings account for times of need

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A great many people do not have disposable income that they can save--they live paycheck to paycheck. If that's not you, you are lucky!

RDKirk said:

I can't believe you've gotten very involved with people in need if you think that.

No, it's not always, not even usually, "poor decision making, indulgences, abuses, and lack of financial management."

I'm only peripherally involved myself, but enough so that I recognize all too often, "There but for the grace of God go I."

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Didn't you know? Children born into poverty are only in poverty because of their poor financial decisions. So as they grow up, without opportunities, it's still their fault.

It's like Jesus said when the disciples asked why the man who was blind since birth was blind, was it because of his sins or his parents' sins? And Jesus said, "It's because of poor ocular decisions which he made".

Oh, what's that? Jesus didn't say that at all? And yet, as His disciples, we're going around acting like He said things like that in order to lift the obligation of loving our neighbor off our shoulders so we don't have to do any of the hard work of carrying our cross? Because moral obligations don't apply to us, it only applies to "those people over there"?

Meowzltov said:

If that's not you, you are lucky!

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I agree. It takes a long time to realize what you want is not what you need. Yet the idea is to have something to fall back on when things go sideways. God taught that. Living beyond one's means has become a way of life, especially in America where credit is considered cash and the people are expected to play the game of perpetual indebtedness to the moneychangers. When people are scrambling to feed and shelter themselves, they are less likely to cause trouble for their masters. Saving need not just be money but being more practical when it comes to what you eat or drive or wear.