I Learned My Lesson - Tithe, Tithe, Tithe

¹⁰ Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,
That there may be food in My house,
And try Me now in this,”
Says the LORD of hosts,

“ If I will not open for you the windows of heaven
And pour out for you such blessing
That there will not be room enough to receive it.
¹¹ “ And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes,
So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground,
Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,”
Says the LORD of host
(Malachi 3:10-11)

This is one of the classic scriptures on tithing - one that is quoted virtually everytime when the concept of tithing is taught.

I have tithed since I became a Christian, a real Christian - one who finally decided to dedicate his life to Christ - back in 1998. At first I didn't know if it was a tithe on the gross or net. There can be fierce debate on this subject, and I used to tithe on the gross (I was told - "do you want God to bless you gross or net?"), but now am at peace to tithe on the net.

In this recession, things for my family have gotten tighter and our budget is pretty challenging, but I also realized that my family had piled on too much debt. In an effort to get it under control, I started reading Dave Ramsey (DR) and he's changed my perspectives about debt and budgeting, so we began to get our act together and thankfully did it before our debts piled too high.

What bugged me though was that I was tithing, but it was part of my monthly credit card bill, so we weren't actually paying it off until a month or two later. It seemed like a joke that I was tithing by adding to my debt rather than tithing out of my savings. The more responsible thing seemed to stop the tithe in order address our debt.

Now, I don't know how I came to rationalize and reason this out. DR even specifically advises that we should tithe 10% of our net paycheck. I suppose a lot of it has to do with the pressures and responsibilities of being a husband and a father. I'm the sole breadwinner and there is a huge responsibility in that. It was a hard, hard decision, however. My wife objected to this from the start, but decided to follow my lead and I charged ahead.

I can't tell you how restless my soul felt - I wouldn't call it guilt because it wasn't like that - it was just a gnawing in my spirit (or a wrestling with the Holy Spirit inside me). I had many conversations with God on my commute to work where I was trying to reason with Him about my choice and decision, but I never came to any kind of definitive peace or conclusion that what I was doing in foregoing the tithe was right.

My paycheck would come in and I would sit there, wanting to tithe, but yet I stuck to my "plan" of trying to pay down my debt.

But as much as I wanted to reserve the money that was to be tithed and pay off debt, more bills would flood in. DR calls them "visits from Murphy". And to be honest, Murphy did visit us before, but not that frequently.

Both of our cars required service - $600 - and the service performed was done, but at the same time I did not receive as good a quality of service as I have experienced in the past. Medical bills came in as I required an ultrasound and MRI which turned out, was my responsibility as it was under my deductible - another $500. Then, as I was backing out at Walmart, a woman decided to do the same on the other end of the aisle at the last minute and we have a fender bender. It was a rental and she has insurance so her rental car company wanted to pin the blame on me. WHAT WAS GOING ON HERE!

Then, I realized. And as I was commiserating under the cumulative stress of this with my wife, I asked her, "Is it because we haven't tithed?" She replied with a non-committal, "hmm...maybe," but had a knowing look in her eye. We agreed to pray about it together using our usual technique for important decisions (more on that at a later time). But, I sat at the dinner table by myself and really had a moment with God. In my soul, I knew that because I stepped outside of God's promises, I had opened myself up to the world's risks. By not tithing and being obedient, I had declared that I wanted to do for myself and by myself - so I limited God's ability to protect in my life. Willfully, I was disobeying part of what God told us to do.

I went online and tithed again a few moments later. The release of that moment is hard to describe. There was such a lifting on my soul and I felt such a deep sense of gladness and joy. Again, it wasn't out of guilt, but it was a sense that I was aligned again with the Lord. Something I had taken from granted.

God's promise in Malachi is not necessarily about blessings where we see increases in our salary left and right as we tithe. It is also about holding back the devourer from eating our fruits. By preventing the regular occurrences of life from coming in and nipping at our savings through even small random, unplanned expenses, he is allowing us to stabilize our lives, save and grow our wealth over time.

As a Pentacostal, I also believe in the works of the Spirit...That there is a tug of war in how we engage our Spirit. Some acts weaken the self and hence Satan's hold on our lives, because when you think about it, sins come from a desire to self gratify (disobedience to God, idolatry, coveting, envy, greed, murder, stealing, fornication). Fasting for instance was cited as something which weakens the demons which are attacking a certain problem (whatever you're fasting for) and thereby enhances prayer. While selfish acts where we seek to simply satiate our desires will take us outside of God's covering if we sin.

In Matt 6:21, Jesus said, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Tithing is the ultimate heart check for a Christian. Can we trust that God will provide by giving up 10% even though we know that we could use that for something that seems necessary? The sacrifice of that for us is purposeful for God because He knows that our Spirits need to be divorced from the reliance on money.

After my experiment in not tithing, I see clearly how much the Lord has done for me via the tithe. Unbeknownst to me, so much over the past 13 years has been held back from entering my life from the Lord's blessing. I got a glimpse of just how that works, and I don't ever want to open myself up to the devourer again.

By the way...am I out of debt yet? As a Dave Ramsey listener would say..."everything except the house." And I know tithing is going to help keep it that way.

Tithing - An Act of Faith

"He (Abraham) did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform." (Romans 4:20-21)

Why do we waver in faith? Why do we fail to uphold all of our beliefs at all times no matter the circumstance?

As I was reading this passage today, I tried to measure myself up against Abraham - who wasn't necessarily without his faults. However, Abraham's faith to leave his home in pursuit of God serves as the ultimate testament of faith.

I believe the perceived security of the place that we are at this moment is a big reason why we don't follow God fully or completely. When we are told to do a certain action or to leave our current comfortable situation and go elsewhere, it is a difficult thing for us to do. Currently, I'm in arrears on my tithes and I can certainly think of so many ways I can apply the funds to projects or charges that are coming up for our family.

But is that really trust? Is it really trust to not do the things that God has given us to do in faith? Malachi 3:10 is a promise from God that we will be rewarded when we bring our tithes to the storehouse. It is a promise that if we trust Him, He will bring even more into our lives.

What can God do with a person that doesn't trust Him? If God were to ask us to do this or that thing, and we never do it because we don't want to leave our comfort zones...what would we accomplish for God? Nothing really.

It isn't about works, but it really is about faith. I'm not trying to justify myself through the tithe - but I'm evidencing the level of my faith.

Matthew 6:21 says, "Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

If I can't give from my bank account in faith, then my heart is only for myself and not for God. I know it and feel the truth of that. And I don't want to be a man who is no longer able to follow God because I'm worried in the flesh about my security. Then I will not only be of no use to God, I would never be able to evidence my faith to my wife and children. And that would be the greatest tragedy of all. I would be failing in my primary dream to pass along my relationship with the Lord to my family.

The unique thing about my feeling today - and something that surprises me even at this moment - is that I don't feel any sense of guilt...and I think that is a very good thing. God doesn't lay guilt trips because He knows that following His ways is for my best interest...He doesn't need me to do anything, but He gives us the opportunity to partner with Him for the good of our souls. I know that in today's reading and meditation, I am really hearing from Him and it isn't from some misguided desire to prove something, or justify myself by works.

Lord Jesus, I'm really blessed by our time today. I needed a reminder about the meaning of the tithe and meaning of faith. I know that to trust in my bank account or my paycheck is a giant folly, but when we live in the flesh everyday, we can fear the future and not entrust ourselves fully to You. The tithe is really the ultimate symbol of our faith in You. You don't need our funds, but You want our hearts to be free from the slavery to money and things. In return, we can be responsible with any further blessings we may be given. I want to be more and more like You, not more and more like the world. Thank You for spending time with me today to remind me of that. In Your loving and holy name, AMEN.

Getting Beyond the Tithing Rules

8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, In what way have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation. 10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it." (Mal 3:8-10 NKJV)

Tithing is a pretty touchy subject for Christians (these days, what isn't touchy when discussing Christianity?), mainly because it is one that is so difficult for the believer to conform with.

It's easy for me to look around at what I have, or look online at my bank account and think of everything that I have as "mine". Because I have applied myself to build these things up and purchase what I have, I don't want to do anything that will lessen what's "mine".

But, is that attitude really Biblical?

In scripture, we find:

"The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine, says the Lord of hosts" (Hag 2:8)

"The earth is the Lord's, and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein." (Ps. 24:1)

The concept of personal ownership is really temporary and an illusion. God owns everything, and although we work, earn, and are allowed to steward personal property (hence "thou shalt not steal"), He is ultimately the one who provides for us. In addition, when we become Christians, we are laying down our whole lives before His throne to do with as He pleases. That includes all of our "possessions".

So if we don't truly own anything, what does that make the tithe? On the surface, it is essentially giving back 10% of God's money to Him. For myself, the tithe is a constant reminder of the Lordship of God, and a recognition that everything is truly His. Malachi speaks of blessings because of the tithe, and preachers always like to focus on that aspect, but I really don't think that should matter one iota. Everything we receive is from the Lord anyway, so we should focus on the condition of our souls and the level of our faith.

When our souls balk at tithing, I think it's useful to ask ourselves, "If I am willing to entrust my eternity to the Lord in faith that He will save me, why in the world would I care about giving back 10% of what He's given me?" We become so entrapped by our possessions that we have a tough time giving cheerfully to the Lord. ("The Lord loves a cheerful giver" 2 Cor 9:7)

There does seem to be a lot of confusion out there because the New Testament doesn't specifically mention the tithe, and there are those who believe that such commands are no longer scriptural because it wasn't specifically repeated by Jesus. However, the Lord did say:

"Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." (Mt 5:17)

So in this case, I don't think it's useful on either side of the tithing argument to look at hard and fast rules of application. If a person's heart is unable to give cheerfully, I don't believe the Lord will honor the gift. However, if the tithe is given out of spirit of submission and obedience, then it is a gift that the Lord will accept and bless (see Cain and Abel). The importance above all is our heart's condition when we give the tithe, not the want/fear of a blessing or curse, and not for the guilt that we may feel if we don't do it.

"Have I truly laid my life down to the Lord, or am I trying to keep something for myself?" With that question reiterated, the deeper question becomes, "Am I still in bondage to the world?" The answer for the rich young ruler in Luke 18 was, "Yes, I cannot let go of my great wealth to follow Jesus." And again, that seems to be the real test of the tithe -- Knowing that we have submitted everything to God, observing that the tithe was in place throughout the Old Testament, recognizing that there is still a great work to be performed here through the church which naturally should be funded, can we not give back 10% of what God has given to us?

For myself, my desire is to say, "Yes Lord! I will give whatever You ask!" But my flesh recoils at the thought of all that I won't be able to purchase without that money. So I know that there will be struggles with this always, but it all comes down to submission to Christ and knowing that my life is His. Once I gain some perspective, then serving Him through giving becomes a joy once more.

Lord Jesus, help me to check my heart constantly and root out the selfish desires which so easily threatens to overwhelm a state of obedience and submission to You. I know that the tithe is key to bringing ourselves into alignment with You and keeps us from becoming ensnared with the lust for worldly gain. Thank You for Your wisdom in knowing our wicked hearts so well that You have given us these guidelines to follow. In Your amazing name, AMEN.