Tithing - is is obligatory for Christians?

[John81]

100% of the money we make belongs to God' date=' to not give back to God would be steeling. I'm not gonna steel from God. r/u? I think some have already answered that.[/quote']

I don't think anyone has said they don't or don't want to give to God so that's not really an issue.

[RayJr]

<< Matthew 23 >>
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment

[JerryNumbers]

100% of the money we make belongs to God' date=' to not give back to God would be steeling. I'm not gonna steel from God. r/u? I think some have already answered that.[/quote']

Your coming to the wrong conclusion.

Many of those who tithe rob God of money, they only give their 10 % and really think they have done something wonderful.

And if you would reread some of my post you would see, that for many, tithing limits what they give to God.

But that said.

The millionaire who gives 10 %, has not given near as much as the old lady who is on a very small limited income who gives 10 %.

No, the old lady has made a great sacrifice for her Lord, even if she did not give 10%, the millionaire has not sacrificed one thing for the Lord.

What have you sacrificed for the Lord thy God?

[bob123]

<< Matthew 23 >>
23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment

[Standing Firm In Christ]

Many pastors teach and preach tithing for all the members of their congregation when, if they would do a careful and prayerful study of tithing, they would find they are in grievous error.

In the OT, the only tithing that was done prior to the Levitical laws was that of Abram and of Jacob.

Abram is not said to have tithed of his own belongings, but of the spoils of war. Nowhere is Abram said to have tithed more than this one time

Jacob gave a tenth of all his possessions, we are told; but that was only after his requirements were met by Jehovah God. And that took 21 years. Again we are only told of Jacob tithing just that one time... never again.

Under the Levitical law, the only ones required to tithe were farmers and herdsmen. They tithed of their flocks and grain. No other tradesmen was required to tithe.

The poor were not required to tithe.

Tithing was not the same as firstfruits. Nehemiah 12 clearly shows that they were two different things.

Firstfruits were the first of the flock or herd, and a basket of the first of the grains of the field.

Tithing of the flocks was not the first of ten, but the tenth of ten, i.e., 'the tenth cattle that passeth under the rod shall be set apart for the Lord.' The first is not the tenth. Nine would pass under the rod and then the next one was the tithe. Depending on how many cattle were passed under the rod, the tithe consisted of every tenth one. Not the first of the ten, but the last.

Careful study of the NT, one will see Jesus mentioned the Pharisees tithing of the mint, rue, cummin, anise, and dill. Yet He did not mention that they tithed money at all. Why not?

Because they did not tithe with money! It was with the livestock and grain that the OT tithes were paid.

[Jerry]

You need to provide the word you feel implies the present tense as to the context "tithing" then or now..... (it isn't in this passage). The passage doesn't indicate the writer was speaking about tithing or what was taking place in the present tense in regards to the tithe as being continued under the New Covenant.

Hebrews 7:4-10 Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils. And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham: But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better. And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him.

An "eth" ending on verbs makes it present tense. Paul didn't say it in past tense - but now 30+ years after the start of the New Covenant, he still refers to it as going on. The first receiveth is referring to Jesus Christ/God - and He is still receiving them in Paul's time.

[John81]

(Short Excerpt from Midnight's Cry)



Often, good pastors misuse the Old Testament tithing, teaching and preaching that the tithe, or that a mandatory 10 percent giving of one?s income, is ?New Testament.? Normally, to teach the tithe is simple error. Still, error is error, no matter how innocently it is cloaked.

For some, certain traditions that have nothing to do with the faith of the Gospel are hard to overcome, which often happens to be the case with the tithe. Sustaining the Tithe Doctrine is the fact that many Christians have reported a blessing when tithing. And rightly so, since the Lord blesses all who participate in any form of giving, especially when the believer adds faithfulness to their tithe. Despite that reality, personal experience is not a biblical validation for the 10 percent tithe as a commandment to the Church.

In searching out the words ?tithe,? ?tithes,? and ?tithing,? which altogether appear seven times in the New Testament, we quickly learn that no such command exists for the Church. In addition to this fact, the inspired writers of New Testament were well aware of God?s will. They didn?t simply forget to tell us that the Church is to tithe or practice tithing.

Moreover, it is wise to discern that when the tithe is preached, it can only be preached effectively from the Old Testament, not the New. Another factual point is that there is no record of the early Church ever collecting or receiving tithes.27 This in itself ought to be enough to disprove tithing for today?s Church, seeing that they, the early Church, never recorded the practice of tithing.

In Hebrews 7:18, Paul penned a pivotal verse in understanding the tithe. He wrote, ?For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment.? Odd enough to ?the tithe,? when it comes to commandments of any kind in Hebrews 7, the strict exegesis is the Tithe Commandment (Heb. 7:5). Indeed, Paul references no other commandment within that chapter, or many surrounding chapters. As a result, the ?disannulling of the commandment? is none other than a setting aside of Levi?s Tithe Commandment for the Christian.

Why was there a disannulling of the Tithe Commandment? Paul?s answer in the very next verse was that the law made nothing perfect, but a hope in Christ did (Heb. 7:19). Interestingly enough, this shows that Paul considered the tithe as part of the Law of God.

In Hebrews 7:16, Paul tagged Levi?s Tithe Commandment as carnal, telling us that Christ wasn?t made after a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. Forthrightly, emanating from another priesthood, is why Paul rebuffed Levi?s Tithe Commandment as carnal for Christians. And this why Paul also cited the necessity of changing the law (Heb. 7:12) in his disannulling of the Tithe Commandment for Christians (Heb. 7:18). Of course, because of the Old Covenant?s ties to Israel in the future, the tiniest part of the law will not pass for Israel until all things are fulfilled (Matt. 5:17-18). Nevertheless, again, there is a disannulling of Levi?s tithe Commandment for the Church.

Rest of article:
http://www.midnightministries.com/tithing.htm

[Jerry]

And rightly so' date=' since the Lord blesses all who participate in any form of giving, especially when the believer adds faithfulness to their tithe.[/quote']

Is God going to bless giving with the wrong motivation? I don't believe so - if tithing is not for today, and I tithe because I believe the Lord wants me to do so, why should He bless my misunderstanding of the Bible or my wrong motivation?



No one is saying that our experience in itself proves the practice - however, God DOES say to test Him in this matter. Those who HAVE tested Him by tithing have found Him faithful. Why? He is not obligated to fulfill promises that are not for us - yet He does.

[pneu-engine]

A hearty Jerry.

Personally, I think it all comes down how much we want to be obedient to the LORD from the heart. I hear people all the time discounting the necessity for tithes and offerings, but there is something I HAVE NEVER SEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ...and that is a child of God who loves Him with all of his/her heart refusing to yield his tithes and offerings to the LORD after he/she has first yielded his/her heart according to Romans 12:1,2.

Now this to all of those who think that I am trying to make a doctrine out of my own observations:::::::::: No, indeed. I'm Just telling what I see.

[John81]

God's blessings fall upon the righteous and unrighteous. God told the Jews to test Him with regards to the tithe, not Christians.

There is nothing in Scripture that indicates the tithe is a commandment for the New Testament Christian. We tithed for years believing what we had heard about tithing. When I finally actually did a search of Scripture with regards to this topic I found nowhere is the New Testament Christian commanded to tithe. Rather, we are to give cheerfully as the Lord prospers us. The closer our walk with the Lord, the more we submit ourselves to His will rather than our own, the greater our giving will become. Following the Lord with a hearts desire to live for and serve the Lord how could one not give abundantly and cheerfully?

Our giving last year was about 50% greater than if we had been tithing.

[Jerry]

Our giving last year was about 50% greater than if we had been tithing.

That doesn't make any sense - even those who are for tithing believe tithing comes first - but none of us teach that is all we should give. It is the starting place - but God and His portion is the most important place to start.

[Standing Firm In Christ]

Christians, if you are going to tithe, then tithe as the Bible prescribed... with animals and food. Tithing was never money.
Pastors, if you are going to preach and demand tithing, do it as the Bible prescribed. Tell the poor they are not required to tithe. Tell the farmers that they are the only ones required to tithe. They must give 10% of their grain and livestock to the workers of the Church, who in turn are to give you 10% of their 10%. Tell those workers of the Church that they are not to have jobs other than the work at the Church and that they are not to own any land whatsoever. They are to live on the Church property. Their portion of the tithes must be shared with the orphans, widows, and poor who also live on the Church property.

[Jerry]

Christians' date=' if you are going to tithe, then tithe as the Bible prescribed... with animals and food. [b']Tithing was never money.

Sorry, your opinion just does not fit the Bible. There are several places where they were able to exchange the produce or animals for their monetary value (plus some more in certain cases) - that involves money.

Leviticus 27:30-31 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD. And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof.

Israel's tithes were mostly agricultural - but the Bible does not command or teach ONLY vegetable or animal tithes.

Abraham and Jacob gave tithes of all - that would have included their money, riches, and possessions.

Genesis 14:20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

Genesis 28:22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.

Luke 18:12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. (Yes, I know this is a bad example, in the sense that this publican was justifying himself - but the principle was that the religious folks tithed of all that they had.)

2 Chronicles 31:5-6 And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the children of Israel brought in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things brought they in abundantly. And concerning the children of Israel and Judah, that dwelt in the cities of Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated unto the LORD their God, and laid them by heaps.

[Standing Firm In Christ]

When tithes were to much to carry, they were allowed to sell the tithe for money. But, Scripture clearly states that that money was to be used to buy tithes when one arrived at the place God set forth. The money was not tithe.

Genesis 14, the tithe Abram gave was of the spoils of war. He did not tithe his own possessions. Nowhere is Abram said to tithe a second time in the Word of God. To say he did, is to add to the Word of God.

Jacob gave a tenth of all he owned, only after God brought him back to his land 21 years after he vowed to give that ten percent. He is not said to have continued giving ten percent after that one time. Nor did he (or God, for that matter) call that ten percent a tithe.

As to the man saying he gave tithes of all, we do not know what he meant as all. What did he possess? Do you have a list? If he was bragging on his keeping the law, then his tithing would have been under the law. The tithing was not money under the law.

The tithe of all things is explained in the verse you have posted, yet you do not see it. The tithe of all was of the increase of the field. It was not money.

[Jerry]

SOunds to me like tithe of all means just that - of course, that contradicts your opinion so you won't see it.