tithing

[endure4salvation]

I will admit that tithing was done by Abraham hundreds of years before the Law of Moses, but I also don't see the command to tithe anywhere in the NT.

I think that it is 1 Corinthians (not sure), but there is a verse that says (paraphrased):

Each one should give as he is lead...God loves a cheerful giver.

I don't know--we should give out of love, not because there is a command. But I have noticed that when my motives are wrong, I should do things right anyway and eventually my heart changes when God helps me.

[whatsitmean]

I posted this link in another thread recently. I think it gives a pretty accurate account of what the Bible does and does not say on this issue. The thing about Abraham is that he didn't earn his living by winning military campaigns. It is really not an example of the modern concept of tithing at all.

There does need to be a balance between supporting the ministries that support us spiritually and meeting the needs of the needy.

What Does the Bible Say About Tithing?

Here is another link that might be helpful.

WHY I DON'T TITHE

[Catsmeow]

i bought a sandwich and two bottles of water for a homeless bum. why? i suppose because i gave from my heart, not from a sense of obligation.

Amen and amen, LadyC!

Each one should give as he is lead...God loves a cheerful giver.

Endure: I couldn't say it better! So, so true!

[artsylady]

I agree you should give with your heart and not out of obligation. Just wondering why so many pastors are so dogmatic about it and if it's Biblical.

I do love my church and thoroughly enjoy supporting it too. (My pastor isn't dogmatic about 10 percent to the church first - more about giving to God what is God's and being a good steward) I don't handle the finances, but I'm pretty sure we do give what we are able. My husband and I have talked about redirecting some of the money that goes to the church to missions, where we personally feel it would be more desperately needed. We haven't decided yet, but I do of course, think the church needs money and we do like giving it to them.

[Catsmeow]

Artsy: I know where you're coming from on this but it just seems lately we've been kinda drifting away from our church.

It seems like so much money is spent on "stuff"....pot luck dinners and activities and junk.

The building is falling apart and needs repair but no one seems to care.

My husband has congestive heart failure....and a built-in "defibulator" in case he has a heart attack...and has to continually take Nitroglycerin - yet they keep giving him labor intensive projects.

They don't thank him for what he's already done...they just give him more work.

Same thing with me... I love volunteering...but the pastor's wife just kept putting demands on us and the more you do, the more they demand....

I just began to feel like a maid. This is especially hard because the bones in my spine are degenerating....the disks are almost gone and I'm "shrinking".

I've shrunk about 2 inches in the past 2 years.

I do volunteer and teach at Awanas on Sunday nights with the elementary girls. We study bible verses. I can sit down and do that.

If I were a pastor's wife, I'd praise and encourage anyone who offered to volunteer for any position...I'd also make small gifts of thanks and calls to show gratitude...

WHY? simply this: people need to know they're accepted and needed. They need to know they're valuable. My grandma taught me that years ago.

It's a normal human need.

We have garbage men who not only empty our trash but put the lid on it, and bring it up to the side of our house. They don't do that for ANYONE else.

When we see them, we bring out an ice-cold coke and cookies.

Last week, I baked them a tin of hot chocolate-chip cookies.

I also look them in the eye and tell them what a great job they do and how much we appreciate them.

You know, it's funny...people will go the extra mile if you show how much you care about them....

[artsylady]

My husband has congestive heart failure....and a built-in "defibulator" in case he has a heart attack...and has to continually take Nitroglycerin - yet they keep giving him labor intensive projects.

Cats.

You're not going to believe this, but my husband has heart problems too. Yet another point where we are similar. He had a heart attack and open heart surgery when he was 30. He takes lots of meds. I can't keep track anymore of what they are because they keep changing the meds on him.

[artsylady]

You know, it's funny...people will go the extra mile if you show how much you care about them....

So true.

I can't believe you're asked that much with so little appreciation. From a pastor's wife no less. Be assured God appreciates your work though.

[Catsmeow]

Bill had a triple bypass about 10 years ago and just had the defibulator put in about 3 months ago.

He's doing really good since they put it in. It's actually called an "ICD" which does both defibulating and pace-making.

His heart rate would go down to 17 to 20 beats a minute...and sometimes just stop altogether. They had to do something because he'd be sitting there and his heart would just ...stop.

No pain. Just no heart beat. So they put the device in and now he's at about 60 beats a minute.

[Guest dove2]

I will admit that tithing was done by Abraham hundreds of years before the Law of Moses, but I also don't see the command to tithe anywhere in the NT.

I think that it is 1 Corinthians (not sure), but there is a verse that says (paraphrased):

Each one should give as he is lead...God loves a cheerful giver.

I don't know--we should give out of love, not because there is a command.  But I have noticed that when my motives are wrong, I should do things right anyway and eventually my heart changes when God helps me.

Not arguing but take a look at what Abraham tithed. Abraham was a very rich man.

Abraham tithed out of the booty of war. If we are to tithe then we are to go to war and whatever booty we take is what we should give 10% of if we want to follow Abraham's example. Abraham did not give out of what he had. He did not give out of the riches God had already bestowed on him.

Did Abraham actually tithe since tithe means 10% or did he merely give 10%?

We are to cheerfully give today, what we can, out of what we have. There is no scripture for tithing in the New Testament.

The preachers that are teaching that tithing is for today better go look at Malachi for themselves. Actually, it was the priests that were keeping the good stuff for themselves and giving God the bad stuff. They were giving God the lame animals, the blind animals, etc.

The priests are the ones that caused the whole nation to sin. God was not talking to the nation as sinning. He was telling the priests to bring the tithes into the storehouse which they had not done. The nation could not bring tithes into the store house only the priests could so how could God be talking to the whole nation? He couldn't have. He was talking to the priests. While reading the book of Malachi we will see that God was talking to the priests throughout this book. The preachers that want to throw this book at us to keep us under the law should take a look at themselves.

The priests in Malachi were also leaving their wives of their youth. Nope all in all God was talking to the priests and was very upset with them for causing the whole nation to sin.

[Guest LadyC]

i think, although this is just a thought, that we can have a good rule of thumb to guide us in whether to give to the church, or to other ministries. or at least how MUCH of our contributions should go. bear with me, i'm just rattling from the top of my head.

churches are non profit organizations, and their only income source (that i know of) is the tithes. this could very well be why so many churches are dogmatic about the 10%. now take a look at your own church, and pastor. does the church recieve much in tithes? does it appear to be enough to cover the church's maintenance and the pastor's salary? if your pastor is living in a house too small for his family's reasonable comfort, or if the church recently got the electricity turned off, then it's pretty obvious that it needs more money.

if, (and i'll use an example based loosely on my days at WOF church in dallas when robert tilton pastored), your pastor lives in a 6 million dollar mansion and drives a new car each year, and the services are in a huge luxurious church, and televised to the world, then it's pretty obvious that there are other ministries where your money could be better used.

granted, those are two extremes, and the average church is somewhere in the middle. but you can still know the answer. the expense reports of every church are supposed to be public. all you have to do is ask to see it. i'm not positive, but i THINK this is a matter of law that regulates non-profit organizations. it may be rather uncomfortable to ask to see the books, but it really shouldn't be. the elders of the church probably won't think twice about showing it, because they know that they are to be good stewards also, and need a check and balance system to keep them in place.

if you are refused the right to see the books, you might consider looking for a new church home.