Whole Tithe and Offerings (1)
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March 12, 2017 |
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 Senior Pastor Dr. Jaerock Lee
"'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test 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 a blessing until it overflows'"(Malachi 3:10).
Keeping the Sabbath, that is keeping Sunday a holy day, and giving the tithe are crucial in our Christian lives. Let's delve into giving the whole tithe continuing from keeping the Lord's Day holy.
1. The Meaning and Origin of the Tithe
The "tithe" refers to giving one tenth of one's income to God. The statute on tithes was officially established and the sons of Israel began to give it to God after the Exodus from Egypt. Of course, as written in Genesis 14:20, Abraham gave the tithe. It means he had already realized that he had to give tithe even before it was established as official statute.
As written in Malachi 3:10, "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house", God made the people spend the tithe that was given for accomplishing the works of God. Here, the storehouse is the storehouse in the Temple of God. 'There may be food in My house' has the physical meaning that there should be physical food, but also it has spiritual meaning. Namely, God is telling us to let there be food of life, the spiritual food to give to many souls. It means there should be no shortage in the Temple of God so that the people might revere God and souls could be saved.
After the Exodus, God set apart the tribe of Levi from among the twelve tribes of Israel to be His. The sons of Levi were to do only the works that were in service to God. So, after sons of Israel went into the Canaan land, the other tribes received their inheritance of land, but the Levites did not. Instead of the land, they were to receive the tithe and other offerings given to God by the people (Deuteronomy 18:1-2).
Today, for the pastors and Levites working in the church, God Himself is their inheritance. The salaries for the pastors and Levites are given from the offerings the church members give to God. We are to spend the tithe and offerings only for the works of God, namely things that are directly related with saving souls.
2. The Reasons to Give Tithes
1) Giving Tithe Is the Proof That We Believe in God
A farmer worked hard and had a great harvest, but the farmer couldn't have gotten the harvest by his efforts alone. It is because the seed is made by God, and God is also the one who gives the soil, water, sunshine, wind, and rain for the seed to sprout and bear fruit. It is also God who has given us health and the wisdom to do the work.
Of course, today, there are many ways to earn money. But this principle applies to everything. In some way all industry has its base in nature. Everything in nature is made by God. After all, life itself and all things in this world came from God the Creator, and everything belongs to God. It's just that God lets us use and enjoy what is His to the extent that we work and toil for it.
To give the tithe is to acknowledge the sovereignty of God over all material things. God has given His children so many things, but He requested only that the tithe be given to Him. Suppose a person does not even give just the tithe after receiving all those things.
Although God said it in the Bible, it shows that the person does not believe that God will pour into his lap a good measure pressed down, shaken together, and running over when he gives the whole tithe. It means that he does not believe the Bible and he does not have faith. If he doesn't believe God, he has nothing to do with salvation.
Is there anyone among you who thinks, "I surely believe in God, so why is it said that to give tithe is to believe in God?" God is sprit, and how can we who have physical bodies believe in God? God proved and showed His love by sending His precious Son Jesus, and Jesus proved His love by laying down His life for ours. It's the same with us. One of the most important ways to show our hearts is in material things.
Of course, other than material things, we can express our hearts through worship, prayers, praising, faithfulness, and charitable works. Also, each person's value is different. But material things to a great extent are comparable to life itself for most people. Jesus also said in Matthew 6:21, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." Therefore, if we truly believe in God, we will give the tithe, which is the minimum proof of our faith.
Of course, the act of giving the tithe alone will not decide whether or not salvation will be received. Some people give tithes with two-faced hypocrisy because of the eyes of other people. Or, some people can give tithes with faith, but they don't do it because they don't know the truth clearly. Some say we give tithes just to receive blessings. Some even teach that you will receive blessings by giving tithes, but you don't really have to do it. What we have to remember is that no matter how much we work for God, if we don't give tithes, we cannot be saved. But new believers who didn't give their tithe because they didn't know can receive shameful salvation if they have the heart to give the whole tithe if they realize the truth.
2) We Can Receive Blessings as God Promised
God tells us to give Him tithes to give abundant blessings to His children.
Malachi 3:10 reads, "'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test 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 a blessing until it overflows.'"
He wants even those who have no faith, but doubt what He says, to test Him so that they can believe and obey. It's the love of God the Father who wants to save them and bless them even through such extreme measures. Parents always want to give the good things to their children. Likewise God also wants to give only good things to His children.
But even though He wants to give to us as much as possible, He cannot just give because there is justice in God's kingdom. If God gives blessings to His children without any proper reason, the enemy devil, Satan will object to it. Therefore, there must be a reason by which He can give us blessings. It's a law of nature that fruit will be borne only after we sow the seed and the seed sprouts. It's the same in the spiritual realm (Galatians 6:7).
To have the basis for God to give blessings, He commanded His children to give Him the minimum, and that minimum is the tithe. We can be surely recognized as God's children only when we give the whole tithe. Then, we can receive the blessings that God gives to His children.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I pray in the name of the Lord that you will rely on this God who keeps His promises and who is full of love so that you will receive overflowing blessings.
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