I have nothing in regards to witty title lines, so you get the day of the week. Yeah, original, I know. I guess the reason is that my mind is on something else. One of the most unfun things to hear about on Sunday morning is about money and tithe. It will illicit groans and uncomfortable shifting in the audience. Some suggestions were made on Stuff Christians Like that I give you the chance to read now. They are good and I have suggested to my pastor that they might be useful.
Now, to get a bit more serious. I was actually talking to the pastor yesterday before the service. After my use of this blog topic to make a humorous suggestion, he turned it toward a more serious tilt. He said how people of my generation and the one after mine don't give tithing the place that it deserves. Then he told of a member at our church that had shared how their parents every week would sit in front of their children at the breakfast table and write out their tithe check. This instilled an importance to the act of giving and the place that giving back to God was supposed to be. I agreed how that would be a powerful witness to a child. I hope to have that sort of impact on my children as they see us be faithful to God.
I do admit that before a couple years ago, I was no where near a faithful tither. It wasn't something that I thought was necessary. It WAS an afterthought. However, as I have grown over the past couple years and have deepened my understanding of what tithing really means, I love giving. My wife and I have decided that it is more important to give that and trust God for the rest. It has led to us having more than enough for all our bills and all our desires,but also able to give more than we have before.
Back to what tithing is really about. Its about your heart, where you are placing your trust. This is why Jesus talked about money so much because he understood that. Trusting God with your money is tough, at least at first. I love what Andy Stanley said about it. He said how he knows its scary and you are worried, but just decide that a percentage will automatically be given in tithe, even if its not 10%. Just give God the option to prove how faithful He is. I love that idea of challenging God and this is the area that He offers us to challenge Him, Malachi 3:10.
The other thing that is in my heart right now is about the book that I am reading, John Eldridge's Desire. It was technically written before Wild at Heart, but was released after the success of that book due to it being overshadowed. I am finding it great. There is one section that I am thinking about right now, since I haven't finished it yet. He speaks of our desire to have a deep relationship with others, something beyond the normal casualities. I hunger for that. I have recently started going to the men's bible study at my church. My problem has been the trouble with ever having that real connection beyond saying "hello". I guess as men, we feel like we must protect ourselves in some manner. However, it makes it hard for new people to get in and feel like they are part of the group. I realize that by allowing myself to remain an outsider, I am not helping, but rather I have to allow myself to be the vulnerable one and offer the connection that I seek to others. Wow, that sounded almost smart. Oh well, just was connected to what the author was talking about.
I think that I went on for a little longer than I had planned, but hopefully it was good. Laters!
2 comments:
Friend, May I offer an alternative interpretation of Malachi for your study.
From: Tithing is not a Christian Doctrine
www.shouldthechurchteachtithing.com
Russell Earl Kelly, PHD
Malachi 3 is the Most Abused Tithing Text in the Bible. The “whole” tithe never was supposed to go to the Temple!
A. Malachi is Old Covenant and is never quoted in the New Covenant to validate tithing (Lev. 27:34; Neh. 10:28-29; Mal. 3:7; 4:4).
B. In Malachi 3:10-11 tithes are still only food 1000 years after Leviticus 27:30-34 and Numbers 18:21-28.
C. Malachi’s audience had willingly reaffirmed the Old Covenant (Neh.10:28-29). The blessings and curses of tithing are identical to and inseparable from those of the entire Mosaic Law. The rain in Deuteronomy 28:12, 23-24 and Leviticus 26:1-4 is only obtained by obedience to all 613 commandments. Galatians 3:10 (quoting Deu 27:26) “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continues not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” Trying to earn God’s blessings through tithing only brings curses for failure to keep all of the law. See also Galatians 3:19.
D. Beginning in 1:6 “you” in Malachi always refers to the dishonest priests and not the people (also 2:1-10; 2:13 to 3:1-5): “Even this whole nation of you --priests” (3:9). In 1:13-14 the priests had stolen tithed animals vowed to God. In Nehemiah 13:5-10 priests had stolen the Levites’ portion of the tithe. God’s curses on the priests are ignored by most tithe-teachers (1:14; 2:2 and 3:2-4).
E. Point #12 of the essay. The Levitical cities must be included in a correct interpretation of Malachi 3:10. Most tithe-recipients lived outside of Jerusalem.
F. The 24 courses of Levites and priests must be included in a correct interpretation of Malachi 3. Normally only 2% of the total Levite and priest work force served at the temple one week at a time. Subtract wives, males under the age of 30 and daughters. Therefore 2% did not require all of the tithe. See 1 Chron 23-26; 28:13, 21; 2 Chron. 8:14; 23:8; 31:2, 15-19; 35:4, 5, 10; Ezra 6:18; Neh. 11:19, 30; 12:24; 13:9, 10; Luke 1:5.
G. Nehemiah 10:37-39 is the key to understanding Malachi 3:10, The people were commanded to bring their tithes, not to the temple, but to the nearby Levitical cities. Verse 38 says that the priests were with the Levites in the Levitical cities when they received the tithes.
H. According to Nehemiah 13:5, 9 the “storehouse” in the Temple was only several rooms. The real “storehouses” were in the Levitical cites per Nehemiah 10:37b-38. Only the Levites and priests normally brought tithes to the Temple (10:38). Two rooms in the Temple were far too small to contain the tithe from the entire nation and 98% of the Levites and priests lived too far away to eat from them.
Therefore, Malachi 3:10’s “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse” only makes contextual sense if it is only commanding dishonest priests to replace the tithes they had removed from it or had failed to bring to it.
While the 3:10 of the Law in Malachi is so important to tithe-teachers they ignore the 3:10 of the Gospel in Galatians and 2nd Corinthians. Perhaps those wanting to enforce the 3:10 Law of Malachi should also enforce the 3:10 Law of Numbers. They share the same context.
Christian giving is freewill, sacrificial, generous, joyful, regular and motivated by love. That is enough to provide the needs of the Church.
I am not really talking about tithing but about your heart. And in this instance, I think that the challenge that God issues is worth exploring. My point is that its not about money, but what you put your trust in. And if giving an instance where God wants to prove Himself, than I have to think that its relevant.
While I have no hope in matching you in scriptural references and understanding the culture, as you seem to have studied, I do believe that my generation has not taken it seriously. Christian giving should be done freely and with a heart full of joy, but unfortunately it hasn't. I only offer the suggestion that allowing God to prove Himself, and this scripture reference says just that, would be a good place to start.
Based on your page, I would guess that you have taken this issue as a key one in reference to the modern church. As I said beforehand and say again, its not about money, God doesn't need our money, He desires our hearts. That is my point. That you missed that is a shame, because its a good point.
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