Supporters of tithing as a requirement for Christians love to point to Malachi 3:10 for proof of why we should tithe. The most common argument is that this is the only place in the Bible where God tells His people to test Him. I’ve already discussed tithing in the Bible, but let’s look specifically at this idea. There are three major problems with claiming that we should tithe because God told us to test Him in it:
- We are no longer under the blessings or the curses of the Law.
- The entire Law of Moses was worded as a test for the Israelites.
- Tithing alone was never enough to guarantee blessings from God.
No Longer Under the Law
Christians are under the New Covenant, and our righteousness comes from the blood of Christ – not our ability to keep all of the Law. To throw ourselves back under the Law – even just the law of tithing – requires us to completely turn away from the imputed righteousness we claim in Christ. If we’re going to say that we are either blessed or cursed based on our giving, we’re saying that Christ died for nothing. We are no longer under the curse of the Law because Jesus has taken that curse for us. And we are not blessed because we tithe – we are blessed because we have received eternal life through the blood of Jesus.
Taking Old Testament commands and saying that they still apply to Christians, along with the blessings and curses attached with those commands, is to completely ignore the necessity of Christ’s death. His death broke the hold of the Law over our lives. We are no longer judged according to our ability to keep the Law. We are judged according to Jesus’ ability to keep the Law and our acceptance of His sacrifice.
The Whole Law Was a Test
The Hebrew word for “prove” in Malachi 3:10 is the only place in the Bible where that particular word is used by God to tell people to “test” Him. But almost every aspect of the Law was worded as a test to the Israelites. God told the Israelites if they would keep all of His commandments, then He would bless them. That’s a test. He also told them that if they didn’t keep all of His commandments, then He would curse them. That’s a test. God is saying if you do (or don’t do this), then I promise I will do this.
To simply look for the word “test” in the whole Bible, only find it in Malachi 3:10, and then conclude that Christians should tithe because that’s the only thing God told us to test Him in is to ignore the context of the entire rest of the Law! It doesn’t matter if a particular word was used in Malachi 3:10 in a certain way and never used anywhere else in that way. God gave almost all of His Law to the Israelites in the form of a test and told them to do it. So Malachi 3:10 isn’t truly the only time God told His people to test His promises (either to bless or curse).
Tithing Alone Will Not Bring Blessings
The final problem with this approach to Malachi 3:10 is that it assumes all you have to do is tithe and God is required to bless you. This was never true for the Israelites, the people this command was written for. They were required to keep the whole Law if they wanted to receive God’s blessings. If they broke even one part of the Law, God told them He would curse them. This false interpretation of Malachi 3:10 as a promise of God’s blessings if you tithe completely ignores Biblical truth.
Was God promising to bless sinners and non-believers who only obey Him in regards to tithing? Was God promising to bless unrepentant Christians if they tithe? How can we look at this one verse as a simple “you do this one thing and I (God) will bless you abundantly”? How does that understanding mesh with the rest of Scripture? James made it clear that this is not the case in James 2:10, and Paul even quoted Deuteronomy 27:16 to show that you are cursed if you don’t keep the entire Law.
Better Giving Principles
It’s clear that despite Malachi 3:10 being the only place God says to test Him we are not called to tithe as Christians. Under the New Covenant, we have much better and much more demanding principles for giving. I encourage you to read more about New Covenant giving guidelines if you want your giving to be founded on Scripture.
Paul:
You made some great points on Old Covenant v New Covenant giving.
We would like to add another dimension to the discussion, of Malachi 3:10, that you may find interesting. Actually, the entire book of Malachi will offer a more complete contextual reference for framing Malachi 3:8-10 more completely.
It is clear to us, in reading the entire book of Malachi, that God was very upset with the priests as can be seen in Malachi 1:6-2:17. We see no reason to believe that God, through the prophet Malachi, was not referencing or talking to, or about, the priests in Malachi 3:8-10. We’re convinced the priests, themselves, were the ones withholding the tithes by robbing the tithe offerings of the people.
Actually, there are many instances these priests or shepherds were rebuked for their trespass against God and the oppression of those they were charged to protect, nurture and feed. Some additional scriptures that detail these trespasses and the on-going oppression of the people can be found in Ezekiel 34; Jeremiah 6:13-15, 23:1-6; 23:14-40; Micah 3; and Zechariah 11.
We believe the above referenced scriptures also make it clear that Christ came not only to save lost sinners but came also to relieve the cruel oppression these priests were exacting on the Israelite nation.
.-= Steven and Debra´s last blog ..Are YOU a Hoarder? Are You Sure? (Part IV of a Four Part Series) =-.
Thanks for your comment, Steven & Debra!
I have studied that aspect of Malachi 3:10. There are some verses in Nehemiah which would help back up your position. You can find them in the articles I wrote about tithing in the Bible.
I didn’t highlight that aspect of the priests stealing because I personally feel the language around Malachi 3:6-12 can be confusing. As times it seems like its speaking to the priests only and at others to national Israel. However, the verses I’ve reviewed in Nehemiah clearly show that the priests were guilty of stealing the portion of the tithes that went to the Levites who were serving in the Temple. This coincides with God’s call in Malachi to have food in His house again.
I never pressed the point because I feel the other arguments against tithing are so strong that this is not needed. The idea of putting ourselves under the Law should be so foreign and abnormal to the Christian that there should never be a question of whether or not tithing applies to Christians. We have a New Covenant that is better than the Old and with it new and better teaching on giving. The Law is no longer our standard or example for giving. Christ has become the example and His life of giving has become the Christian standard.
Thanks for taking the time to comment! I hope to hear from you again soon!!!
After posting, we went back and read some of your other articles on tithing and realized our post was somewhat redundant to what you’ve already and so thoroughly covered in your series. We enjoyed them.
We also agree that Christians, much too often, pick and choose smorgasboard style Old Testament (Old Covenant) scriptures that serve their interests while setting aside other Old Testament scriptures that don’t meet their needs. Scriptures associated with animal sacrifices first come to mind. Also, many Christians will go back to the Old Testament to find scriptural examples to justify war that are absent under the New Covenant. We like the way you approach studying the Bible in that you look at the context rather than taking the smorgasbord approach.
We are definitely under the New Covenant and we feel it would show ingratitude, on our part, to attempt resurrecting an old system Christ died to transform into something better and more complete.
.-= Steven and Debra´s last blog ..Are YOU a Hoarder? Are You Sure? (Part IV of a Four Part Series) =-.
Steven and Debra,
Thanks for your great comments. I’m glad you enjoyed those articles. I put a lot of work into them, so I’m glad to hear they’re helpful and accurate!!
I agree that Christians need to be very careful when it comes to teaching from the Old Testament. There are many things you need to be aware of when reading the Old Testament, and we can never read it without regard to the New Testament’s word on the matter. Jesus’ teaching made the Old Testament clear, and we should view it through that lens.
Your last point is exactly my main problem with teaching that Christians are under specific Old Testament laws. If we are and our righteousness/blessings depend on those, then why did Christ even die? I’d rather live under the Law of Christ than the Law of Moses. (And no, to others who may be reading, our freedom in Christ does not mean freedom to sin.)
Brother good job on the reply. Many in the USA think we are still under the old law and don’t get the new convenent of Jesus Christ as the new wine of the new testiment. The new life is in him and not a verse from the old testiment. Satan continues to do a masterful job to distort the scripture and to get christians on things and issues and not to focus on the true purpose of being a christian which is to abide in Christ and He in us thru the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. For then we listen to the direction of God’s will.
In Christ,
Richard
Thanks so much for your comment, Richard! Your words are so true. I was just talking about this in Sunday school when we were discussing tithing versus New Covenant giving. Yes, we can learn from the Old Testament and the tithe, but why would we make that our standard and motivation for giving? We’ve got a better standard and example in Jesus Christ, and our motivation comes from our response to God’s incredible love. Why do we need anything other than that to learn how (and how much) we should give? Walking in the Spirit is much more difficult and demanding, but it’s what we must do if we desire to serve God and do His will.
Thanks again for taking the time to share your thoughts. I hope to hear from you again very soon!
Thank you very much for opening my eyes on the topic and wishing that all Congolese Pastors in the world should read this article and stop enriching themselves from the ignorance of their followers.
It is clearly written ” Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it” AND NOT “Bring ME the whole or Bring the whole tithe into my pocket…”
Thank you and My God richly blessing you for bringing this issue up.
Thank you for your comment, Miguel! I’m glad you found this article helpful. You might be interested in reading the other things I wrote about tithing as well.
I agree that the tithe is greatly abused, and it seems like that is especially true in Africa. These wolves play off the hopes of the poor to make themselves rich. I think God’s Word is quite clear that they will suffer great condemnation and judgment from Him for such actions.
May God continue to bless you as you seek the truth in His Word.
I am Rick Pila and I am not sure whether your opinion is true or simply theoretical about Malachi 3:10.. I have to know what church you are and what Doctrine you carry cause if you are a Mormon for example then your statement is perfectly wrong in my belief, although you have the the logic yet how can you prove God’s word in Malachi 3:10 is not true? In fairness Im mad with God becasue I lost income for 9 months despite faithfully giving tithes and I saw my sis n law lost all her savings despite giving tithes so pls let me know more about you cause as what paul said:”he don’t easily believe in any sayings but he make careful analysis..to know me more you can see my blog at http://rickpila.blogspot.com thank you and this is all God bless
Dear Sir/madam:
GREETINGS!
When you say that blessings in the old covenant such as abundant herds and crops means not money the Holy spirit inspire me to tell you are very wrong. Abundance cannot be spent if it isn’t be in a form of cash then how can you claim to say that God blessed you abundantly if that blessing cannot be used as it is not money as u mentioned earlier? A tithe is required by God to support the church because free giving can be a source of not giving although I’m not generalizing that will surely be the outcome. I knew many Christians don’t give both tithes and offering cause it was me before or if I give, I’l give 1 cent but our church needs money to expand His Kingdom..Even pastors the bible says:”Should be blessed with double honor and pay as they preached God’s word”..If i have One billion dollar during the time of my death in the bed, I will give all that money to my church/pastors/missionaries as my church will used that for world missions, church planting and many more and this is what paul said giving out of the abundance of the heart but tithing’s is different because it is evidently bogus in the bible that you don’t owned the 10% of your earning otherwise you will be a robber says the Lord and nobody says it but the Lord. In the new covenant, it was even mentioned that give to Caesar what was his and give to God what was His.. Now do you think that is Free gift from the term give to God what was His? of course not because that mandate indicate that God owns money from us and there is no other but the tithes and Love offering is different.It is from the abundance of the heart.. if you give 2 cents just to make it appear you gave from your heart better not to give cause that is hypocrisy only to show God that he/she gives..This is simple mathematics to analyzed sir. No ned to use names of people or character in the bible just to attacked Malachi 3:10 because that verse is God’s spoken and be curse for those who don’t give thats why many Christian are poor because they don’t give tithes..its a fact..When I started giving tithes in 2006, Me and my family were never been in lack since today contrary when I wasn’t giving tithes despite Christian already since 1987. This is my testimony to you sir whatever church you are..I begged you stop attacking Malachi 3:10
Dear Sir:
Dont get me wrong, its just my discernment coz as i said Im mad with God coz for 9 months no income yet on November a huge amount came out of no where in November so what God promise in Malachi 3:10 is true. i was carefully checking the scripture you wrote and the knowledge i Research and praying hard coz if I discover your right then I’l support u to the maximum…im in search of a vision..I have a heart for the west. Who knows we can be partner for Christ vision..This is all for now. Sorry for the URL
Hi, Rick. I’m not a Mormon. I’m a Christian who is a member of Mennonite church.
Why would freewill giving be a source of “not giving”? There is nothing about the truth that tithing is not Biblical that would mean we should not support churches or ministers.
Rick, I am in no way encouraging people not to give. In fact, I am encouraging people to give even more generously than 10% because I’m trying to get our eyes focused back onto Jesus and God’s love as shown through Him. The only path to true generosity is to follow Jesus’ footsteps – not to focus on laws (laws that do not apply to us – if they do, then Jesus died for nothing).
It was just an example Paul.
Its not about laws we are talking in old testaments about tithing but tithing was mentioned again in New testament by Jesus to the Chief priest saying that you don’t only give tithes but stop being Hypocrite. In addition, the new testament supported tithing went it say “Give to Caesar what was his and give to God what was due to God so its apparently bogus that there is money that don’t belong to us as it says “give what is due to God”..
Of course Jesus told them to tithe. They were Jews still under the Law. I don’t think tithing was His main point there. Rather it was, yes, you should give, but justice, mercy, and faith are more important.
Really, you think Matthew 22:15-22 is about tithing? That’s quite a stretch. Jesus was at least talking about taxes. But if you want to apply it to giving then you need to go all the way. What is God’s? Is it not everything? Are you giving 100% yet?
Rick, I appreciate your comments but I don’t have time to keep going back and forth. Have you read Galatians and Colossians yet? All of it? At once? How can you still desire to be under the Law?
Paul, is it true God was addressing priests that received the tithes in Malachi? I attend a church that really stresses tithing, but my studies is starting not to support tithing. I, like you, think that God ownes 100 percent. I still give around the same amount, give or take a bit, but don’t use the word tithe, because I felt pressed to do it and knew God was not pleased with that. Every time I was threatened with the term “God Robber” I began to not know WHY I was giving the money and that’s when my research into the Word for myself started. Teachers would switch to the scriptures on giving in the NT and tithing in the old testament and they are not the same. But the problem is that there were a few tithes in the OT. How can you pick one if you pick any? And Abraham only paid tithes one time and the property was not his own. Also, Jesus told one man to give “ALL”. That always blows me away. That, in itself will ruin your theology. It sure messed the man up…he just walked away.
Also, for me this is key. I came up in the Lord under teaching on tithing. But NO teacher will actually teach comprehensively on how tithing was done. Always a few random scriptures. From what I do understand, Biblical principles will stand up if you read chapters and books of the bible through, if they are legitimate.
Hi, BB. Yes, most of Malachi was addressed to the priests and was not very kind to them. They were guilty of robbing the Levites of the part of the tithes due to them. Malachi 3:9 mentions the whole nation of Israel – but the tithes that went to the storehouse of the Temple were taken there only by the Levites (not the whole nation of Israel). See Nehemiah 10:34-38 to see what I’m talking about or check out this article on it: http://www.providentplan.com/811/tithing-in-the-bible-background-for-malachi-nehemiah-10-12-13/
This is just one of many problems that people run into when they start studying tithing as it is really taught in the Bible. My point in teaching against it is not to say that we shouldn’t give but to free us up to give even more generously by looking to Jesus for our example rather than the Law.
Yes, as you read the what the Bible says about tithing in its entirety you’ll see even more that those who teach tithing are teaching a man-made doctrine. The typical ideas that we have about tithing today are just based on shreds of truth found in Scripture. But when you read it as a whole, you’ll see that no one who is trying to enforce tithing on Christians today actually teaches what the Bible says about tithing. They’re making up their own ideas and pulling a few verses from here and there to support it.
Sir, with all due respect, always remember that Jesus said that He came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it and what your saying about the law which is in no effect due to Christ death on the cross is a big doctrinal error especially if you say don’t believe nor follow it like tithing. Salvation of souls is based on grace and the result is by the power of the Holy spirit you will be able to do and follow the law or commandments of God cause breaking one commandment is guilty of breaking it all. We are all under construction as no one is perfect and cannot follow the law but the issue here is that whether you like it or not the spirit of salvation will make you follow the law as it is said that the Grace that comes from the throne of God Through Jesus Christ will give you the power to say NOOO!!!! to all ungodliness. Its not good to choose only what you want to follow because Jesus said that many deceptive & hallow philosophy has corrupted and arise today and they are not of God’s so to speak. It is very clear that God said:” If you don’t give tithes, you are robbing HIM and therefore be cursed. You can’t change that. because if you say that the old testament teaching is obsolete or is not based to be followed because Jesus already died on the cross, you are saying as if its okay not to keep the sabbath day Holy as it is in the Ten Commandments which is in the Old testament or let us not believe that God wants to prosper us and not to harm us in Jeremiah 29:11 as it is in the old testament & only or you might want to remove all the old testament books because Christ is not there? Is that what you mean? It sounds that way. I further conclude that the old testament is the fulfillment of the New Testament and its preposterous to say that the if we follow the law of the old testament by virtue of grace is twisting the arm of Jesus dying on the cross or giving it no meaning of His death. Remember, it is only by grace that produce works that can make us follow the laws & commandments of the bible both Old & New as there is no conflict in it but only people are dividing the truths of God’s word.
Hi Paul,I find the tithe topic so very interesting,I would like to here much much more from from Rick Pila
Hello everyone,
I am tithing again. At one point in my life I was only a tither. In my experience, it was a waste of time because I was not concerned about the will of God. God is not going to “pour you out a blessing” if you are not using that money to do His will. So anyone who is tithing but not getting anywhere-examine yourself as I have recently done. This time I’m tithing with His will in mind. I am working on denying my flesh to serve Him. God believes in adding salt to our foods. So when He blesses us it will be things of our delight (1 Timothy 6:17). When we give the right way God is not going to forget about blessing us for it. And it’s not just about giving money. Giving time and talent is important. And one does not substitute the other. So don’t try to cut corners. Be diligent.
Also, as far as saying the old covenant doesn’t apply to us is true. I am under the new covenant. However, the laws within the old covenant do apply. What’s my reason for honoring the old laws? It’s because of (Matthew 5:17-19). It says that the laws will stay in affect, not until the new covenant is established, but until heaven and earth pass away. Verse 19 says, “Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches people to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of haven.
Thank you very much Mr John J. Jacobs.. before anything else I have 32 Videos in you tube and all you have to do is simply type “rickpila” in the search area then every topic will pop up or you may also read in my blog http://rickpila.blogspot.com ..>Why am I saying this? because I have a video about tithing a& love offering..Now in the cruz of the controversy, Never did any verse in the bible says that the laws in the old testament is no longer in effect due to Christ Jesus Death and again its a doctrinal error to say that: “The bible says the be curse to anyone preaching that is not in scriptures”..Again, It is said in malachi 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it..in verse 11: it says that I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.
Look, Dont you know that the wealthiest nation on earth (America) is now suffering pestilence in their crops and fruits or in layman’s term USA now is facing recession or economic meltdown..why? One of the Big reason is first people are no longer believing in God as there are many Atheist and Agnostic existing everywhere denying the truth about Jesus and His Commandments and worse there many Christian professing Christianity yet they divided the truths or just pick up verses that wishes because it is a burden for them like Tithes. Many Christian don’t give because they feel burden removing 10% away from they earnings so at the end they become a curse so I as result they have Financial lack and worst it grows and the nation became a curse thats the essence why recession occur in USA today. It is very clear also in the New Testament that Jesus fasted forty days to seek God and this is not in the context of the new testament.. Are you telling me that Jesus fasting for 40 days is wrong? The Bible says:
Matt 23:23 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites For you pay tithe of mint and anise and Cummings, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.
Luke 11:42 But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass by justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.(Tithes)
Christ spoke these words during His ministry and this teaching was in harmony with the directives of the Old Covenant.
The following verse explains the position of Christ in relation to the
existing Old Covenant Law. Gal 4:4 But when the fullness of the time
had come, God sent forth His Son,
born of a woman, born under the law,
:5 to redeem those who were under the
law, …
In other words, Christ planted the seeds of the New Testament while acting and speaking in harmony with the law of the Old Covenant. It is for this reason that
He also commanded a cleansed leper to obey the law of Moses.
Matt 8:3 … And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.
:4 See that you tell no one; but go your way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.
If you will observe that Christ commanded His church to make disciples among nations so if you depend on offerings only, many hypocrites will give 1 cent perhaps or not all so that it will appear that they already offer so offering can be abused but tithing cannot because it is a requirements of 10% so to speak so Christians cannot scape by giving 1 cent because it is relaxing to give 1 cent offering. It is also recorded in the New testament that give to Caesar what is due him and give to God what is due HIM. in other words you may observe here that this is not offering but a requirement to give God what is due HIM so Technically this is Tithing. So think and use your common sense.
Mathew 23:23
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.”
Recall that the theme of Jesus’ rebuking in the New Testament draws a comparison between the external religion that the Pharisees marketed and an inward one, which Christ required. This passage clearly illustrates how the scribes and Pharisees tithed, exhibiting an external religion without any kind of seed, which is Christ, in their hearts. This is evident since they did display justice, mercy or faithfulness.
Hebrews 11:6
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.”
If the Pharisees were tithing but simultaneously lacking faithfulness, then they were not pleasing God, hence, the need for a sharp correction from Christ. So it follows that someone claiming to be a righteous like the Pharisees could tithe merely for human applause and to be seen of men, yet not receive any blessing because they lacked an inward faith. Finally, notice how Jesus does not rebuke the act of tithing; instead, he notes that the weightier matters of the law could not be neglected in the process.
I have read everyone’s view here and i will like to contribute. If you Open your bible to Hebrews 7:5.
“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”
The levites took tihtes according to the law of Moses which the Lord commanded to the Isralites as you can see from this verses above. Also try to read Numbers 18: 1 to the end, you will understand why priests and levites were to take tithes from israelites under the law of Moses.
Now look at Hebrews 7 : 11-12
“If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? 12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.
The Levitical priesthood took tithes and we are now under the new priesthood of our Lord Jesus christ in the order of Melchisedec. Verse 12 spoke about a change in the law including tithes since we are in a new priesthood.
Also, it was not the Israelites that were asked to bring tithes into the storehouse but the Levites were the ones told to bring a tenth of the tithes they received from the israelites to the storehouse according to Nehemiah 10: 34-39.
Therefore, Malachi 3: 10 speaks about people under the levitical priesthood who were under the law and who were responsible for bringing tithes to the storehouse (Levites).
Many Christians today uses different verses to avoid tithes because they find it so hard to follow the commandments of the Lord. It is very clear that it was not only mentioned in the Old but also in the New testament that Jesus himself did not abolished the tithes when He said do what is right but also do give tithes. Now is this very incomprehensible? it is clear that you don’t want to give tithes my friend because you are creating a lot of disputes that are unfounded and dividing the truths about the Law of God..As I said the New testament said Give to God what is due HIM and give to ceasar what is due him and this refers to our taxes to our Government. I really dont understand why many are opposed to tithes because i was once like that but my perspective change when I discover the conviction of the Holy Spirit to give tithes and more-fully when I received great financial blessings as Promised for those who Gives tithes..Lets stop comparing priesthood of the past and New because no matter what you say you will never find a verse in new testament that says:”Tithes is no longer needed..The bible says be curse for those who preached that is not in accordance to the word or scriptures..
Always remember that breaking one law is guilty of breaking all of them….This is the scripture…No wonder many christian are poor because they don’t give tithes and the blessings of God will no flow abundantly. Jesus rebuke the Pharisees not because of the tithes but because of the hipocrisy therefore don’t include the tithes here as part that was rebuke by Christ because Christ said..Don’t be hipocrite but never neglect to give tithes..Now, is this difficult to understand? or you just don’t want to give tithes well, don’t give tithes and be cursed upon you the Lord said”..
Hebrews 7:11-18. This is the reason I believe we don’t tithe. Vs.18 says disannulling of the commandment that means canceling. There is a reason why Jesus came out of the tribe of Juda not out of Levi so that the commandments of him not of the priesthood would be followed so that we could live holy enough to enter into the holy of holies everyday of our life.
Look, You seem not understanding. Your no longer under curse because of the blood of Christ but if you commit sin continually, then you are being curse again if you don’t repent and reform and not giving tithes is an act of sinning so if you don’t follow the teaching of God especially in the book of Malachi 3:10 where it says if you don’t tithe you will be curse again and the blood of Jesus has nothing to do if you repeatedly sin even you already accepted the Lord as even Jesus commanded as to tithe when he rebuke the Pharisee but not of their being a tither but of their being hypocrite..so breaking one law is breaking all..simple us that..Many used many verse to scape tithing just like the cult or Jehovah who used verses in order to claim Jesus is not God and you sound like them okay.
We may no longer be under the LAW to tithe, but The Bible is clear in stating the poor and needy, sick and old, are the responsibility of the churches, not the responsibility of the governments, and if everyone tithed as they should, there would be no need for welfare, food stamps, Medicare, Medicaid, etc.
Matthew 6 shares several scriptures where Jesus encouraged His disciples and followers to do alms (tithing). So does Luke 11 & 12, and Acts 3, 10 & 24.
Yet you say we’re absolved from that?
All this study has done is pave an excuse for those who want to shirk their Christian responsibility of Tithing and Alms-giving and the neglect of that responsibility leaves the needy at loose ends, targets for whatever government plan or scheme that comes along – or at the government’s whim, is done away with.
I’ll repeat – “…The Bible is clear in stating the poor and needy, sick and old, are the responsibility of the churches…” Without dedicated tithing, this can never happen.
If a person is being conformed to the image of Christ, do you think He will not give? Will we not have compassion for the poor and needy, the widow, the orphan, and even our enemies if we truly have Christ living in us? You do not need the Law to tell you to give. Christ came to change our hearts completely so that we will fully satisfy the Law – not because we’re focused on keeping every detail but because we are fully led by the Holy Spirit. This provides us freedom from the Law but does not mean we will no longer give.
We don’t need dedicated tithing. We need dedicated followers of Jesus.
Yes, but not all who say they are of Christ are conformed. Tithing helps “some” to become so because it teaches them God’s promises are true and are kept by Him.
But giving them an excuse not to tithe removes that from them for that particular lesson from God.
“For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, ONE JOT OR TITTLE WILL BY NO MEANS PASS FROM THE LAW till all is fulfilled.”
Matthew 5:18
All has not yet been fulfilled, because Christ has not yet returned for God’s children.
I believe all of God’s Word is important, every single little “jot and tittle” and it is not up to us to discount or re-write any of it – because we are not it’s author.
Brother (or sister), if we are not being conformed to the image of Christ then we are not truly following Him. We would then have no right to say we are of Christ. (Note: I’m not saying we must be perfectly conformed, but if we’re not moving in that direction then how can we even say we’re in Christ or that He is in us?)
The Law is not going to help us become conformed to the image of Christ. This is a process of transformation – the Holy Spirit forming the character and mind of Christ in us. This happens as we look to Christ and let His word dwell in us richly. This does not mean the Law is bad or was useless. It had a purpose, but its purpose has passed now that faith in Christ has come. Please read Galatians (especially chapter 3) and Colossians (especially chapters 2 & 3).
I am not trying to give people excuses or lead them away from righteousness. That’s the farthest thing from the truth. The best description that I’ve heard of what I’m talking about is this. Just trying to keep the Law (or laws…) is like tying good fruit to a bad tree. In this case, the appearance of good fruit means nothing – it tells us nothing. What Jesus wants to do is to change us completely so that we become good trees that naturally produce good fruit. It’s a completely different approach to what it means to be righteous and holy!
Hi Paul I don’t think people understand you…the best thing to tell them is to seek more of Christ and ask the Holy Spirit to Open their eyes and give them wisdom. How can you say your faith in Christ saved you, and that he died for all our sins and he become the curse to us, yet your mind has not been renewed…Paul the message I get from you is to Give cheerfully, and that’s what God loves. We should not give to receive for it is better to give than to receive but let our hearts be right when we give to the Lord and let’s do it because we love to, God will bless you…Christ set us free from the curses…come on people..we the freedom generation.
Thanks for your comment, Joey! You got my points right.
Hello Paul
Now I understand that Tithing is not true. Please give me more things to know as I am still confused now. I understand the new teaching of giving and I am following it now. In other words, I totally stop my tithing because I don’t like to give out of regrets or whatever thing except love. Let me know more as I am thirsty now for the truth.
We Live by Grace not by Law
Rick Pila
i am very much agreed youve said about tithing. i wonder why theres a lot of people wants to give their tithes and after giving,they will expect financial blessings in return. if you read the all books of new testaments Jesus never promised material things to all his followers ,instead HE told them that if they will follow Him they will experience persecution. in fact all his apostles never experienced a good life and they dont even owned a mansion or good houses instead all of them suffered persecution and most of all they denied themselves about the earthly wealth. so this is a reminder to all those people who are giving their tithes and expecting material blessings is contrary to Jesus teaching. Jesus promised us a salvation of our soul and not material blessings. thank you.
Oh Gosh! I stopped giving tithes and questioned the Lord when my finances fell sometimes in 2010 then you know what happened? I almost lost my money especially when my mom got her leg fractured and needs operation which cost us grants and grants of money but in the middle of despair, I spoke to my wife what Malachi 3:10 said that if you don’t give tithes, your barns will be eaten up by pestilence then immediately I told my wife its not too late, I decided to give tithes. To make the story short, The money I am so afraid of that might be gone due to hospital bills where doubled by the Lord and I was shocked why my bills is not even half the price that we calculated and most doctors charged us smaller amount and then when I got home, there were many clients globally waiting for me to do the task as I am a freelance and now I cant imagine my money is not only doubled by nearing to become tripled simply because I’ve decided to give the tithes in the middle of the crisis where I don’t or stop giving tithes..Now I saw that tithing is real as when God said “test me and will I not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out on you my wealth where you cannot find any room to contain because of the vast wealth He will pour on you>>>Thank you Lord!
I agree with this last post. My wife and I tithe…and although we don’t look at the Lord as a slot machine…we have been blessed beyond what would think. Way too many coincidences. I know Christians that have proscribed to your teaching…they seem to be stuck in this grey area and following the rest of the way our society views spending and going into debt. Following what God says in Malachi is something that is a hard thing at first…but it’s a blessing to give to the Lord…and it keeps us from giving into our selfish, rationlizing human nature.
Make it 10%, be thankful for it, and see what happens!!!
John
wow
Hi Paul,
I am seeing this posting in 2012 and hope you are still active on it. The discussion on tithing is bringing more questions than answers. I note that the pentecostal churches for instance in the USA are quite advanced but in developing countries on the other hand we are still somewhat behind. The current teaching here is so strong on tithing and I am interested to hear more from you on what the expectation is of a christian as regards tithing in particular and the old testament in general.
When I teach about tithing, I use all of the following scriptures: Malachi 3:10, 2 Chronicles 31:5, 2 Kings 4:42, Deuteronomy 26:10, Exodus 23:15, Exodus 23:19, Exodus 34:22, Exodus 34:25, Ezekiel 20:40, Ezekiel 44:30, Ezekiel 48:14, Jeremiah 2:3, Levites 2:12, Levites 2:14, Levites 23:10, Levites 23:17, Levites 23:20, Nehemia 10:35, Nehemia 10:37, Nehemia 12:44, Nehemia 13:31, Numbers 18:12, Numbers 28:26, Proverbs 3:9, Deuteronomy 26:12-13
I also teach that if a person hoards or doesn’t share of their abundance, they are not trusting God to take care of their needs, and not trusting Him is fear which always reaps negative results, as clearly taught in The Book of Job.
Job feared that his children were not living as righteously as they ought, and it is that fear that caused the chink in the hedge that God set round about him, allowing the adversary entrance to his life to rob him of all he had, including his family.
It also led to his continual failure and ill health, until a strong believer reproved him.
Tithing is absolutely not just an Old Testament requirement. It is also mentioned by Jesus in the New Testament. Matt 23:23 “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices–mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law–justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”
And also in Luke 11:42 “Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.”
Jesus tells us to not neglect the tithe or leave it undone!!! Selah! This is another way that Jesus did not do away with the laws of God, but fulfilled them and teaches us how to keep them as well.
God does not change, and His heart and plan for us giving of our time, talents, and treasure do not change either. God’s Word for us to test/try Him in this area of giving tithe is still effective and commanded today. One of the best ways that we can build our spiritual muscles in order to have faith and trust in the Lord is by putting Him first in our finances. We will consistently see Him bless us more and more and it will help us to have faith for the bigger hurdles in life as well. Money is only one component of blessing, but the more we have the more we can spread the gospel to the ends of the earth (which takes money). God will pour out a great blessing (including money) for those show obedience and a right heart in the area of giving.
God did not stutter and was in no way unclear in this command to test him. He knows that money is one of the most difficult areas for a person to give Him Lordship over, and if He can have that area then other areas will inherently follow suit. Jesus spoke about money more times than He spoke about Heaven and hell, so why wouldn’t money be the one area that God tells us to test/try Him in?
Tithing is to ensure the movement of GOD’S Word so that all who will hear it and receive HIS Spirit do hear it and receive HIS Spirit, because until the last one who will hear and receive has done so, CHRIST cannot return. So it puzzles me as to why some think it’s Old Testament and doesn’t pertain to those who are of the New Testament. If it weren’t still pertinent, CHRIST would have returned, and I don’t believe HE has yet. Do you?