“WHAT sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—Justice, mercy, and faith. YOU SHOULD TITHE, YES, BUT DO NOT NEGLECT THE MORE IMPORTANT THINGS.”
Mathew 23:23 (NLT)
• Tithing is a part of the New Testament principles (Matthew 23:23; Hebrews 7:1-10).
THE Pharisees were careful to tithe all their incomes but neglected other important aspects of the law (Matthew 23:23).
- In the things of Kingdom, you use Scriptures to interpret whatever aspect of the Scripture that may be cumbersome or complicated to you.
- You cannot take a passage of the Bible out of context to support your rebellion and disobedience to the WORD. WHATEVER you wanted to establish that does agree with the whole counsel of God, CANNOT be supported by twisted passages of the Bible.
- When financial principles are being talked about, Some believers would want to rise and challenge the Bible.
THEY would want to probe and twist the Bible, avoiding the part they do not agree with: "SPEAKING about these things as he [Paul] does in all of his letters. In which there are some things that are difficult to understand, WHICH THE UNTAUGHT AND UNSTABLE [who have fallen into error] TWIST AND MISINTERPRET, JUST AS THEY DO THE REST OF THE SCRIPTURES, TO THEIR OWN DESTRUCTION" (2 Peter 3:16 AMP). - If you still argue on Tithings, you find it difficult to tithe either big or small incomes of yours, you are yet to be broken—you are still carnal (1 Corinthians 3:1).
- You are still worshipping MAMMON; And no servant can serve two masters. It is either God or Mammon [money]: "NO ONE CAN SERVE TWO MASTERS; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. YOU CANNOT SERVE GOD AND MAMMON [riches]" (Matthew 6:24).
- Who are you serving?
• Jesus’ view
- Jesus was correcting the religious teachers and Pharisees because they were hypocritical in their approach to the LAW.
- They prefer to do and place emphasis on the part of the LAW, the Word of God, that would be of benefits to them most.
JESUS was not condemning Tithing but affirming it! - The Pharisees and the religious teachers were hypocritical because they left undone other important aspects of the LAW—justice, mercy and faith.
• "You should tithe, yes.”
- When some BELIEVERS make a big money, they begin to think about Tithing and how, if possible they would avoid the tithing of the money.
- They would be contemplating whether to pay the tithe or not. Some would even started asking how the leadership of Church has been managing the Church's money, the offerings and the tithes, that People have been bringing to the Church.
- These same People whom the Pastor has put his or her time at their disposal, to pray with; for them to experience financial breakthrough in whatever they do—their vocational Works.
- Such people would begin to query the integrity of the Pastor, And would want to make findings about the Church's incomes and how they are being spent.
- Some may even say their Pastors had offended them, thus, they would not pay their Tithes in order to show their grievances or to discipline their Pastors.
THOSE who do that, ARE undoing themselves, bringing a curse on their finances. - No one can hold God and HIS Ministers to Ransom. God will make a way for His servants—to be taken care of.
- It is being carnal and unbroken that makes a believer start questioning the leadership of the Church about how the Church money is spent, which he or she has not been doing beforehand; all because the person does not want to tithe the big income they have just gotten.
- The truth is: Tithing is one of the major LAW in the Old Testament AND also important in the New Testament (Hebrews 7:1-10).
- Tithing is a prove of your loyalty and submission to God.
YOUR money is your Life, and it is through it, that is, YOUR attitude towards it; God gets to know whom YOU love most—God or MAMMON (Luke 16:13).
• Rewards of tithing
- God would NOT ask you to do a thing that would not be of benefit to you—that would not bless you.
- The instructions And commands given by God, are for the Good of His children, and such instructions are NOT meant to afflict or oppress THEM.
(a) Tithings will open YOUR HEAVEN, the windows of heaven are opened to the tithers (Malachi 3:10).
WHEN you TITHE your incomes, you are challenging God to prove Himself in your Life: "... AND TRY ME [God] NOW IN THIS," says the LORD of hosts, IF I WILL NOT OPEN THE WINDOWS OF HEAVEN..." (Malachi 3:10).
(b) Tithing will make you a delightful land: A land that people delighted in, the people would want to favour you and be identify with you: “PEOPLE FROM OTHER NATIONS WILL BE GOOD TO YOU. You will have a wonderful country.” THIS IS WHAT THE LORD ALL-POWERFUL SAID" (Malachi 3:12 Easy to Read Version).
IT will open your life up FOR Blessings, help and favour, and mercy, where you least expected.
(c) It brings protection and prevents the devourer in your life (Malachi 3:11).
THE believers who are tight-fisted used to have their lives fraught with calamities; difficulties And problems: "THERE IS ONE WHO SCATTERS, YET INCREASES MORE; and there is one WHO WITHHOLDS MORE THAN IS RIGHT, BUT IT LEADS TO POVERTY" (Proverbs 11:24 NKJV).
SOME believers hands are gluey—sticky like glue! - A believer who does not give tithes, the one with glutinous hands, cannot but experience the work of the devourer, the enemy, that is, the devil and his cohorts; in his or her life.
- Such believers spent money on sicknesses, they lost valuable THINGS often, and are victims of different attacks mostly.
THEIR belongings are theft. And they spent money on other petty things that should not have been devouring their finances: "In this way your whole nation has stolen things from Me, SO BAD THINGS ARE HAPPENING TO YOU" (Malachi 3:9 Easy to Read Version).
• Obedience to the Word of God brings A Blessing on you, your work and your home; whilst disobedience brings a curse: “You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation" (Malachi 3:9 NKJV).
- A lot of Christians are robbers, they have robbed God, and that makes THEM victims of evil.
- When you tithe, you are not helping your Pastor or the Church, you are only provoking God’s Blessings on you life.
• If you do claim to be born-again And still argue over Tithings, and offerings; that reveals or shows your spiritual shallowness or superficiality.
(a) It does mean you have no depth whatsoever.
(b) It also means you are not broken yet, you have not given God His rightful place in your Life. He has no control over certain aspects of your life, which your money is included.
- If God does not have any say-so on your finances, it means He is yet to have the whole of your person.
- If Jesus is your Lord, that is, the Owner of your Life, He should be Lord of all you have and not the Lord of a little fragmented part of your Life!
- If you want God to reign and rule in your Life, you should submit everything to Him. You should be a steward, and then allow Him to be the Owner of all you have.
• You will not fail in Jesus' name.
Peace!