Do Church – Core Principles of Local Church Participation - Tithing and Giving

1. I wrote a sermon on Friday and I tore it up. I wrote another one yesterday (Saturday) and I tore it up again. I put something together this morning, and we’ll see what it is. I told you all that I was going to talk about Tithing and Giving. We’ve spent a lot of time on not just going to church, but being the church, and we’ve walked through some of those Core Principles.
2. Our Church still teaches New Testament Tithing, believing that it is a NT principle. However, there are many NT believers who don’t feel that way, and that’s OK, because that is a determination to make in your heart. It’s not a core fundamental of the Gospel, but we consider it fundamental to NT living, because we believe there is a blessing attached to it which is important to your life. Some churches hammer on this topic – if you don’t tithe, you’re robbing God! To their defense that’s from scripture (Malachi 3:8). This is an OT scripture, but I’d like to remind you all what Paul said in 2 Timothy 3:16-17. Paul is saying here that there are things in the OT that are good to learn from. In essence we don’t say here's the law you - have to do this, but we say here’s the law - you can learn from this.
3. God’s law was made for His people to prosper by obeying it and we can continue to gain from those principle even in the NT. So, in GCC we say that tithing is giving 10% of your income. (Tithe means 10%). In the OT the actual amount people tithed was closer to 20-25% in total. From way back when I was a teenager till now my tithe is given automatically from my bank account, and I have been blessed by this my entire life. I don’t own much and I don’t owe anybody anything. I have been blessed with wisdom and God has blessed my life because of my faithfulness. I’m not saying that God will curse you if you don’t do this. But you can choose so that you may be blessed.
4. Just like there are physical laws like gravity, there are spiritual laws and God is seeking to grow His kingdom with people who obey His spiritual laws. Tithing is taking the first 10% of our income, whereas giving is according to our personal determination to give when we see a need. Often, we are prompted by the Holy Spirit to give, and out of the joy in my heart I give, and there is a blessing that comes from that. God gives back more than we could ever give. The reward is not always in the same area as the sowing which we have done. So we’re not saying that if we give 10 Euros, we’ll get back 100 Euros. You might, but you may reap some other blessing, and always be grateful for the blessing received. It is more blessed to give than to receive. God is faithful to His Word, so you will always receive some blessing when you give.
5. We’ll look at another definition to tithing. Firstly, tithing originated before the Law was given to Moses. In Genesis 14:20 Abraham paid tithes to a high priest of God called Melchizedek. In Hebrews we are told that Jesus is not a high priest of the order of Levi bit of the order of Melchizedek, because he was before the Law, through the Law and after the Law. So, it is good to pay attention to what is written in God’s Word in Hebrews. If you’re uncomfortable with an amount (i.e., 10%) we can honor God with our generosity and faithfulness, from what God has entrusted you with.
6. Our view of tithing is if He gives us 10, we give back 1. God’s view of tithing is that you take 9 and leave 1, because it’s all His to begin with. We don’t give to God; we receive from Him. NT tithing comes from 2 principles: the firstfruits and stewardship. The principle of firstfruits was there so that the Kingdom could operate an be under blessing. God even called Jesus, the firstfruit of the brethren. It is important to note that if we don’t honor God first, it is not a tithe (“First”fruits).This is a positioning of the heart, not a law. The 2^nd principle is stewardship, meaning “You don’t own it”. All things come from God and all things will return to Him. If we are faithful, God entrusts us with something which we must take care of. God may give us money, a family, children and other things in life, but none of it belongs to you. You are simply a steward. Matthew 23:23 Jesus is saying that they tithed but forsook justice and mercy, but they should have practiced both, and get it right in your heart. Proverbs 3:9 honor the Lord with your firstfruits. 1 Peter 4:10 serve others with the gifts you have been given.
7. Being generous shows that we are grateful for all that God has given us. Always give thanks with a grateful heart no matter what. So, we don’t give to God, but honoring Him with what He has entrusted to us, with your generosity and faithfulness. Luke 16:1-10 is a weird passage. But Jesus is saying that the unbelievers were better stewards than His followers. The Jews were not allowed to charge interest, so they upped the price of the product. So, he lowered the price knowing that he would be welcomed. He knew that by giving, he would be helped in return when he would need it. The heart of the story is that Jesus is saying that we should be smart stewards. Do it right from the beginning and not trying to fix the wrong way later. Give from your firstfruits with the correct motive, not because you are afraid of God, because it is not His will to harm you, but to prosper you, to give you life, health and wellbeing – you will be blessed.