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Does Tithing Apply To Christians Today?

DiscussingTheTopic said:
They just cheated themselves of a greater tip by telling me how much to tip, because otherwise I would have tipped more than they asked for.

I know exactly what you mean. I went on a cruise for my honeymoon a couple of weeks ago and the cruise automatically took out the "gratuities" so I didn't bother tipping the rest of the time. I don't do welfare and if they hadn't juiced my card for the automatic gratuities they would have gotten more than that in tips.

As far as tithing goes, I'd rather do it and find out in the end that I didn't have to instead of not tithing and find in the end that I should have. Not to get off topic, but I'm of the persuasion that there isn't an old and new convenenant. Just one. So tithing is still relevant and important. It helps to support and fund various organizations and missions doing the work of Yahuweh and spreading the good news of Yahushua. I don't think that any one organization should try and dictate WHERE you tithe, but as long as you are tithing for the work of Yahuweh and your heart is in the right place with doing it then you're right where you need to be.
 
My opinion is that tithing is not required, however giving with a willing heart is required. Giving is not always money.

The rewards of giving with a willing heart are not received because of other misconceptions and problems. One problem is that if you view 10% as belonging to God there is no reward for giving because there is no reward for giving what is not yours. Borrowing your neighbors lawnmower and returning it deserves no reward. However, giving your lawn mower to your neighbor with the proper motive can bring a blessing.
Another problem is where the gift is going. Just because a preacher or a denomination says you should tithe to their church or group does not mean you should. I believe that a mobile evangelest such as Paul in the NT has a right to support from the church, but a local religious leader or preacher has no right to any support from the local church. (Even Paul worked when staying for any period in one place.) If they don't work they should not eat. Letting your giving be used to change the oil on the local preacher's car is foolish management of your resources and no blessing is the result. If you are motivated to give 10% (or whatever amount) to feed the poor, help the widows, etc. and do it in such a way that you find part of your gift is buying cable TV for a local preacher then your gift is leavened to the Pharisee's and you are giving nothing pure to God and there is no reward.
The proper approach to giving combines with NC love responsibility. The old 10% given with reference to the OT or Torah is possible but rewardless because of the heart condition. The phrase "tithes and offerings" is self revealing with no blessing on the tithe and blessing only on the offering as a tithe is different from an offering.
The NC giving of 10% (or whatever amount) is all offering and yours to give and in giving with joy a blessing is and will be received.
A couple of things need to be remembered. One is that God is not broke financially and is involved in your finances because he loves you and wants to bless you. You are a child of God not someone trying to buy passage or a ticket somewhere. Tithing without the proper heart condition and without insuring what you give is spent or used properly will destroy your finances as this blocks God's blessings.
Some people are stuck either in OT giving or in giving to get rich by buying God's blessing. Just manage your resources with God's help and room for love for your neighbor and fellow Christian and let God bless you daily. Don't ledger your God or your heart, or allow western religious shamans to obligate your resources.
 
Post has been moved to the deeper discussion forum per DukeOfMarshall
 
well said, welltan
 
The Duke Of Marshall said:
As far as tithing goes, I'd rather do it and find out in the end that I didn't have to instead of not tithing and find in the end that I should have. Not to get off topic, but I'm of the persuasion that there isn't an old and new convenenant. Just one. So tithing is still relevant and important.

There is a difference between giving and tithing. And tithing DOES NOT mean giving 10% of your income. If you do a detailed study it is giving 10% in a certain way to certain people and needless to say if I really were to tithe ACCORDING TO THE THE DIRECTIONS IN THE BIBLE the 10% would NOT go to my local church organization headed by a gentile Pastor, because that is not where the old testament says the tithe goes.

Instead I give.
 
DiscussingTheTopic said:
There is a difference between giving and tithing. And tithing DOES NOT mean giving 10% of your income. If you do a detailed study it is giving 10% in a certain way to certain people and needless to say if I really were to tithe ACCORDING TO THE THE DIRECTIONS IN THE BIBLE the 10% would NOT go to my local church organization headed by a gentile Pastor, because that is not where the old testament says the tithe goes.
Agreed. If we truly were to "tithe" as Scripture specified (first assuming the Levites still existed), we wouldn't be able to "tithe" money in any case. We would be required to convert our cash back into foods before bringing it in to the storehouse. The storehouse was NOT a bank. You tithed from your produce of the land. If converted to currency for transportation purposes, it still had to be converted BACK into food before tithing it. No cash allowed! :lol:

Giving an offering is SO much better, because I can give whatever is needed. Sometimes what is needed is time, or money, or expertise, or clothing, or a caring shoulder to cry on, and yes, even sometimes produce. But calling an offering a "tithe" or trying to calculate a percentage of some income really lessens it from being a gift to being an obligation.

In His love,
David
 
DiscussingTheTopic said:
The Duke Of Marshall said:
As far as tithing goes, I'd rather do it and find out in the end that I didn't have to instead of not tithing and find in the end that I should have. Not to get off topic, but I'm of the persuasion that there isn't an old and new convenenant. Just one. So tithing is still relevant and important.

There is a difference between giving and tithing. And tithing DOES NOT mean giving 10% of your income. If you do a detailed study it is giving 10% in a certain way to certain people and needless to say if I really were to tithe ACCORDING TO THE THE DIRECTIONS IN THE BIBLE the 10% would NOT go to my local church organization headed by a gentile Pastor, because that is not where the old testament says the tithe goes.

Instead I give.

Ok, I'll bite, what is the difference between a tithe and a giving? Since one of the two things that were prophesied to be fullfiled when the Messiah Yahushua came is no longer the need to go through a priest, then where in today's day and age would a "tithe" go?


Matthew 22:21
John 14:15
John 14:21
 
The Duke Of Marshall said:
Ok, I'll bite, what is the difference between a tithe and a giving? Since one of the two things that were prophesied to be fullfiled when the Messiah Yahushua came is no longer the need to go through a priest, then where in today's day and age would a "tithe" go?
lol...I think you just answered your own question. Without the Levites, there wouldn't be ANY place for a Biblical tithe to go. Who would gentiles tithe to anyway? Twelve brothers (tribes), one of which was not given a portion of the land, hence they could not tithe off of it. Tithing without the Levitical Priesthood in place is not tithing as required in Torah. Just as sacrificing animals without the physical Temple isn't sacrificing as required in Torah. We can't just change whatever inconvenient or inapplicable parts of the Torah we wish and still call it "obeying Torah". Without the Levites and without the Temple, there is no way any of us could really still follow Torah, even if we wanted to. The best would we could achieve would always be a cheap imitation of what God Himself commanded.

In His love,
David
 
djanakes said:
The Duke Of Marshall said:
Ok, I'll bite, what is the difference between a tithe and a giving? Since one of the two things that were prophesied to be fullfiled when the Messiah Yahushua came is no longer the need to go through a priest, then where in today's day and age would a "tithe" go?
lol...I think you just answered your own question. Without the Levites, there wouldn't be ANY place for a Biblical tithe to go. Who would gentiles tithe to anyway? Twelve brothers (tribes), one of which was not given a portion of the land, hence they could not tithe off of it. Tithing without the Levitical Priesthood in place is not tithing as required in Torah. Just as sacrificing animals without the physical Temple isn't sacrificing as required in Torah. We can't just change whatever inconvenient or inapplicable parts of the Torah we wish and still call it "obeying Torah". Without the Levites and without the Temple, there is no way any of us could really still follow Torah, even if we wanted to. The best would we could achieve would always be a cheap imitation of what God Himself commanded.

In His love,
David

Exactly :D
 
In today's age a tithe usually goes NOWHERE because it can not go there.

We can give to people. This is not the same as tithing. You can even give 10% if you want but that will not be following the old testament/covenant to give 10% to the specific people. If you want to follow the OT find the right Jewish Christians and the right storehouses and all those details, then maybe it will be possible. But as it is I know giving to the local church organization Pastor I have would not be tithing even if I gave 10% of my income.

Here are some obvious suggestions for what to do with money

1. You can give to organizations to help poor people wisely (not to the irresponsible poor but the responsible or trying to be responsible poor)

2. You can give to someone else to support them doing ministry either through preaching, discipleship, helping the poor, opposing abortion etc.

3. You can use your money to oppose abortion. This is the best use, shamelessly I have not donated much of anything to this cause. If Nazi's were around, the most urgent matter and practical matter as a christian (aside from directly teaching scripture for if someone survives execution but dies and goes to a lake of fire due to a sinful lifestyle the fruit of a persistent rejection of God....) would be to stop their slaughter of those who should not be slaughtered.

4. You can use your money to support your parents, widows, children or other relatives you are responsible for.

5. You can use money to support your own ministry done through yourself, this is what Paul did sometimes.

6. You should save some of it, so that you do not have to beg and be a burden on the Church system which helps you because of irresponsible over-giving when they could have helped someone truly in need.

7. You can spend it on your own food, rent and clothes so that you do not have to beg and be a burden on the Church system which helps you because of irresponsible over-giving when they could have helped someone truly in need.

It is sad that I have to mention 5, 6, and 7. But you are not ready to give until you have done 6 and 7. Too many times I have spent money bailing out someone unnamed who said they would be generous to poor people, just after I was generous to them and told them specifically to save money for their own bus pass, so they can get to work so they can stop borrowing money and or receiving free money from me. Eventually you have to tell them to learn responsibility and that you will not support them anymore and or make them give you collateral. [This is why it is often better to give directly to the salvation army, a group to help people overseas or to a Church organization then to a "poor" person directly although sometimes you should give to a poor person directly (usually only if it is done exactly one time and no more for that person.) I know my Pastor is much more responsible about how he helps poor people than I am so I find it better to trust my Church organization and to give to them if I want to help poor people.]

By the way if you do not know how much to give 10% might be a reasonable amount you will still have 90% left over to be responsible for yourself, but at the same time you are not giving some small amount to other people relative to your own income.
 
You're/we're going around in circles. You're so focused on doing away with what you call "the first covenant" that you simply change the wording. You change "tithe" to "give" in order to make yourself feel better. IT'S THE SAME THING!!!!! Giving back to Yahuweh what He has blessed us with. Back in the time of Moshe, yes, the tithe/gift was given to the Lewite priests because they did the work of Yahuweh. It was still voluntary even back then! It's still voluntary today. Call it whatever makes you feel good, but it's still the same thing. Having a thankful heart for Yahuweh and what He has given us and giving it back to His work in some way. Whatever way that may be.
 
I think Dr. Raegean's article broke it down pretty clear about who had to tithe/pay taxes and who did not. Also, his points about Abram paying taxes/tithes to a king was a great point to bolster the idea that a tithe was indeed a tax paid to the rulers over a land.

I'd like to see if anyone has any thoughts about the points in his article.
 
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