{"id":341,"date":"2010-04-13T07:45:34","date_gmt":"2010-04-13T14:45:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sharefaithblog.wpengine.com\/?p=341"},"modified":"2021-02-01T19:13:11","modified_gmt":"2021-02-02T00:13:11","slug":"tithing-biblical-principle-giving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sharefaith.com\/blog\/2010\/04\/tithing-biblical-principle-giving\/","title":{"rendered":"Tithing: The Biblical Principle of Giving?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

“Do you tithe on the gross or net?<\/em>” “Um . . . well . . . I think . . . usually . . . the gross<\/em>.”\u00a0“Good. That means you will be grossly blessed!<\/em>” That\u00a0summarized the conversation of a Christian employer with his new worker. It kind of reflects the thinking of a lot of Christians. Many approach tithing with the attitude that they have to give God a certain amount or percentage in order to be blessed. Approaching the question of tithing\u2014the how much, when, how, and why\u2014extends far beyond simply determining a percentage based on gross or net income. Several factors must be considered before we can just sit back and say, \u201cWell, I gave my ten percent on gross, so I\u2019m all set! Go ahead and bless me, God!\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Taking Cues from the Culture<\/strong><\/p>\n

Western culture creates a church-centered stigma that if a person makes an appearance at the church building, puts a check or a few bucks in the plate, and maybe even adds a little something for missions or a charity project now and then, all is well. Life can continue as normal, with little or no thought about sacrificially serving or giving for the cause of Christ. Tithing\u2014the concept of giving ten percent of one\u2019s income\u2014is a big part of this perception.<\/p>\n

Looking at the Whole Bible<\/strong><\/p>\n

Thinking about tithing needs to take in the panorama of Scriptural revelation. God provides a lot of information regarding material possessions, especially money. Understanding a couple key principles would probably shake to the core most church-goers who place their obligatory ten percent in the plate each week. Let\u2019s check out those core principles and see what comes up. Specifically, let\u2019s figure out where this idea of the ten percent tithe comes from, then figure out how it squares with New Testament Christianity.<\/p>\n

The first appearance of tithing in Scripture occurs when Abraham gives to Melchizedek \u201ca tithe\u201d of spoil from defeating the enemies of Sodom (Genesis 14:20). Abraham\u2019s motive is entirely from gratitude and not obligation. God prescribes tithing throughout the Law. When Israel experiences revival, tithing appears again (Nehemiah 10:38). This constituted an act of worship, but also provided for the tribe of Levi whose sole responsibility was carrying out ceremonial worship.<\/p>\n

Moving to the New Testament, the only references to tithing occur in Christ\u2019s rebuke to hypocritical religious leaders (Matthew 23:23; Luke 11:42). When Christ sees the Pharisees openly casting huge cash gifts into the treasury, He commends the widow who gave, not from her excess riches, but from \u201call she had\u201d (Luke 21:4). This even clues the reader in to what is important when giving to God: \u00a0one\u2019s heart attitude.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s more on what the Bible says about tithing<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Woah, Not Just Ten Percent?!<\/strong><\/p>\n

Brace yourself for some serious shock\u2026Giving to the church seems to go beyond just a simple ten percent. Paul\u2019s second letter to the Corinthians abounds with instruction, encouragement and exhortation regarding giving in the eight and ninth chapters. Ten percent never<\/em> appears. Instead, the New Testament revelation focuses on believers who see a needy church and respond by giving. The believers spoken of in 2 Corinthians are people who are giving from their poverty, to meet that need. The emphasis is a willing heart. The result is fellowship in the labor of other brothers and sisters in Christ and the blessing of receiving God\u2019s grace to supply all your needs.<\/p>\n

Instead of asking, \u201cHow much am I required<\/em> to give?\u201d, New Testament Christianity should ask, \u201cHow much can<\/em> I give?\u201d Sure, blessing will come. Even \u201cgross blessing\u201d…but just maybe not the way you would expect.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“Do you tithe on the gross or net?” “Um . . . well . . . I think . . . usually . . . the gross.”\u00a0“Good. That means you will be grossly blessed!” That\u00a0summarized the conversation of a Christian employer with his new worker. It kind of reflects the thinking of a lot of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false},"categories":[4154,4141,405],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-341","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-church-resources-church-resources","7":"category-church-ministry","8":"category-pastor-how-to"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\nTithing: The Biblical Principle of Giving? - Sharefaith Magazine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sharefaithblog.wpengine.com\/2010\/04\/tithing-biblical-principle-giving\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Tithing: The Biblical Principle of Giving? - Sharefaith Magazine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"“Do you tithe on the gross or net?” “Um . . . well . . . I think . . . usually . . . the gross.”\u00a0“Good. That means you will be grossly blessed!” That\u00a0summarized the conversation of a Christian employer with his new worker. 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