Tithing

Tithing

The Bible, throughout the Old and New Testaments, teaches the practice of tithing. Tithe is defined as a tenth (ten percent) of one’s increase, and it is commonly understood to be God’s portion of the trust relationship that brings about the increase.

Some have described the tithe as a contract with God in which ninety percent of any increase is ours and ten percent is God’s. But I think a better way to understand it is in the context of a love/trust relationship with God.

Consider the difference such perspectives, a contractual view versus a love relationship view, have on our approach to returning tithe. Does tithing impact one in the same way if the tithe is a business relationship with God, some legal contract, in which ten percent of any profits are God’s and ninety percent are ours, as opposed to one entering into a love/trust relationship with God in which everything is His from the start—as God not only gives life, health, sunshine and rain, and blesses our hard work with a return, but He also gives us ninety percent of all gain to manage as His steward, using what we determine is right for our own necessities, recreation, charitable giving, etc.—and He retains only ten percent specifically designated for the advancement of His kingdom on Earth?

What motive might develop in our heart if we were to approach tithing as a business deal and believe that as long as we give our ten percent, God will continue to use His divine power to bless us with more wealth?

And what motive would be engendered in the heart if we were to live out a love/trust relationship with God that recognized that everything is already His and all gain is experienced not as a business deal but as blessings from God, which He graciously gives us ninety percent?

The first point is that the tithe is God’s, but it’s not something we owe; it was never ours to start with. The ninety percent is the gift and blessing of God to us.

 

The Purpose of Tithe

What is the purpose of the tithe? To advance the gospel.

Most Christian communities have used the tithe to pay for any activities that support spreading the gospel, such as paying pastor salaries, paying for evangelism activities, paying for missions and missionaries, and producing various sharing materials that advance the gospel, etc.

Various organizations set different guidelines for the use of the tithe, but the general Christian principle is that the tithe is used to advance the gospel. This is the first purpose of the tithe.

The second purpose of the tithe is to strengthen the faith of the one who returns it. Tithing is an opportunity to exercise faith in God through action and, thereby, experience a growth and maturing of one’s faith.

But tithing strengthens the faith only of those who tithe in faith. Those who tithe legalistically—that is, in fear, in distrust, as in some business deal expecting or demanding that God act to increase their wealth because they paid their tithe—will not experience an increase in faith. Just consider those fastidious tithe payers who crucified Jesus. They even paid tithe on the herbs in their garden (Luke 11:42), but it didn’t result in their experiencing greater love and trust in the Father or in Jesus.

 

Common Questions About Tithing

Many have other questions about the tithe and tithing. After realizing the biblical validity of tithing, people often ask questions like:

  • To where are we to return our tithe?
  • Who is authorized to receive it?
  • Do we, as God’s friends, have a responsibility to determine where we return the tithe that God has put in our hands?
  • Or are we to blindly return it to some organization, denomination, or system regardless of what that system or organization teaches?

If you lived during the Dark Ages, to whom would you pay your tithe? If we believe the tithe is to be used to advance the gospel—that God is love and does not coerce the conscience, would returning it to the Roman church to fund its Crusades be fulfilling that role?

What about today? Would God have His tithe given to institutions or organizations that are mispresenting Him, especially if there are other organizations that are advancing the true gospel?

Do we have a responsibility to evaluate where we return our tithe, or should we blindly pay it to the organization of our upbringing?

One of the founders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church wrote this:

There are ministers’ wives … who have been devoted, earnest, whole-souled workers, giving Bible readings and praying with families, helping along by personal efforts just as successfully as their husbands. These women give their whole time, and are told that they receive nothing for their labors because their husbands receive wages. I tell them to go forward and all such decisions will be revised. The Word says, “The labourer is worthy of his hire.” Luke 10:7. When any such decision as this is made, I will, in the name of the Lord, protest. I will feel it my duty to create a fund from my tithe money to pay these women who are accomplishing just as essential work as the ministers are doing, and this tithe I will reserve for work in the same line as that of the ministers, hunting for souls, fishing for souls (Daughters of God, p. 106, emphasis mine).

 

It has been presented to me for years that my tithe was to be appropriated by myself to aid the white and colored ministers who were neglected and did not receive sufficient [income to] properly to support their families.

I have myself appropriated my tithe to the most needy cases brought to my notice. I have been instructed to do this, and as the money is not withheld from the Lord’s treasury, it is not a matter that should be commented upon, for it will necessitate my making known these matters, which I do not desire to do, because it is not best.

Some cases have been kept before me for years, and I have supplied their needs from the tithe, as God has instructed me to do. And if any person shall say to me, Sister White, will you appropriate my tithe where you know it is most needed, I shall say, Yes, I will; and I have done so (2 Manuscript Release, pp. 99, 100, emphasis mine).

This author believed that in giving her tithe directly to people who were not employed by the institution but who were still promoting the true gospel message that, 1) she was acting at God’s direction, and 2) the money was going into God’s treasury; i.e., His storehouse.

What do you think? Do we have a similar responsibility today to evaluate where our tithe is going?

I believe that the gospel would advance much more rapidly if every believer took seriously the responsibility of prayerfully evaluating where they returned the tithe that God has placed in their hands. This would require each person to rightly discern, by prayer and study, what is the true gospel of Jesus Christ and then examine where they are placing their tithe, deciding if that organization is advancing the true gospel—which goes beyond agreeing with a list of doctrinal beliefs to determining whether or not the methods employed by that organization in how they treat others harmonizes with the principles of God’s kingdom.

In doing this, it would change the people returning the tithe to become more effective in their own lives and sphere of influence and the gospel would lighten the world!

 

A Biblical Example

I believe that God was teaching this very principle in one of the few places He gave direct instructions on how to use the tithe, not merely to return the tithe but also what it was to be used for. It is a very difficult passage to understand, one that I have never heard a sermon upon:

Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the LORD your God always. But if that place is too distant and you have been blessed by the LORD your God and cannot carry your tithe (because the place where the LORD will choose to put his Name is so far away), then exchange your tithe for silver, and take the silver with you and go to the place the LORD your God will choose. Use the silver to buy whatever you like: cattle, sheep, wine or other fermented drink, or anything you wish. Then you and your household shall eat there in the presence of the LORD your God and rejoice. And do not neglect the Levites living in your towns, for they have no allotment or inheritance of their own. At the end of every three years, bring all the tithes of that year’s produce and store it in your towns, so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands (Deuteronomy 14:22–29 NIV84, emphasis mine).

How do we understand this passage? Let’s look at the context. God was dealing with former slaves who just came out of Egypt; their minds were filled with all kinds of pagan beliefs, and some even believed in pagan gods. They were also surrounded by pagan nations who had pagan worship centers in the mountains all around. And God wanted to establish a different system of worship that taught the truth about Him and differentiated Him from the false gods and the false religions.

Just a few verses before God gave these instructions on how the tithe was to be used, He told them:

These are the decrees and laws you must be careful to follow in the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess—as long as you live in the land. Destroy completely all the places on the high mountains and on the hills and under every spreading tree where the nations you are dispossessing worship their gods. Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and burn their Asherah poles in the fire; cut down the idols of their gods and wipe out their names from those places. You must not worship the LORD your God in their way. But you are to seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to put his Name there for his dwelling. To that place you must go; there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. There, in the presence of the LORD your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the LORD your God has blessed you (Deuteronomy 12:1–7 NIV84, emphasis mine).

All false systems of worship have powerful gods that make up rules and enforce those rules through inflicted punishments. Those gods require the worshiper to bring offerings to the god as payment for their sins, to earn forgiveness, to appease the god’s wrath, and to merit a favor or blessing. The bigger the sacrifice of the worshiper, the bigger the influence on the god. Thus, many pagan religions ended up sacrificing their children to the false god in order to pay for their sin or buy his support.

God was teaching the Israelites that He is the opposite of such gods—that it is from Him that all their blessings flowed; that they could not buy His grace, influence Him with offerings, or sacrifice to Him to get good things; that He didn’t need an offering given to Him to pay for their sins; but that from Him comes all blessing, that God sacrificed Himself for them, to reach them, love them, heal them, and save them. The lesson was clear, direct, and powerful: God uses His resources to bless humanity; He doesn’t require that we buy blessings from Him. That same message is for us today!

Thus, God’s portion—the tithe—was to be used, at God’s instruction, to bless the tither, for the tither to receive from God resources to strengthen and bless them. Thus, the purpose of the tithe—to advance the gospel—was accomplished!

What is the gospel? The good news about God. In directing the people to use the tithe to buy resources for their use in worshiping Him, they received directly from God blessings and experienced the good news. They experienced that God is good, that God gives, that God sacrifices for us. We can trust God! And as the apostle Paul later wrote, it is the kindness of God, which stands in stark contrast to the lies of paganism, that leads people to repentance (Romans 2:4).

But why instruct them to buy fermented drink? What happens to wine without refrigeration or vacuum sealing? It either ferments or turns to vinegar.

Fermented wine was a common drink of the day. God is not endorsing drunkenness; in fact, the Bible specifically warns against drunkenness. But God is meeting people in the reality in which they live. They routinely drank weak fermented wine, and God was telling them, in this context, to buy whatever they prefer to drink with their meals, that drink is a gift from God and is to be used to rejoice in the Lord and experience the reality that God is good, that God gives to uplift us. It is that simple. It would be an error to use this text to make a case for or against alcoholic beverages.

There is a real blessing in our faith relationship with God in the practice of tithing. I encourage you to prayerfully examine the question for yourself, to be fully persuaded in your own mind of this instruction, and then determine where God would have you return the tithe in order to advance the good news about Him!

 

 

Email me the blog whenever a new one is published.

Donate online, securely via PayPal, using your credit or debit card (no PayPal account needed, unless you want to set up a monthly, recurring payment).


cancel recurring payment

Upcoming Events

calendar

Testimonial Post Slider

Testimony 68

Your message of design law vs imperial law is so uplifting and makes so much sense- it is a game changer for me. The fact that Jesus’s death is not a big payment by an angry God is , quite frankly, a relief.

Laura G., London, Ontario, Canada

 

Testimony 61

I grew up in a prominent protestant church and had what I like to call religious anxiety. I’ve always had questions about God and Salvation that no one could seem to answer.  I didn’t know how to find resolution. During 2020, at the height of my anxiety, I fell to my knees and begged God to show me truth and light and to give me the hope that I’ve been longing for. Days later, I stumbled upon your online videos and it was like a veil was lifted and EVERYTHING made sense! For the first time in my almost 39 years of life, my religious/spiritual anxiety has lessened. I feel a sense of freedom and peace I’ve NEVER had before… and it’s all because my view of God has changed. Thank you!

Ashleighn C.

 

Testimony 45

I have been confused for years about what [christianity] calls [its] most disgusting teaching. It has never made much sense to me and for that reason has been evermore empty. I have listened to your class off and on and have struggled determining what is truth, because of the resistance design law encounters in the church. So, I thank God for your ministry. What you teach makes sense. It’s logical and backed up by the power of love. I have never seen that in Christ until now. I am astounded by the insight that is found when we look at God’s ministry through design law. All strength to this message, as I believe it to be the power of God.

Brendon S.

 

Testimony 33

I was invited over a friend’s house to see the “God and Your Brain” seminar today. I became [a christian] 36 years ago at the age of 19, but have struggled with the concept of God taking His ‘pound of flesh’ out on His Son to be appeased. Wow. Your seminar has been an incredible revelation and breath of reason and fresh air! I have your book, “The God Shaped Brain,” and it is SO eye opening. Finally, after 36 years enlightenment has come! Praise the Good Lord! What can I say, but that the Real Gospel is truly “Good News!” Thank you for your efforts in giving the Gospel a clear sound!

Paul C.,  Springfield, MA, USA

 

Testimony 51

I Love This Ministry!!!!!!! I see first hand how this message is desperately needed, how erroneous beliefs about God and His Character negatively affect humanity at every level. I thank God for your ministry, as I was searching on my own and was discovering some of your same beliefs and was blown away when I found your ministry. I know you hear it all the time, but it is truly life changing. May God continue to reveal His Will to you and Bless you!

Eric S., Sanford, FL, USA

 

Testimony 1

Thank you! I love listening to the Come And Reason Ministries Bible study classes and am using some of your notes to get the lessons together that I will be teaching. You always have such good quotes and Bible texts and pull things together to make good sense.

T. C., IN, USA

 

Testimony 40

I was brought up in a different faith and have been petrified my whole life of God. I believed that I would burn in hell for eternity. When I was 12 I started pursuing the things of this world, but for the next 45 years the Spirit was always calling me, as I knew there was a God through nature. I could see the vast sea of stars in the universe and knew there was something bigger out there. Five years ago, through a Revelation seminar, I was blessed to learn about God’s character and government.

Then I found Come and Reason Ministries and have come under some extreme pressure when I speak about the ministry. One time a member sent me an internet article titled “Whats wrong with Tim Jennings?” I asked her what she thought of it and she said “I don’t know, I didn’t read it.”

I have always wanted to find out for myself the truth about God, so I stayed with the Design Law construct and have been liberated to understand the big picture. Once we consider Design Law, all other Bible stories and prophecies seem to fit perfectly. It is truly beautiful to see people grasping how God operates this Universe of Love and the liberation it has provided in their lives. It blows my mind to see how consistent Design law is with what our founders believed. I hear statements like “This makes so much sense.”

Tom W., Mt. Pleasant, MI, USA

 

Testimony 6

I got the book “Could It Be This Simple?” a few months ago and the reading was wonderful and I was fascinated. I lent the book to a friend at work. She is having a difficult time and the book is helping her to find Jesus and I found this very exciting. She has asked me questions and I can see her life changing.

H. S., Australia

 

Testimony 66

I am incredibly grateful for the transformative impact you’ve had on my life, and words cannot fully express my appreciation. Over the years, I have been an avid listener and follower of C&R and extend my heartfelt thanks for creating the C&R mobile app. It has allowed me to immerse myself in your lessons repeatedly, enabling me to grasp the profound significance about the Character of God, Design Law, the protocols for life, the reasons behind the current chaos, and Christ’s mission to restore everything. They have deeply touched me. Having studied with various churches, I came away with the perception that God is no different from the deities of ancient Greek or Roman mythology—demanding sacrifices and taking pleasure in bloodshed. Thanks to your transformative teachings, I have experienced a profound awakening to the true nature of God and the immense power of His love. It is truly a remarkable and liberating sensation to finally grasp the truth and embrace the empowering nature of God’s laws. My self-perception has become brighter and more infused with love. My journey of growth continues on a daily basis.

Chris P., Lake Mary, FL, USA

 

Testimony 9

I really enjoy with you the view of a gracious God. Thank you for sharing the work you are allowing the Lord to do in you.

L., Queensland, Australia

 

Testimony 16

Your seminars are still inspiring and changing our lives and we continue to share the principles we have learned from you. Your ministry has changed our lives!

E.W.

 

Testimony 5

We listen to your bible studies lessons in our class in Montana. You actually were the main reason I decided to get a laptop, so I can go to your site and listen, read, learn, and print the class notes. I am so grateful to learn the correct view of God and his character. Now, to just have others have an interest in knowing, so I can share it with them. Good thoughts your way.

R. N., MT, USA

 

Testimony 15

I have been sharing Come And Reason Ministries Bible study lessons with several folk. You have such a beautiful view of the plan of salvation. If we had this message preached when I was young, my generation would still all be in church.

H. R., New Zealand

Testimony 52

Your unique way in spreading the truth is what we all need today. Most of us don’t recognize the contamination coming from all the lies and selfishness in the world. Because of our fear of death, we forgot how to live. Lies left and right. I was losing hope and faith, because of so many ideas that are always contradicting each other – so many questions answered by other, more complicated, questions – until I found your channel on YouTube.

You did not just give me answers, you also taught me how to answer new questions that arise in my mind. Now I see things differently. I see God’s mercy, grace, and Love everywhere, in spite of all the chaos that we all have done as humans. I don’t fear death anymore. Accepting the Truth and Love about God is truly a genuine Freedom from all the confusions, sufferings, selfishness, pain, and death.

I just wanted to say, thank you, sooooo much for revealing the real Remedy for our infected life. I have a new hope and now see the world in a different perspective!

Wheinny P., University Place, WA, USA

 

Testimony 34

I was introduced to Come and Reason Ministries by accident, via a passing comment made in a bible study class we were visiting. I checked this website out and my life was changed. The understanding of the truth of God’s character, and how we apply it, is so right. The tricky part is consistently applying which “lens” to look through. As I began to understand, I started sharing the basics of this understanding with a discussion group I was leading and, suddenly, a lot of things started to make sense that never used to. At the same time, I enjoyed an amazing opportunity. I was able to conduct a full bible study at WORK! What an amazing experience! It is such a joy to share the truth about God and to share how it all fits in the war between God and Satan. So many people benefit when we have a correct understanding about how God works and who He really is! Thank you for this transformational understanding. Keep up the good work! God Bless you!

Tony P., CA, USA