continuation...THE TITHES IN CHRISTIAN WORSHIP AND PRACTICE (Part 2)

Malachi 3:10—12 “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in my house , and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground, neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.”

Let us study the practice of tithing in Judeo-Christi biblical teachings only. I have already said that the act of giving something of value in our worship of God is built-in our vey being when God created us in his own image and likeness and breathed into us his very life and spirit and we became living souls. Throughout the Holy Bible we learn that God is always giving and pouring out His graces upon us. John writes to let us know that “we love him because he first love us” (1 john 4:19) “for God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should, but not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16).” It is the very character of God to give. Since has created us in his image and likeness we reflect everything he is and does.

Nobody commanded Cain and Abel to worship God with fruits and produce of their labor. Yet in their hearts, minds, and souls both brought gifts to God in their worship and thanksgiving. There was no command to Abram to offer tithes of his booty in war to Melchizedick the priest of the Most high God in praise and thanksgiving in his worship of God. There was no condition of blessing from God because of the tithes. Neither was there a threat of a curse if Abram did not tithe. Therefore the tithe is a visible and tangible affirmation of man’s acknowledgement of God’s sovereignty and ownership over all his creation. Psalm 24 declares “The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” It also an acknowledgement and acceptance of God’s divine mandate. Psalm 8:5-6 “For thou hast made a little lower than the angels (other translators translate this verse ‘a little lower than God), and hast crowned him with glory and honor. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands, thou hast put all things under his feet,” Therefore the tithe from a grateful heart honors and glorifies God who is pleased to bless him most abundantly with “good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over shall men give into your bosom” (Luke 6:38). This is the unchanging rule of God’s blessing “good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over.”

The bottom lines in giving gifts to God in worship are a) know that God owns all things, b) He mandated man to be his steward over all his creation, c) “Moreover it is required in stewards that a man be found faithful” (1 Corinthians 4:2).

The tithe anti-dates the law of Moses. It was incorporated to the Law later as the tribes
became settled. It is not the same as the law of sacrifices and taxation on every male 20 years old and above. It alone survives the laws of sacrifices. Jesus places it as number 4 in priorities

which are justice, mercy, and faith, and tithe (Matthew 23:23).

You can be very strict and meticulous in giving your tithes, but if you are not humble and obedient to God your tithes become a curse and a stumbling block to faith. Never the less, Jesus says, you will not lose your rewards, But they shall be eaten by moths and destroyed by rusts and thieves break through and steal. So do give because you expect a reward. Give, whether it be a tithe or a freewill love offering to honor and glorify God. Make it a habit to be a giver expecting nothing in return. Be humble, compassionate, and charitable and blessings will continue to “come to you, and overtake you”. “And whatsoever your hands find to do shall prosper” (Psalm 1:3).

The tithe given to God in worship is an act of grace through faith Imagine what blessings God gives you by allowing to use nine-tenths of his treasures to invest in acts and things you do to honor and glorify God. your stewardship entrusted by God to is in your management of the nine-tenth. The tithe or one-tenth is God’s portion given to the church for whatever the church
purposes to do – feed the hungry sojourners, the poor widows and orphans, the sick and the infirmed among you, support of missionaries and missions, necessary infra-structures. It is in the nine-tenth and how you use it to honor and glorify God, that God will give you in “good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over shall men give to your bosom.”