To Tithe or not to Tithe

[Taffinee]

I have always wondered about tithing. It seems that Malachi 3:10 is only used during offering times. I had a young man come up to me and ask me If he did not tithe would he go to hell? My response was no, I want to get some feed back from you out their. What is the reason for tithing and how did it turn from feeding the needing to bleeding the needy.

[Russell Earl Kelly, PHD]

In Numbers 18 (the tithing statute) the reason for tithing is to support the Levitical servants to the priests. These servants did all of the dirty work but did not minister as priests (18:21-24; Neh 10:37b).

The Levite gave one tenth of their tenth (1%) to the priests who ministered atonement (18:25-28; Neh 10:38-39). In exchange for receiving the tithe neither Levites nor priests could own or inherit property (Num 18:20-28) and were to kill anybody who tried to worship God directly.

Today both the priesthood and temple reside within the individual believer (1 Pet 2:9; 1 Cor 6:19).

Since the church was never commanded to tithe after Calvary the modern teaching of tithing is wrong. See my site for over 150 articles. www.tithing-russkelly.com

[Steve]

I started my career as a tithe collecting opponent by communicating my 'finds' to the pastoral staff. They showed me the exit and God showed me Himself in His fellowship with me.
The two things I found: Deut 14 on the exchange of the tithe for money. The question I posed;... is this a prophecy of the exchange of Christ for 'thirty pieces of silver'?
The second: Isaiah 56:9-11 on the greedy shepherds who look for their own gain and love strong drink (Deut 14:25).

I said to the elders who escorted me out of church....Jesus said I was to have two witnesses. The one elder who heard my 'finds' said, "That is just an oversight, you still have to go." The Holy Spirit sang in my spirit as I was escorted out the back door.

[Taffinee]

When the truth is told people are not going to always accept you. Continue to tell the truth about the word of God and in turn he will continue to bless you. Thank you for your contribution to this forum,

[Taffinee]

I read the article The tithe is illegal and it did give me alot of insight. Every Sunday when I attend church. My spirit dropps when we have to hear a surmon about tithing. It really drops when the majority of the church pay tithes and give offerings and at the end of the year the church is broke and begging for more money. Thank you for that insight and please continue to keep the churches in prayer.

[Russell Earl Kelly, PHD]

I think that black churches are hurt more by tithing than white churches. Tithing is treated like a heavenly lottery and both are played as if waiting for a money tree to blossom in the back yard.

Paul warned in Galatians 1:8-9 that adding to the Gospel he preached brought a double curse. And he said in Galatians 3:10 that the only way to claim a blessing from tithing is to keep all of the hundreds of commandments of the Law. Now, according to Romans 7:4 even Jews are dead to the law and the law cannot tell a dead person what to do. According to 2nd Cor 3:10 the old law has zero glory --and I mean zero. That part of the old law which applies to Christians must be found in the pages of the NT after Calvary in terms of grace and faith.

The "law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" of Romans 8:2 guides our lives as Christians. The law of EQUALITY (a good word for the black church) is seen in 2nd Cor 8:12-15. It means that many should give far more (than 10%) while some are blessed even though they cannot even give (10%).

They key words for Christian giving are "freewill" and "sacrificial" --especially "sacrificial." If one is not giving sacrificially (no matter what the percentage) he/she is not beholding Christ's example (per 2 Cor 3:18) and is not giving as a new creation in Christ (2 Cor 5:17).