If the Bible doesn't teach you have to pay tithes any longer under the New Covenant in Yeshua the Christ but the church does then who are you paying tithes to and why? God doesn't require it of you but the church does?? This means the church has laid upon you a "necessity"which is an obligation that is contrary to the Scriptures.
2nd CORINTHIANS 9:7; "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver." #GIVING #TITHES #TITHING
Notice the scripture says "as he purposeth in his heart" and not "as the church purposeth for you". When YOU purpose it then it is a freewill offering that can be given cheerfully, but when the church purposes it for you it is not an "investment" or offering but a "bill" that is a 10% tax on a free salvation they didn't pay for accompanied with the threat of a curse taught in error out of Malachi 3:9. You are also falsely labeled as one who robs God to put a guilt trip on you which is manipulation. In effect, the local church put a toll booth on the "straight & narrow" road that leads to Heaven after Christ paid it ALL. So now you go from being a "cheerful giver" to being a "fearful debtor". This too is contrary to scriptures because God doesn't threaten you to make you give or that would make him a terrorist and a pimp which is completely contrary to his character. Salvation does not put you in financial debt to God; it frees you.
For over 500-years after the Church began nobody taught or paid tithes until the Roman Catholic church brought it back to tax the people by falsely teaching the clergy was the new priesthood instead of all believers were priests as the scriptures say in 1st Peter 2:9; "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people....", and in Revelation 1:6; "And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father...." Churches that teach tithing can never show from one New Testament scripture where tithing was taught as an ordinance of the church by Christ & the apostles, and when researching it historically & biblically they ignore the facts in search of proving their bias & tradition over truth. You would think there would be clear evidence in New Testament scriptures instead of silence wouldn't you?!? Many of today's churches are teaching dead ordinances and even witchcraft unawares that actually produces results via the doctrine of "sowing seeds"; meaning money.
The "seed sowing" teaching made popular by prosperity preachers is a form of witchcraft called "conjuring" where money is used as a medium to acquire financial favor, but YAH is not the power or source of these false "blessings". The results produced draw one further into its deception to change your affections from spiritual things to material gain which leads you further away from the LORD like the church of "Laodicea" in Revelation 3:14-19 (please study this for yourself so you know it and won't be deceived). It causes a person to base their state of blessings on their financial prosperity and not solely by faith in the righteousness of Christ for their spiritual prosperity. Material wealth becomes the measure of their salvation and faith while creating envy, strife, comparisons, and competition in the Body of Christ. That is the Devil, not YAH. God doesn't need or require your money to bless you; he only wants your heart.
JAMES 3:15-16; "This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. 16) For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work." #FalseTeaching
Keep in mind Abraham only gave tithes once his entire life as did Jacob, and when he gave the scriptures say he paid once and for all for the entire tribe of Levi as the priesthood which exempted them from paying tithes. The scriptures state plainly the priesthood & high priest have changed to the order of Melchizedek which is greater than that of Levi & Aaron. Melchizedek was a "theophany" of Christ as the high priest of YAHWEH manifest to Abraham in the Old Testament (a physical manifestation of GOD prior to the incarnation of Christ). When the priesthood changed from Aaron to Melchizedek so did the law of tithing and those in Yeshua Messiah also became exempt under the New Covenant as was Levi under the Old Covenant. We, the born again believers of the New Testament, are now the priesthood and also children of Abraham by faith in Christ who himself paid for us once and for all with his blood. If Christ paid it all then you don't have to pay at all. Give freely and generously as you are able.
HEBREWS 7:9-12; "And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. 10) For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him. 11) If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? 12) For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law."
Christ mentioned tithes only once in Matthew 23:23; "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith....", and in Luke 11:42; "But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God...." Yeshua was scolding the Pharisees while they were still under the law before his death, burial, and resurrection to begin the Church. Also note that money is never mentioned as tithes because it was always agriculture and things that could be harvested or grown for food. We got the tithing thing wrong and need to admit it and then quit it. If you have to choose between your bills & necessities versus paying your tithes you should take care of your bills & necessities because the church will not no matter how much tithes you have paid. If we teach proper giving and financial stewardship we'll be even better off than we are now because we'll free the people to give cheerfully rather than keep them in bondage to giving fearfully. Shalom. ~ I.J. West aka "The Hitman"
For clarity sake let me reiterate and expand on a few points. As it has been said, Abraham only tithed once as a freewill offering and never was required to do so. He first gave Melchizedek tithes of all before he even addressed the kings about the spoils of war, and it was the kings to whom he said he wouldn't take anything of.
ReplyDeleteGENESIS 14:18-23; "And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God. 19) And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth: 20) And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. 21) And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself. 22) And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the LORD, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth, 23) That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich".
Furthermore, Cain & Abel did not tithe; they gave offerings. Abel gave of the firstlings of his flocks, and Cain gave of his agriculture as an offering to Yah. All that stuff predated the law as freewill acts of worship and giving. Once the law came into place it became mandatory because the Lord had to transition the people from idolatry into a true covenant relationship, and to insure the priest who had no inheritance as well as that of the poor, fatherless, widows, stranger, and such were provided for. None of these were required to pay tithes, and we are now the priesthood of a better covenant and neither are we required to pay because as Abraham paid it all for Levi who was still in him so did Christ pay it all for us who are in him (Read HEBREWS chapter 7).
DEUTERONOMY 26:12; "When thou hast made an end of tithing all the tithes of thine increase the third year, which is the year of tithing, and hast given it unto the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within thy gates, and be filled".
Tithing was the first welfare system and it was set up by God Almighty himself, but has been pimped out and twisted by men which is why it was done away with in Christ. Even the Jews consider paying tithes a sin without the Levitical priesthood being in place to receive them so they don't pay tithes either and that law was given to them not the New Testament Church. When truth meets tradition folks have a hard time choosing truth when it so completely upsets and overturns the traditions they've accepted as truth for so long. Tithing is not required and teaching it as such is wrong. It's not taught anywhere in the New Testament as an ordinance of the Church nor was it practiced for over 500 years after. If people still argue it but won't research it then let them pay, but know that you are free.
We all must read, learn and study to find knowledge. Knowledge is the "KEY."
DeleteSo do we need to give the tight to the church or not? Because Jesus said give what is belong to Ceasar and give what is belong to God. In this words from Jesus, there is no tenth percent of income. I just want to share my thought about in giving tight and offering in the church. What I understand is so that the church will continue to do the services every Sunday, the church needs financial to pay the rent and other needs. Example workers of the church need financial to travel to preach the words of God into other places. Church want to do charity work to help those are in need of help. Places where struck by nature calamities earthquake and giving help to finance new church in on places. If we have the love of Jesus in our heart, i think it is not hard for us to understand how to return what belong to GOD. Because if we truly born again transformed in the wholeness of Jesus Christ, we are free to every doubts in our mind. All what we have material things, wealth and luxury life this are not our own. All belongs to God.
ReplyDeleteIf you want to give 10% of your income you can but you are not required to per scripture. Giving to the local assembly is always for the benefit of the members and to do ministry outside the building no matter if there is calamity or other such occurrences. The "church" is not the building but the people are, and if the building becomes a burden on the people then it has to go not the people. Christ asked for our lives and not our stuff. In fact he often asked his disciples to leave their things behind to follow him. Paul worked to support his ministry and himself, and even wrote not to be a burden on the local assembly of believers. If people want to give then their is a blessing in that and ministry does need financing, but it is never meant for the lifestyle of the minister to live lavishly or above the means of his fellow members by living off of them.
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