When we talk with other Christians about offerings and tithes, the question will inevitably arise: How much should I give? Offerings and tithes have been a sore spot for some people. Not because they don’t want to give but because of many of the manipulative tactics used over the years to separate people from their money. Happily, the Bible clearly defines how we should approach offerings and tithes. Maybe you have struggled with offerings and tithes or questioned why they matter. Hopefully, we’ll lose some of the confusion today.
In the Bible, an offering is something set aside from our resources (paycheck, seasonal harvest, whatever someone’s profession allows them to give) and given to God. A tithe is a specific amount: one-tenth of what you earn.
“Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine, and olive 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.” (Deuteronomy 14:22-23)
I want to look at this from two perspectives. The Old Testament perspective and the New Testament perspective. Both address giving, but we must ask how they each approach the subject. Do they have different perspectives that we need to consider?
The Old Testament establishes the concept of giving offerings to God early on. Many people associate tithing with the law, but offerings and tithes occur before the law. The first record of giving appears in the story of Cain and Abel. The Bible tells us that Abel was a shepherd, and Cain worked the ground. Abel grew the meat, and Cain grew the fruit and vegetables.
“In the course of time, Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. . .” (Genesis 4:3-4)
The Bible doesn’t explicitly mention Adam and Eve instructing their children to give an offering to God or whether God asked for an offering. Regardless, they understood that they honored God by giving the fruits of their labor back to him.
We also see giving to God in Genesis 14, when Abraham gave a tenth of everything he had regained to Melchizedek, the King of Salem. This is a tribute to another king, but Melchizedek was a priest-king, and the New Testament compares him to Jesus (Hebrews 7:17), so the offering is an offering to God by association.
Offerings are also mentioned in Genesis 28 when Jacob vows to give a tenth of everything the Lord gives him.
All these references predate God establishing the law between him and the nation of Israel. When that happens on Mt. Sinai, God introduces the principle of tithing (see Deuteronomy 14).
The tithe had several purposes. When the Israelites gave the tithe, it supported the Levites and other priests, who had no ancestral land to provide income. Also, a section of the tithe provided for foreigners, widows, and orphans.
Perhaps the most important reason was that giving the tithe recognized that God is the provider of all things and everything belongs to him.
In the New Testament, the idea of offerings and tithes shifts from obedience to the heart—most notably in Jesus’ words about tithing, where he emphasizes the giver’s heart.
The shift to talking about the giver’s heart raises a question many Christians have debated for years. If the focus is the heart, are we still commanded to tithe today? Some argue that tithing is part of the law that Jesus fulfilled, so the requirement has passed. Others note that while Paul talks about giving, it’s hard to say if he specifically mentions tithing (giving a tenth of our income to a synagogue or church body).
I encourage you to read the discussion about tithing for New Testament believers and draw your own conclusions. However, I would like to focus on something more important in the New Testament today: what is giving for?
Giving still matters, but the heart with which you give is more important than the amount. Consider these scriptures.
“And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us.” (2 Corinthians 8:5)
“Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Corinthians 9:7)
“If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.” (1 Corinthians 13:3)
These three verses tell us some important aspects of offerings and tithes today.
You give yourself to the Lord before giving any offering or tithe. (God is after your heart more than your money.)You give with a willing and cheerful heart. (If you are tricked or manipulated, don’t give. If you feel reluctant and have no joy in giving, address what is in your heart because there will be no blessing in giving with this type of heart.)You give out of a heart filled with love. (If you are not motivated by love in your heart for God, his work, and his people, you won’t experience the joy in your giving.)Too often, we face two inappropriate motivations for giving.
1. Guilt. Chances are you have heard the following scripture before in conversations about giving:
“Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.” (Malachi 3:8-9 KJV)
When we hear this, we initially feel guilty; we don’t want to rob God. However, guilt (or, more properly, shame) is a terrible motivation for giving. Conviction may sometimes help us get back on track, but conviction is about recognizing we’ve made a mistake and God doesn’t love us any less. Shame says we are tainted because of our mistakes. We have no shame in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1). Shame does not speak to giving your heart to the Lord nor to giving with a willing and cheerful heart. It provides an initial urge to give, but it is not sustainable. Giving motivated by shame will cease after a while, and there will be no joy in it.
2. Greed. The flip side to being motivated by guilt/shame is to be motivated by greed. Malachi warns about this motivation, too:
“Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine 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.” (Malachi 3:10 KJV)
If guilt doesn’t get you, then greed might. You may hear that God will bless you when you give abundantly. In this think, you get back more than you gave, and your cups run over as long as you give. However, this prosperity gospel approach is also the wrong motivation for giving. If you give with the sole purpose of expecting God to give you something back, that is not giving but investing. It is reasonable to expect a return on your investment when you invest, but that is not how giving works. If you give only because you expect a return, then this too is not sustainable because if the “harvest” is slow in coming, that can sour your heart on giving.
Giving is a big enough topic that I could dig a lot deeper into its points, but it’s better to keep our discussion compact. I want to focus your attention on one last thing about offerings and tithes. Giving is an act of obedience, motivated by love, that comes from a joyful heart. When people love Jesus and are excited about the work of the kingdom, then giving will result. You won’t need to twist people’s arms because as people grow in their love for Jesus and take on more of his character, giving will become part of who they are.
“And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord's people.” (2 Corinthians 8:1-4)
Clarence L. Haynes Jr. is a speaker, Bible teacher, and co-founder of The Bible Study Club. He is the author of The Pursuit of Purpose which will help you understand how God leads you into his will. His most recent book is The Pursuit of Victory: How To Conquer Your Greatest Challenges and Win In Your Christian Life. This book will teach you how to put the pieces together so you can live a victorious Christian life and finally become the man or woman of God that you truly desire to be. Clarence is also committed to helping 10,000 people learn how to study the Bible and has just released his first Bible study course called Bible Study Basics. To learn more about his ministry please visit clarencehaynes.com.
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