Part 4: The New Testament And Tithes
In the name of God,
Master of the Universe, Ruler of the earth.
There are two very important
questions we seek to answer as we continue the series of Tithing/Offering. First
how and when did the tithe turn into a money offering? Secondly what does the
Bible reveal about the use of money offered to the church. To pursue these
questions we will note the historical development of the major influences on
tithing, offering and giving to the church.
We will now bring up for review
certain specifics in the New Testament that relate to tithing. However we will
at a later point return to the Old Testament and pursue the origin of the
Levites, the Book of Leviticus, money and the various types of offerings. Thus
we believe that the knowledge of what happened in the New Testament days will
help us understand the period that preceded it.
In the New Testament times the record
shows that the motivations behind tithing became perverted. The Pharisees began
to neglect the more important matters of mercy, justice and faith. (See Matthew
23:23).
Matthew 23:23 "Woe unto you,
scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For ye pay tithes of mint and anise and
cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy and
faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone”.
It is possible to obey the details of
the law but be disobedient in your own behavior. The law required the Jews to
give a tenth of the products of their land to the Lord's service. Nevertheless,
the Pharisees were not attentive to the other important matters like justice
and mercy. However, Jesus did not say for them to replace tithing for justice
etc. Just giving without a pure and clean heart is not righteous. See
additional scriptures that reveal that our sincere love and attitude toward God
come first. Only then can we properly obey and observe religious regulations
and rituals: Hosea 6:6, Micah 6:8, Matthew 9: 13, 12:7.
Also see 1 Samuel 15:22 "And
Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices,
as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold to obey is better than sacrifice,
and to hearken than the fat of rams”.
Here again we note that if a person
does not truly love God any sacrifice is just hollow ritual. Thus any gift of
money or time to the church is empty if it is not given out of love and
obedience to God. Meanwhile how did the tithe of crops etc. turn into money? To
answer this question we will look back on the scripture in Malachi 3:8-10 that
is most often used to justify tithing.
Malachi means "my
messenger." As the last Book in the Old Testament the Book of Malachi was
written almost four centuries before the writing of the New Testament. Malachi
written in 450 BC. This Old Testament Book reveals God rebuking the people of
Israel for not honoring God. The people and the priests were no longer showing
the proper respect for the Lord or for his Temple. They were mistreating the
poor and powerless and men were divorcing their wives.
Malachi challenged the people and
especially the priests to be faithful to the agreement the Lord had made with
Israel. They were required to give the Lord ten percent of their harvest and
make sacrificial offerings for sin.
To understand the scripture in
Malachi that relates to tithing you must read the entire book of Malachi and
not just a few verses in the third chapter. As we look at the first verse in
Chapter 3, we note that there are two messengers. The first messenger noted is
John the Baptist (See Mark 1:1-2, Matthew 11:10, Luke 7:27). The second
messenger is Jesus for whom both Malachi and John the Baptist prepared the way.
As we move down to verses, 8-10, we
see the Prophet Malachi chastising the Jews for refusing to bring their tithes
to the Tempe storehouse. This did not apply to money but to grain, animals, and
fowls. In the 9th verse we see a powerful scripture lesson:
3:9. "Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have rebuked me, even this whole nation”.
This scripture is very powerful in
that it reveals the responsibility of all believers. When believers do not act
in a responsible manner toward corruption, they are just as guilty as the
corrupt leaders. Thus the whole nation could be charged with evils complained
of because all the people upheld the corrupt priests and prophets. (See
Jeremiah 5:31).
We also must remember that the
blessings that God promises are not always material and may not be experienced
completely here on earth. Nevertheless, we will certainly receive them in our
future life. Meanwhile by the time of Christ, Roman rule
had greatly affected the economic life of Judea; hence the people had a
difficult time trying to tithe. However, what was the Treasury Box at the
Temple? Also, what was the Temple Tax? What does the Book of Malachi really say
about tithing?
carl@freedomjournalpress.comcastbiz.net