If you don't agree, cam you show where the Christian is told to tithe in the new testament and show where tithing originated from in the Old Testament?
I humbly submit...perhaps the real question is not with "tithing by who" but rather "to who?"
Another question might be, "what purpose did, or does the tithe serve?"
And yet another question might be..."is 10% all you feel compelled, or obligated to give, to help others, in return for what our Lord has done for you?"
Seeing that most Christians do not believe in all 66 books is the word of G-d like yourself, trying to separate the Old from the New, why did you bother to ask? Just for a real kicker did you not know the tith for us� Jews� in the OT is over 33%?
However all 66 book are the inerrant WORD OF G-d. He changed or He didn�t!?! if He did tell me why I should believe in the New Testament and Y-eshua is the Messiah????
The English word �tithe� as well as its Hebrew-Greek equivalents �ma`aser� and �apodekatoo� means a tenth.
Many Christian churches preach tithing as a means of supporting the work of the Lord today. There are many variations of this theme. Some pay the local church one tenth of their income after taxes and bills are paid; some pay before. Others demand tithing on unemployment, inheritance, gifts, tax refunds, social security and even gambling winnings. The tithing issue has caused a great deal of strife and division in our churches over the years.
The most well known passage on tithing comes from the Old Testament book of Malachi 3:7-10. This Scripture has given rise to the practice of �Storehouse Tithing.� Simply stated, the congregation is exhorted from the pulpit to channel all of their Christian giving through the local church (storehouse). If they wish to give to a Christian organization, radio or television broadcast, etc., it must go through their denominational machinery in order for the local church to get �credit.� Also the pastor and elders often must make the determination if the cause supported by the giver is �worthy.�
This use of the Malachi passage is a good example of Scripture being taken out of its historical and dispensational context. �This whole nation� in verse 9 is the backslidden nation of Israel, NOT the present day church (Malachi 1:1; 3:6). They were under the law of Moses as a system of conditional blessing. Believers today are not under the law but under grace (Romans 6:14). As such we have already been blessed by God with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ (Ephesians 1:3) and are under a system of unconditional blessing with grace on the throne (Romans 5:21).
This should put an end to the common charge that believers who don�t tithe are �robbing God� and will be �cursed with a curse.� The storehouse mentioned in verse 10 is not a local church but a storage bin or silo in the Jewish temple where the grain from the Hebrew�s tithes was stored (2 Chronicles 31:4-12).
Under the law only agricultural products were tithed. They included grain, fruit, and livestock. Only products produced within the boundaries of the land of Israel were to be tithed. Jews living in Gentile lands were exempt (Leviticus 27:30-34).
Others exempt from the tithing law included the hired hands, fishermen, miners, lumber workers, construction workers, soldiers, weavers, potters, manufacturers, merchants, government workers, and priests. In short, all who were not farmers were exempt.
A farmer with only 9 cattle did not tithe because the law specified the �tenth which passeth under the rod.� Likewise a farmer with 19 sheep paid only 1 sheep to the Lord�s tithe.
The Jewish farmers in the land could redeem (buy back) the tithes of their crops with a penalty of one fifth. In other words, if a farmer wishes to keep his tithe of grain worth $1,000, he could pay the cash equivalent of $1,200 (Leviticus 27:31).
Livestock could not be brought back nor could the farmer exchange a good animal for a bad one or vice versa. Any attempt to substitute any other animal other than the tenth which passed under the rod would be penalized by the farmer forfeiting both the tenth and its substitute (Leviticus 27:33).
God ordained the Levites to be the ones to whom the tithe was paid (Numbers 18:21). They were one of the 12 tribes of Israel to whom no inheritance was given in the land. The Lord Himself and the tithes of the children of Israel was their inheritance. It was used for the service of the tabernacle (later the temple) (Numbers 18:20-28).
It was unlawful for anyone outside of the tribe of Levi to receive the tithe, such as prophets, preachers, kings or evangelists.
The Levites paid one tenth of their tithes to the high priest. Not all Levites were priests but only the sons of Aaron. The priests did not tithe.
The Lord Jesus Christ did not ask for or receive a tithe for support of His ministry. Being of the tribe of Judah (not Levi) He could not without breaking the law (Hebrews 7:14; Revelation 5:5).
Neither Peter (not of the tribe of Levi) nor Paul (of the tribe of Benjamin) could receive tithes for the support of their ministries.
Even the Jews do not practice tithing today because there are no Levites, priests, or temple worship in Jerusalem. Jewish rabbis know biblical law well enough to know that tithing under the present circumstances is unlawful. According to them, when the temple is rebuilt in Jerusalem with a consecrated altar with priests and Levites officiating, all Jews living within the biblical tithing zones will tithe.
Some Christian ministries today continue to support tithing, using the argument that it predates Moses and the law. But this reasoning is not valid, for the Sabbath also predates the giving of the law (Exodus 16:23-29) and yet it is not binding on God�s people today (Romans 14:5,6; Galatians 4:9,10; Colossians 2:16,17).
Abraham gave tithes to Melchisedec, king of Salem, but this was the spoils of war, not the legalistic tithe of the land which Moses commanded. Also, God did not command the tithe, Abraham chose to give it of his own free will (Genesis 14:17-23; Hebrews 7:1-10).
The only other scriptural reference to tithing before Moses is Jacob. Again there is no command to tithe. In fact Jacob puts up numerous conditions to be met before he will pay the tithe to the Lord (Genesis 28:20-22).
The biblical references which address the tithing issues are: Genesis 14:20; 28:22; Leviticus 27:30-32; Numbers 18:20-28; Deuteronomy 12:6,11,17; 14:22,23,28; 26:12; 2 Chronicles 31:5,6,12; Amos 4:4; Malachi 3:8-10; Matthew 23:23; Luke 11:42; 18:12; Hebrews 7:5-9. 1
Paul the apostle to the Gentiles for this present dispensation of Grace does not mention tithing but says a great deal about Christian giving. Romans 15:25,26; 1 Corinthians 9:7-14; 16:1-3; 2 Corinthians chapters 8 & 9; Galatians 6:6-10; Philippians 4:10-19; 1 Timothy 5:9-18.
WHO is to give to the Lord�s work? The Christian! He gives systematically, sacrificially, and joyfully. TO WHOM does he give? To Christ! FOR WHAT does he give? For the cause of Christ! NOT to a man or to a church, not for gain, but for the Gospel.
Notes:
According to Deuteronomy 14:22,23,28; 26:12; and Amos 4:4, the tithe was only given every three years. ↩
Locust, thanks you for posting the Hebrews 7 chapter. That is a good one showing that Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils (Which was a ONE TIME THING since Scripture does not show him doing it again, or even seeing the King of Salem again). So, if this tithe is to be practiced by the Christian because of this, then that leaves us to conclude that we are not to give tithes from our daily sustenance and give it from our spoils ONCE in our lives and no more as Abraham did. What are your thoughts?
Also, for the last question you posed, here is one that should be asked before anything else.
Where did the tithe come from and WHY CAN WE ONLY TRACE IT BACK TO 7 HUNDRED YEARS AFTER CHRIST AS IT BECOMING A CHRISTIAN FUNDAMENTAL OF PRACTICE?
Pj, Did you ever bother to read the very first few posts of Malachi? That book is POINTED TOWARDS THE TEMPLE PRIESTS BECAUSE THEY ABUSED God's principles. Nice try though.
mcubed, sister, God has not changed, but His covenant has. He stated this in the Old covenant and that he would make a NEW COVENANT. Did He not? So what makes you think that God changes? As for why you should believe in the Messiah question, because He was spoken to have come and fulfilled all of the Law and the Prophets from within them. Does that suffice for you? And what, may i ask, makes you think that the Old hasn't been done away with considering Hebrews 8:13 says it was?
Thanks for your contributions brethren, but I still see nothing to show that the tithe is a Scripturally supported practice though.
Amen LocustHoney to the scriptures you posted. I don't think we can separate the OT from the NT brother Agape, the word of Yah is one book and the NT does not nullify the OT. I believe the Holy Spirit leads us in our tithe. I do not attend a church regularly, but the last one I attended I met a young lady who is going out on the mission field and I was lead to tell her before I left that I would like to sponsor her, this was Holy Spirit led. I believe the word says to give what you feel in your heart to give and that Yah loves a cheerful giver, of course we can also give of our time and talents in addition to our resources.
I never said that the NT nullified the OT, sis. I said the old covenant is done away by bringing in the New.
Jesus, by fulfilling all of the Law and the Prophets, did away with the old covenant and gave us the new one. That is what Hebrews is pretty much saying.
That's why the eighth chapter says:
Hebrews 8:1-13 ESV
Now the point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister in the holy places, in the true tent that the Lord set up, not man. For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They serve a copy and shadow of the heavenly things. For when Moses was about to build uperect the tent, he was in by God, saying, "See that you make everything according to the pattern that was shown you on the mountain." But as it is, Christ has obtained a ministry that is as much more excellent than the old as the covenant he mediates is better, since it is enacted on better promises. For if that first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no occasion to look for a second. For he finds fault with them when he says:
"Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord,
when I will establish a new covenant with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah,
not like the covenant that I made with their fathers
on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt.
For they did not continue in my covenant,
and so I showed no concern for them, declares the Lord.
For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel
after those days, declares the Lord:
I will put my laws into their minds,
and write them on their hearts,
and I will be their God,
and they shall be my people.
And they shall not teach, each one his neighbor
and each one his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord,'
for they shall all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest.
For I will be merciful toward their iniquities,
and I will remember their sins no more."
In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away.
So, you see. The NT says the old covenant was abolished. Do you agree?
Yes, I agree with you bro, thanks for the explanation and the scripture you posted. I understand we are under a new covenant which was provided by Yeshua being the perfect sacrifice for our sins and the old covenant of animal sacrifice being done away with. In the new covenant, we are to present our own bodies as a living sacrifice to YHWH,
"Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual act of worship" (Romans 12:1).
Opposition to God is compared by Samuel to soothsaying and oracles, because idolatry was manifested in both of them. All conscious disobedience is actually idolatry, because it makes self-will, the human I, into a god. So that all manifest opposition to the word and commandment of God is, like idolatry, a rejection of the true God. "Because thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, He hath rejected thee, that thou mayst be no longer king." ממּלך equals מלך מהיוה (1 Samuel 15:26), away from being king.
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. 1Sam 15:22
The problem with your analysis is that you have learned the beginning from the end rather that the end from the beginning which is the problem for many Christians. Therefore interpretation becomes a problem.
You have divided the word and separated the people of G-d by creating a different new covenant. G-d did not give one way of life to one people and another way of life to Gentiles. There is only one Word of God for all people. The first five books of the Bible (Torah) is complete way of life. The rest is a chronology, prophetic, teaching and fulfillment. The times of G-d and when he will reveal Himself to His people are defined and we as believers never learn their meanings or celebrate them.
The revelation of the Scriptures was given by G-d to the Hebrew people to reveal to the nations. He said His Glory would be revealed through them. One misses the width and depth of the Word without the richness and true understanding from the Jewish people.
Nothing, I mean nothing of the First Covenant is done away with to bring forth the New Covenant. It is fulfilled in the New Covenant. The meaning of that is to write the way of life of G-d on our hearts instead of on tablets or through external practices. The way of life, the order of life and the spirit of G-d would dwell within us. The order G-d is revealed in the First Covenant by the physical or natural to help us understand the supernatural.
Let me share some examples. Many Christians believe that the first evidence of what Christians practice as communion was first presented at what you call the "last supper". Well I submit to you that happened in Genesis 14:18 as the king of Salem, Melchizedek. And the reference of the "last supper" as the final Passover Seder would not allow Yeshua (Jesus) to return for the true wedding feast of the Lamb. For He said, But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom. If you have understanding of the Passover Seder you would know which cup that is. Without that understanding you are left to just a single cup and lost to define it yourself.
The second example is immersion or what you call baptism. One of the traditions of the Hebrew/Jewish people was immersion. Whenever a man or woman would leave one way of life for another way of life was to be immersed in water. From peace to war, from war to peace, from single to marriage, before Sabbath begins, after slaughtering animals for food etc. It was not a New Covenant experience. The Hebrew/Jewish people knew what John was saying.
This may help you understand that one cannot separate the Word or way of life G-d defined for our own purposes.
May the G-d of Abraham, Issac, and Jacob give the blessing of longing for the richness of His Word and the opportunity to hear it from the beloved of G-d.
