Finding the Way by Ericka Clay - HTML preview
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You get what you give.
Giving is important.
Giving is what God does, over and over again, especially when we don’t deserve it.
And so, giving to others is paramount to loving God’s children.
But like everything else of the heart, it’s not a formula.
There have been people in my lifetime who live and die by the Old Testament’s law of tithing.
And if this is your basis for giving because God has deemed it so, then the body is certainly blessed by your obedience, friend.
But if this line of thinking is being forced upon you, then that’s nothing to rejoice about.
So, let’s break it down:
- Tithing means 10%, but according to the OT, the people of Israel actually ended up giving 20-30% of their income per year.
This post is fantastic in breaking down what those tithes were and why they were given. So if we’re going to “tithe,” it needs to be a lot more than we think.
- This tithing argument is often supported by Matthew 23:23, where Jesus said:
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.
This passage is used to support the idea that the Pharisees tithed, and Jesus was commending them for it.
But we have to remember the Pharisees were bound by the law (Jesus had not yet died and resurrected), and I think if we read this correctly, this isn’t even the point Jesus is making.
Instead, He is pointing out that even though they tithed, their hearts were missing what mattered most.
- Believers are no longer bound by the law but are servants to Christ (who fulfilled the law).
And what did Christ teach about constantly? The heart.
The whole point of the law was initially pointing to our hearts in the first place, but the Savior hadn’t come yet.
But now? We know that giving is a complete act of freedom in Jesus, one that blesses Him and those around us.
And it’s also a blessing to us. Not in the “if you tithe, good things will happen to you” type of way.
But in the "storing up treasures in heaven” type of way, which is the way we’re to live as followers of Jesus.
Lastly, you might come across someone who challenges you if you ever claim that giving is of the heart and not a predetermined formula.
Remember, who does tithing serve? In the Old Testament, it served our Lord.
Now?
Sometimes it serves a pastor who wants a fancier car.
I hate to point this out, but when we look at giving in the New Testament, and when Paul, for example, is requesting donations from the churches, he wasn’t doing so to cover his own expenses.
He was doing this to raise money for the church in Jerusalem that was suffering.
This is how he makes this request to the Corinthians:
Here is something to remember. The one who plants only a little will gather only a little. And the one who plants a lot will gather a lot. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give. You shouldn’t give if you don’t want to. You shouldn’t give because you are forced to. God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to shower all kinds of blessings on you. So in all things and at all times you will have everything you need. You will do more and more good works.
I hate being cynical, but human greed is still a prominent theme in the current church, just like it was sometimes in the church of Acts (just ask Ananias and Sapphira).
And as followers, we need to use discernment. If God is telling us differently from our pastors in a certain season, who are we going to trust?
And this is why, my friends, reading Scripture is the greatest gift we can give ourselves and the body of Christ.
We can’t honestly follow what we don’t truly know.
So my heart is that we all become cheerful givers, keeping our eyes open to those opportunities to bless others the way our bountiful God blesses us.