Am I supposed to give all of first job's wages to god?

[StandingFirmInChrist]

I disagree. Jesus did not abolish the ordinance, nor did He abolish the law. Matthew 23:23 and Luke 11:42 shows this to us:

"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 most important matters of the law - justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former." (emphasis mine)

Then, we also have Matthew 5:17-20, which says, "Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not one iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore, whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

As you see above, the Pharisees tithed but did not love. So, are we as Christians to love but not tithe? I daresay that we are to tithe cheerfully and love abundantly, to exceed that which the Pharisees considered to be good enough.

And, honestly, what is the big deal anyway? 10% is a trifle when you consider what God has done, is doing and will do for you. If you attend church, you are called to support the moving and work of God in that church with your tithes. (Malachi)

Ephesians 2:14-15 clearly reveal that when Christ died, the ordinances were abolished:

Ephesians 2:14-15 For he is our peace, who hath made both one, and hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us; Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace; (emphasis mine)

In Matthew 5, Jesus did not say He did not come to abolish the Law, He said He did not come to DESTROY the Law. And He put a time frame on how long the Law would stand... until all be fulfilled.

Matthew 5:17-20 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil. For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled. Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.

All was fulfilled at the cross. That is why Christ said, "It is finished." He came to fulfill the demands of the Law and once He did, He abolished the Law. Even the Apostles revealed that at the Jerusalem Council when they chastised the religious leaders for demanding that the Gentile Believers "keep the Law of Moses."

What was the decision reached by the Apostles and the Holy Ghost that day?

Acts 15:28-29 For it seemed good to the Holy Ghost, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things; That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.

The decision was, don't place the Gentiles under the Law. And Paul, in his epistle to the Galatians berated the Galatians for putting themselves back under the Law after having begun in the Spirit, saying they were foolish to do so. Paul told the Galatians that once they came to faith in Christ, they no longer needed the schoolmaster. (the Law) He instructed them, "Cast out the bondwoman and her son."

Christ did abolish the Law... tithing ordinance included. You cannot produce one Scripture in the entire New Testament where the Apostles taught tithing. But I have produced Scripture that reveals that the ordinances of the Law were abolished with all of its commandments.

 

[mystdancer50]

It says "until heaven and earth pass away". Has that happened yet? Nope.

Seriously, what is the big deal about giving 10% of what God has given you back to Him? People act like He's asking for an arm, which He isn't. What is 10% of $100? $10. Wow. That is a lot of money. What's 10% of $1000? $100. It is not a lot of money. If you can't afford to tithe, that means that you are living outside of your means and that you need to adjust your life, not adjust the Bible to fit you. Come on folks. The Bible says that in the end times, people will be lovers of themselves and lovers of money. When we greedily refuse to give 10%, what does that say about ourselves and our hearts?

And, what do you have to say about the Pharisees only doing half, only giving their tithe but not loving, and Jesus' command to do greater than they? If you don't tithe, are you doing greater than the Pharisees? No, you are not.

 

[mystdancer50]

And, I just thought of this. We are called to daily take up our cross and follow Him, to forsake family and home for Him, to leave all behind for Him, to die daily to the flesh for Him, to die as a martyr, should it come to that, for Him. And yet we won't give 10% of our wages to Him? What is that about? You're either completely sold out and are His 100% or you're not. Malachi is abundantly clear that not giving tithes and offerings is robbing God.

Also, consider your pastor. Would you rather he have to work full time elsewhere and then come into the church building to work for you? Oh, wait, what church building? Without tithes being brought into God's house, there wouldn't be a church building. How do you think the mortgage is paid on church buildings? How do you think the pastor is paid?

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

The tithe Malachi was speaking of was a tithe of agricultural produce within the land of Israel.

If that Law was not abolished as you claim, you still have a major hurdle to jump. The fact that the Holy Ghost and the Apostles said the Mosaic Law was not to be required of the Gentile Converts. The Mosaic Law was given to the children of Israel and no one else.

There is no command to tithe money to the Church. That is a man-made doctrine invented in the late-18th Century A.D.. Tithing of money was never taught by the church prior to 777 A.D..

Jesus said of the Pharisees in Matthew 15:9...

Matthew 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

When you teach man-made commandments (the monetary tithe) as if they were the doctrines of God, your worship is in vain.

There is no Scripture that says the Church became the storehouse. There is Scripture that says the Church is not to foolishly place themselves under the Law of Moses. When they do such, they commit spiritual adultery.

Romans 7:1-4 Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over a man as long as he liveth? For the woman which hath an husband is bound by the law to her husband so long as he liveth; but if the husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married to another man, she shall be called an adulteress: but if her husband be dead, she is free from that law; so that she is no adulteress, though she be married to another man. Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God.

Paul said we have become "dead to the Law" that we should be married to Christ. Notice how he points out if a women is married to a another man while her husband lives she commits adultery? We are married to Christ. If we go to the house of the Law, we commit spiritual adultery.

 

[mystdancer50]

Malachi 3:10 "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]."

When tithes were unpaid, the priests were deprived and had to give up their ministry and to begin farming. The nation’s religious life was hindered and the poor and strangers suffered. But, the real iniquity was that such disobedience was robbing God, who was the true King of Israel.

A “storehouse” was a room in the temple to store the tithes of crops and animals brought by the people. This was the temple treasury. One of Nehemiah’s tasks was to insure that the supplies needed for support of the temple ministry did not fall as it had during his absence.

God has challenged them. God will multiply all that they give Him so abundantly, that they will not have enough containers to hold it all. I have seen this work in my own life.

It is not just money that we should tithe. If we give God His tithe of our time, we will find we get much more done in the time left, than we could have with all the time. Christians believe in firstfruits giving. We give in anticipation, not one tenth of what we have already made.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

How is the Church to keep its doors open if not by tithes?

Here's a novel idea...

Tell the members of the need. Ask them to pray about giving. If they truly love the Lord, then they will give to meet the needs.

As to the pastor? Scripture nowhere endorses salaried pastors. Paul told the Elders at Ephesus that they should work, following his example. The Thessalonians as well were told to work or they should not eat.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

Malachi 3:10 "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]."

When tithes were unpaid, the priests were deprived and had to give up their ministry and to begin farming. The nation’s religious life was hindered and the poor and strangers suffered. But, the real iniquity was that such disobedience was robbing God, who was the true King of Israel.

A “storehouse” was a room in the temple to store the tithes of crops and animals brought by the people. This was the temple treasury. One of Nehemiah’s tasks was to insure that the supplies needed for support of the temple ministry did not fall as it had during his absence.

God has challenged them. God will multiply all that they give Him so abundantly, that they will not have enough containers to hold it all. I have seen this work in my own life.

It is not just money that we should tithe. If we give God His tithe of our time, we will find we get much more done in the time left, than we could have with all the time. Christians believe in firstfruits giving. We give in anticipation, not one tenth of what we have already made.

God told the Israelites to tithe. He never told the Church to tithe.

 

[mystdancer50]

Christians should give out of the willingness of their heart, and thanksgiving to and reverence for God, both for who He is and for the blessings He has bestowed upon them. Giving is done in response to the good teachings which Christians receive, to support those who teach, and to support saints in need. By following these teachings, and the examples set by New Testament Christians, we may always give willingly and joyfully, and please God with what we have and bring to offer.

 

[mystdancer50]

God told the Israelites to tithe. He never told the Church to tithe.

God is unchanging, yes? And we have been grafted in to the Israelites and all their promises have become ours, yes? Thus, His commands to the Israelites regarding tithing become our own...or we might as well forget the promises too. That is the problem with 'modern' Christianity. We treat God's word and commands like a buffet, picking the things that work for us and leaving the things that don't.

I still don't understand what the big deal is for someone to give 10% of their income to God. What is the big deal? It is not 30% or 50% or even 75%. It's 10%.

I tithe because I love God and because I acknowledge that He is Lord in my life, that He is sovereign and that all that I have belongs to Him. I give because He has loved me and blessed me beyond measure. Even if He never did another thing for me, the salvation Jesus brought to my life would cause me to give to Him for all eternity. And, yet, He doesn't stop there. He still gives, still pours out, still anoints, still blesses, still helps, still heals, still speaks...so why hedge and haw and not tithe?

It is sad that Christians do not want to give 10%, not just to honor God, but to support those whom God has called to feed His sheep.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

I am not against giving at all. What I am against is pastors teaching the Church to do something that the Word of God never requires of the Church. The Bible is clear, our giving is to be of our own choosing, not because so-and-so said give "x" amount.

When a pastor (or anyone else) says God requires us to tithe, that pastor (or other person) has not told the truth. There is no command in the Word of God for us to tithe today.

 

[mystdancer50]

Truly, it doesn't matter what the pastor says or doesn't say regarding tithe, as Christians just ignore him anyway. This thread itself shows that many balk at the prospect of giving 10% for whatever reason. Tithing is a heart issue. Either you want to give and glorify God with your giving or you don't. I, personally, believe the Word of God does command us to tithe, based on the Scriptures I've shared, but I don't want to argue anymore.

Tony Cartledge says, "One doesn't have to appeal to a legalistic tithe in order to demonstrate the importance of generosity and the common sense reality that churches and their ministries cannot survive if their members don't support them. If our faith really matters to us, we won't tithe because we have to, but because we want to." And I am inclined to agree.

See more at: Why Most of Your Church Don't Believe in Tithing on EthicsDaily.com

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

God is unchanging, correct. With Him there is no variableness.

Our "unchanging" God said in His Word that His Holy tithe was agricultural; i.e., crops and livestock. The Israelites were not told to tithe their money. They were told they could buy back their tithe with their money, but never to tithe their money. Tithe was always eaten; by the tither, by the Levite, and by the poor in Israel.

Since God is unchanging, and His tithe was always food, then it stands to reason if it is still to be observed, then it should be a tithe of food as He said it was to be.

The monetary tithe is an invention of man. God never told the Church to tithe money... Never!

 

[mystdancer50]

God is unchanging, correct. With Him there is no variableness.

Our "unchanging" God said in His Word that His Holy tithe was agricultural; i.e., crops and livestock. The Israelites were not told to tithe their money. They were told they could buy back their tithe with their money, but never to tithe their money. Tithe was always eaten; by the tither, by the Levite, and by the poor in Israel.

Since God is unchanging, and His tithe was always food, then it stands to reason if it is still to be observed, then it should be a tithe of food as He said it was to be.

The monetary tithe is an invention of man. God never told the Church to tithe money... Never!

Good. Then hand your pastor some food and tell him to pay the bills with it. Let's see how nicely that works out for everyone.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

Truly, it doesn't matter what the pastor says or doesn't say regarding tithe, as Christians just ignore him anyway. This thread itself shows that many balk at the prospect of giving 10% for whatever reason. Tithing is a heart issue. Either you want to give and glorify God with your giving or you don't. I, personally, believe the Word of God does command us to tithe, based on the Scriptures I've shared, but I don't want to argue anymore.

Tony Cartledge says, "One doesn't have to appeal to a legalistic tithe in order to demonstrate the importance of generosity and the common sense reality that churches and their ministries cannot survive if their members don't support them. If our faith really matters to us, we won't tithe because we have to, but because we want to." And I am inclined to agree.

See more at: Why Most of Your Church Don't Believe in Tithing on EthicsDaily.com

If the majority of Christians ignore the pastors plea for tithes, I applaud them! They should not bow themselves to doctrines that are not in the Word of God.

I pray that more and more Christians open their Bibles and read what God says His Holy tithe is. I pray they then challenge their pastors concerning the man-made doctrine of monetary tithing. That pastor has no right to teach for doctrines the commandments of men.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

Good. Then hand your pastor some food and tell him to pay the bills with it. Let's see how nicely that works out for everyone.

I'm not told in the Word of God to tithe my food. That ordinance was given to Israel... not me. I am not an Israelite. My coming to faith in Christ did not make me an Israelite.

For me to submit to the tithe command would be to imitate the Galatians and act foolishly. The Law was not meant for anyone who did not live in Israel. The Word of God makes that abundantly clear.

 

[Christaly]

You are not an Israelite but because Jesus dies for our since we are adopted into the family. and exactly the law does not count anymore, so we don't give food like they use to.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

I am adopted into the family of God, not the tribes of Israel.

In Christ, there is no Jew nor Greek.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

So, tell me Christaly, where is the Scripture that says we are supposed to tithe our money? You admit that the Law doesn't count.

Why teach that we are to give 10% of our money, saying God requires it? If God requires it, it must be written somewhere in His Word. Where?

Mystdancer50 says we are to tithe our money, then uses Malachi 3 as support. But Malachi 3 is not speaking of money at all. Where does Scripture say we are to tithe our money?

 

[vanillakay]

Let's say that your unemployed and are in the process of looking for a new church. Is it really stealing from God not to give if you don't have what to give too or the money to do so? I certainly hope not.

 

[StandingFirmInChrist]

Let's say that your unemployed and are in the process of looking for a new church. Is it really stealing from God not to give if you don't have what to give too or the money to do so? I certainly hope not.

Hi vanillakay.

Not tithing is not robbing from God. Not if you have no money, nor if you have sixty-thousand dollars


If it is, then Abram is also a God-robber. For he is not said to have ever tithed of his money. Isaac also, would be a God-robber. He never is said to have tithed his money either. The Israelites? No mention of them tithing their money either.

So many God-robbers in the Bible. That is, if we are to believe the lie of the monetary tithe doctrine that is being preached in many churches today.

But who are we to believe? God? or man? God's Word defined His Holy tithe as being from the crops and livestock in national Israel. There is no indication in the Word of God that the tithe was ever amended to be a tithe of money.

So the answer to your question is, you are not robbing God at all. Pastor's often try to guilt their flock to tithe their money by going to Malachi 3:8-10, when that text says nothing of a monetary tithe. When the do, they are guilty of extortion.