Tithing in the New Testament?

     Does the New Testament teach that believers are still under the law of tithing? There are only seven places in the New Testament where the word tithe is used.  Let's look at each one of them and see what they mean for us today. 
 
     First of all, the references to tithing in Matthew 23:23 and Luke 11:42 are both referring to the same instance in which Jesus rebukes the Pharisees because they tithe down to the last penny, and yet, their hearts are not right.  Some use these two scriptures to justify tithing today because Jesus told the Pharisees "these are the things you should have done (tithe) without neglecting the others." What these people seem to forget is that Jesus was speaking to Jews who were still under the Law because Christ had not yet gone to the cross. The New Covenant was not yet in effect; therefore, to apply Jesus' rebuke to Christians today is erroneous.        

          Another reference to tithing in the New Testament is in Luke 18:12 where Jesus is telling a parable about a Pharisee who is boasting before God that he paid tithes of all that he got.  God was obviously not impressed because Jesus tells us that the other man in the story, a repentant tax-gatherer, went away justified rather than the proud Pharisee.  Again, this story does not justify tithing for today. The people in this story were still under the Old Covenant.

          The only other references to tithing in the New Testament are all in the book of Hebrews, chapter seven, where the priesthood of Christ is compared to that of Melchizedek.  The writer of Hebrews is not trying to say anything about tithing in the New Testament church.  He is merely trying to make a point about the superiority of the priesthood of Christ to that of Melchizedek by pointing out that even Levi paid tithes to Melchizedek while he was in the loins of Abraham. Please keep in mind that the tithing mentioned here all took place under the Old Covenant.  This passage is certainly no justification for carrying the law of tithing forward to the New Covenant.

        If the Apostle Paul believed that the new gentile converts were subject to the old Jewish laws of tithing he would certainly have made that clear to us in at least one of his letters to the churches.  As it is, even when discussing the subject of giving he made no such assertion. In fact, in the book of Acts we have a ruling from the council at Jerusalem regarding what was to be required of the gentile converts to Christianity.  In a letter to the churches from the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, it says in Acts 15:28-29, "For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials: that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols and from blood and from things strangled and from fornication; if you keep yourselves free from such things, you will do well."  Please read the whole chapter to get a clear picture of what was going on here. If tithing were as important an issue as some try to make it seem today, surely it would have been mentioned here.

     These are the only scriptures in the New Testament that speak of tithing. None of them state that Christians today are under the law of tithing. Of course, Christians should give, and should desire to give generously, but not because someone says that they have to. There is much joy in giving, but Satan loves to steal our joy by putting us under the Law.

     "Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver."  II Cor. 9:7

     It is difficult to give cheerfully when someone tells you it is mandatory.

Cursed for Not Tithing?

     Am I cursed if I don't tithe, based on Malachi 3:8-9?  Is that really what the scriptures teach? I have certainly heard that very thing from lots of pulpits, or heard it implied. I have a problem with this.
    
     Since I am not under the Old Covenant, I am also not under the Law. Galatians 3:24-25 states, "Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, that we may be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor." I am not an Israelite, I am not under the Law, and there is no longer a Levitical priesthood, a physical temple, or a storehouse, so why would I be cursed for not tithing?

     Since I am not under the Law, I am also not under the curse of the Law. Jesus redeemed us from the curse of the Law when He hung on the cross. Galatians 3:13-14 states, "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us-- for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree'-- in order that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith."

     Ironically, quite the opposite of what I have been told is true. If I choose to, I can put myself back under the curse of the Law by trying to be justified with God by keeping the Law. "For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, to perform them.' Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident; for, 'The righteous man shall live by faith.' However, the Law is not of faith..." Galatians 3:10-12

     Does this mean I am free to just do whatever I want to?  Paul answers this question in Galatians 5:13-14. "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'"

     "If you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law." Galatians 5:18

    

Tithing, an Old Covenant Command

     "Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, 'How have we robbed Thee?' In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you!" Malachi 3:8-9

     Have you ever had someone tell you that you are cursed if you don't tithe based on the Old Testament scripture I have just quoted?  This scripture is used a lot to scare people into giving ten percent of their income. There are numerous problems with doing this which I will try to address in the next few posts.

     The first problem with using this scripture to justify a tithing message is that this is an Old Testament scripture referring to the curse of the law for the nation of Israel if they failed to be obedient to God. The blessings and curses of the Old Covenant that God made with Israel are enumerated in Leviticus, chapter 26. Leviticus 26:46 states, "These are the statutes and ordinances and laws which the Lord established between Himself and the sons of Israel through Moses at Mt. Sinai." Notice that this was an agreement between God and the nation of Israel. It had nothing whatsoever to do with anyone else.

     When Jesus instituted the New Covenant in His blood by dying on the cross, the Old Covenant became obsolete. See Hebrews, chapter 8, especially verse 13.  If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, you are not under the Old Covenant, but the New. If you still think you are under the Old Covenant, then a study of the Book of Galatians should be very enlightening and liberating!

     Please keep in mind that I am not telling anyone not to tithe! You are free to give as much as you want to whomever you want. Give 20 percent, give 50 percent, give it all! Listen to the Holy Spirit and do whatever you believe He is leading you to do. Give it to whomever He tells you to give it. My disagreement is with the twisting and manipulating of scriptures to pressure other people to give under compulsion, contrary to the New Testament model for giving which is in II Cor. 9:7. "Let each one do just as he has purposed in his heart; not grudgingly or under compulsion; for God loves a cheerful giver."

     "...who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life."  II Cor. 3:6

     "Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty."  II Cor. 3:17

     "and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32



    

Did Jesus Tithe?

     The statute or ordinance of tithing for the Israelites was established in Numbers, chapter 18. Here, God set apart Aaron and his sons as priests and the rest of the tribe of Levi to serve the needs of the priests and the tabernacle. Because of their special consecration to the Lord, the Levites were not allowed to own or inherit any land; therefore, they were given the tithe of the land of Israel from the other eleven tribes for their support.

     "And to the sons of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their service which they perform the service of the tent of meeting." Numbers 18:21

     The tithes consisted of oil, wine, grain, and animals, the produce of the land. (Numbers 18:12, 15) Never in scripture will you see anything else being tithed besides the produce of the land. The tithe was never of wages or money. It was always only the fruit of the land; therefore, the only Israelites who tithed were the farmers and herdsmen. The people who did not own land and did not farm or raise animals were not expected to tithe.

     "Thus all the tithe of the land, of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's; it is holy to the Lord." Leviticus 27:30

     Did Jesus tithe? No, since Jesus was a carpenter and not a farmer He did not tithe.

Did Abraham "Tithe?"

     One of the scriptures that is used to promote the present day practice of tithing is Genesis 14:18-20 where Abraham gave a tenth to Melchizedek. People who teach that tithing is still required today like to use this scripture to try to prove their point because it seems to counter the Christians who have realized that New Testament believers are not under the Mosaic law of tithing. Truly, certain Israelites were commanded in the Mosaic Law to tithe the produce of the land for the support of the Levites who were given no land, but Abraham tithed before Moses even came on the scene, so, they say we are obligated to tithe just like Abraham did because Abraham tithed "before the Law."

     So, let us look at what actually happened with Abraham and Melchizedek. The story in Genesis 14 tells us that Abraham's nephew Lot and his family had been kidnapped by some kings after a battle in which Sodom, where Lot was living, was defeated. Abraham, being the good uncle that he was, went after them and rescued Lot and his family. He also took back all the things that these kings had stolen from Sodom. After the battle was over Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils of the war to Melchizedek. Then, he gave the rest of the stuff back to the king of Sodom. 

     Now, for the purposes of our discussion here, there is a very important question we must ask ourselves. Did Abraham tithe in the same sense of the word "tithe" as we use it today? Obviously, he did not. He gave a tenth to Melchizedek (who this man really was is still in question) one time, and what he gave a tenth of was not even his own stuff! It was the spoils of war. Then, after he gave a tenth of it to Melchizedek, he gave the rest of it back to the king of Sodom. He did not keep ANY OF IT for himself! There is no evidence that Abraham ever gave anyone a tenth of anything ever again. Is this a proper pattern for New Testament giving? I don't think so. If you think it is, be sure the next time you win a battle that you give all the spoils of the war away.

     "Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver." II Cor. 9:7

What is a Tithe?

"Each one must do just as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."  II Cor. 9:7

     Technically, a tithe means a tenth, and most of us who have been to church know that when you hear the word "tithe" that means that you are expected to give ten percent of your income that week to the offering plate, and offerings on top of that.

     There was a time, a short period of time, when I believed what I was told, that God expected me to give that ten percent, and I would be "cursed with a curse" (Malachi 3:9) if I didn't give it. God expected it, and that was all there was to it. I had no choice in the matter, no free will about it. The only choice I had was choosing which "church" to give it to, but, of course, I was told that should be the one I was attending at the time.

     When my husband was saved, twenty-five years ago, we began to study the scriptures together. Now, he is very good at asking questions, so he began to ask about this practice of tithing. Where was the command to do this in the scriptures? I was sure I knew the answer to that question, so I began to show him all the scriptures I had been taught about tithing, but as we really began to study these scriptures we realized that all was not as we had been taught.

     In my next few posts I would like to address some of the scriptures that we typically hear being used regarding tithing. It is important for us to understand what the scriptures have to say on this subject. Be a Berean! Acts 17:11 "You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:32

Fifteen Weeks on the Gerson Therapy

     Hello again! It's been over a month since my last post. I have been very busy doing my therapy. It is extremely time consuming, and I can understand why people would not want to do it, but I can testify that for me it has been totally worthwhile. So far, I have avoided having a costly, risky, painful surgery, possibly losing half a lung, then probably having chemo and/or radiation, and we all know what kind of side effects those can cause, and I would still have no guarantee of a cure.
    
     I am still convinced, at this point, that God has led me to do this therapy. I am feeling more healthy all the time. I am working 20 hours a week right now, and my energy level is good. I am not feeling toxic like I did at the beginning, which is a sign that the cancer is on the run. I really have no symptoms of lung cancer, no cough or shortness of breath. It has been six months since I had that first CT scan that told me I had a problem. If the cancer was spreading I would surely be feeling worse by now. At this point, I am guardedly optimistic.

     The blood work I had done after four weeks on the therapy showed my white blood cell count to be a little low, but after ten weeks of the therapy it was in the normal range, although at the low end of it. I will have more blood work done sometime in July, and I expect the results to be even better.

     I am so thankful to God for leading me in this direction. I would recommend the Gerson Therapy to anyone who has any kind of degenerative disease, not just cancer, as it works by boosting the immune system. It is known to cure many other diseases besides cancer. We don't give our own immune system enough credit or support. God made a body that can heal itself if given the right raw materials and care. I am disappointed in the medical establishment that they have neglected to investigate this alternative. I don't think most doctors are even aware of this possibility.  

     On the  spiritual side of things, there are two scriptures that have been especially dear to me in the last few weeks, Psalm 23 and Psalm 91. I take them personally! God is so good!!

     In closing, if you want more info on the Gerson Therapy, watch these videos on Netflix, or they may be available on YouTube:
                                                        The Gerson Miracle
                                                         The Beautiful Truth
                                                          Dying to Have Known
                                                          Food Matters