Christian Living

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The Grace Of Giving!

By Chuck Johnson


I know I may ruffle a few feathers with this article. While this is not my intent, it is none-the-less a probable byproduct of what I am about to write. My interest is in the truth and the proper understanding and application of God’s Holy Word. We are, after all, told that the truth is what sets us free. This is not a study on how a Christian can get out of their obligation to give in support of the gospel. It is, however, a study in the proper application of the scriptures in the area of giving.

Grace: the quality or state of being considerate or thoughtful (Webster’s Dictionary).

Let’s put away all preconceived ideas about giving and with an open heart and mind delve into the truth of God’s Holy word, taking everything in context, not adding or deleting to support what we think or may have been taught in the area of giving.

Many great Bible teachers past and present quote Malachi 3:8-11 as the cornerstone of the doctrine of giving. I myself have used the same scripture to instruct individuals of their obligation to give. There is one additional scripture that is often quoted to teach that tithing is a valid “New Testament” doctrine by showing that it preceded the law. It is found in Genesis chapter 14 verses 18 and 19. Indeed, upon his return from battle in which God gave him victory, Abraham gave a tenth of the spoil to Melchizedek, king of Salem. What’s important to note here is that Abraham did not give the tithe out of obligation or under the direction of a commandment. It was not a compulsory act; it was an act of gratitude. In addition scripture does not indicate that Abraham ever gave a tithe more than this one time. What we are looking at today is a doctrine established on only one or two scriptures out of over thirty dealing with tithe or the tenth part in regards to giving.

It is interesting to note, that there is no scriptural reference to Isaac ever giving a tithe. The next reference to a tithe is found in Genesis 28:20-22 we read about Jacob making a vow to God. In this vow he promised to pay a tenth of everything God gave him, if God stayed with him, fed and clothed him and brought him back safely to his father’s house. Once again we see that this was not a compulsory act, but a vow initiated by Jacob. We do not read of the tithe again until Leviticus chapter 27, when the law is given to Moses. This is a period of well over 400 years.

If the tithe or tenth part is looked at as preceding the law, and indeed, is not part of the law then perhaps we should continue in the church to bring the whole tithe. The question we should look at then is simply this, is the tithe also part of the law? If the tithe is part of the law, are we instructed then to continue in it? Let me share with you what I believe to be the correct answer, and how I came upon it.

My wife and I have been faithful in our tithes for years. In addition, we have given offerings over and above our tithe. One thing that has always bothered me was why so many Bible teachers teach the principle of tithing almost exclusively from the third chapter of Malachi, when, as we saw earlier, there are so many other references to the subject. For example, in Deuteronomy chapter 14 verses 22 through 29 we read “thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the Lord thy God, in the place which He shall choose to place His name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the Lord thy God always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the Lord thy God shall choose to set His name there, when the Lord thy God hath blessed thee: Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose: And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the Lord thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household, And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates: And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest.”

Let’s examine these verses carefully. First in verse 22 we read “you ‘shall’ truly tithe”, the word “shall”, according to Webster’s dictionary, denotes a command or exhortation. It is used in laws, regulations, or directives to express what is mandatory. This definition will be important later in our study. The next interesting point is that the tithe was to be consumed by the one bringing the tithe in the place the Lord directed, and, if the distance was too far for you to carry your tithe, you were to sell it and go to the place the Lord would choose and there at that place buy whatever you wanted and consume it before the Lord. Taking this scripture in its original context, the one bringing the tithe was the same one that was to consume the tithe. This means that it was not used at the discretion of the priests. What I have found is that the modern day teachings on tithing don’t really teach on the subject in totality, but rather simply admonish us to be obedient in this matter. They quote Malachi 3:8, which states that, if you do not tithe, you are robbing God. But is it God they are truly concerned about you robbing? Or are they concerned more about paying their ministries’ bills? Perhaps they are simply teaching as they have been taught..

In verse 28 we read that every third year is the year of the tithe. In this year you were to set apart the tithe of your crops and store it within YOUR gates for the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow that are within your gate. The tithe wasn’t just for the support of the ministry; it was also to care for strangers in the land, orphans and widows. This scripture also helped shed some light on Leviticus 27:31 “And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof.” If a man redeemed, or borrowed, or took back part of his tithe, it was to be repaid with twenty percent interest. But if your tithe went to the temple and was used at the Levites’ discretion, how would you have access to it to redeem it? The tithe remained within your gate, or, in modern terms, city. The temple was in Jerusalem. However, the Levites did not all live in Jerusalem. Therefore you had access to your tithe, but it was not to be redeemed without a cost - in this case an additional twenty percent.

In Nehemiah 10:38 the Levites were to take a tithe of the tithe “…unto the house of our God, to the chambers, to the treasure house.” We just read in Deuteronomy 14:28 that in the third year, the year of the tithe, that the tither was to store the tithe within his own gate (city) allowing access to the Levite first, and then to the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. In Nehemiah 10:38, the Levite was then to remove a tenth of the tithe from within your gate and to take it to the house of God and place it in the treasury. Once again, we see that the tithe is an ordinance given to man and the Levites and verified by the priests.

What led me to this study, quite frankly, was frustration over my wife’s and my financial situation and the financial situation of many of our Christian friends. As I said, my wife and I had been faithful tithers for years and had given regular gifts over and above our tithe. We found ourselves in a situation we did not understand. The job I was in was one very much affected by the prevailing economic condition of the country. I experienced a reduction in my income and then ultimately the loss of employment altogether. I know that we will have various trials, and I do not expect to be exempt just because I am a Christian. However, I do expect God’s Word to continue to work in our lives. When our income was drastically cut, we continued to be faithful with our tithes, but we curtailed our giving over and above the tithe. We went to the Word of God in Malachi 3:10 & 11 “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. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.” In this scripture God promises to open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that cannot be contained and to rebuke the devourer for our sakes.

There are two points in this scripture that stand out. First, we are told to bring the whole tithe and test God, Who then promises to pour out a blessing that cannot be contained. The Hebrew word for blessing used in this passage of scripture is “bakah”, which by implication means prosperity. This promises then, that if we bring the whole tithe, God will pour out of the windows of heaven prosperity on us. Now I am not implying that He would literally pour money from the sky. However, I believe that, as Psalm 1 says, He will cause all that we put our hands to to prosper. The second promise of this scripture is, that God would rebuke the devourer for our sakes. To rebuke means to “turn back or keep down”. These promises are a direct response to the obedience of the believer, basically a cause and effect. If you do this, I will do that - kind of a quid pro quo, which is the Latin term used in legal documents meaning “something for something”. It is very similar to a parent telling a child, “If you obey the rules of our home, you will be rewarded.”

We were searching for answers, and we were at the point that one must get to, if he truly wants revelation. That is the point where you say, “Lord, I want truth for truth’s sake no matter the cost. I am laying aside all preconceived notions of what I may think, or what I may have been taught regarding this subject.” We were paying our tithe, yet we were not experiencing an overflowing blessing, and the devourer was having a field day with us. I might add that we had a cheerfull attitude towards giving, we loved to be obedient to God’s word. Tithing was never anything that we did with the attitude of okay God here it is we’re not happy but we’re being obedient. We truly love to give to God especially, and to others in the name of Jesus. We prayerfully asked God what the problem was. We know that if the circumstance is not lining up with the Word, then the problem is with the circumstance and never with God’s holy Word. “…let God be true, but every man a liar…” (Romans 3:4). We asked God why we were not receiving in response to our obedience, and yes, we had searched our hearts for any possible unconfessed sin which may have been hindering His Word. God spoke to us each separately and told us both to go back and study His Word in regards to tithing and giving.

Remember earlier I talked about whether or not the tithe simply preceded the law or was actually part of the law. If it simply preceded the law and was never actually part of the law, then indeed the precedent has been set and is to continue until the return of Christ. If it is, in fact, incorporated into the law, then this is another matter all together. In Galatians chapter 3 verses 10 through 13 we read “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them. But that no man is justified by the law in the sight of God, it is evident: for, The just shall live by faith. And the law is not of faith: but the man that doeth them shall live in them. Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” This passage in Galatians is clear in many points. First, we are not justified by the law, but by faith. Second, if you continue in one point of the law, you must then keep the whole law. And finally, Christ Jesus has redeemed us from the curse of the law.

So then begs the question: is tithing under the law? How much purer the doctrine which is based, not on a presupposition, but rather on the undeniable Word of God. not on precedence and tradition, but on the truth of Holy Scripture. The answer to this question is addressed in the scriptures. In Hebrews chapter 7 verse 5 we read, “And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law,…” There it is in black and white; the Levites were to take the tithe according to “the law”. The tithe did indeed precede the law, however, it was adopted into the law. The body of Christ, the believer in Jesus the Messiah, has been redeemed from the curse of the whole law.

The apostles and elders in Acts chapter 15 were dealing with an issue of concern for the newly converted Gentiles. The argument was over whether or not the new converts were to be circumcised and commanded to keep the law of Moses. After much discussion a consensus was reached amongst the apostles, and, at the direction of Peter and James, the following dictate was sent to the new Gentile converts: “For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us, to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourselves from these, you will do well.” (Acts 15:28-29). “these necessary things”, Interestingly the apostles, evidently did not consider tithing a necessary thing?

The Apostle Paul, known as the Apostle to the Gentiles, gave no instructions to the gentiles regarding tithing. Considering the fact that Paul was a Pharisee by birth and well versed in the Holy Scriptures, this seems like a blatant omission. How does Paul treat the obligation to give? In 1 Corinthians 16:1-2 we are instructed “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.” The NKJV says “…lay something aside…”

What then is the believer’s obligation towards giving in the New Testament, the age of grace? It’s really quite simple and straight-forward. Give as you purpose in your heart, not begrudgingly, or of compulsion. Your expectation, then, is that you will receive proportionate to what you give. It is not accounted to what you don’t have, but rather what you do have (II Corinthians 8:12). The believer reaps what he sows (Galatians 6:7) - sow sparingly, reap sparingly; sow bountifully, reap bountifully (II Corinthians 9:6). The believer is to purpose, or plan ahead, what he wishes to give (II Corinthians 9:7), and then follow through. To purpose in one’s heart is to determine for oneself. In fact, the Greek word for purpose is “proaireomai” which means “to choose for oneself before another thing”. The believer is not to give out of compulsion (II Corinthians 9:7); don’t give because of the many words, or the tone of the words, of those compelling you to give.

The bottom line is, that, as Christians, we should cheerfully give as we purpose in our hearts to every good work. Give to keep the doors of the local church open. Give to preach the gospel to every creature. Give from a compassionate heart to those in need - both around the globe and in your own neighborhood. And share in all good things with those who teach you the Word (Galatians 6:6). This means, that if you belong to a local church, you should be giving to keep the doors open and the light of the gospel going out.
If you are fed the Word of truth through a radio or television ministry, then you should help support the continuation of those particular ministries. (I encourage you to use wisdom and prudence. Not every radio or television ministry is ordained by God. Prayerfully seek those that God would have you support.) The founder of J.C. Penney’s understood true Christ-centered giving. Mr. Penney gave away ninety percent and lived on the remaining ten percent, and lived very well I might add.

“There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty. The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself.” (Proverbs 11:24-25)

Give, give, give. Just do it for the right reason - not because a scripture is misunderstood or misused to compel you, but because of obedience to the truth of scripture! You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free. Giving is freedom not bondage. It is a wonderful way to thank God by giving back to His kingdom and His people. Giving is grace.






References to the tithe(s) or tithing:

Genesis 14:20
28:22
Leviticus 27:30-31
Numbers 18:24,26,28
Deuteronomy 12:6,11,17
14: 22-23,28
26:12
2Chronicles 31:5-6,12
Nehemiah 10:37-38
12:44
13:5,12
Amos 4:4
Malachi 3:8,10
Matthew 23:23
Luke 11:42
18:12
Hebrews 7:2-4,5-6,8-9

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