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| In God or in Gold? |
Q: Good day Deji Yesufu. Your article “I Cannot Afford to
be a Christians” has generated some controversies. Can we say from
that article that you are asking Christians to no longer give a tithe of their
income to their local churches?
A: No.
Q: So what were you trying to say, in summary, from that article?
A: That article is simply an evangelistic message to non-Christians
to reconsider the gospel of Jesus again. I was saying in that article that
salvation is fully paid for by God for all men and to partake of it we are
called to believe in Christ; Only. Now, as an addendum to the whole discourse,
I brought in the issue of tithing; showing that tithing is one example, among
others, in which modern organized churches have succeeded in discrediting this
free salvation of Jesus; giving the impression that one is not a good Christian
except the individual pays a tithe of his income. My grouse is with the word “pay”.
Q: So you are saying that Christians must not be asked to pay tithe,
although they could give their tithe?
A: Exactly.
Q: Is there is difference between the word pay and give?
A: Plenty. The word pay denotes fulfilling an
obligation; or meeting a prescribed requirement; or attaining the demands of a
law. The word give denotes free will: a freedom to do as one
purposes in one heart. The Old Testament clearly shows that the law required
the children of Israel to pay tithe to the Levithical order (Numbers 18:21).
The New Testament does not teach anywhere that Christians must pay tithes
and offering. The scriptures show clearly that giving in the New Testament is
simply free will and not obligatory or by necessity (1 Corinthians 9:7).
Q: How then did the concept of paying tithes and giving offering
come into the church?
A: It came from a wrong interpretation and application of biblical
truths. Most Christians today, following Paul’s revelation, accept that the
laws of Moses has been abolished in the New Testament (Hebrew 7:12, 2
Corinthians 3:7, Galatians 3:24-27); they agree that Christians are not to pay
tithes according to Moses’ injunction but they insist that we must follow the
example of Abraham, who is the father of our faith, when he gave a tenth of the
war spoils to Melchizedek. They say that Melchizedek is a type of Christ and
for Abraham to give tithes to Melchizedek, Jesus is Melchizedek and we should
give tithes to Christ through the church he has ordained on earth.
Q: But that makes perfect sense. So what do you have against
Abraham’s tithing and the call for Christians to imitate him by tithing too?
A: Now let's understand the main issue at hand here. The wrong
interpretation and application of biblical truth that I mentioned above is the
fact that in regards to tithing, the church uses Abraham as an example on one
hand but calls believers to tithe according to the law of Moses, on the other
hand. When ministers ask people to tithe they use the Malachi 3:8-10 scripture
to cajole people to pay their tithes or a curse will come on them, forgetting
quickly that there would never had been a Malachi 3 if there had not been a
Leviticus 27 and Numbers 18. I am saying in effect we cannot say we are not
under Moses’ laws but resort to Moses laws to lay justification to a doctrine
and practice in the church. If we must follow Abraham’s example, we must tithe
as Abraham tithed; but if we must follow Moses’ law, we must obey the law to
the letter and not just take one law out of the 613 laws God
gave Israel through Moses, and leave the rest (Galatians 5:3; James
2:10) .
And in addition to this if we were to follow Abraham example by
imitating everything he did: Christians will go to war; Christians will sleep
with their house maids; Christians will circumcise their children on the eight
day; Chrisitians will lie; etc. It is Abraham's faith in God that brought about
his justification (Genesis 15:6) we are called to imitate and not every minute
detail of his life (Galatians 3:6-9).
Q: But you still have not answered the question I asked: Why
should Christian not tithe like their father in the faith, Abraham, did.
A: To understand Abraham’s tithing, we must resort to two
scriptures: Genesis 14 and Hebrew 7. The first thing we see from that scripture
is that Abram, not yet Abraham at that time, gave a tithe and
not pay a tithe to Melchizedek. So if Christians must tithe
following Abram’s example, it must be free will giving and not obligatory
payment. Also, we see that Abram did not give this tithe to curry a blessing
from Melchizedek, as we are made to believe when we are told to tithe so as to
open the heavens over our finances, according to Malachi 3. Rather he gave a
tithe after he had been blessed by Melchizedek (Genesis
14:20). So his giving was a kind of thanksgiving offering or gratitude – the
same way Christians can come forward to thank God for a deliverance, blessing
or safety with an offering. Thus, rather than being an obligatory
paying, we see this as an example of free will offering of thanksgiving.
Abram, in this story, gave a tithe of war spoils. It is nowhere recorded that
he gave a tithe of his possessions to Melchizedek; even though he made
reference to his wealth in that passage of scriptures (v.22- 23). We see from
this example that Abraham’s tithing was a once-for-all event; and not a weekly
or monthly duty. Now, other translations of scripture, other than the KJV,
translated the word “tithe” in v.20 as tenth. This they did not because the two
words differ but to distinguish this particular tithe or tenth from the
religious tithe or tenth that God will require of Israel to give to the Levites
under Moses later (Leviticus 27, Number 18). Many bible scholars, including
those who agree and disagree with tithing today, accept that what Abraham did
was in keeping with the custom of that age: were Kings and Priests were given
ten percent of spoils obtained from the war front. Abraham was simply following
an established custom and thus the tithe he gave here cannot be seen as a
religious tithe (like we would find under Moses) but a customary tithe.
Christians do not go to war today; and even if they did and obtained war
spoils, we see from Scriptures that God either regarded war spoils as an
abomination (Joshua 6:17-18) or gave specific instructions in regards to how to
use them (Joshua 6:19; Numbers 31:25-30). God has never demanded a tithe from
war spoils.
Q: What about the reference in Hebrew 7:2, that showed us that
Abraham gave a tenth to Melchizedek?
A: At this point I would refer to Matthew E. Nerramore online book
on tithing http://tekoapublishing.com/books/tithing/index.html.
Quoting from Chapter five, the author shows us the real gist of Abraham’s
tithing as found in Hebrew 7 through this logical progression: When
Abraham gave the tithe to Melchizedek, all of Abraham’s unborn descendants were
symbolically in his loins; which means that the tribe of Levi and all the Old
Covenants priests were in his loins; which means that all the old testament
priests were there paying tithe to Melchizedek; which means that when Abraham
received the blessing from Melchizedek, all the old covenant priests were also
there receiving the blessing from Melchizedek; therefore, because the one who
receives the tithe and gives the blessing is greater than the one who gives the
tithes and receives the blessing. Melchizedek is greater than the old covenant priests. And
because Melchizedek is proven to be greater than the old Covenant priests, that
proves Jesus is also greater because he is a high priest after the order of
Melchizedek.
So the subject of tithing was brought into
this passage not for it to be an instruction for New Testament
Christians to follow but to show the greatness of the priesthood of
Christ – by comparing it to that of Melchizedek. Please note that Jesus is not
a priest after the person of Melchizedek but after the order of
Melchizedek. There is nothing in that scripture that shows that Jesus and
Melchizedek are one and the same person. Also the Hebrew 7 scripture, like
Nerramore had stated in his book, shows that the order of Melchizedek was a
higher priestly order than that of the Levites. While the tithes the Levite’s
collected was said to be after a carnal commandment, the priestly order
that Jesus represents is after an endless life (v.16). That carnal commandment
is the one that demanded the tithes. Carnality here will depict a commandment
that is ordinary and outdated; although carnality is seen as sin in 1
Corinthians 3:3 and as death in Romans 8:6. Everything in regards to that
commandment is summarized in v.12: for the priesthood being changed,
there is made of necessity a change also of the law. The change in
the laws shows that while Moses’ laws were obligatory, the laws that came in
Christ are based on liberty: freedom to do as the Spirit leads us – the law of
Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:2; James 2:8-12). And on a final note,
still along these lines, when we realize that Jesus, like Hebrew 7:14 shows,
descended from the tribe of Judah and we see that only those from Levi could
collect a tithe, Jesus himself will be a law breaker if he'd collected a tithe
during his earthly ministry. Now in His glorified form, Jesus’ Priesthood is
after another order: that of Melchizedek, and there is no record in scripture
that shows that that priesthood needs tithing to sustain it. Also, while Jesus
is the High Priest, believers today, are priests in God’s kingdom (1 Peter 2:9,
Revelation 1:6). There is nowhere in the whole of scriptures were priests paid
tithes to anyone; so we are not obliged to tithe under this new covenant –
which is a better covenant (Hebrew 7:22).
Q: Many of you, who use big grammar and theology to justify your not tithing, forget that there is such a thing as a principle behind tithing. And that it is this principle we see pre-law, during the law and after the law. What is your take on this?
A: Maybe we should
start first by looking up a definition of the word “principle”. A simple Google
search on this word gives:
Principle:
Noun
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Synonyms
So we
can say a principle can be a rule, a belief, a tenet, a law, etc. If anyone
calls tithing a principle, that person is telling us that tithing is a
belief, a rule, a tenet, or a law. So, “principle” could be said to be a law
or a tenet. Clearly, we see that tithing is givien to Israel as a law and
thus the position we had taken in the beginning that tithing is taught today
with the laws of Moses as its foundation is really not far from the truth.
But I understand that some other times when the word “principle” is used, it
is used in the same way that the law of sowing and reaping is seen as a spiritual principle
(Galatians 6:6-7). Even in this context, we see that if God gave tithing as
an ordinance to Israel under Moses, the principle that we see here is not
necessary a principle of tithing for all of eternity but the heart of God
that requires that those who minister spiritual things to people, should also
be ministered to physically. The principle that is taught here is more of free
will giving than tithing.
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Q: So with all of these that have been said,
what is the place of Malachi 3:8-10?
A: We had better quote Malachi 3:8-10
and put it in the proper context it is supposed to be:
8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed
me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and
offerings. 9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye
have robbed me, even this whole nation. 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.
A careful study of scriptures will show how God’s people, the
nation of Israel, had almost always backslidden. Earlier in Malachi God had
criticized their handling of offering, marriages, etc. Here we see
him mention the tithes and offering as something Israel had fallen short of.
Malachi 3 cannot be understood in isolation, unless we trace our steps back to
its foundational scriptures in Leviticus 27 and Numbers 18, were the tithe is
first mentioned under the law and were it is defined under the law,
respectively.
Leviticus 27:
31 And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he
shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. 32 And
concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth
under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the LORD. 33 He
shall not search whether it be good or bad, neither shall he change it:
and if he change it at all, then both it and the change thereof shall be
holy; it shall not be redeemed.
Numbers 18:
20 And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Thou shalt have no
inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part among them: I
am thy part and thine inheritance among the children of Israel. 21 And,
behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an
inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the
tabernacle of the congregation. 22 Neither must the
children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation,
lest they bear sin, and die. 23 But the Levites shall do
the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear their
iniquity: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations,
that among the children of Israel they have no inheritance. 24 But
the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering
unto the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit: therefore I have
said unto them, Among the children of Israel they shall have no
inheritance. 25 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, 26 Thus
speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of
Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then
ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of
the tithe.
While this question and answer session is not meant to be a
thorough academic study of tithing, we can glean something from the scriptures
above:
- Tithing
is one of the ordinances God gave to Israel (Number 18:8).
- Only
levites and priest could have the tithes (Numbers 18:21).
- The
tithes could only be from the agricultural produces off the holy land God
gave to Israel (Leviticus 27:32).
- The
levites gave a tenth of the tithes they collected to the priests (Leviticus
18:26).
- Tithe
was never money; rather we see in another place under Moses that if the
place the tithe was to be taken was very far, the tithe could be converted
to cash and then when the “offeree” arrived the temple, he would use that
money to buy whatever he wanted and offered as his tithe (Deuteronomy
14:24-26).
- There
are records under Moses, were the tithes were eaten by the offeree himself
before God: (Deuteronomy 14:23).
Mother Theresa teaching us true Peity: Helping the Poor
James 1:27 - We
see the tithes being given to Widows, Orphans, and the Poor (Deuteronomy 14:29).
- The Levithes gave a tithe of the tithes they got from the nation of Israel to the priests (Numbers 18:26).
- The
First fruit is also distinct from the tithe. The law that teaches payment
of tithes also taught that First fruits were to be paid to the priests(Numbers
18:13-17).
- The
tithe was also seen to be given every three years and not weekly or
monthly as we are taught to do today (Deuteronomy 14:28)
When the tithe is understood in its real
context from its origin in the law, we can then understand Malachi 3 as God
speaking to the nation of Israel under the law to bring the tithes and offering
to the temple. There are three possibilities for why there was no food in the
storehouse. It is either the people were no longer paying the tithes, or the
Levites were not remitting the tithe of the tithes they collected to the
priests, or the priests were simply not putting the tithes they collected in
the storehouse. Whatever the case is, that scripture is an Old Testament injunction that has no
bearing on the New Testament Church.
In the light of the New Testament, we know
that God’s redeemed people in Jesus cannot be cursed because Jesus has become a
curse for us: for it is written, cursed is anyone that hangs on a tree
(Galatians 3:13). Also, our blessing is not what we pursue or seek, rather we
are blessed because of our position in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 1:3). So,
Malachi is a scripture written to a Jewish audience, found in the Old Testament
and has no bearing on born-again children of God today.
One can only plead with Christian ministers
to stop this guilt imparting method of putting a curse on a redeemed people
that God has not cursed because they do not tithe. The bible calls this "wounding
(people's) conscience" and it is "sinning against
Christ" when someone defiles another person's conscience that way
(1 Corinthians 8:11-12). It is for freedom Christ has redeemed His people and
not to bring them under bondage.
Q: If you say Malachi 3 does not apply to
Christians today, what about Matthew 23:23? Is this not a scripture found in
the New Testament?
A: We are required as Christians to
rightly divide the word of truth (2 Timothy 2:15). Jesus, in his earthly
ministry, lived and operated under the law (Matthew 8:4; Matthew 23:1-3;
Galatians 4:4). That is the context in which Matthew 23:23 must be seen. That
scripture reads: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!
for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cumin, and have omitted the weightier
matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have
done, and not to leave the other undone”. Like many other instances in the
gospels, Jesus lived the law in order to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17), so that the
righteous requirement of the law may be imputed on us who have come to trust in
Him by faith (Romans 4:4-8; Romans 8:4).
Here, Jesus is berating the Pharisee and he was pointing them to
weighty matters of the law: Judgment, Mercy and Faith. These three items are
not necessarily enumerated in the laws of Moses but we see that they are the
unwritten, however, important demands of the law. We could say they are the
spirit of the law. Micah 6:8 says “He hath showed thee, O man, what is
good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly,
and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?”. This is another
example in which the spirit of the law is summarized: to do justly, to love
mercy and to walk humbly with your God. And then we have in other instances
Jesus himself summarizing the law as loving God and loving your neighbor,
Matthew 22:36 “Master, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 Jesus
said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first
and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it,
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these
two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.” Therefore we
could conclude that God’s aim for giving the law was not to produce a people
giving to legalistic observance of those laws but to learn the spirit behind
the law and do it. It was the spirit behind the law Jesus called the weighty
matters of the law. And understand that those things are not always written in
black and white in the scriptures but they require sound bible teachers who
would sift through scriptures and come forth with the weighty matters God wants
us to do. We can conclude from Matthew 23:23 that while Justice, Mercy and
Faith were weighty, the other things which he said should also be done,
tithing, was not weighty. Also, we see that those things that were not weighty,
like tithing, were actually the letters of the law, while the weighty matters
were the deductions or spirit of the law. Jesus who operated under the law
would not teach or encourage anyone to break the law: thus he said, those other
(non weighty matter of the law) should not be left undone. However, by the time
we come to the time of the Church, were the letter of the law has been
abolished (Hebrew 7:12, 2 Corinthians 3:7, Galatians 3:24-27), leaving behind
the spirit of the law, we see that Christians are not under any obligation to
keep the letter of the law, including tithing. In the church, God fulfills the
purpose of giving the law through a people who will adhere to the spirit of the
law and not the letter. For the letter killeth but the spirit gives life (2
Corinthians 3:6).
Also, we see from Romans 14 that there are matters in Christendom
that are essential and some are not. Paul in that passage of the scripture said
in regards to ceremonial foods to be eaten under the law: “1 Him
that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful
disputations. 2 For one believeth that he may eat all
things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. 3 Let
not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which
eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. 4 Who
art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he
standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is
able to make him stand. 5 One man esteemeth one day above
another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be
fully persuaded in his own mind. 6 He that regardeth
the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day,
to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the
Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he
eateth not, and giveth God thanks.” We can conclude from this
passage, following the logic of v. 6 that because tithing is not a weighty
matter of the law: “He that titheth to the Lord he tithes; he that does
not tithe, to the Lord he does not tithe!” As long as both of them
derive the conviction for their practice from their understanding of
scriptures. Those who will be at a loss here, however, are those who tithe
following a legalistic prescription and those who choose not to tithe without a
proper scriptural conviction.
Q: Many people have said that God led them to begin to tithe and
as a result many of them have tremendous results to show for it. How do you
respond to this?
A:The holy scriptures are our final authority and not experiences.
Also, if all an individual hear from morning till night in his local church is “give
your tithe… give your tithe…”, “If you do not tithe, things will be tight for
you…”, “Pay your tithe so you will not be cursed...”, “Those who do not tithe
are thieves and robbers…”, “Those who do not tithe will go to hell…”, that
person will certainly wake up one day with a supposed impression from God to
begin to tithe. It is called spirit. Paul spoke of another gospel, another
spirit and another Jesus (2 Corinthians 11:4) in his days. Those men were known
to take advantage of people financially in the name of preaching. The words
they speak are beyond mere words; they carry spirits with them that can
minister to people’s heart and I believe this is where people get their so
called leading to tithe from. As for the experience of great wealth: it is two
fold – those who tithe claim to experience a blessing; those who stopped
tithing claim to experience a blessing too. Who is correct? Neither! It is
God’s word that is correct! It is obeying the spirit of the word of God not the
letter of it that is most important, regardless of the experiences we claim to
have: good or bad. The just is called to live by faith. Take the example of our
conversion. Becoming born-again is a blessing and the right thing to do, but
all Christians have varying experiences following their conversion. Some enter
a period of bliss and blessing; others experience persecution and even death.
It is not the experience that should tell weather what we do is correct or not,
it is the word of God.
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| The Christian's Constitution: The Bible |
Q: So in order words, people are at liberty to do as they feel
like. Is this not a prescription for anarchy?
A: Anywhere the spirit of God operates there is liberty.
Anywhere another spirit operates there is bondage. However, despite this
freedom to operate, there is also order, for the spirit of the prophet is
subject to the prophet. Paul shows us in Galatians 5:1 that we should stand
firm in the liberty that Jesus has purchased for us and not get entangled in a
yoke of bondage – and this is with reference to bondage to the law.
Nevertheless he continues in this same chapter saying “13 For,
brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an
occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. 14 For
all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy
neighbor as thyself. 15 But if ye bite and devour one
another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. 16 This
I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of
the flesh.” The liberty Christ has brought us into is to be used to
serve people by walking in love. All of the laws of Moses, including tithing,
was aimed at this one thing: to walk in love. What does love do? Love gives.
This giving can come in any amount, including ten percent. But it is clear that
the motive producing the action of giving is not one propelled by legalism, or
a bid to curry God’s favor for blessings, but to serve God because we love Him,
we love our neighbors and we want God’s kingdom to grow. This sort of giving is
certainly free will giving and it is the giving that the New Testament
advocates (2 Corinthians 9:7). That is the reason why despite the contention on
circumcision, the eating of food sacrificed to idols and other items of the law
debated in the New Testament, the matter of tithing was never debated. The
reason is two fold: when a normal Jewish man heard of tithing, he saw it as ten
percent of agricultural produce given to the Levites. Thus artisans, traders,
professionals and other workers who earned wages were never known to have paid
a tithe on their wages in scriptures. There is no single scripture both in the
old or new were anyone tithed on the wages he collected as a result of service
rendered. As what was to be tithed was never money. The other reason why tithes
were never debated was simply that the tithes were not so much of an issue that
we have succeeded to making it in our time. It was not important and every man
had liberty to do whatever he felt was right about it.
Q: Can you please summarize your position so far in this
interview?
A: In this interview I have not asked for people to tithe or
not to tithe. All I have been trying to say is that tithing is a non essential
practice in the church and those who teach that we must tithe are the ones who
are making something essential that God in his word has not made so. Tithing
has taken a place in gospel preaching in our churches today that is simply
embarrassing. Truth be told: the plethora of Churches we find on Nigerian roads
today is due to the money that is to be made from it. The tithe being the
leading item. Also, there seem to be no end for financial demands on church
people from church leaders. Ranging from money for church building, to money to
celebrate anniversaries, to church development offerings, to prophets offering,
to First fruits, and on and on. One wonders why despite all the tithes and
offerings collected there seem to be no end for this financial demands. So much
so that this practice has cast no small opprobrium on the body of Christ that
non-Christian see ministry as “In the Name of God PLC”. Pastors and
church leaders now occupy positions that the New Testament never envisioned and
there is just so much confusion everywhere that what suffers most is the core
message of the gospel: which is still that God loves the world and has sent his
Son Jesus to redeem humanity by his blood. And whoever has faith in what Christ
did on that cross shall be saved. The bible does not teach that the Pastor or
Teacher is an office in the church in the manner that we have the office of the
Levites in the Old Testament. Rather Ephesians 4: 8-11: shows us that God has
given us Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers as ministry
gifts and not priestly offices. In the New Testaments all of God’s
redeemed saints occupy the office of priests (1 Peter 2:9, Revelation 1:6) and
not just a privileged few, to whom we must then pay tithes to! The Reformers of
the 16th century understood this so well that they called it The
Priesthood of all Believers.
Also, we see that in every dispensation God has always called a
people to himself. In the Old Testament we see God calling Abraham, Jacob,
Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Jeremiah, etc; and right into the New Testament,
we see Jesus and His apostles, Paul and so on being called to ministry. All of
these people came from various tribes of Israel. We even see Ruth called from
the gentile nation of Moab. None of these individual ever had tithes paid to
them. The tithes were strictly for the Levites and Priests. God is still
calling men to ministry today but why these called individuals in our times now
demand that tithes must be paid to them, beat my imagination. One thing is sure
they do not find their example from the bible. Regardless of how we see it,
Pastors are not Levites.
Q: Before we let you off the hook, at the beginning of this
interview you said Christians are not to pay a tithe but could give a
tithe. Do you give your tithe?
A: I do not pay a tithe, neither do I give a
tithe. I say Christians can give their tithe because giving of
a tithe or a tenth of one income is still very scriptural under the many
scriptures that support giving in the New Testament (Luke 6:38, 1 Corinthians
9:14, 2 Corinthians 9:8). Also, many people have been raised in religious
environment were paying a tenth of any money they have has become flesh of
their flesh and bone of their bone. There is no need denying them the
satisfaction they find in giving. The danger is that it can become a religious
rote and this may be the reason many people are not being blessed by tithe
paying.
And the church can make good use of these monies and so there is
no need fighting against this. I, however, do not give a tithe of my income
because the local church that I attend has not shown enough financial
accountability to allow me support them with a tenth of my income. My study
into the true nature of tithing actually stemmed from my questioning of the
church not accounting for monies entrusted to it. The second reason why I no
longer give a tithe is so that I may present a true gospel to the unbelieving.
I cannot be telling an unbeliever to know Jesus, and that if he comes to the
Lord, He will not collect a tenth of his salary; while I give this same Lord a
tenth of mine. I will be hypocritical doing this.
Paul was sent with a gospel to the uncircumcised. For this reason, he himself
no longer lived as a Jew (Galatians 2:14), except when it was needful for
him to present the gospel to the Jews (1 Corinthians 9:20). And, lastly, I no
longer give a tithe because I realize that the New Testament gives me the
freedom to give or not to give.
Q: Thank you so much for availing us your time, Deji.
A: Thank you too. Before you go, I would wish to refer the
readers who may want to learn more about tithing to the following websites,
because my responses here are far less studios. Those who wish to do some
academic study on the subject of tithing could refer to the website below:
1.
Gary Arnold’s: www.tithing101.com. This website is probably the
best introduction to the whole subject of the place of tithing today.
2.
Matthew E. Nerramore’s: http://tekoapublishing.com/books/tithing/index.html#.
Here we have an excellent expose on the dangers of tithing according to the
law.
3.
Dr Rusell Kelly’s: www.tithing-russkelly.com. This is a PHD theses were the Author
traces the history of tithing in churches. He offers a rebuttal to virtually
every known book written in support of obligatory tithing.
4.
Mofesola Babalola’s: http://mb.mettalloids.com/tithe-and-you-the-book/.
This book is written by a young Nigerian. It can be downloaded.
5.
Femi Aribisala's controversial but true article: Every Pastor that
Collects Tithes is a Thief and a Robber: http://news.naij.com/33156.html
Q: We want to thank
our readers for making time to read this article from this blog. We are certain
that not all questions on tithing today have been answered in this Q and A
session. Those of you who feel your questions were either not answered at all
or not adequately answered could leave your questions as comment below and Deji
Yesufu will endeavor to supply bible based answers to them. Thank you and God
bless.
