There were some very passionate statements made regarding the subject of giving/tithing in a post yesterday that demand some kind of response.  Firstly, let's be reminded that we are saved from "the fires of hell" by the Blood of Jesus Christ - not by works, and more specifically not by how much we give or don't give. Each of us who is called by His Name must be led by the Holy Spirit who owns us (and all that we have), as to what, when, where, and how we should give or not give, and it's not our place to condemn another believer's obedience and following of the Holy Spirit.  If someone who claims to be a Believer refuses to obey God's leading to give, it can be an indication that that person is not at all His, but that is an issue that should be left to God Who alone know the heart.

 

I understand the passion and frustration that was communicated though because it appears that many in the Church are not living as though they and all they have belongs to the Lord.  The Church is stuck on the Old Covenant mentality that "I only have to give God ten percent," when the New Covenant reality is that my life, my time, my plans, and my finances are one hundred percent His and at His disposal to do with as He sees fit, whenever and wherever He chooses. 

 

For those who have been walking in that Old Covenant mentality and have come under the condemnation, bondage, and disinformation of "tithing" , there is a great book that is available online that will open your eyes to the truth and help you to walk in the New Covenant way of living and giving that God intends for those who are His. The title is TITHING: LOW-REALM, OBSOLETE, & DEFUNCT by Matthew E. Narramore and it is well worth reading.

 

The book addresses the following with sound Biblical backup:

• How the tithing doctrine contradicts the New Covenant and destroys the power of Christ's finished work on the cross.
• What the Bible actually says about tithing before the Law and why the popular teaching that promotes tithing is wrong about the tithe that Abraham gave to Melchizedek.
• The truth about tithing during the Law and how the confusion about tithes, offerings, and gifts contributes to the erroneous teaching that Christians should tithe.
• What the Bible actually says about tithing after the Law and where the misunderstanding originates that causes people to think that tithing is God's plan for the church.
• Answers to more than twenty of the most popular statements that are used to promote tithing—each statement scripturally analyzed and exposed as being contrary to the New Covenant.
• God's glorious New Covenant paradigm for giving which is separate from and superior to any concept of tithing.

Here are some excellent quotes from the book:

 

"One of the main causes of low-level Christianity is that the church has followed Old Covenant patterns of living. The church has focused its attention on learning and applying principles, rather than knowing Jesus Christ, abiding in him, and expressing his life by the power of the Holy Spirit. That's why it falls so short of the biblical standard of Christianity."  p.17

 

"People don't think that the doctrine of tithing is a message of righteousness by works. But if all of God's redemption, protection, and blessing depend on tithing, then what good is the righteousness we have been given as a free gift? ...If failure to tithe makes me a God-robber, then my righteousness depends on tithing. If failure to write out the first check on payday to the local church causes me to lose the favor of God on my life, then my righteousness must depend on doing that. If tithing is what redeems the remaining 90 percent of my paycheck, then the blood of Jesus did not redeem it. If a curse is going to come upon me for not tithing, then Christ has not redeemed me from the curse of the Law. The popular teaching on tithing is really saying that we need Christ plus tithing. It is saying that the blood of Jesus wasn't enough, that we need the blood plus tithing. The message of grace and the message of tithing are as different as night and day."  pp. 95,96

 

"The doctrine of tithing also opens the door to our unseen spiritual enemy, Satan, who constantly seeks for an opportunity to work against us. Any church doctrine that diminishes the finished work of Christ on the cross, in any way, will be exploited by the devil to his greatest possible advantage. God's grace comes through faith. Putting just a little attention on our works is enough to stop it. That is why it only takes one wrong doctrine to nullify the power of Christ's resurrection. Galatians 5:9 says, “A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.”" p.118

 

"Jesus never called anyone to a ten-percent commitment. His call was to absolute abandonment of all things for him and absolute commitment of all things to him. He never sanctioned the tithe as a standard of giving in his new kingdom that would begin with his resurrection. He required his followers to forsake all, to give all, and to use all for the accomplishment of his purposes. Paradoxically, he entrusts all things to his disciples to jointly possess with him and use in his service. And the Holy Spirit is now the leader in all matters, not the tithe principle." p.28

 

This book will be a real blessing to you as it has been to me  It's really eye-opening, freeing, and life-changing!

  

 

You can buy it or read it online at:

 

http://www.tekoapublishing.com/books/index.html

 

 

In Christ, your brother,

Frank Slomkowski