Tithe

So Abraham, like we said, tithed before the law.

This is important because some people will say tithe is the Old Testament.

Tithe is the Old Testament.

And they will use that to dispute that Abraham tithed before the law was given.

As a matter of fact, the law says of tithing came as a means to continue the culture of Abraham.

Paul taught the believers that those who preach the gospel should be supported by the gospel, just as the priests in the temple were supported by the people.

But he also showed that tithe was only part of God's plan.

From ancient times, God had taught his people to cherish a spirit of liberality through gifts, offerings, firstfruits, and care for the poor.

Giving was not meant to be a forced duty, but an expression of gratitude, worship, and love.

Now, beside money, what is one part of your life, your time, your abilities, your home, your influence, your attention, or your service that God may be asking you to give more fully to him? Think about that and share in the comments.

And now I want to address the elephant in the room.

There has been a discussion going around in the Seventh-day Adventist Church saying that if we believe church leaders are making serious mistakes or church leaders are supporting things we believe are wrong or misusing church funds, then we should redirect our tithe somewhere else.

And some have even argued that continuing to send tithe through that conference makes us partly responsible for what its leaders do.

Yes.

[crowd cheering] The question is, why are you not tithing? [crowd cheering] Tithe is a 10% of the blessing God has given to you, finished.

It's nothing else.

[crowd cheering] It's not a...

When we got married the first year, we started tithing.

Tithe means 10%.

We started giving 10% to God.

At the end of the first year,

Now what practical step would help you become more intentional about putting God first in your financial planning think about that and share in the comments now we've come to the end of the reading for this morning and we finish with a couple of questions how faithful are you with tithes and offerings no matter how rich or poor you are and what excuses do you use to hold back from giving when you know that you can do more well beloved Faithfulness is not determined by whether we are rich or whether we are poor.

The tithe is proportional by definition, and Paul says an offering is acceptable according to what a person has.

God is not comparing my dollar amount to yours.

He is asking whether I am faithful with what he has placed in my hands.

Ellen White says that everything we possess belongs to God and that we are simply stewards of his goods.

Since my wife and I got married, we have always returned our tithe and given our offerings.

It is the first thing that comes out of our paycheck.

There is no debate about it, no waiting to see what is left, and no question about whether other expenses come first.

We're talking about giving.

I'm not talking about the tithe because as Pastor Rafferty has indicated, the tithe is God's already.

Tithe is something that we are returning.

We don't say, oh, well, I should stop returning my tithe because if I return my tithe, I'll be penniless.

No, no.