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Most Christian churches teach the Biblical principle
of stewardship, which is the management over another person's affairs or
possessions. When we become Christians, we come to realize that we, our
possessions, and literally everything on earth comes from God. And as His
heirs, we become the stewards over those things which are God's. Tithing is an act of stewardship. The scripture says
that the tithe, the first tenth (10%) of our income, is the property of the
Lord and we are to always return it to Him. "And all the tithe of the land,
whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's.
It is holy to the LORD" (Lev. 27:30). According to the Word, tithing is a such a serious
matter with the Lord, that He calls those who do not tithe as "robbers" and
pronounces a curse upon them. "Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me!
But you say, In what way have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings. You
are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed Me, even this whole nation"
(Mal. 3:8-9). What kind of curse is this? A curse is the opposite of
blessing, and the non-tither will neither have the promise of God's
bountiful blessings, nor protection from the devourer of the fruit of their
labors. "Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in
My house, and prove Me now in this, says the LORD of hosts, If I will not
open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That
there will not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer
for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor
shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field, says the LORD of
hosts" (Mal. 3:10-11). Tithing has sometimes been falsely attributed to the
Law of Moses, but it actually originated long before that with Abraham's
tithe to Melchizedek, who was the priest of the most high God and the king
of Salem [Jerusalem] (Gen. 14:18-20). Tithing is an expression of at least six important
things: (1) It is the acknowledgment of God's
proprietorship. Tithing expresses our belief that everything on
this earth came from God, and that He is responsible for all we earn or
receive as increase (Psa. 24:1). (2) It is a "believer's" expression of faith.
Tithing is a statement of our faith and worship toward God. It is for
believers only (Gen. 14:19-20). (3) It is a test of our continued obedience to
God's Word.
Tithing is an expression of faithfulness to His Word and stewardship over
His possessions (1 Cor. 4:2, Mal. 3:10). (4) It is an act of sowing spiritual seed.
God promises the faithful tither, to continue to bless and flourish him with
increased return and to meet his needs (Mal. 3:10, 2 Cor. 9:6). (5) It is a continual memorial of God's
universal laws of sowing and reaping. Virtually everything that the
Lord does is based on these same divine principles (Gal. 6:7). (6) Tithing is the means which God has chosen to meet the expenses of the work of the ministry. The tithe is a sacred offering to God so that there would be spiritual meat in His house (Mal. 3:10).
This article is from the book, What People Ask About the Church, authored and copyrighted © by Dr. Dale A. Robbins, 1990-2015, and is a publication of Victorious Publications, Grass Valley, CA - Nashville, TN. Unless otherwise stated, all scripture references were taken from The New King James Bible, © Thomas Nelson Inc., 1982. You may download this article for personal use as long as you retain credit to the author. Obtain permission before reproducing copies for any reason, by filling out our simple use permission form. Many of our writings are also available as free pdf tri-fold pamphlets, which can be downloaded for reproduction from our Online Catalog. For media reproduction rights, or to obtain quantities of this title in other formats, email us. A newer revised version of this book is available from Amazon. If you have appreciated these online materials, help us reach the world with the Gospel by considering a monthly or one-time tax-deductable donation.
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