Q1. Kingship and the Tithe

[Rosesam]

Q1. Read 1 Samuel 8:15 and Malachi 3:8-10. How did tithing relate to a person's acceptance of God being their King in the Old Testament? How about for those of us who live under the New Covenant? What place does tithing have for us?

God wanted Israel to be theocentric, i.e. God as their focus. And in a theocentric kingdom there would be ministers and God chose the Levites to serve Him among the tribes of Israel. When the land was divided among the tribes, the Levites were not given an inheritance, but only cities for them to dwell in. The Lord became their inheritance and for their sustenance, God commanded the nation to bring a tenth of their income which were distributed among the Levites. So when a person in the Old Testament tithed, they were acknowledging God as their King.

In the New Covenant, there is no explicit command to tithe as there are no Levites who are set apart to minister to the King. We, believers, become a kingdom of priests to minister to Him. But New Testament exhorts giving. In 1 Corinthians 16:2 To set aside an amount of their income for blessing the saints. It is not limited to just 10%. It can be way beyond the 10% stipulation.  In 2 Corinthians 9:7 it says that every man has to give as he has purposed in his heart, not grudgingly, or of necessity. So giving has to be done generously and cheerfully, for God loves a cheerful giver. And we need to give sacrificially and this speaks of our trust in the Lord to meet our needs. We give because He is the one who set the example by not withholding His Son, but giving Him for us.

[av4Jesus]

On 2/15/2006 at 7:13 AM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q1. Read 1 Samuel 8:15 and Malachi 3:8-10. How did tithing relate to a person's acceptance of God being their King in the Old Testament? How about for those of us who live under the New Covenant? What place does tithing have for us?

Tithing shows that a person acknowledges God as their King and Sovereign in the Old Testament so they are obligated to give a percentage of what they own to God. God says that people who do not do this are robbing God. Earthly kings were expected tithes so it is a person's duty to show the much more respect to God and give Him what is due.

For us who live under the New Covenant, tithing is showing our submission to God and allowing Him to rule over our lives as King. We have to do this out of obedience because if we don't, God says we are cursed for having robbed Him.

[Lottie]

Tithing showed that the people accepted him as king and were willing to support him with their tithes. It showed their allegiance to Him and their trust in Him. The ones who did not give were rejecting his authority.

Under the New Covenant we are still obligated to give God our tithes and love offerings. We are obligated to support our local church and missionaries. He has given us everything that we have and it is only a loan until we get to heaven.; He expects us to show our love and support by giving and not grumbling about it.

[Mona Burton]

On 2/14/2006 at 11:13 PM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q1. Read 1 Samuel 8:15 and Malachi 3:8-10. How did tithing relate to a person's acceptance of God being their King in the Old Testament? How about for those of us who live under the New Covenant? What place does tithing have for us?

In the Old Testament the people understood the concept of giving to the king so that he would have enough to sustain his administration.  So when God made a covenant with the Israelites to be their King and LORD, to provide for them, to protect them, to fight for them, to be their "suzerain", they humbly became His "vassals" and agreed to give Him "tribute" which was the tithe, for the upkeep of His administration on earth - the priests and levites.  Those who rejected God as their King refused to tithe and suffered at the hand of the devourer.  In Malachi 3: 8 - 10 the King accused them of robbing Him.  Something they learnt, they would not get away with.

Living under the New Covenant does not exempt us from tithing.  In Matthew 23:23 Jesus indicated that tithing is still very much relevant. 

As subjects of the King of Kings tithing for us is very important.   1. It is one way of honouring God.   2. Tithing helps to support the ministries of the kingdom and those employed in His service.

 

 

 

 

 

[MosesSole]

On 2/14/2006 at 10:13 PM, Pastor Ralph said:

Q1. Read 1 Samuel 8:15 and Malachi 3:8-10. How did tithing relate to a person's acceptance of God being their King in the Old Testament? Tithing requirements were basically someone's acceptance of God as their King. In the Old Testament, there was a requirement that 10 percent of a man's earnings from work was also to be given to support God's administration in the way that they were also required to pay their appointed human King. It would be akin to our society having to pay taxes to keep the country running. Unfortunately during the days of the Old Testament, there were people that cheated Yahweh of his due tithing, choosing to keep the money for themselves while paying tithing requirements to the appointed King of that time. This was considered not only an egregious sin, but an act of rebellion and disrespect for God, an indication that people were not faithful to their God but instead chose to worship a man-appointed King.

How about for those of us who live under the New Covenant? What place does tithing have for us? I believe that the tithing requirement still exist today, although I have not personally heard of anyone being punished for withholding it.

 

[Jonathan Edwards]

Tithing relates to our characters.  Are we obedient to our Eternal God?   Moses wrote that our God is Jealous.  This is all very serious.  Our characters are being formed in holiness each day.   As Jesus Christ was obedient you His Father so we too will be obedient.  The word kenosis-self empting-aptly describes the Incarnation of Christ.  We abandoned ourselves to God.   Tithing is a wonderfull act of worship and is a method of abandoning ourselves to God.

Christ is our King, Priest, Prophet and Apostle.  As Abraham brought tithes, so we bring tithes.   We are part of the royal priesthood, it is our joyous privilege to bring tithes.   Also we partake of Christ's priesthood as we preach the Gospel out on the busy streets, jails or nursing homes.  

Lately I have been meditating on outlay of the various tribes of Israel right after the Tabernacle was built.   Moses waited upon God's direction in regards to the Holy order of the various tribes.  It was not haphazardly but PRAYERFULLY.  Before Moses accepted the gifts of the Levites during the consecration of the altar ; he prayed about it first.  The Levites had minds of generosity and women of Israel gave their mirrors to Moses.

 

 

[Dove81]

Q1. Read 1 Samuel 8:15 and Malachi 3:8-10. How did tithing relate to a person's acceptance of God being their King in the Old Testament? How about for those of us who live under the New Covenant? What place does tithing have for us?Tithing 10% was required, not only to maintain the Lords house but also to help the priests be taken care of. This allowed them to focus on God and not have to look for work elsewhere.

How about for those of us who live under the New Covenant? 
We are to give and be cheerful about it. I don’t agree with telling people that if you tithe God will bless you. It gives the feeling of I have to give or do something for God to bless me or do something for me. That’s not right, God doesn’t need us to do anything for Him, let alone to receive a blessing from Him. What you give is between you and God, you should pray and ask the Lord to lead you as to what to give. One can’t live under the law and under grace.