INTRODUCTION
A. Why Now?
1. Began a Series “How do we Accomplish the Vision”
a. “Whether on Temple and even More So if on Bullsboro”
b. Part I – Last week was the importance of the Journey in that “We Must Offer God Our Best” from the example of Mary.
We considered the statement, “God does not expect us to give what we do not have but rather what we can and assuming that is our best, that is all God expects.”
c. Last week, and again Wednesday night, I told you this was coming!!
So if you are not OK now – relax – It only gets worst!!
2. Today the question: Are You Robbing God?
ILL. On Tithing:
W.A. Criswell tells of an ambitious young man who told his pastor he’d promised God a tithe of his income. They prayed for God to bless his career. At that time he was making $40.00 per week and tithing $4.00. God did just that and in a few years his income increased and he was tithing $500.00 per week.
He called the pastor to see if he could be released from his tithing promise, it was too costly now. The pastor replied, “I don’t see how you can be released from your promise, but we can ask God to reduce your income to $40.00 a week, then you’d have no problem tithing $4.00.”
B. What Are Your Beliefs on Tithing?
Q: Do you believe in “Tithing”?
C. Malachi 3:7-12
1. Conservation Between God & the Israelites through Malachi.
a. The Israelites were Robbing God
b. The Israelites were Robbing Themselves
c. The Israelites were Robbing Others
2. The Question will Become: Does God Expect Us To Tithe?
I. THEY WERE ROBBING GOD (Verses 7-8)
God begins to remind them that repeatedly throughout history from the time he heard their cry and redeemed them out of slavery, they still repeatedly scorned him.
In setting up the tithe, it was a way to thank God for what He had done and to take care of the needs of the tabernacle. God, through the tithe, had a Plan for the tithe, a Purpose in the tithe, and a Place for the Tithe.
3 Parts to God’s Complaint
A. It Was God’s Plan
They were robbing God “in tithes and offerings” (8b).
1. “Tithe” comes from a Hebrew word that means “10”
- A “tithe” is 10% of one’s grain, fruit, animals, or money
Leviticus 27:30 (NIV)
30 "’A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the LORD; it is holy to the LORD.”
B. It Was for God’s Purpose
3 main tithes - different times of the year - 3 main purposes.
1. Needs of Priests and Levites (they were having to seek outside work)
2. Needs of the Temple and its Ministries
3. Needs of the Poor through a special annual tithe
C. It Was for God’s Specific Place
1. It was for the Local Tabernacle – their place of worship – 10
2. “storehouse”- Several large rooms for keeping the grain, produce, money
D. DOES “Grace” Cancel The Tithe?
Many say that “tithing is a Mosaic Law command and since we are now under the law of grace, we are not under the command of the tithe.” I’ve said it!
1. Abraham – Gen. 14:20 gave tithes to Melchizedek – God’s high Priest - 400 Yrs. b/fore law.
2. Jacob in Gen. 28:22 promised God to return 1/10th (10%) of all God gave him (again before the Mosaic Law).
3. Moses through the Mosaic law commanded the tithe in Lev. 28:30 “a ‘tithe’ of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the tress, belongs to the Lord”. Vs. 32 – The ‘entire tithe’ of the herd and flock – every tenth animal… will be holy to the Lord.”
4. Jesus commended the Pharisees in their tithing even though their heart was wrong in Mt. 23.23. Of course, at this time, you could say the OT law was still in effect.
5. And Paul, God’s NT spokesman, commended the “setting aside of money” for use in the church’s ministry in 1 Cor. 16.2.
Summ: So you tell me – “Is the tithe canceled out by the law of grace”.
2 Thoughts on This:
1. If Abraham & Jacob “committed” the tithe, and Moses “commanded” the tithe; If Jesus “commended” the tithe and Paul “continued” the tithe; THEN should YOU & I Cancel it?
Does not the principle of the tithe teach us that all we have comes from God? If so, WHAT does that have to do with “OT Law”?
2. If you will do less under grace than the Israelites did under the law then you and I are a disgrace to grace!
They were robbing God by not recognizing all that God has done for them just as you and I rob God when we fail to realize all He has done for us.
Paul in teaching “grace giving” to the Corinthian church in 2 Corinthians 8 & 9 says this in 2 Cor. 9:6 “remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”
II. THEY WERE ROBBING THEMSELVES (Verses 9-11)
Not only were them robbing God, but they were robbing themselves. Notice God’s answer in verses 9-11.
9a – a curse explained in vs. 11 – Obviously their crops, grain, and fruit were infested.
A. God had made an OT Covenant with the Israelites
1. READ Lev. 26.3-5 “if you follow my decrees …”
2. READ DT. 28.8
3. From Vs. 11, you can tell that insects had invaded the land and grain/fruit were not maturing.
B. God made a NT Covenant With Us
1. Matt. 6:33-34
a. Promised provisions for our current needs – today!
2. Again, go back to 2 Cor. 9:6 “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.”
C. THE PROMISE TO BOTH– 10b – “TEST ME” –
“Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse…”
1. Vs. 11 – the Promise is that God will provide for their needs.
2. He is saying “TRUST ME” - Show me YOU TRUST ME by giving a portion back.
3. Another principle: Into the “storehouse” – Take care of my church!
If WE do not take care of the needs of the church, who will?
SUM:
1. Do you believe it is GOD who provides for you? DO YOU?
Example 1: David after building the temple said this:
1 Chronicles 29:14 (NIV)
14 "But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.”
Example 2: Paul said this:
1 Corinthians 4:7 (NIV)
7 For who makes you different from anyone else? What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?
2. How can we ask God to take care of us, when we show our lack of trust by showing our appreciation for that?
Matthew 6:24 (NIV)
24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
III. THEY WERE ROBBING OTHERS (Verse 12)
They were robbing God . They were robbing themselves. And finally and briefly, they were robbing others.
When God’s people tithe and God blesses His people then God’s people become a witness to God’s goodness and God’s grace.
IV. SUMMARY –ARE YOU ROBBING GOD?
A. Illustration
A few years back, a Galveston church had a Tithing Demonstration Sunday for its members. On a designated Sunday everyone was asked to give a tithe of one week’s salary. They urged everyone … whether or not they usually tithed … to give a tithe that one time.
As you could imagine, the offering that Sunday was the largest ever given. In fact, it was 6 times the usual offering. The aftermath was even more exciting. Many who had never tithed before changed their attitude and decided if they could do it once, they could do again.
By the end of that year giving was up almost 3 times what it had been before the demonstration. The enthusiasm was up more than that. Over and over, people gave testimonies of the many changes in their lives as God fulfilled his promise in Malachi 3:10. All of this came from a simple obedience to Jehovah Jireh, the God who provides.
Again, the question, “Do you believe Him?”
B. It is no my intent or my business to tell you what you should give.
Some are able to give more than 10%. Some are not. But everyone should be able to give something assuming you believe that what you have comes from God and not that of yourself.
