GIVING UNDER GRACE
(2 Cor. 8:1 - 9:18)
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One of the most abused areas of the Scriptures by legalistic pastors and believers is the issue of giving. Ministers stand in their pulpits and say the most horrendous things in order to increase what goes into the collection plate.
They distort the Old Testament Scriptures by telling their congregations that if they don’t give a certain portion of their income to that local church, that they are "robbing God." As a result, many believers give money out of guilt or fear, not as a response to God’s love and grace.
Such pastors often tell their people that they won’t be blessed unless they tithe. They also may say that if you give 10% of your income, God will return twice as much or more to you as a blessing. Consequently, many of their members give 10%, in essence, to "bribe God." Even an unbeliever would give money under those conditions, if promised that it would be doubled or even more.
Legalistic pastors often have their members give "tithing testimonies" ("bragimonies" is a better word) in direct violation of the Bible’s command to give in SECRET. They dole out guilt rather than grace to the very people who they are suppose to shepherd, the people who support them. One of the clearest signs of a legalist and self-serving pastor is a strong insistance on tithing. Perhaps it’s difficult for them to objectively teach a doctrine that ultimately affects their salaries.
If that seems harsh, consider the mean-spirited attitude of pastors who have the gall to tell their flocks that they are "robbing God", just to get them to put more money in the plate (I won’t use the term "offering plate", because money given under that kind of guilt is hardly a free-will "offering").
I once attended a service where the guest pastor began with verses from 2 Cor. 8 and 9, verses that clearly and beautifully teach giving by grace. However, as he went through his lesson, he gradually turned the verses into a sermon on tithing. He did it so cleverly and gradually that no one seemed to notice his devious manipulations of the Bible from what the verses did say, to conclusions that were the direct opposite. This was despite the fact that tithing was never commanded of the Church. While the epistles contain verses on giving, none command or even mention tithing. In fact, tithing is the opposite of what the epistles teach about giving.
After a strong tithing message from the pastor of a church I once attended, a woman who was a member there came up to me and started to cry. She told me that she would tithe if she could, but was on a fixed income and couldn’t even pay her bills. I told her to keep her money, and showed her in the New Testament that giving is now by grace, based upon what you HAVE, not what you DON’T HAVE. This particular church happened to be the only Christian organization that I have EVER seen that actually mentioned "tithing" in their statement of faith, in the list of basic doctrines they believe in the most.
In my experience, I’ve seen a number of dishonest manipulations of church members by legalistic pastors, aimed primarily at increasing the giving. Here are some examples:
Pastor: "The reason we celebrate the Lord’s Table at night is because that’s when Jesus and the Apostles celebrated it." (The truth from trustees of that church: church attendance and offerings were higher for a Sunday night service if the Lord’s Table was celebrated).
Pastor: "To celebrate Mother’s Day, we’re having the children do their musical in the service that evening, so that the moms and grandmoms can see their kids honor them." (the truth from trustees of that church: attendance at the Sunday evening service on Mother’s Day would be horrible, and so the offerings would suffer, unless the childrens’ concert was held as a strong inducement for people to attend).
I’ve seen lots of examples in various legalistic churches of things done with a certain pretense of spirituality, but the real motive of increasing or maintaining giving.
I’d like to show you today that "tithing" is not a requirement in the current Church Age, and that it’s a sure sign of a legalistic, manipulative, and spiritually immature pastor-teacher.
1. GOD COMMANDED THE TITHE FROM ISRAEL. Tithing was commanded during the Age of Israel, which ended at Pentecost. It was a TAX required of all who lived in the nation. It was NEVER AN OFFERING in the spiritual sense of something you give of your own free will to show your love for God. It was required of all persons living in Israel, even if a person was not a Jew. The Old Testament makes a distinction between tithes and offerings. (Gen 14:20, Lev 27:30-32, Num 18:21,24,26,28, Deut 12:6,11,17, Deut 14:23,28, Deut 26:12, 2 Chr 31:5,6,12, Neh 10:37-38, Neh 12:44, Neh 13:5,12, Ezek 45:11,14, Amos 4:4, Mal 3:8,10, Matt 23:23, Luke 11:42, Luke 18:12, Heb 7:5, Heb 7:6, Heb 7:9)
Deut 12:6,11,17
6 And thither ye shall bring your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, and your tithes, and heave offerings of your hand, and your vows, and your freewill offerings, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks: (KJV)
11 Then there shall be a place which the LORD your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell there; thither shall ye bring all that I command you; your burnt offerings, and your sacrifices, your tithes, and the heave offering of your hand, and all your choice vows which ye vow unto the LORD: (KJV)
17 Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy corn, or of thy wine, or of thy oil, or the firstlings of thy herds or of thy flock, nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill offerings, or heave offering of thine hand: (KJV)
Neh 12:44
And at that time were some appointed over the chambers for the treasures, for the offerings, for the firstfruits, and for the tithes, to gather into them out of the fields of the cities the portions of the law for the priests and Levites: for Judah rejoiced for the priests and for the Levites that waited. (KJV)
2. THE CHURCH WAS NEVER COMMANDED TO TITHE. The Church Age began at Pentecost (not when the New Testament begins). After that time, the Bible never again commands tithing. All ritual commanded of Israel is ended. The epistles to the Church contain instructions on grace giving, but NEVER teach or require tithing.
Heb 7:11
If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? (KJV)
Many self-serving pastors who apparently don’t know or don’t care when the Church began, misuse the following verses from the gospels to teach tithing for the Church.
Matt 23:23-24
23"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. NAS
Luke 11:42-43
42"But woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithe of mint and rue and every kind of garden herb, and yet disregard justice and the love of God; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. NAS
Jesus commands the Pharisees in such verses that they should tithe because the Age of Israel had not yet ended. All Old Testament ritual was still required, because the Church had not begun. There is NO place in the Bible after the Church begins on Pentecost that tithing is commanded.
3. WHEN TITHING WAS REQUIRED, JESUS HIMSELF SAID THAT GIVING SHOULD BE IN SECRET. The givers should not do anything to draw attention to themselves. If they do, then they might as well enjoy being "honored by men," because Jesus said that "they have their reward in full." IN FULL!!! God will give such believers no other reward than the praise of people that they’ve already received.
Matt 6:2-4
2 "When therefore you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be honored by men. Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full.
3 "But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing
4 that your alms may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will repay you. NAS
Some churches flagrantly violate Jesus’ command in a number of ways. For example, some have a special time in the service when the "tithers" actually walk forward in full view of everyone else to give their money. Other churches allow and encourage such givers to get up in front of other members to give "tithing testimonies" (a better name would be "tithing bragimonies").
4. SPIRITUAL GIVING UNDER GRACE by the Church is taught by the apostle Paul.
a. Giving is a matter of God’s grace, not His command. (2 Cor. 8:1,6-7,9; 2 Cor. 9:8,14)
b. Giving is a privilege which originates in the heart of the Christian believer. It is a right mental attitude. (2 Cor. 8:4; 2 Cor. 9:7)
c. Giving should not occur reluctantly or under compulsion. (2 Cor. 9:7)
d. Giving should be done willingly and cheerfully. (2 Cor. 9:7)
e. The willingness to give is itself acceptable to God, even if the believer has no gift to give. (2 Cor. 8:12)
f. Giving should not result in a hardship to the believer. (2 Cor. 8:13) Rather, it should reflect the believer’s prosperity or level of income. (1 Cor. 16:2)
g. The Church must make every effort to properly administer offerings. (2 Cor. 8:18-21)
h. The pastor or evangelist shares doctrine to supply the believers’ needs, and the believers share financial prosperity to supply the material needs of the pastor or evangelist. The goal is equality in supplying needs. (2 Cor. 8:13-15)
i. Giving is not a matter of commandment, but is a test of the believers’ love. (2 Cor. 8:8-9)
j. Giving should reflect the believers’ mental attitude of generosity. (2 Cor. 9:6-7)
k. God supplies what you have, so giving should reflect what He has supplied to you. (2 Cor. 9:8-11)
l. The ultimate reason for giving is so that God is glorified. (2 Cor. 9:11-15)
m. The believer’s attitude in giving should reflect contentment with what he has, and should be free from the love of money. (1 Tim. 6:6-11; Heb. 13:5)
n. Ministers of the gospel have a right to be supported by the gifts of believers. (1 Cor. 9:14)
o. Ministers are commanded to offer the gospel free of charge. (1 Cor. 9:18)
In conclusion, tithing was, in essence, a tax required of everyone in Israel. The Old Testament makes a distinction between TITHES and OFFERINGS - they are not the same thing. Tithes were required - offerings were freely given. The New Testament epistles to the Church NOWHERE require the Church Age believer to tithe or give any set amount of money. Rather, we are to freely give as a response to God’s love, and according to what we have.
I read an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer dated 3/11/01, in their so-called "Faith Life" section. It’s a great place to get illustrations of what’s wrong with churches today. Some of the articles are simply hilarious. This paticular story begins with the assertion that "the Bible commands tithing", and no other point of view is represented. The story looks at only whether churches are tithing or not. Obviously, the Bible doesn’t command balanced reporting. The story makes such ludicrous statements such as "black churches are more involved in tithing than white churches because the laity is more theological." Yeah, right! It praises a certain church for having "an electronic system that funnels money into [the denomination’s] coffers directly from members bank accounts." All through the article are "bragimonies" of people who claim to tithe, but have no problem violating Jesus’ commands to give alms IN SECRET." (Matt. 6:2-4)
As I’ve previously stated, there is NO mention of tithing after the Church begins on Pentecost. Tithing ended along with all Old Testament ritual at the cross of Calvary. We are not required to celebrate the Sabbath, observe Passover, or follow kosher dietary laws. However, pastors shamefully reach back into the gospels and Old Testament to select the one ritual required of Israel that will benefit themselves financially today.
Giving is a matter of grace, not law. God’s blessings are NOT dependent upon what we give. He blesses us in grace, based upon who HE is, not upon what WE do. The believer who thinks he has to "bribe God" with 10% of his income in order to be blessed, insults God’s grace by practicing legalism. Even an athiest would give 10% of his income to a church if he were guaranteed more blessings than that in return.
Copyright (c) 2000, Frank J. Gallagher
Abiding In The Word
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