TITHING, OTHER GIVING AND STEWARDSHIP
We are stewards of Gods resources
Every believer is steward of everything he possesses “As every man has received even so minister the same-one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” [1Peter 4:10] “Moreover it is required in stewards, that man-be found faithful” [1Cori 4:2]
A steward is one who managers, administers and takes care of that which belongs to someone else. Since God is the one who gives every material blessing, we acknowledge His ownership. “For all things come from you and of your own have we given back to you” [1Chro 29:14]
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father” [Jas 1:17]
God asks us to tithe
God’s purpose for Tithing is seen in the old Testament
God’s special promise
Tithing is a privilege
Tithing expresses faith
Be a generous cheerful giver
1. God asks us to tithe from what He has given, He asks me to tithe [10 Percent]: “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tress, is the Lord’s: It is holy unto the Lord” [Lev 27:30] “You should truly tithe all the increase of your seed, that the field brings forth year by year” [Deut 14:22]
Jesus commended tithing. “For you tithe ….this you should do” [Luke 11:42] pg 1561.
2. God’s purpose for Tithing seen in the old Testament
a) To support the poor and needy.
b) To support the Levites
A]To support the poor and needy.
Among the Israelites, the harvest of every Sabbath [Seventh] year was reserved for the poor. “But the seventh year, you shall let your field rest and lie till, that the poor of your people may eat: and what they leave the beast of the fields shall eat. In like manner you shall deal with your vineyard and with your olive yard” [Ex 23:11] “For the poor shall never cease out of the land: therefore I command you, saying you shall open your hand wide unto:
your brother,
to your poor, and
to your needy in your land” [Deut 15:11]
The gleanings of harvest were to be given to the poor and
Alien “And you shall not glean your vineyard neither shall you gather every grape of your vineyard, you shall leave them for the poor and alien: I am the LORD your God” [Lev 19:10].
a) To support the Levites
The Lord required a special “third year” tithe for the
Levites, the
orphan, the
widow and the
Aliens.
“At the end of the three years you shall bring forth all the tithe of your increase the same year….And the Levite, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within your gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the Lord your God may bless you in all, the work of your hands which you do. [Deut 14:28 -29, 26:13 pg 271]
3. God’s special promise
To those who give God make special, promise “Give and it shall be given unto you;
good Measure,
Pressed down,
Shaken together and
Running over shall men give into your Bosom? For with the same measure you give, it shall be given back to you again” [Luke 6:38]
This passage teaches us that we control the flow [amount] of God’s blessings and provision to our needs. If we give spoonfuls to the Lord, He will pick up the same spoon we use and use it to spoon out what we ask. If we have faith to give shovelfuls to the Lord, He will pick up the same shovel and use it to shovel back to us what we need in much more abundant blessing.
I was taught to give 10 percent [tithe] of the money I earned to the Lord when I was a child. When I was twenty three years old I started to preach. When we have the least amount of money the Lord is teaching us to double-our tithe [give 20 percent] of our limited amount of money to the Lord.
One tithe was to support the spread of the gospel in the Nation. Second tithe was used to support the spread of gospel in other Nations where people had not heard about Jesus. This released a miraculous flow of God’s blessings on our family. I found out God does what He says. If we give, it will be given back to us proportionally to our giving.
4. Tithing is a privilege
Several centuries before the law was given, on Mount Sinai, Abraham gave a tithe [tenth] to a representative of God [Gen 14:18-24; Hebrew 7:1-2]
Jacob promised to give a tenth of all God blessed him with [Gen 28:22], Jesus said we shall not neglect the tithe [Matt 23:23] Hence giving and tithe should not be understood as old Testament law or a religious obligation. Rather it is a privilege of those who chooses to exercise their faith to give.
5. Tithing expresses faith
Tithing and giving offering does not buy God’s blessings, but it does release blessings upon our lives. [Mal 3:10].
****Those who tithe are expressing their faith in God in the most practical way possible. They are saying
“I BELIEVE THE 90 PERCENT THAT I HAVE LEFT AFTER TITHING, HAS GOD’S BLESSING ON IT.
With God’s blessing on it 90 percent can purchase more than the 100 percent would, without His blessings”
It takes faith to believe that.
God allowed His people to tithe money, oil, wine, flour, fruit, wood, animals and other possessions.
6. Be a generous cheerful giver
The bible teachers us that we are to give willingly and cheerfully, from a spirit of generosity [Ex 25:2], [2nd Co 9:6-7].
God does not measure our giving by the amount we give. He rewards according to what is left after we give. Jesus said a tiny amount
given by the widow was greater than all the others because it was “all she had” [Luke 21:1-4]
Generous giving is proof of our love, faith and maturity [2nd Co 9:11-12].
****The poor need to give because they need God’s blessings to break the curse of poverty [2nd Co 8:2].
Jesus Christ, our ultimate example, became poor in order to bless us [2nd Co 8:9]
To refuse to be a faithful steward, by giving, is an act of robbery and rebellion towards God [Mal 3:8-12] But to yield to His purpose in giving, is to receive,
an “open Heaven” and
abundant blessing and
protection from want and famine
A-M-E-N
I LOVE YOU JESUS!
TITHING, OTHER GIVING AND STEWARDSHIP
