Some pastors will admit that they like to take up the tithes and offerings before they preach the sermon, because "people are more likely to leave after the sermon is over", thus increasing the likelihood of a larger offering. Some like to delay passing the offering plates until after they have preached a sermon on stewardship, hoping the congregation will be inspired to give more.

   Stewardship, especially the good management of money is an important topic. Jesus is quoted in the Gospels preaching about good money management more often than He preached about Heaven and Hell. Question: How often is Jesus quoted talking about giving tithes in the New Testament? Answer: Only a couple of times, to the Jews. Read Matthew 23:23,24;

   "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices--mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law--justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel." [NIV]

   In Luke's Gospel, Jesus is quoted saying the same thing again (Luke 11:42). And in Luke 18:9-14, Jesus tells the story of a hypocritical Pharisee who tithes, and a tax collector who falls on his face in repentance. On those few occasions when Jesus had something to say about tithing in the Gospels, He was usually rebuking the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law for their hypocrisy.

Offering Envelopes

   Now, what about the New Testament church? Should the NT church be following the rules concerning the giving of tithes? Should the NT church be giving tithes, or was tithing just an OT ordinance only for the Jews? This is a hot issue! When was the last time you visited a church, and noticed those offering envelopes provided in the pews? Many of them have motivational messages printed on them, such as...

• "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me...bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. (Malachi 3:8-10)

• "Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously" (2Corinthians 9:6)

   These two popular scriptures are printed on more offering envelopes than you might imagine! It would seem that they are strategically chosen as a means of reminding people to give more money. Perhaps these quotations will make people think twice and cause them to give more, because they don't want to feel stingy when they put something into the offering plate, thereby inspiring people to give from a motivation of guilt, rather than from a motive of thanksgiving. Is it any wonder some people have the impression that the church just wants their money? Should people be motivated in their giving by their guilt, or by their thanksgiving? The NT model of giving clearly suggests the latter.

The New Testament Model Of Giving

   New Testament giving is harder. It is harder because the determining factor of how much you should be giving is up to you, the giver, and not God. The old model of giving tithes was easier, because the giver didn't have to decide how much to give - the tithe decided that in advance. If you received so much, whether it was money, supplies, food - anything - the first 10% of it was automatically given back to God. And then after the tithe was given, offerings were given over and beyond the tithe. The Jews kind of treated this system of giving kind of as a contract...which seems to have contributed to their boasting and trying to justify themselves by their good works.

   In Paul's second letter to the Corinthian church, he instructs this congregation on what is best in the matter of giving money to the church. Are you ready for this? Paul never once instructs the church to give tithes. Read 2Corinthians 8:8,9;

   "I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich." [NIV]

   Here is an illustration from marriage. Do you think a wife would want her husband to do something nice for her, because her husband had an obligation (a contract) to do something nice, or do you think she would want her husband to do something nice simply just because he loves her? Would it not be a test of the sincerity of a husband's love for his wife if he does something nice for her out of the love of his heart, and not just because the wife expects him to do it? Think about that for a minute! Likewise, Paul wanted to challenge the church in this same way by testing the sincerity of their love for their Savior, Who "became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich". Read 2Corinthians 8:10-12;

   "And here is my advice about what is best for you in this matter: Last year you were the first not only to give but also to have the desire to do so. Now finish the work, so that your eager willingness to do it may be matched by your completion of it, according to your means. For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have." [NIV]

   Paul is encouraging the church to give willingly, "according to your means". In other words, he is saying that when we give, we should be giving what we are able to give, according to our means. That is, if you have a lot of money, you can give a lot. If you don't have a lot, then give what you can give. Perhaps this may carry the implication that if you are in debt, then you would be wise to consider getting out of debt first, before giving to the church. After all, if you owe money to someone, is it right to give that money to the person that you owe (and thus get out of debt!), or is it right to ignore your debt, and give what you owe them to the church, thus causing yourself to make no headway in paying back your debt? Paul is not instructing anyone to give tithes. As he says, your willingness to give the gift - not the size or physical amount of the gift - makes your gift acceptable. Read 8:13-15;

   "Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: "He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little."" [NIV]

   Here is the model spelled out. The church is a family of believers. As a family, we should all give and contribute what we can, to help each other in times of need. The idea is this. The church is full of different people. Some have plenty, some have little. But if we all contribute what we can, there will be equality, a balance of supply and demand, so that nobody in the church will be without what they need. If every family followed this model, there would be a lot more healthy families! Read 2Corinthians 9:6-8;

   "Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work." [NIV]

   Ah, we get to it now. When Paul talks about sowing and reaping sparingly or generously (you've seen this passage printed on those offering envelopes) he is reminding the church of the basic principals of supply and demand. He is not trying to make people feel guilty. He says that God want us to give from the heart, not reluctantly, or under compulsion or out of guilt - He wants us to give cheerfully, out of a spirit of thanksgiving to Him. If we give in the spirit, God will make all grace abound, so that we will have all we need. Doesn't this also go along with what Jesus instructed His disciples concerning seeking His Kingdom first (Matthew 6:33)? Read 2Corinthians 9:10-11;

   "Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God." [NIV]

   If every congregation would just focus on the NT model of giving according to what they have, and giving it cheerfully, then there would be a lot more congregations setting a right example of what it means to be a family of God, and there would be a lot more ministry. Read 2Corinthians 9:12-15;

   "This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of God's people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else. And in their prayers for you their hearts will go out to you, because of the surpassing grace God has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!" [NIV]

   What a tremendous witness to the world it would be, if every congregation would put this NT model of giving to work. If every church did this, more people might see evidence that the Bible's teachings really do work. Isn't this what the church body is for?

Conclusion

   The OT model of giving was easy. God told Israel how much to give. The NT model of giving is harder. God is not telling us how much to give, He is now letting us decide how much we want to give. Give what you want to give, recognizing that everything you have already belongs to The LORD anyway - what you have is on loan to you. God would much prefer our giving to Him simply because we want to, out of a spirit of thanksgiving, than if He simply commanded a contractual amount. Giving because you are motivated by a spirit of thanksgiving is a better test of who genuinely loves The LORD, than the giving of tithes.

   Thus, we see some congregations that are full of true converts who are willing to give generously, and we see other congregations that are full of false converts who are not willing to give generously. That's why they have endless board meetings - so they can argue the mechanics of why people don't tithe more often! The solution? We need revival. If people would genuinely see the wickedness of their sins, and repent and trust in Jesus, they would be genuinely saved, and their spiritual conversion would result in thanksgiving. This thanksgiving would be an awesome witness to the world, that the Gospel truly is GOOD NEWS. When this happens, perhaps all this arguing over the giving of tithes might come to an end?

All Scripture quotations, unless noted otherwise are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved.