After all these years, tithing remains a concept many still struggle with. We want to know exactly how to tithe, what to tithe, when to tithe, if we should tithe at all, and who to give it too. Each of these questions opens up areas of discussion which can, at times, lead to differences in opinion. And, when we have differences in opinions, often division follows.
It seems strange to have division over giving. After all, isn’t giving simply an act of generosity? And any generosity is better than no generosity, right? So why fight over it? Moreover, it’s supposed to be something private between the giver and God, no one else really has to know about it anyways. But it remains a tender and illusive subject. Do I have all the answers? Probably not, but, like everyone else, I have my own opinion. Proceed to read if you like.
An unlikely revelation
Recently I had a revelation. I was reading in Joshua chapter seven about how the Israelites were defeated at Ai because Achan had kept some of the spoils of war for himself and hid them in his tent. Joshua had Achan and his family stoned and then burned them. After that, things got back on track for Joshua and the Israelite army. Rewind back to Jericho in chapter six verse 24 and we read:
“But they burned the city and all that was in it with fire. Only the silver and gold, and the vessels of bronze and iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the Lord.”
Fast forward to Judges chapter six: Gideon chops down a wooden idol and uses the wood to burn in which he offers a sacrifice to the Lord. On the surface, this sounds odd. Why would God use something that was “profane” in which to offer something holy? And why was God making me read these two passages? Furthermore, how is this all linked to tithing?
‘Tis the season for giving
I am writing what you are reading in the month of December, and we all know what the world celebrates in December. True, ’tis the season for giving, and part of that giving comes in the form of a “Christmas Bonus” check. Most folks seems to enjoy receiving a Christmas bonus, even those who don’t celebrate Christmas. In our mind we say, “It’s really an end-of-the-year bonus check and we have deserved it.” If that’s the belief, so be it. Again, it’s really between the individual and God. But God has spoken to me about this through his scriptures.
I thought to myself, if there was no celebration of Christmas which involves spending money, would employers feel compelled to give a Christmas bonus? Probably not. After all, they don’t give a mid-year bonus for no reason. So the check is directly related to Christmas. This, unfortunately doesn’t fare well for those of us who feel that Christmas is a dodgy holiday to be mixing with our beliefs. Now the question: What do we do with the bonus money then? Sure, we all would like to keep it – we all could use a few more bucks – but it reeks of Achan’s actions.
A simple solution
Achan must have thought that it couldn’t hurt to keep some of the spoils for himself. Perhaps he justified himself by saying something like, “It’s not like I’m worshiping these things, I just need a few extra bucks and if it’s good enough for God’s coffers, it’s good enough for my own.” But that action had consequences, not just for him but for Joshua and the Israelites.
At their molecular level, pagan idols and such are “organic” for lack of a better term. God created the gold that made the idol, we created the idol out of that which God supplied. The sin comes from the intent, not from the material. Indeed, the material was, is, and will always be God’s, not ours. So it is no odd behavior to return that which was God’s to Him. (A quick note: those things that are produced of our own spirit – songs, ideas, individual beliefs – are creations of us and should not be given to God because they were not his to begin with. Yeshua said, “Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” Matthew 15:11.) But the material is material. This is why God seemed fine with Joshua giving him the spoils of Jericho and for Gideon to use the idol wood to burn for the offering.
Back to the bonus check
As much as we want that Christmas bonus check (and as much as we think we can use it) it may be best to just give it all to God. And here is my revelation: there’s no losing when we give to God. In our minds we may think that we really need that money but what we really need is to depend on God. If our loving Father knows we need the money, He’ll find a way for us to have it. Therein lies faith and all it takes is to let go of the cash and let it flow back to us if God sees fit.
No doubt there will be some who disagree with this idea. That’s ok. It’s not their money I deal with, it’s mine. And furthermore, it’s not my money I deal with, it’s the Father’s.
