Ten Percent?

"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' "In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty.
-Malachi 3:8-12

A few weeks ago, Pastor Bob was speaking on money. I love Bob's speaking . . . he is passionate, witty, not afraid to challenge, and he does his homework. As a past RCMP officer he brings a viewpoint that is . . . well, let's say different then what I heard as part of a Mennonite church for many years. It still surprises me when at the beginning of a sermon he asks us to stop and pray for our serviceman overseas or our law enforcement officers who serve and protect. Like I said, different perspective.

Anyway, in his last sermon before heading for Bali where he and his wife Anne are serving for several months he preached on tithing. One of his points which I am pondering is this:

Tithing (giving 10% of your income) is a command for Christ followers today. That giving is to be done directly to one's local church, giving to other charities/needs should be above the 10%.

Although it is an Old Testament command that is never mentioned in the New Testament, Bob appealed to Jesus words that he had come to fulfill the law (not replace it) as well as Matthew 5:18 "I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished." Bob said that God blesses those who obey this aspect of his Word and implied (if I head him right) that some blessing might be withheld if it is not.

I'm not sure if I agree with him on this one. Most Christians agree that we are still to follow the moral law but not the ceremonial. Wouldn't this be the ceremonial law? There is much said about giving generously in the New Testament but nothing on tithing (at least that I could find). Also, Bob's appeal to the perseverance of the law wasn't fully explained. Bible scholars have much disagreement over which parts of the law should still be observed by Christians and I'm not sure most would agree that the tithing laws are for today. What do you think?

For the most apart I agreed and was challenged with Bob's series on money (very refreshing I thought) but it's just on this one issue that I am unconvinced. Money is a touchy issue but I'm curious to know other people's viewpoints on giving. What do you believe and what is your actual practice? Are they different? I'm considering trying "living by the law" when it comes to tithing for year and see what happens. Perhaps the blessings of Malachi 3 will be more obvious in my life. I suppose it would be difficult to argue with results, right?


May Light increase!