THE MOST UNPOPULAR SUBJECT OF THE MODERN DAY CHRISTIAN

Danna Shirley

Can you imagine going to work every day and not receive enough pay to sufficiently feed, clothe, or house your family or pay your bills?

Can you imagine having brothers and sisters in your family that can help you in your hour of need and not receive a helping hand from them?

Can you imagine your brother and sister in need and not be sensitive enough to give a helping hand?

Can you imagine seeing yourself robbing God and then singing, dancing, and praising Him before the altar with clean hands and a pure heart?

“Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me . . . in tithes and offerings.” (Malachi 3:8)

When we, the Body of Christ, bring our tithes into the storehouse, we are doing three things:

1.      We are obeying God’s Word in Malachi,

2.      We are opening the windows of heaven to receive a blessing that there shall not be room enough for us to hold, and

3.      We are supporting our pastors financially, which frees them to minister back to us in our hour of need and to minister to others in our place for Jesus Christ.

“The laborer [teacher] is worthy [due praise, deserving] of his hire [wages] . . .” (Luke 10:7)

Now consider the first three questions above.

Our pastors must feed, clothe, house, and pay their bills, as well as the church’s expenses, out of our tithes and offerings.

Our pastors receive their “helping hand” through our tithes and offerings.

Our pastors are sensitive to our needs but are we sensitive to see that their needs are met through our tithes and offerings?

Our pastors are worthy of their hire!

You may have supposed that our pastors should be standing on the Word of God in Philippians 4:19 and by faith believe God to supply all of their needs. The Word says that God does supply all of our needs  . . . good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over  . . . through the giving of men poured into our lap. (Luke 6:38)

When we are not faithful in our giving, we are doing three things:

1.      We are disobeying God’s Word to tithe,

2.      We are shutting off our own blessings, and

3.      We are placing our pastors on a poverty level of income in which we, ourselves, would not be willing to exist.

Now consider the fourth question above. God will not be mocked. His Word is quick and sharp and powerful: You can give freely and gain even more OR you can withhold unduly and come to poverty. (Proverbs 11:24)

God’s way may not always seem fair to us but it is always just. He has set down His way to bless us, either to be on the receiving end at times or the giving end at times, but to tithe at all times so that he can distribute the blessings!

            “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse . . . and test me in this says the Lord Almighty.” (Malachi 3:10)

Note of interest:

Statistics indicate that 33% of the world’s population is professing Christians.

These professing Christians control 62% of the world’s resources.

Statistics further show they give 1½% of this wealth to secular charities, ½% as personal gifts, 1% to God, and consume the other 97% on their own lusts.

What a tragedy these professing Christians have never learned God’s law of return?