And he gave him a tithe of all.   Genesis 14:20

Recommended Reading:  HEBREWS 7:1-10  “ For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, ² to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” ³ without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.⁴ Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils. ⁵ And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law, that is, from their brethren, though they have come from the loins of Abraham; ⁶ but he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. ⁷ Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better. ⁸ Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives. ⁹ Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, ¹⁰ for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.”

COMMENTS:  Tithing was an important obligation and commandment that God instructed individual Israelites to do.  Tithing involved giving 10% of their gross income or increase to God’s work or specifically to priest.  For most it was in sheep or some form of livestock or goods but also included currency or money, especially when material goods or land was sold off.

Tithing took on a different and broader meaning and commandment in New Testament times from that first Easter until present and beyond. 

Tithing is a rare topic of sermons in most churches and most pastors dread the topic because it isn’t very popular with congregations.  A common justification is approach that it is God who directs giving and New Testament implies giving a tithe is not an obligation but an expression of gratitude to God not limited or defined by the tithe or giving just 10%.

Well, truth is Jesus didn’t discourage nor object to tithing.  But He focused on attitude of heart of the giver.  The level of faith and gratitude, the purpose and reason for giving.  He indicated that an impoverished widow’s gift of a mite was far more than a wealthy man giving 10% of his abundance that was not a sacrifice to his lavish lifestyle.

So sacrificial giving is important to God and is important to our growth in faith and maturity and obedience. 

Well, God has an unsettling way of asking us to do the opposite of what makes sense to us and what circumstances expect or even demand.  An example given in a recent devotion I read is about a young man in California who was convicted by his pastor to tithe and wanted to be faithful to start doing this.  The first several attempted failed because he didn’t have enough money to tithe after he paid all his bills.  Then God spoke to his heart and told him to tithe before paying those bills.  He began to panic at even the idea of considering doing that because he struggled to pay essential bills and still pay his college tuition and bills since he was working at a job while going to college.

But he finally yielded to God’s nudging and began tithing first.  What he discovered is what I’ve discovered and observed doing since I began my working career 46+ years ago.  That is that tithing first opens opportunities for God to provide in unexpected ways but in His timeframe and way.  He stretched my faith to trust Him in other ways too and to wait on Him.   Doing so helped force me to set better priorities in spending and get along on less and convincing myself some of the necessities I wanted or had were not necessities but luxuries.   Likewise, giving to others more freely and generously became a more natural and enjoyable side benefit.

I’ve wasted a lot of income over the years and made more poor purchases than I recall or even want to admit, but God did enable me to be faithful to tithe my gross income consistently and guided me to make wiser purchases which helped me save and free up money for more needed purchases.  The practice also enabled me to have excess available to give when an unexpected need came to light.

One time a fellow young co-worker was grieving because he had no money for Christmas gifts for his family.   His circumstances and struggles motivated me to give him $100 with condition that he pass it on when a similar need was revealed to him.      I’ve repeated this practice a few more times but none more memorable that first time.  He moved on to another location and lost track of him until a few years later we crossed paths.   After initial greetings and sharing, he asked me if I remembered giving him $100 that Christmas season.  He then told me he has passed it on many times and changed his life and attitude and spending priorities dramatically and has done so to many recipients too who pass theirs on too.

As I reflect on that experience, I also am reminded of my Dad’s youngest sister.  Her faith and character were such a wonderful example to me and my family over the years.  She didn’t marry until age 47 and spent much of her life in Indiana working at the Wesleyan Methodist Church Headquarters.  She was married for 25 years when her husband passed away.  She then moved back to Pennsylvania and moved into the duplex next door my parents owned.  My father died first in 2002 and then my mother in 2007 and then she passed on 3 years after my mother.   She was always diligent to tithe, so when she passed, we decided to increase our church giving to reflect not only our tithe but hers too.  That was a stretch but since then I retired to a smaller pension than my salary but have been able to maintain that commitment over the past 9 years since her death without needing to use savings.  Our income is sufficient to cover living expenses and our giving – tithe commitments plus.

Our home is comfortable and more than meets our needs and holds a special value because it was my parents’ home for 44 years and my mother’s grandparents’ home for 49 years before that.  We have owned this same home for the past 39 years too.  Pictures of our home and the duplex next door, we also own and rent to my wife’s cousin and to our son’s sister-in-law, 100 years ago with my mother and her younger sister playing in the yard showing those structures in the background and my great-grandmother sweeping the walk in the background is priceless.

Another special blessing is volunteering at church and at local pantry and at local cemetery.  My father mowed in that cemetery for 15 years after he retired and I would help him after my workday was done.  I would kid him saying all those people who, when alive would be generous in giving a helping hand, now were simply watching him and I work. 

Now I am volunteering that labor of love realizing he now is one of them watching me mow, but as I mow, and see the hundreds of gravestones of those I knew well and positively impacted my life and reflected Christ to me too, I realize just how much God has provided and blessed me and my family over the years.  As I mow around the graves of my great-grandparents and my grandparents and my parents and even my older sister, they become real and alive to me once more and continue instructing and encouraging me through the memories I retain and cherish of them.   Well, my great parents I didn’t know but the stories my parents told make me feel as though I knew them.

Faith is still a fragile and growing part of my Christian walk even though it has been 59 years since I first accepted Christ.  Tithing is easier for me now but giving extra to new ministries and needs is still a stretch and requires more faith, so faith isn’t a natural spring I drink from without thought but a small trickle that appears dry each time I drink from it not knowing if will be there next time.  BUT IT ALWAYS IS JUST LIKE THE WIDOW ELIJAH STAYED WITH DURING A GREAT DROUGHT WHO TOOK THE LAST OF THE FLOUR AND OIL TO MAKE ELIJAH AND HER AND HER SON BREAD.  THAT SUPPLY WAS SUFFICIENT, NEVER DEPLETED UNTIL THE DROUGHT ENDED A FEW YEARS LATER.

That story, recorded in I Kings 17, has given me much encouragement to trust God for the lesson things that I’ve been stretched to do and give.

Give the tithe first but be willing to give more as God directs and invites.  Afterall, He has more than ample resources and ability to provide and promises to never fail us, so what are we waiting for?

“Give God what’s right, not what’s left!”   Adrian Rodgers

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