Tithing

Tithing
It All Belongs to Him

By Pastor Gary Wayne

My goal as a pastor / teacher is to share God’s Word / principals with us to cause us to live WAY ABOVE normal living. We were never called to be normal, but exceptional. Called to live WAY BLESSED.

Money is a major topic in the Bible. Jesus spoke more about finances then any other subject. 50% of Jesus’ teaching had to do with the attitudes and actions concerning wealth. There is more said about money in the N.T. than about Heaven or Hell combined. The Bible talks 5 times more about money then about prayer.

So I want to speak about finances - more specifically, I want to talk about tithing.

Text: Luke16:10-12, Genesis 14:18-20, Malachi 3:10-11

The word tithe is simply given God 10% of your increase.
But it must start with the understanding that all I am, all I have is His in the first place. So what I seem to have, in reality is His, and He has asked me to be a steward of His property.

Ps.24:1 “The earth is the LORD'S, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein.”

He has made a covenant with me, in in this covenant agreement – (which is all His idea) – He says that in this partnership with Him, I don’t bring any assets, I don’t need any skills, He will supply both of those.
I get to be in charge of what happens to the 100%, but in this agreement, the first 10% is His, leaving me with a cut of 90%. WOW, what a deal!!!
Then on top of that incredible deal, He agrees to bless my 90% - He makes it prosper as well.
Do I realize that having 90% blessed by God is a HUGE financial security.

Some feel tithing as an Old Testament law that is not for today.
But tithing did not start with law, but a heart response to God.

Gen.14:18-20
This was 500 years before the law. It was a heart response that understood the principal of all I am is because of God – It’s all His anyway.

What does the word “testament” mean? OT, NT = Covenant.
Tithing is in the Old Testament, but it is in the New Testament as well.
There are a lot of things in the OT law that we still believe.
The OT ORDERED us not to commit adultery. So would that mean that because we are NT people, we can commit adultery? Murder? Steal? Etc.

Just because it was under the old law didn’t make it bad.
If it was right under the law, it is still right.

God in our covenant partnership, askes me to be a steward of His things.
What is a steward?
Lk.16:10-12
Stewardship can only be happen when I know who the owner is.
It all belongs to God.

A non-Christian viewpoint is, I earned it, I get to spend it.
I don’t have enough to give 10% off the top.
But human reasoning should NEVER be our default way of thinking.

Here is where the human mind does battle with God’s math.
“You mean I am going to get ahead financially by giving away 10% of what I earned? I already have more month then I do money coming in.”

God’s math principal: 90% of my income + God as my partner = open floodgates, and a rebuked devourer.
Man’s math: 100% of my income with me in charge = opting out of God’s financial security and blessing in my life. It’s my way, not His.

What is God’s economic principal? Give and you will receive. How?
Pressed down, shaken together, and running over.
With the same measure I use to figure out how much to give, it will be used to give back to me. (Luk.6:38)

“DON’T LEAN ON YOUR UNDERSTANDING but in all your ways Acknowledge” God. Prov.3:5

A Christ centered understanding is what?
The God of the universe under a blood covenant says to me, “I am your source, I want bless you with a SUPERNATURAL blessing of what you steward for Me.”

What I want us to ask the Holy Spirit is who’s thinking am I ruled by when it comes to finances?