new testament

How Can Christians Give Less Than Israel Did?

As we continue our ‘Tithing on Trial’ series, we will evaluate the most common tithing arguments used to defend its practice.

This argument is one of the tougher discussions to defend against. We live in a very prosperous world while living under the grace of God. Israel never had the opportunities we have had in our time. How can people living under grace, with a higher calling, and the Holy Spirit possibly be excused from giving less than the 10% tithe that Israel gave?

First, the facts: Israel did give less than 10%

The initial problem with the above argument is believing that 10% was the minimum Israel gave in the first place.

Israel was only required to give 1/500 of the spoils of war (Numbers 31). The Israelites were not required to give 10% of their spoils of war. They weren’t even required to give one percent.
Bankers, lawyers, and doctors did not participate in tithes because Israel was only required to give from the increase of their animals or from their crops of the land. They gave 0% from their non-farming occupation.
Israel’s tithe paid for civil duties. The tithe was a part of Israel’s civic duty and tax obligations. According to Zippia, the average household income in the US is around $87,000. The tax bracket for joint filers at that income level is 22%. Our taxes pay for social welfare, including food, housing, schooling, etc. The budget for the welfare program alone was 1 trillion dollars in 2021. According to Statista, personal income was 21 trillion. In summary, Americans are already giving ~5% of their salary towards one of the welfare programs that exist. This does not include sales taxes that are paid. Don’t get me started on business taxes. If you’re a small business entrepreneur, you understand the absurd amount of taxes you pay towards your civil duty.
Israel’s rich and poor gave an equal amount of half a shekel for the temple tax. Across the board, everyone was required to give towards the upkeep and maintenance of the temple. A shekel was about 7-8 grams of silver. In today’s value, that could be around $4-$6. This does not equate to the value of silver back then, but it gives you a picture. Regardless, the flat offering was across the board and was more than 10% for some and under 10% for others.
Israelites never tithed outside of the promised land. When the Israelites lived outside of their land, they did not give a tithe. God only wanted crops and animals that were a part of the increase of the land of Israel. So, a farmer gave 0% of grain towards the storehouse if the crops were grown outside the land. Please read more about why Israel only tithed on food.
Jesus’ own words to his disciples about ministry said, “Freely you have received; freely give.” (Matthew 10:8). Although, his words are not direct proof, it does set a precedent and relieves us from some of the pressure to meet a standard that not even all of the Israelites had to meet.
Israel only tithed on the increase of animals. If their flock increased by nine animals that year, then they gave 0% of their increase.

10% is not a spiritual principle – it is an earthly standard

God never raised the standards of his principles in the New Testament. We can’t hold ourselves accountable to any of Israel’s requirements. Take a look at priests: they could only serve 25 years from age 25-50 and had to have documented lineage. These aren’t standards that any of us would consider universal principles.

God placed certain rules and restrictions on Israel because he wanted to teach a spiritual principle through earthly regulations. The regulations are not there for us to compare ourselves to. Do you realize how crazy some of the Old Testament laws are that we would find ourselves working towards?

If we can take the tithe and compare it with our efforts in the New Testament, we are opening the door to other rules and regulations for adoption. Where do we draw the line on which Old Testament laws we should supersede? Which laws do we ask ourselves, “How can we do less, serve less, give less, say less, than Israel did?”

God’s spiritual standards are repeatable and applicable across the board. If questioning how we can give less than Israel helps us uncover tithing as a spiritual principle, then this same question could be repeated to compare our efforts versus everything that Israel did. This self-reflection shouldn’t just stop with our wallets.

The question is flawed. Using it to confirm our doctrine may make sense in some instances, but we soon find ourselves realizing that this is a poor question to confirm New Testament practices. If it was a good question, we could apply it to everything.

The truth is that God never raised the bar. His principles have been steady and unwavering. It’s dangerous to base our theology or doctrine on qualitative questioning. How can we give less than Israel did? Well, let’s find out the facts first before we start basing our doctrine on unstable rationale.

You Be The Judge

Now it’s time for the jury to weigh in:

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Where Does the New Testament Command Us Not to Tithe?

12/09/13 by Jared Brian 54 Comments

It’s been a while since our last post but i want to continue our ‘Tithing on Trial’ series, we will evaluate the most common tithing arguments used to defend its practice.

The main argument is that because the New Testament does not tell us to stop tithing, this means that God wants us to continue tithing. This is one of the most immature excuses used to require tithing. Have you ever done something stupid when you were a child and then make the excuse to your parents, “You didn’t tell me not to do it”? How did that work for an excuse to get you out of trouble? Well, this excuse doesn’t work for tithing either. Just because there is no verse that states, “Thou shalt stop tithing” does not issue a license to continue it’s practice. The New Testament (NT) wasn’t written because God needed to explain how to reverse all the Old Testament (OT) laws one by one.

The NT Wasn’t Written to Reverse the OT

There are 613 laws and commandments listed in the Torah. Do you think the New Testament should go through each of these and pick and choose which ones are applicable?

Let’s use circumcision as an example. Most of us commonly agree that circumcision is no longer required in the New Testament and we agree so easily because circumcision was clearly repealed in the New Testament. The bible is pretty cut and dry and plain as day on the issue; but what about addressing all the other laws? It’s unnecessary to address the other laws and in reality it was unnecessary to address circumcision either. You have to ask yourself, “What is the real reason why we don’t require circumcision?” If there was no verse that clearly repealed circumcision as a requirement would you still practice it? The answer would be, “No”, many of us would still not require circumcision. And the reason is that we don’t really base our doctrine on what Paul/Peter/Jesus didn’t say, we base it on what Jesus did.

Jesus’ act on the cross and the fulfillment of the laws is why we don’t practice circumcision. Even if there wasn’t a single word uttered about circumcision in the New Testament, we should be able to deduct that circumcision is not a New Testament practice. I think most of us can make that logical connection with circumcision, but why can’t we do the same with a mechanical, calculated practice called tithing? All of a sudden the actions of Christ on the cross is voided because we don’t have solid concrete proof slapping us in the face telling us to “QUIT TITHING!”

I’m not trying to throw out scripture, but the truth of the matter is that there were 613 Old Testament laws listed in the Old Testament while many of them were not addressed again in the New Testament. So you can whine about my effort to discount the lack of scripture; but it’s just hypocrisy unless you actually obey many of the 613 laws that were not addressed in the NT.

My argument here is based on the fact that the law is clearly repealed and that tithing is part of the law. Why should i find a verse that specifically ends tithing, when I can find plenty of proof that tithing is in fact part of the law? There are Old Testament laws that are specifically mentioned and ended in the New Testament, so it is through these examples we can determine the principles we should apply to all the laws in scripture.

Other Old Testament Laws that Were Not Repealed in the New Testament

Deuteronomy 23:2 – Don’t let illegitimate children in the Assembly of God
Deuteronomy 25:5-10 – If your brother dies, you have to marry his wife so she can have a son.
Deuteronomy 25:11-12 – If a woman hurts a man’s testicles, you should cut off her hand
Deuteronomy 21: 20-21 – You can beat your slave within an inch of his life.
Leviticus 15:19 – A woman must be quarantined for 7 days if she’s on her period.
Leviticus 19:19 – Don’t mix cotton with polyester in your clothes.
Leviticus 21:5 – Ministers can’t shave their head or their beard
Leviticus 21:16-23 – No one with a defect can approach the altar of God.
Numbers 8:24 – Ministers can only serve if they are older than 25, and the can’t serve more than 25 years.
Leviticus 20:9 – Rebellious children are to be put to death.

I’m sure you’ve heard many of those laws mentioned before and you don’t even blink twice at them. I’m sure you pass them off as part of the Mosaic law and if need be you recite some of these statements below in your defense.

“Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom”
“If you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law”
“Follow the Spirit of the law, not the letter”
“We are not under the law, we are under grace”
“We are delivered from the law, Christ has made us free”
“Christ nailed the ordinances against us on the tree”. . . etc

These statements are great to use to exempt yourself from circumcision, shaving ministers’ beards, beating slaves, mixing clothing, or eating unclean meats. But for some reason, these exemptions are powerless to stand up against the 10% benchmark. Strange, don’t you think?

Why Shouldn’t We Require Offerings?

Offerings began even sooner than the practice of tithing did, but no one seems to be preaching about them as a requirement. There were five main offerings required in the Old Testament

Burnt Offering – Voluntary act of worship; atonement for unintentional sin in general
Meal Offering – Voluntary act of worship; recognition of God’s goodness and provisions
Peace Offering – Voluntary act of worship; thanksgiving and fellowship
Sin Offering – Mandatory atonement for specific unintentional sin
Tresspass Offering – Mandatory atonement for unintentional sin requiring restitution

Besides these five main offerings in the Old Testament, there were also additional offerings given during these events

New moon
Feast of Unleavened Bread – 7 Offerings, 7 days Total
Feast of Weeks
Feast of Trumpets
The Day of Atonement
Feast of Tabernacles – 7 Offerings, 7 days Total
The Last Great Day

Even though the Peace offering is not an obligation to us anymore, it was never stopped in the New Testament. If we are basing church practices on Old Testament exemptions, can someone explain why we are required to offer a tithe and not required to offer anything else? Of all the focus on stewardship in the bible, does our selection make sense?

How Does the New Testament Teach us to Give?

The New Testament doesn’t tell us to stop tithing, but it does give guidelines and example on how we should give. Here are a list of bible verses that talk about giving

2 Corinthians 9:7 – Decide in your heart what to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion. Give cheerfully.
Acts 20:35 – Work in order to help the weak, and It is more blessed to give than receive
Acts 2:44-47 – Giving to those who had need and sharing with others as if all things were common with one another
2 Corinthians 8:1-24 – The joy of the Macedonians allowed their giving to go beyond their means
Acts 4:32 – There was no feeling that their possessions were their own as owners sold land and gave to those in need
Hebrews 13:16 – Do good and share with others
1 Timothy 6:17-19 – Be willing to share & rich in good deeds
2 Corinthians 9:6-12 – If you sow sparingly you’ll reap sparingly
1 John 3:17 – If you don’t give to someone in need, God’s love does not abide in you.
Galatians 6:2 – Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
Romans 12:13 – Distribute to the needs of the saints and be hospitable
Philippians 4:15-17 – Provide for ministers of God.
Romans 12:8 – Giving is a Spiritual gift that should be used liberally
1 Peter 4:8-10 – Be hospitable. Use our abilities to share with one another.
John 3:16 – Of course the greatest example of giving made by God for giving his only son (his everything)

There are so many verses and examples about how we should give. In all honesty, the list of verses above outline a daunting task for us. I look at those verses and can’t help but think that these early Church believers were super-Christians. How they felt about their possessions and having all things in common blows my mind. Not that I’m all for throwing our money in a pot and redistributing, but I just want to have the mentality that what’s mine is not really mine, but is yours also.

The New Testament clearly shows that our giving should be sacrificial, cheerful, liberal, and consistent. This doesn’t exclude 10% minimum, but neither does it include it. One thing I know for sure is that Jesus’ example of giving and the example of his love should inspire me to give beyond my ability, and I struggle with that.

You Be the Judge

Now that the evidence has been given in this court of law, it is your turn to decide

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Should We Ignore Tithing in the Old Testament?

02/22/12 by Jared Brian 8 Comments

As we continue our series ‘Tithing on Trial’, let’s evaluate another argument used to defend tithing.

ARGUMENT #3
All Scripture is profitable, so we can’t ignore tithing in the Old Testament.

2 Timothy 3:18 states this, “All Scripture [is] given by inspiration of God, and [is] profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness“

If this passage applied to half of the Mosaic laws in the Old Testament (OT), I’d be okay with using it in this context; but considering how 2 Timothy 3:18 is not a common source used to validate any of the other 600+ Mosaic laws, then using this verse to defend a single OT law makes one look desperate.

If we really believed that 2 Timothy 3:18 can be used to defend tithing then there are many other OT laws that would drastically change how the Church functions today. Here are a few examples below

Deuteronomy 23:2 would not allow illegitimate children into Church services.
Exodus 21:20-21 would allow us to own slaves as property and beat them within an inch of taking their life.
Leviticus 19:19 would not allow you to wear clothing made with polyester and cotton nor spandex mixed with silk.
Leviticus 21:5 would not allow ministers to shave any part of their head. Maybe this included the beard ( i don’t know? )
Leviticus 21:16-23 would not allow anyone with a physical defect to give offerings.
Numbers 8:24 would not allow ministers to serve in the Church for more than 25 years.
Leviticus 20:9-10 would sentence rebellious children and adulterers to death.

I think you get my point now.

How Profitable is the Old Testament Law?

Galatians 3:24-25 states, “Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster [to bring us] unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.“

Although our schoolmaster is retired and we are not longer following the law as our master, this does not render the Old Testament useless. There are many other universal principles that can be taught through the Old Testament, but the ordinances were nailed to the cross and left there

Colossians 2:14 “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross”

Although Old Testament laws were taken out of the way, this doesn’t mean there aren’t principles to be found within the practice of them. We can find universal principles taught in the New Testament with references to Old Testament laws. Circumcision, altar sacrifices, and burning incense are all referenced in the New Testament. Here are some scriptural references of how Old Testament laws are applicable in the New Testament

Colossians 2:11 In Him you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ,
Hebrews 13:15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.
Philippians 4:18 Indeed I have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God.

We know that neither circumcision, nor sacrifices need to be enforced in order to teach principles behind the matter. In regards to tithing, we can read that tithing is neither a necessary nor exclusive practice used to teach principles of stewardship.

What does the New Testament say about giving?

Here’s a concise list of passages in the New Testament that describe how giving should be administered throughout the Church.

1 Corinthians 16:2 On the first [day] of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come.
2 Corinthians 9:7 [So let] each one [give] as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity;
Romans 12:6-13 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, [let us use them]:…he who gives, with liberality…distributing to the needs of the saints
2 Corinthians 8:1-8 …their deep poverty abounded in the riches of their liberality. For I bear witness that according to [their] ability, yes, and beyond [their] ability, [they were] freely willing, imploring us with much urgency that we would receive the gift and the fellowship of the ministering to the saints…. I speak not by commandment, but I am testing the sincerity of your love by the diligence of others.
2 Corinthians 8:12-14 For if there is first a willing mind, [it is] accepted according to what one has, [and] not according to what he does not have. For [I do] not [mean] that others should be eased and you burdened; but by an equality, [that] now at this time your abundance [may supply] their lack, that their abundance also may [supply] your lack–that there may be equality.

After reading the above passages you will see that there is nothing to advocate tithing in the New Testament. Although, I have bolded some words above to emphasize how giving should be influenced. You will see phrases such as- ‘liberality’, ‘freely willing’, and ‘not by commandment’. This form of giving in the New Testament does not fit with the form of giving found in the Old Testament, so this puts us in a bit of a quandary if we wish to honor the whole scripture.

Ignoring the Cross

I think people get all messed up on this issue because they ignore the cross. It’s not about ignoring the Old Testament or the New, it’s about Calvary. The greatest example we have of giving found throughout the entire bible should answer this question for us. The ironic thing is that neither of us have doubts about whether we ought to be praying or reading more even though I don’t see anyone enforcing a minimum amount of praying or the minimum amount of bible reading. When we reflect on what Jesus did for us, we challenge ourselves to pray and read more. Some of us may incorporate personal benchmarks that help us perform this duty, but these benchmarks all vary and have different effects for everyone.

When scripture said pick up our cross and to give up our lives as a sacrifice, I don’t believe that he meant for us to legalize the process with our petty milestones.

Now that the evidence has been given in this court of law, it is your turn to decide; Can we ignore tithing in the Old Testament – guilty or not guilty?

YOU BE THE JUDGE

When the Lord Departs

03/09/10 by Jared Brian 1 Comment

I love the Old Testament. If had to choose which part of scriptures to do without I would choose the New Testament. There are some that probably do not spend much time reading and studying the Old Testament, but I believe that the Old Testament is just as relevant as the New Testament. I think i love it because the Old Testament paints a picture that explains God and his relationship with us in such a magnificent way. One story that came to mind today is Sampson and the Philistines.

Here’s an excerpt of Samson’s story in Judges 15
“When he[Samson] came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting against him. Then the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him; and the ropes that [were] on his arms became like flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds broke loose from his hands. He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and killed a thousand men with it.”

The stories of Samson are a man’s man type of story. As a guy, I can really appreciate it. I just envision this guy with Hercules type of strength shredding the ropes off his hands, wiping out a thousand men, and then polishing his nails right after. This guy would make Rambo look like papa smurf. But then you look at Samson a few verses later and you read that as God’s strength leaves his body, he becomes like every other mortal man.

Then she lulled him to sleep on her knees, and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. And she said, “The Philistines [are] upon you, Samson!” So he awoke from his sleep, and said, “I will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free!” But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him. Then the Philistines took him and put out his eyes, and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters, and he became a grinder in the prison.

As sad as this story seems in the life of Samson, this relates so well to our own lives. The only difference is that it’s not physical strength when the Spirit of the Lord is on me. I would say that we battle a thousand demons in our life every day. This means that a thousand times we need to make sure that the Spirit of God is upon us. There is no room for error or we could find ourselves enslaved and blinded.

P.S. I had intentions of making this relevant to tithing (I know you are thinking of how), but for once I’m not going to stop there . . . Maybe tomorrow I’ll finish it.