 If you pay tithes it might be okay or it also might be dangerous. The likelihood of you ever going to a church and having heard someone say that it's time for you to pay tithes and offerings but we're focusing the tithes is pretty high. Why is that? Well, truth be told many churches either do so one out of ignorance not knowing what the purpose of the tithe is for or in some cases let's just be honest out of greed. The issue is though what does that do for you? Is there a danger? So before we go into it let's go and think about what the tithe is for. The tithe simply stands for a tenth the tenth of what? Well it is a tenth of what you have produced. Now obviously in the Old Testament it could be and for the most part it would be produce animals what have you and there was a need for it to be done it was given as a command to the Jews under the law and we'll get to that point in a second why this could actually be dangerous but the point and purpose of it was for a tithe for the land a tithe for the temple a tithe for the for the Levites. Now depending upon which scholar you're talking to you might find that there's either three tithes or two tithes because of that we're not going to really get into it because the purpose of the tithe under the Old Covenant is not something that we need to worry about why because it's not for us. The tithe has never been given as a command to anyone in the New Testament. Now there's going to be a couple passages that people are going to go to and we're going to find out that that's not the way that it should be applied as a matter of fact speaking of applying a passage incorrectly one of the passages classically that you'll hear oftentimes in churches really as a means to bring about guilt is this passage in Malachi 3 let's start in verse 8 says will a man rob God well the obvious answer is yes if a man gets an opportunity to he probably will but in this case this is not speaking to us just speaking to the Jews he says yet you are robbing me but you say how how have we robbed you in tithes and offerings which is why you see oftentimes or sometimes in churches you'll see them combine the two tithes and offerings a tenth of what they have produced he says you are cursed with the curse for you are robbing me the whole nation of you bring the whole tithe in the storehouse so that there may be food in my house and test me now in this says the Lord of hosts and see if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour you out of blessing until it overflows now there's a little bit of a guilt but there's also an incentive that people give to you the problem is this just was not for us as Gentiles this is for the for the Jews now has that purpose been reiterated in the New Testament no it has not now people are going to say well what about Jesus Jesus brings this up but when Jesus brings it up he's not commanding them to pay tithes there's two times of lack of think of when someone brings up tithes first times in Matthew 23 as well as also this the story is also reiterated Luke and then also with the uh the young man who says that I pay tithes twice a week in order to show that he keeps the law but we don't see Jesus saying that you must do so look what he says in Matthew 23 23 he says woe to you scribes and Pharisees hypocrites why for your tithe meant and deal and cumin and have neglected the weighty provisions of the law so in this case Jesus is not saying you must tie now under the old covenant at in this time this dispensation the Jews were required to do so because the need for it was still there however that's going to change in a little bit and what we're going to notice is going forward at the establishment of the church there is no command to pay the tithe however someone's going to say what about Abraham the tithe was in existence before the law again you can pay a tithe you can pay any percentage that you want you can pay five percent you can pay thirteen percent if you pay ten percent what is that called a tithe there's an actual name to a tenth which is a tithe that's literally what it means Abraham gives a tithe to Melchizedek remember in uh Galatians I'm sorry Genesis 14 20 he says and bless be most God most high who has delivered your enemies into your hand and he gave him a tenth of all this Abraham giving a tithe to Melchizedek was Abraham required to do so we don't know the Bible doesn't say that he was forced to do so maybe he was maybe he wasn't it doesn't say and so because he gave a tenth that means that well the tithe was in existence well the term tithe was around ten percent was around at the time but there was no command that we know of and that's the key point that we know of we don't have a command that we know of to pay the tithe and if there were such a command it was not a command for us to follow there's a such thing as primary application and secondary applications the primary application means that if it's for us God would have made it clear and we would have to apply this to us the primary application would be not just for them but also for us and so in this case we don't see that we don't see that with Abraham we don't see that with the Jews that is not us that's not the dispensation that we're in what we do find though is that the disciples at the first day of the week began collecting offerings why so they can have all things in common on the first day of the week this is 1st Corinthians 16 2 on the first day of the week each of you is to put aside and save as he may prosper so that no collection may be made when I come in other words as he comes he's going to pick up so that other people in the body can also have who aren't doing as well but he says to do so on the first day of the week so that when he comes it was just out of convenience now was it a command to do it on the first day of the week not necessarily but he said to put it aside as you say as he may prosper notice what's missing an actual amount an actual percentage and so we cannot say that there's a command to do so now as a matter of fact we see them wanting to kind of bring money in so that the so that the body can be blessed the the running of the ministry can be taken care of as a matter of fact agabus in acts comes down and stays says that there's going to be a famine and so we should have this collection so that other people can be taken care of during this famine and so you kind of see the principle of this you know kind of being even put out but again there is no percentage no ties no no percentage that's given the only time that we see that this is commanded is in the old covenant where they're supposed to give such as in Leviticus 27 30 says thus all the tides of the land of the sea of the land or of the fruit of the tree is the lord it's holy to the lord this is their command this is to be separated and set aside for the lord that provision has not been followed or carried out in this new dispensation after the cross we don't see this what we do see though is this right here we see in 2 Corinthians 970 says each one must do just as he has purpose in his heart not grudgingly so we're not supposed to give grudgingly with a frown or under compulsion that's the point you cannot say that someone has to give a certain amount but then turn around and say that you you don't have to force them to give under certain compulsion making a person give at least 10 percent that is a compulsion now he says that what how you ought to do is you ought to give cheerfully god loves a cheerful giver by the way this is the word the greek word where we get the english word hilarious so god loves a hilarious or a happy or cheerful giver and god is able to make all grace abound to you so that always having all sufficiency in everything you may have an abundance of every good deed and what god is going to bless you with is not necessarily going to be money it might be in other areas and so even when they refer to in the gospels give it and it shall be given to you pressed down shaking forward shaking shaking together and running over again that's a way that people will put this together to make you say to kind of guilt you into giving will god bless you forgiven sure how is it going to bless so will it be monetarily not necessarily it might be in other ways god does want you now let's be clear god does want us to give it's the amount in question that's been the source of debate give according to this this this command that paul gives or the statement paul gives gives with a cheerful heart give out of love however you purpose notice what he says however you have purposed in your heart first seven so if in your heart you desire to give 14 percent that's fine if you desire to give 4 percent if you did i desire to give 10 percent if you desire to actually give a tenth that is fine if you purpose that in your heart where it becomes a problem and i mentioned earlier where this can become a danger if you obligate yourself as a result of the law to give 10 percent if you're going to force yourself for say that i have to give 10 percent then i would be violating the law i would be committing a sin if i don't and i must do this as a result of what the law says then what you're doing is you're obligating yourself under the law and that is a person if that person has obligated themselves under the law and their salvation is contingent upon them keeping the law that person cannot be saved why do i say so and this is why it's dangerous notice what he says in glacians five four this is metaphorically starting verse three he says and i testify again to every man who receives circumcision that he is under obligation to keep the whole law you have been severed from christ whoever you are you that are seeking to be justified by the law you have been you have fallen from grace and so if there's a person who says they trust in the work of the cross but then what they really are trusting in is the work of the law that person has been cut off what is the work of the law trying to keep the law by giving these ties again it's okay if you decide in your heart if you purpose in your heart to give a tithe to get 10 percent of which that's fine just like if you purpose in your heart eight point five percent twelve percent that's fine now he does say paul does say if that extra point two percent if that extra dollar is going to cause you to give a frown then don't give it god doesn't need your money that part should be understood god doesn't need anything from you but he does love a cheerful giver and so if given a hundred dollars keeps you smiling amen if a hundred one dollars makes you frown don't give the hundred one dollars don't sin while you're trying to give you cannot guilt god in doing anything for you and god is not trying to guilt you give according to your heart now should you think about what god has done for you and what you can give amen but don't let someone guilt you into giving something give your rent money give your mortgage money give your light no we're not going to give bill money we're not going to give the money that's obligated but give what you can give make god a priority as you give that part is understood but for someone to make you give a certain percentage that person's also sinning do not participate in that you do not have to pay a tithe do you have to give something you should give something that part is also understood but if you are trying to make it into heaven by keeping all of the law you will miss all of heaven because you cannot keep any of it including the tithe amen