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Saturday, September 5, 2009
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in the house. Test me in this says the Lord Almighty and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of Heaven and pour out so much blessings that you will not have enough for it."
I remembered what my co-teacher told me before when we were working in the same school that in order to receive more blessings from God, one must sacrifice to give his tithe to the church. She further stressed that giving tithe is our pay in exchange of the natural blessings that the Lord has given us everyday. Just like the air we breath, we can't buy such natural blessings. The food we eat, the water we drink and the life we had, these are all from God. And God only ask for one essential thing for us to do, share tithe.
What is tithe?
Title is more than a love offering. It is an act of sharing what we have without measure. It is the only way that church activities and its cause are sustain daily. It is more on our act of love to share and thank God for the bountiful blessing He has given us everyday no matter how much we sin.
Jesus just asks for only 10% of our salary or income. For example, if your monthly salary is 4000 dollars, you will share 10% to the church as your tithe. In your everyday living, you will be blessed with many blessings that you will not have space anymore for your home of how numerous they are.
Giving tithe is the only way that we can have more blessings and it takes wholehearted character to share, not counting the costs of how much we spend on giving tithe. To give is to share it with love.
Frankly, at first, it is so hard for me to give 10% tithe from my salary because almost all the commodities now are high but as I tried it for several months now, I assure you, it is really true that much blessings come in my life that I almost didn't expect to have them.
I now believe my co-teacher for letting me know the real meaning of giving tithe. If you want to share what you have and share it with love, you can be much blessed if you share 10%, our Lord is asking for only 10% of your income or salary to share it to the church for it (church) to generate and continue the cause of serving God and fellowmen. Your money is a lot of help especially to the less fortunate ones.
Share love! Give tithes!
I remembered what my co-teacher told me before when we were working in the same school that in order to receive more blessings from God, one must sacrifice to give his tithe to the church. She further stressed that giving tithe is our pay in exchange of the natural blessings that the Lord has given us everyday. Just like the air we breath, we can't buy such natural blessings. The food we eat, the water we drink and the life we had, these are all from God. And God only ask for one essential thing for us to do, share tithe.
What is tithe?
Title is more than a love offering. It is an act of sharing what we have without measure. It is the only way that church activities and its cause are sustain daily. It is more on our act of love to share and thank God for the bountiful blessing He has given us everyday no matter how much we sin.
Jesus just asks for only 10% of our salary or income. For example, if your monthly salary is 4000 dollars, you will share 10% to the church as your tithe. In your everyday living, you will be blessed with many blessings that you will not have space anymore for your home of how numerous they are.
Giving tithe is the only way that we can have more blessings and it takes wholehearted character to share, not counting the costs of how much we spend on giving tithe. To give is to share it with love.
Frankly, at first, it is so hard for me to give 10% tithe from my salary because almost all the commodities now are high but as I tried it for several months now, I assure you, it is really true that much blessings come in my life that I almost didn't expect to have them.
I now believe my co-teacher for letting me know the real meaning of giving tithe. If you want to share what you have and share it with love, you can be much blessed if you share 10%, our Lord is asking for only 10% of your income or salary to share it to the church for it (church) to generate and continue the cause of serving God and fellowmen. Your money is a lot of help especially to the less fortunate ones.
Share love! Give tithes!
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A. CONTEXT: Malachi is Old Covenant and is never quoted in the New Covenant to validate tithing (Lev. 27:34; Neh. 10:28-29; Mal. 3:7; 4:4).
B. CONTEXT: In Malachi 3:10-11 tithes are still only food 1000 years after Leviticus 27.
C. LAW: Malachi’s audience had willingly reaffirmed the Old Covenant (Neh.10:28-29). The blessings and curses of tithing are identical to and inseparable from those of the entire Mosaic Law. The rain in Deuteronomy 28:12, 23-24 and Leviticus 26:1-4 is only obtained by obedience to all 613 commandments. Galatians 3:10 (quoting Deu 27:26) “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continues not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” Trying to earn God’s blessings through tithing only brings curses for failure to keep all of the law. See also Galatians 3:19.
D. PRIEST-THIEVES: Beginning in 1:6 “you” in Malachi always refers to the dishonest priests and not the people (also 2:1-10; 2:13 to 3:1-5): “Even this whole nation of you --priests” (3:9). In 1:13-14 the priests had stolen tithed animals vowed to God. In Nehemiah 13:5-10 priests had stolen the Levites’ portion of the tithe. God’s curses on the priests are ignored by most tithe-teachers (1:14; 2:2 and 3:2-4).
E. LEVITICAL CITIES: Point #12. The Levitical cities must be included in a correct interpretation of Malachi 3:10 and they are not. Most tithe-recipients lived outside of Jerusalem.
F. 24 Courses: The 24 courses of Levites and priests must be included in a correct interpretation of Malachi 3 and they are not. Normally only 2% of the total Levite and priest work force served at the temple one week at a time. Subtract wives, males under the age of 30 and daughters. Therefore 2% did not require all of the tithe. See 1 Chron 23-26; 28:13, 21; 2 Chron. 8:14; 23:8; 31:2, 15-19; 35:4, 5, 10; Ezra 6:18; Neh. 11:19, 30; 12:24; 13:9, 10; Luke 1:5.
G. Nehemiah 10:37-39 is the key to understanding Malachi 3:10, The people were commanded to bring their tithes, not to the temple, but to the nearby Levitical cities. Verse 38 says that the priests were with the Levites in the Levitical cities when they received the tithes.
H. STOREHOUSE: According to Nehemiah 13:5, 9 the “storehouse” in the Temple was only several rooms. The real “storehouses” were in the Levitical cites per Nehemiah 10:37b. Only the Levites and priests normally brought tithes to the Temple (10:38). Two rooms in the Temple were far too small to contain the tithe from the entire nation and 98% of the Levites and priests lived too far away to eat from them.
Therefore, Malachi 3:10’s “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse” only makes contextual sense if it is only commanding dishonest priests to replace the tithes they had removed from it or had failed to bring to it.
While the 3:10 of the Law in Malachi is so important to tithe-teachers they ignore the 3:10 of the Gospel in Galatians and 2nd Corinthians. Perhaps those wanting to enforce the 3:10 Law of Malachi should also enforce the 3:10 Law of Numbers. They share the same context.
A. CONTEXT: Malachi is Old Covenant and is never quoted in the New Covenant to validate tithing (Lev. 27:34; Neh. 10:28-29; Mal. 3:7; 4:4).
B. CONTEXT: In Malachi 3:10-11 tithes are still only food 1000 years after Leviticus 27.
C. LAW: Malachi’s audience had willingly reaffirmed the Old Covenant (Neh.10:28-29). The blessings and curses of tithing are identical to and inseparable from those of the entire Mosaic Law. The rain in Deuteronomy 28:12, 23-24 and Leviticus 26:1-4 is only obtained by obedience to all 613 commandments. Galatians 3:10 (quoting Deu 27:26) “For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse: for it is written, Cursed is every one that continues not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.” Trying to earn God’s blessings through tithing only brings curses for failure to keep all of the law. See also Galatians 3:19.
D. PRIEST-THIEVES: Beginning in 1:6 “you” in Malachi always refers to the dishonest priests and not the people (also 2:1-10; 2:13 to 3:1-5): “Even this whole nation of you --priests” (3:9). In 1:13-14 the priests had stolen tithed animals vowed to God. In Nehemiah 13:5-10 priests had stolen the Levites’ portion of the tithe. God’s curses on the priests are ignored by most tithe-teachers (1:14; 2:2 and 3:2-4).
E. LEVITICAL CITIES: Point #12. The Levitical cities must be included in a correct interpretation of Malachi 3:10 and they are not. Most tithe-recipients lived outside of Jerusalem.
F. 24 Courses: The 24 courses of Levites and priests must be included in a correct interpretation of Malachi 3 and they are not. Normally only 2% of the total Levite and priest work force served at the temple one week at a time. Subtract wives, males under the age of 30 and daughters. Therefore 2% did not require all of the tithe. See 1 Chron 23-26; 28:13, 21; 2 Chron. 8:14; 23:8; 31:2, 15-19; 35:4, 5, 10; Ezra 6:18; Neh. 11:19, 30; 12:24; 13:9, 10; Luke 1:5.
G. Nehemiah 10:37-39 is the key to understanding Malachi 3:10, The people were commanded to bring their tithes, not to the temple, but to the nearby Levitical cities. Verse 38 says that the priests were with the Levites in the Levitical cities when they received the tithes.
H. STOREHOUSE: According to Nehemiah 13:5, 9 the “storehouse” in the Temple was only several rooms. The real “storehouses” were in the Levitical cites per Nehemiah 10:37b. Only the Levites and priests normally brought tithes to the Temple (10:38). Two rooms in the Temple were far too small to contain the tithe from the entire nation and 98% of the Levites and priests lived too far away to eat from them.
Therefore, Malachi 3:10’s “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse” only makes contextual sense if it is only commanding dishonest priests to replace the tithes they had removed from it or had failed to bring to it.
While the 3:10 of the Law in Malachi is so important to tithe-teachers they ignore the 3:10 of the Gospel in Galatians and 2nd Corinthians. Perhaps those wanting to enforce the 3:10 Law of Malachi should also enforce the 3:10 Law of Numbers. They share the same context.
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