THIEVES IN THE CHURCH--EVERY DAY WE HANDLE SOMEONE ELSE'S MONEY.
All of us handle money.
Furthermore, regardless of who you are-you handle money that is not yours. You handle money that belongs to God. Could it be that someone reading this is guilty of embezzling heavenly funds? Did you know the greatest holder of lands and good in the world has been chiseled and robbed repeatedly without going out of business? God is that great Owner of whom I speak. I'm referring specifically to TITHE and OFFERINGS. In Leviticus 27:30 the Scripture says that the tithe is the Lord's. There is just no possible way to miss it.
Then in Malachi 3 we find something added. Verse 8 says: "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings." Now notice: A person who does not tithe is a robber, but in addition, a person who does not give offerings is guilty before God of robbing Him; so, your tithes and your offerings belong to God. Oh , may it be engraved upon every heart with a pen of fire: These things do not belong to us; they are God's. We are handling sacred funds, and the question is - how are we handling them? Could it be that some of us are guilty of misusing God's money?
WHAT IS A TITHE ANYWAY? Read Leviticus 27:32: "And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord." This means that one-tenth of all our increase belongs to God. We may not have thought of it before, but ten percent of our income is holy for the Lord. We can't keep it for ourselves without actually breaking that eighth commandment again and stealing what is not ours. If a man earns $1,000 a month, $100 is not really his own. Of course only the profit, or increase, is subject to the tithe. In other words, a businessman might realize an increase of $5,000 a month but $4,000 would be needed to pay the salaries of his helpers and other overhead expense. In such a case, he would only have to pay $100 tithe on the $1,000 profit for that month.
Somebody is bound to object that tithing belongs to the Mosaic Law, the Old Testament, and doesn't apply to us in the New Testament. But the fact is that this plan of tithing antedates the time of Moses by hundreds of years. Abraham paid tithe at the Lord's own direction long before the days of Moses. Jacob also tithed on all that he had. It was an obligation before either the Jewish race or the ceremonial law had even come into existence.
But now let's read what Jesus had to say about tithing. After all, He's the great guide and example for all of us in spiritual things. In Matthew 23:23: "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone." That word "ought" denotes obligation and immediately creates a moral basis for the doctrine. It is moral because it involved stealing from God, as we have already read.
This world and everything in it belongs to God. He made the whole thing and everything here is His. The Bible is so clear on it. I read from Psalms 24:1: "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." Psalms 50:10-12: "For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof." Haggai 2:8 says, "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts." We forget that sometimes, but he says, "It is mine." Now notice Deuteronomy 8:18: "But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God; for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth."
When we add that all up and put it together, the Bible is simply saying this: Everything is God's. If you have anything at all, it is because God gave you the power, the strength, and the intelligence to obtain it. And then He says to you, "Now, ten percent of what you receive is mine. I want you to give it to me." Is that a fair offer? I submit to you today, you have never heard a more fair, generous offer anywhere. Remember the text, Leviticus 27:30, that says the tithe is the Lord's. Oh, may God impress us with that point. It isn't a question of our deciding whether we ought to turn it over to Him, whether it should become His, or will become His; it already is the Lord's. That has been settled. The tithe is the Lord's, and so one-tenth of every man's income belongs to God. He may be a complete heathen and knows nothing of our God, but still one-tenth belongs to the Lord God of heaven.
How many million church members have been guilty of the worst type of stealing - and from God, at that? Probably there are more thieves in the church, on this basis, than outside the church. In fact, there's no question about it; God says if we take the tithe, we are stealing from Him.
Incidentally, have you noticed the amazing parallel between the tithing tenth and the tenth commandment of the Decalogue? The command against coveting is the tenth one, and the command to give a tenth is God's remedy for covetousness. The root reason for breaking either one of these basic biblical laws is selfishness. The opposite of self is love, and all obedience should be based on loving God more than ourselves.
Love means giving, as we learn from John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave." We could never match the love-gift of God in surrendering His Son, but we should love him enough that the surrender of 10 or 50 percent of all we possess should not be counted a sacrifice. God's challenge to "prove me" has always produced the same results in those who took Him at His word. The promise is literal that "there shall not be room enough to receive" the blessing as it returns to us "pressed down, shaken together, and running over."
Never underestimate the blessings and benefits of turning away from the robbing business. When we rob God we are, in reality, robbing ourselves. We lose the blessings which are a part of the package called obedience. Unbelievable promises of protection and prosperity are made to those who go into partnership with God through faithful giving. The fruits of unselfish stewardship, based upon love, are fantastic to contemplate. "Prove me," says the Owner of everything. Will you dare to do it right now by making a covenant with God to be an honest steward in both tithes and offerings?
All of us handle money.
Furthermore, regardless of who you are-you handle money that is not yours. You handle money that belongs to God. Could it be that someone reading this is guilty of embezzling heavenly funds? Did you know the greatest holder of lands and good in the world has been chiseled and robbed repeatedly without going out of business? God is that great Owner of whom I speak. I'm referring specifically to TITHE and OFFERINGS. In Leviticus 27:30 the Scripture says that the tithe is the Lord's. There is just no possible way to miss it.
Then in Malachi 3 we find something added. Verse 8 says: "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings." Now notice: A person who does not tithe is a robber, but in addition, a person who does not give offerings is guilty before God of robbing Him; so, your tithes and your offerings belong to God. Oh , may it be engraved upon every heart with a pen of fire: These things do not belong to us; they are God's. We are handling sacred funds, and the question is - how are we handling them? Could it be that some of us are guilty of misusing God's money?
WHAT IS A TITHE ANYWAY? Read Leviticus 27:32: "And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord." This means that one-tenth of all our increase belongs to God. We may not have thought of it before, but ten percent of our income is holy for the Lord. We can't keep it for ourselves without actually breaking that eighth commandment again and stealing what is not ours. If a man earns $1,000 a month, $100 is not really his own. Of course only the profit, or increase, is subject to the tithe. In other words, a businessman might realize an increase of $5,000 a month but $4,000 would be needed to pay the salaries of his helpers and other overhead expense. In such a case, he would only have to pay $100 tithe on the $1,000 profit for that month.
Somebody is bound to object that tithing belongs to the Mosaic Law, the Old Testament, and doesn't apply to us in the New Testament. But the fact is that this plan of tithing antedates the time of Moses by hundreds of years. Abraham paid tithe at the Lord's own direction long before the days of Moses. Jacob also tithed on all that he had. It was an obligation before either the Jewish race or the ceremonial law had even come into existence.
But now let's read what Jesus had to say about tithing. After all, He's the great guide and example for all of us in spiritual things. In Matthew 23:23: "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone." That word "ought" denotes obligation and immediately creates a moral basis for the doctrine. It is moral because it involved stealing from God, as we have already read.
This world and everything in it belongs to God. He made the whole thing and everything here is His. The Bible is so clear on it. I read from Psalms 24:1: "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." Psalms 50:10-12: "For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof." Haggai 2:8 says, "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts." We forget that sometimes, but he says, "It is mine." Now notice Deuteronomy 8:18: "But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God; for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth."
When we add that all up and put it together, the Bible is simply saying this: Everything is God's. If you have anything at all, it is because God gave you the power, the strength, and the intelligence to obtain it. And then He says to you, "Now, ten percent of what you receive is mine. I want you to give it to me." Is that a fair offer? I submit to you today, you have never heard a more fair, generous offer anywhere. Remember the text, Leviticus 27:30, that says the tithe is the Lord's. Oh, may God impress us with that point. It isn't a question of our deciding whether we ought to turn it over to Him, whether it should become His, or will become His; it already is the Lord's. That has been settled. The tithe is the Lord's, and so one-tenth of every man's income belongs to God. He may be a complete heathen and knows nothing of our God, but still one-tenth belongs to the Lord God of heaven.
How many million church members have been guilty of the worst type of stealing - and from God, at that? Probably there are more thieves in the church, on this basis, than outside the church. In fact, there's no question about it; God says if we take the tithe, we are stealing from Him.
Incidentally, have you noticed the amazing parallel between the tithing tenth and the tenth commandment of the Decalogue? The command against coveting is the tenth one, and the command to give a tenth is God's remedy for covetousness. The root reason for breaking either one of these basic biblical laws is selfishness. The opposite of self is love, and all obedience should be based on loving God more than ourselves.
Love means giving, as we learn from John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave." We could never match the love-gift of God in surrendering His Son, but we should love him enough that the surrender of 10 or 50 percent of all we possess should not be counted a sacrifice. God's challenge to "prove me" has always produced the same results in those who took Him at His word. The promise is literal that "there shall not be room enough to receive" the blessing as it returns to us "pressed down, shaken together, and running over."
Never underestimate the blessings and benefits of turning away from the robbing business. When we rob God we are, in reality, robbing ourselves. We lose the blessings which are a part of the package called obedience. Unbelievable promises of protection and prosperity are made to those who go into partnership with God through faithful giving. The fruits of unselfish stewardship, based upon love, are fantastic to contemplate. "Prove me," says the Owner of everything. Will you dare to do it right now by making a covenant with God to be an honest steward in both tithes and offerings?
THIEVES IN THE CHURCH--EVERY DAY WE HANDLE SOMEONE ELSE'S MONEY.
All of us handle money.
Furthermore, regardless of who you are-you handle money that is not yours. You handle money that belongs to God. Could it be that someone reading this is guilty of embezzling heavenly funds? Did you know the greatest holder of lands and good in the world has been chiseled and robbed repeatedly without going out of business? God is that great Owner of whom I speak. I'm referring specifically to TITHE and OFFERINGS. In Leviticus 27:30 the Scripture says that the tithe is the Lord's. There is just no possible way to miss it.
Then in Malachi 3 we find something added. Verse 8 says: "Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings." Now notice: A person who does not tithe is a robber, but in addition, a person who does not give offerings is guilty before God of robbing Him; so, your tithes and your offerings belong to God. Oh , may it be engraved upon every heart with a pen of fire: These things do not belong to us; they are God's. We are handling sacred funds, and the question is - how are we handling them? Could it be that some of us are guilty of misusing God's money?
WHAT IS A TITHE ANYWAY? Read Leviticus 27:32: "And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord." This means that one-tenth of all our increase belongs to God. We may not have thought of it before, but ten percent of our income is holy for the Lord. We can't keep it for ourselves without actually breaking that eighth commandment again and stealing what is not ours. If a man earns $1,000 a month, $100 is not really his own. Of course only the profit, or increase, is subject to the tithe. In other words, a businessman might realize an increase of $5,000 a month but $4,000 would be needed to pay the salaries of his helpers and other overhead expense. In such a case, he would only have to pay $100 tithe on the $1,000 profit for that month.
Somebody is bound to object that tithing belongs to the Mosaic Law, the Old Testament, and doesn't apply to us in the New Testament. But the fact is that this plan of tithing antedates the time of Moses by hundreds of years. Abraham paid tithe at the Lord's own direction long before the days of Moses. Jacob also tithed on all that he had. It was an obligation before either the Jewish race or the ceremonial law had even come into existence.
But now let's read what Jesus had to say about tithing. After all, He's the great guide and example for all of us in spiritual things. In Matthew 23:23: "Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone." That word "ought" denotes obligation and immediately creates a moral basis for the doctrine. It is moral because it involved stealing from God, as we have already read.
This world and everything in it belongs to God. He made the whole thing and everything here is His. The Bible is so clear on it. I read from Psalms 24:1: "The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." Psalms 50:10-12: "For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee: for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof." Haggai 2:8 says, "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts." We forget that sometimes, but he says, "It is mine." Now notice Deuteronomy 8:18: "But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God; for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth."
When we add that all up and put it together, the Bible is simply saying this: Everything is God's. If you have anything at all, it is because God gave you the power, the strength, and the intelligence to obtain it. And then He says to you, "Now, ten percent of what you receive is mine. I want you to give it to me." Is that a fair offer? I submit to you today, you have never heard a more fair, generous offer anywhere. Remember the text, Leviticus 27:30, that says the tithe is the Lord's. Oh, may God impress us with that point. It isn't a question of our deciding whether we ought to turn it over to Him, whether it should become His, or will become His; it already is the Lord's. That has been settled. The tithe is the Lord's, and so one-tenth of every man's income belongs to God. He may be a complete heathen and knows nothing of our God, but still one-tenth belongs to the Lord God of heaven.
How many million church members have been guilty of the worst type of stealing - and from God, at that? Probably there are more thieves in the church, on this basis, than outside the church. In fact, there's no question about it; God says if we take the tithe, we are stealing from Him.
Incidentally, have you noticed the amazing parallel between the tithing tenth and the tenth commandment of the Decalogue? The command against coveting is the tenth one, and the command to give a tenth is God's remedy for covetousness. The root reason for breaking either one of these basic biblical laws is selfishness. The opposite of self is love, and all obedience should be based on loving God more than ourselves.
Love means giving, as we learn from John 3:16: "For God so loved the world, that he gave." We could never match the love-gift of God in surrendering His Son, but we should love him enough that the surrender of 10 or 50 percent of all we possess should not be counted a sacrifice. God's challenge to "prove me" has always produced the same results in those who took Him at His word. The promise is literal that "there shall not be room enough to receive" the blessing as it returns to us "pressed down, shaken together, and running over."
Never underestimate the blessings and benefits of turning away from the robbing business. When we rob God we are, in reality, robbing ourselves. We lose the blessings which are a part of the package called obedience. Unbelievable promises of protection and prosperity are made to those who go into partnership with God through faithful giving. The fruits of unselfish stewardship, based upon love, are fantastic to contemplate. "Prove me," says the Owner of everything. Will you dare to do it right now by making a covenant with God to be an honest steward in both tithes and offerings?
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