10/06/2025
1) Tithing didn’t start with Moses, it predates the Law.
Abraham tithed to Melchizedek (Gen 14:18–20) four centuries before Sinai. That’s a covenant father modeling first-fruits to a priest who is a type of Christ (Heb 7:1–10).
Jacob vowed the tenth to God (Gen 28:20–22). Again, pre-Law.
Point: Because the tithe shows up before the Mosaic system, it’s more than a Levitical tax it’s a worship principle.
2) Jesus affirmed the tithe while correcting the heart.
“You tithe… and omit the weightier matters… these you ought to have done, without leaving the other undone” (Matt 23:23; Luke 11:42).
Context: Jesus rebukes hypocrisy, not tithing itself. He says “do both” justice/mercy/faith and faithful giving.
Point: New Covenant discipleship doesn’t cancel obedience; it deepens it.
3) Hebrews 7 relocates the tithe under Christ’s superior priesthood.
The writer ties Abraham’s tithe to Melchizedek, then to Jesus our High Priest (Heb 7).
“Here mortal men receive tithes; but there He receives them of whom it is witnessed that He lives” (Heb 7:8).
Point: In the New Covenant, our giving isn’t to a temple caste; it’s unto the living Christ, expressed through His body.
4) Malachi 3 isn’t “only to priests,” and its principle still instructs the church.
Malachi does rebuke priests (Mal 1–2), but 3:9–10 widens to “this whole nation.” Israel as a people was withholding God’s portion.
The storehouse funded worship, ministry, and mercy the same three lanes the local church carries today (Word & sacraments, workers, the poor). Neh 10:37–39 shows how storehouses supplied the work of God.
Point: We don’t import the curse clause onto believers (Gal 3:13), but we do heed the principle: God’s work is sustained by God’s people bringing God’s portion into God’s house.
5) “Three tithes = 23–30%” doesn’t nullify the tithe it underscores God’s priority.
Yes, the Law details Levitical, festival, and third-year poor tithes (Num 18; Deut 14). Scholars debate overlaps and cycles, but the takeaway is clear: God baked generosity into Israel’s calendar.
Under grace, standards don’t drop they rise (cf. Matt 5). The tithe is a floor, not a ceiling. The early church often gave well beyond (Acts 2:44–45; 2 Cor 8–9).
Point: New Covenant giving is freer and typically greater, not smaller.
6) “It was agricultural, not money” partially true, but incomplete.
Israel’s economy was agrarian, so produce/livestock were common. But money existed and was used (Gen 23:16; Matt 22:19).
Deut 14:24–26 explicitly permits converting the tithe to silver for transport, then purchasing offerings in Jerusalem.
Point: The form reflected the economy; the principle is first-and-best unto God. In a cash economy, that rightly includes money.
7) No, we don’t preach “cursed with a curse” to the redeemed.
Agreed: Gal 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law. We don’t threaten the saints; we shepherd them.
But Scripture still teaches sowing and reaping (2 Cor 9:6), honoring the Lord with firstfruits (Prov 3:9–10), and God supplying seed to the sower (2 Cor 9:10–11).
Point: We don’t traffic in fear, but we do teach the fear of the Lord and the joyful discipline of ordered generosity.
8) The New Testament commands robust, intentional support of Gospel work.
The Lord ordained that those who preach the Gospel live of the Gospel (1 Cor 9:13–14).
Share all good things with those who teach you (Gal 6:6).
Elders who rule well are worthy of double honor (stipend/support) (1 Tim 5:17–18).
Lay aside on the first day of the week as God prospers you (1 Cor 16:1–2) that’s regular, proportional, planned giving.
Point: While the NT emphasizes heart-led generosity, it also expects systematic resourcing of the local church.
9) So, what do we preach?
Not: “Pay your religious tax or God will smash you.”
But: “Honor the Lord first, bring the first tenth as a holy pattern rooted before the Law, affirmed by Jesus, and aligned to Christ’s priesthood then excel beyond it in Spirit-led generosity.”
Working definition for the saints:
The tithe is the biblical baseline of first-fruits worship; grace then carries us into cheerful, sacrificial, Spirit-led generosity.
We don’t give to dodge a curse; we give because we’re already blessed in Christ and we want His house supplied and His mission advanced.
God isn’t after your money, He’s after your mastery.
If He’s Lord of all, He’s Lord of the first, the tenth.
Abraham tithed before Sinai; Jesus affirmed it without hypocrisy;
and now our High Priest receives our worship as we bring it with glad hearts.
We rebuke manipulation and reject guilt.
But we also refuse stinginess dressed up as doctrine.
Bring God the first and best, then let the Spirit lead you beyond the baseline.
And watch the God of all grace open windows, supply seed, and make you a river not a reservoir of blessing, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
