Good morning from
the Panhandle. Sorry I have missed our last two post. I wish I could
say that there were pressing matters and that is why I didn't post,
but I can't. The simple truth is I got busy with stuff and just
didn't make it to the computer. Some times we do that with God, we
get busy and don't seem to have time for Him. You know, you wake up
late and say, “I'll pray later.” Or you have had an especially
hard week and if you miss one day of church it'll be okay. Rick Ezell
looks at what priority do we give God in this weeks post. As you read
this post remember it is not just your money, but your time that
should be given to the Lord.
Malachi 3:6-12
6 "I
the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not
destroyed. 7 Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned
away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I
will return to you," says the LORD Almighty.
"But
you ask, `How are we to return?'
8 "Will
a man rob God? Yet you rob me.
"But
you ask, `How do we rob you?'
"In
tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse-the whole nation of
you-because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the
storehouse, that there may be food in my 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 blessing that you will not
have room enough for it. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your
crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,"
says the LORD Almighty. 12 "Then all the nations will call you
blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD
Almighty.
The
title grabbed my attention: "Our Church Was Robbed Recently."
The story that followed said:
"We
are thankful that no one was injured physically, but it will be some
time before things are back to normal. It's clear that more than one
person is responsible - in fact, there may actually be many people
who have been party to the crime. Two things are most unfortunate
about the robbery - one is that we have no assurances that it won't
happen again, and that is a bit unnerving! The other unfortunate
element is that we're certain that those who carried out the robbery
are members of our church. It's bad enough to know that a theft has
occurred, but it's really hard to imagine that professing Christians
would actually steal from God and the ministries of his church. We
can certainly hope that anyone who has participated in this act will
repent and repay what has been taken. It's reported that some of the
stolen money has been used for vacations, cars, boats, designer
clothes, athletic equipment, homes, and even dining out. We don't
have a complete list of all the suspects, but there is consolation
in knowing that God does.
"You
haven't read about this in the papers and hopefully you won't. I
realize that some of you will disagree, but it would be difficult to
get a conviction in the courts given the clever way in which the
robbery was carried out. You are probably also interested in how
much was taken. The amount is undetermined, but at the very least
exceeds many thousands of dollars.
"By
the way, the robbery happened in full view of the church during
Sunday services. It happened as the offering plates were passed
during Sunday school and worship. It also happened as people who
didn't come simply didn't give the Lord's tithe."
The people in Malachi's day had
treated God badly by robbing from him. They had become bored with
God. Their worship had turned from relational to ritual. As a result
they offered blemished sacrifices (1:6-14); the priests had become
unfaithful (2:1-9); divorce was commonplace and easy (2:10-17);
their words wearied God (2:17); businessmen were defrauding their
workers, cheating their customers and taking advantage of widows,
orphans and aliens (3:1-5).
But the most egregious treatment of
God was that they were robbing God (3:6-12). How? By withholding
their tithes, by giving the worst instead of the best, by giving the
least and not the most. Their attitude was, "How little can I
give and still keep God happy?"
The people proclaimed their innocence,
but Malachi, like a prosecuting attorney, presented the evidence to
back up the indictment.
Five statements stand out to me in
this passage.
I. The tithe is the minimum
"'Will
a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me!' You ask: 'How do we rob
You?' 'By not making the payments of the tenth and the
contributions'" (Malachi 3:8). The tithe comes from
a Hebrew word that means one tenth. If you make $100 today, a tithe
would be $10. It is simple math.
It gets more complicated, because in
the Old Testament Law there were actually three tithes. The one to
which Malachi referred was for the priests. A second tithe helped
celebrate the annual sacred feast. The people used these funds to
throw a party in honor of God. And then every third year the people
would give another ten percent to help the poor. When you add that
together, that equals about 23 percent of a household's income.
Tithing has always been the floor or
starting point, not the ceiling, of giving to God's work. In other
words, tithing is the place to begin, not the place to end in
supporting God's kingdom business. Larry
Burkett said, "As best as I can tell, God never asked less than
ten percent from anyone. But if that bothers someone, I can see no
reason why they couldn't give twice as much if they desired."
(How to Manage Your Money, 9/15/90, p. 3)
Unfortunately today the term tithing
is often erroneously used of all giving. People talk about "tithing"
fifty dollars, when they make $2000 a month (a tithe of which is two
hundred dollars, not fifty). If you give 2 percent or 4 percent of
your income, that's a donation but not a tithe.
The tithe was recognized as God's. We
should always refer to it as God's tithe not my tithe. People in the
Old Testament didn't give a tithe but repaid it to the Owner of all
things. Rarely does the Bible speak of giving a tithe, but rather of
"taking," "presenting," or even "paying"
tithes. No one ever said, "I feel led to tithe." The tithe
was explicit and objective. It required no heart response. It was
expected. Period. Offerings, on the other hand, (we can use the
possession pronoun of "my" in reference to them since they
are voluntary) were given from the heart when touched by God's
grace.
II. The curse came from
disobedience (v. 9)
"You are suffering under a curse, yet you - the whole nation
- are still robbing Me" (Mal. 3:9). The Old Testament was
written to the nation of Israel. God was addressing the nation.
Because God's people robbed Him, they have put a curse on the whole
nation. They did that to themselves.In the play, "The Will," by James Barrie, a newlywed couple visits an attorney to make a will. The groom had just inherited some money. He insisted, lovingly, that it all go to her. The wife protests: "No, let's include your cousins and that convalescent home that was so nice to your mother." And, so they did. As they were leaving, the lawyer said to them, "You are unusual people, so giving. Please don't change."
Twenty years later, they come to make another will. The estate is now sizable. They hassle about leaving the cousins in the will and cut the convalescent home out. Each of them talk about the money as "my money, my estate." Then, twenty years later, the man comes alone. His wife is dead. His children have become spoiled. He can't think of anyone to leave his money to. He says, "I don't want my family to have it. Here's a list of six men that I fought and beat to get my money. Give it to them, and let them have the curse of it."
Remember, partial obedience is no obedience. No one benefits from a tithe he or she holds on to.
But we must make one thing very clear:
While there are spiritual and financial consequences for failing to
give to God, we should never make the mistake of thinking that we
will be "cursed" if we haven't tithed. "Christ has
redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us,
because it is written: Everyone who is hung on a tree is cursed"
(Galations 3:13 HCSB). We rest in the new covenant Christ initiated in
His blood. He freed us from the curse of keeping the law. And it's
because of what He did for us that we should willingly and gladly
obey.
III. The storehouse represents
God's work (v. 10)
"Bring
the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in My
house" (Malachi 3:10). In Israel the people brought
their tithes of grain, olives, wine, and meat to be store in the
Temple. These goods supported the priests and Levites, those serving
God vocationally, since they did not have other jobs. The goods also
met the needs of the poor in the community. And, thirdly, these
goods met the expenses of the Temple operations.
Giving has always been God's way of
financing his church. God never intended for the church to be funded
by bingo and raffles. Church is not suppose to be “big business.”
Look what happened when Christ Jesus found the Church used as a
place of business - Mark 11:15-17
15 On
reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving
out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the
tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves,
16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the
temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not
written:
"`My
house will be called
a house
of prayer for all nations'?
But you
have made it `a den of robbers.'"
God expected his
people to return to support the church with part of their income and time.
Not to make a money making business out of it.
Let me take a slight detour here. The
purpose of the tithe is to support God's work, but the primary
purpose for the tithe is to put God first in our lives. The tithe
was not a legalistic regulation. It was more than the Old Testament
income tax. God had a special purpose in asking for the tenth. It
was to teach his people to put him first. "Each
year you are to set aside a tenth of all the produce grown in your
fields . . . so that you will always learn to fear the LORD your
God" (Deuteronomy 14:22-23).
When we put God first in our giving,
He will be first in every area of life. This simple truth is the
heart of giving. We pay God first. Too many reverse this process. If
there's anything left, they give some to God. This is what was
happening in Malachi's day. They were giving God the leftovers and,
as a result, robbing God.
IV. The test challenges God to
bless (v. 10)
"'Test
Me in this way,' says the LORD of Hosts" (Malachi
3:10). God challenged His people to give according to the Law so
that He could bless them. Do you realize that this is the only time
in Bible where God puts out that kind of challenge? Too often we get
hung up on the amount and miss the promise.
It's amazing to me that people who
trust God for their salvation, their eternity in heaven, won't trust
God with their finances. What's the logic in that? If we can trust
God for our eternal destiny, don't you think we can trust God with
our careers, our finances, and our giving? God is the God of every
part of our lives, and we need to live that way.
V. The blessings are out of this
world (v. 10)
"'See
if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing
for you without measure'" (Malachi 3:10). This is an
amazing passage of Scripture.
In a giving match, the fact remains
that you and I cannot out-give God. R.
G. LeTourneau invented earthmoving machines. He gave away 90 percent
of his income. But the money came in faster than he could give it
away. LeTourneau said, "I shovel it out and God shovels it back
- but God has a bigger shovel."
A
young boy went to the store with his mother. The shop owner, a
kindly man, passed him a large jar of suckers and invited him to
help himself to a handful. Uncharacteristically, the boy held back.
So the shop owner pulled out a handful for him.
When
outside, the boy's mother asked why he had suddenly been so shy and
wouldn't take a handful of suckers when offered.
The
boy replied, "Because his hand is much bigger than mine!"
Conclusion
God's hand is bigger. His shovel is bigger. His wallet is bigger. His generosity is bigger. His love is bigger. Make a game of it. See if you can out-give God. That is the one game you hope you lose, and, in time, you will realize that you will always lose.In the end, when we rob from God we are actually robbing from ourselves. We are robbing ourselves of spiritual blessings, of God's provisions, of a church that can meet the needs of others.
We are left with a choice: How will we treat God? Will we rob God by not giving our tithes, or will be faithful in giving to God what is His? Will we be faithful to give Him our time?
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