Tithing

Michael Berens
Week 2
Thursday 01/22/09
Tithing

It is interesting how evangelicals view tithing. Maybe it is a baby boomer generation type of thing. Maybe they see the church as a business and because not everyone has access to church spending, they are not as trusting to give. As said in the article, people believe that giving to a non-profit is part of giving to the church in general. In fact non-profits do quite a better job at recording how they spend their money and where all the money goes. People like that. They like the satisfaction of thinking they are contributing to something and like letting a fish go into a pond, they like to watch it go all the way to its final destination.

I think tithing is what it means. It means Ten percent of funds go to the church. If you want to give more or less then it can be called giving. Another word can be called offerings. Maybe that is why they say, tithes and offering time in a church bulletin. I think it is very important to give to the church in any of theses word versions. It surprises me that a church would not need money. A church should be a channel for money that goes right back out to those that need it. In the book of Acts, if there were someone in need someone would sell what they had and help that person. The church was keeping it for stocks. Specifically in Acts 2:44 it says, 44 and all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. The money from the people went straight back into the people. I wonder if churches are in as badly of a need for funds as those of the early church were. Maybe we need to simplify some aspects about church so it is not so expensive. On the other hand maybe we are suppose to be pioneers for things like light shows and concerts.

Genesis 14:18 is my favorite example of tithing, probably because it shows the first tithe, before any one was ever told to do so. It was done of a pure heart. Abraham wanted to honor Melchizedek by giving him this tithe. Maybe we need to restore some of what it means to tithe and give. Maybe we have lost the honor of it all. In any case, something has to be done. If there isn’t something done, I would say evangelical churches will see some pretty devastating foreclosures to their churches. Maybe it is not the worst thing though. Maybe out of those ashes newness will rise.