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Self-reliance and Giving

BY DAN KIEHL, Senior Pastor of Oakwood Presbyterian Church

     A comedian once said, “I have enough money to last me the rest of my life…unless I buy something.” That probably about sums up the level of financial security that most of us have. I have a friend who is a leader in an independent Christian ministry that seems to perpetually struggle to raise enough funds to operate. It seems that every time we discuss the struggles of that organization he ends up saying, “I just believe that it is God’s will that we always have to fight for every penny in order to survive in this ministry. I believe that this is God’s way of keeping us on our knees in dependence upon Him.” When he makes statements like that I’m always left a bit speechless. What he’s saying may very well be a true interpretation of God’s will, but it is always possible that the ministry is struggling due to unwise decisions, wrong priorities, or “sin in the camp”. I would never say that every church, family, or individual that is living in poverty is more spiritual than those who live in prosperity. I know of many individuals and Christian groups that live in both physical and spiritual prosperity. But I never argue with this brother, because he is more likely to be right than he is to be wrong.

      The key issue is dependence. Because of our sinful, self-reliant natures we are so quick to jump off of Christ as our Rock and Foundation onto the shifting sands of bank accounts, stock portfolios, material possessions, and career plans. From the Lord’s eternal perspective we look so foolish, and yet we do it over and over again. Every time the Lord puts some kind of blessing in our lap we grasp onto it for security instead of continuing to trust in the Giver. So, as an act of fatherly discipline, the Lord slows His flow of blessings to a trickle so that we will remain dependent upon Him.

      The sad part of all this is that our selfishness prevents the Lord from putting more resources in our hands for the good of His kingdom. 2 Corinthians 8:6-11 tells us that the Lord is looking for mature believers who will be open conduits for His blessings to reach others: “…God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work…You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion, and through us your generosity will result in thanksgiving to God.” When we grasp onto the Lord’s resources for our own pleasure and security we clog the system of blessing distribution, to the detriment of both ourselves and the Kingdom of God.

     This world is a very insecure place. May we be a light to the world by the way in which we stand confidently upon the Rock and Cornerstone, Jesus Christ in this time of fear and uncertainty, and by the way that we generously give of the Lord’s resources.        

Ask the Pastor - Tithing Questions

ASK THE PASTOR WITH DAN KIEHL,
Senior Pastor Oakwood Presbyterian Church

QUESTION: “Do Christians have to follow the practice of tithing (giving 10% of their income to the church)? Wasn’t that an Old Testament practice that doesn’t apply to us anymore, since we are no longer under the Law?”

ANSWER: The fact that Paul says, "we are not under law but under grace" (Romans 6:14) doesn't apply to this question at all. In that context, Paul is talking about the law or grace as a means to salvation and victory over the power of sin. We are always under God's law as the rule book for life. Christ fulfilled the purpose of the ceremonial laws (i.e., the temple rituals and sacrifices, the priesthood, the cleansing laws, the dietary laws) as they pointed to His nature and work as the Messiah, so they no longer apply to us. The command to give ten percent of your income wasn’t in any way a shadow pointing forward to the person or work of Christ; it was a moral law, and obedience to it was a testimony to God’s ownership of us and our resources, and a reflection of trust in God’s provision. The moral laws, as they are summarized in the 10 Commandments, are still intended to govern our lives every day. We are not saved by keeping the moral laws, but Christ saved us so that we might be freed and enabled by His power to keep them.  Jesus said, “If you love Me, you will obey My commands.”

      So the relevant question is whether or not the requirement to give ten percent of your increase was considered part of the ceremonial law or the moral law in the Old Testament. A careful study of both Old and New Testaments will show that the practice of giving to the Lord a tenth of your increase was a part of the lives of God’s people before, during, and after the period of time that the ceremonial laws were in effect:

• It is important to notice that God's people tithed before the Mosaic Law was given (Abraham - Gen. 14, Jacob - Gen. 28).
• Jesus condemned the Pharisees' legalistic attitude toward tithing, but upheld the practice of tithing itself (Luke 11)
• Paul instructed the Corinthians to "set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income" on the first day of the week, which would seem to be a reference to tithing (I Cor. 16).
• Moses said that the tithes were to be used to support the work of the Levites in the Tabernacle (Numbers 18:21-24). Paul uses this passage and principle to support the practice of tithes being used to support the work of preachers of the Gospel (I Cor. 9:13,14).

     The burden of the argument would rest upon those who say that the command to tithe was ceremonial in nature and has been abrogated. I see nothing in the New Testament to support this argument.

QUESTION: “Should I give my whole tithe to my local church, or is it appropriate to give some of it to other Biblical ministries?”

ANSWER: Answer: This question isn’t specifically answered in God’s Word, but I think that a look at the basic principles of the tithe can guide us here. According to Leviticus 27:30-34 the tithe "belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord". To withhold it is considered stealing from the Lord (Malachi 3:7-9). God goes on to say, "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse [of the temple]" (Malachi 3:10). By submitting it to the leadership of the church we give it to Him. The leadership is accountable before Him for how it is used. I think that as long as we are able to fulfill our vows to our congregation and recognize the leadership as being legitimately called by the Lord, we should entrust the entire tithe into their hands, since it is holy to the Lord. Any giving beyond the tithe can be directed to other ministries that we would like to support. We should avoid the temptation of trying to lead the church ourselves by personally redirecting where our tithes are used.

QUESTION: “Should I tithe on my income before taxes are taken out or after?”

ANSWER: This question isn’t specifically answered in God’s Word, but I think that a look at the basic principles of the tithe can guide us here. According to Leviticus 27:30-34 the tithe "belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord". To Tithes are to be given on the increase of our possessions, period. I don't see any Biblical basis for considering the (large) portion of income that we use to pay to the government as being exempt from tithing (in other words, we should tithe on gross income, not net).  Few Christians would consider the money they use to pay sales taxes at a store to be exempt from the tithe, so why should income taxes be different?

QUESTION: “How do I keep from seeing the practice of tithing in a legalistic way?”

ANSWER: It's helpful for me to think of the proper attitude behind tithing as being like that of keeping the Sabbath. Just as our whole income and our whole week belongs to the Lord, so He has required us to set apart a tenth of our increase and a seventh of our time as "holy", belonging to the Lord in a special way. It shows our submission to His Lordship and it shows our trust in Him to provide the resources that we need to serve Him.  Also, for the believer, giving to the work of the Kingdom and the preaching of the Gospel is to be seen as a good investment, resulting in far more satisfaction, joy, and reward than using those financial resources for earthly possessions and purposes. "God loves a cheerful giver" (II Cor. 9:7) and "It is more blessed to give than to receive." (Acts 20:35). So this isn't legalism - tithing is worthless if it isn't from the heart, given joyfully due to trust in the Lord and excitement about seeing our resources used for His glory.