God states in Malachi 3:10: "You have robbed me...in tithes and offerings." God will not let us keep his tithes and offerings. The last time you kept God's tithe and offerings, something bad happened that consumed almost exactly the amount you stole from God. (Me too!) We may think we are keeping God's money for our use, but God will not let us keep his money any more than we would let someone keep money they stole from us, if we had the power to take it from them. We do not have that power. God does.
Whether we keep God's money for our own use is not the question. We will not. God will see to that! The question is do we want God to bless what remains after the tithe and offerings are gone, or do would we prefer that Satan curse what remains.
God states: "Bring all the tithes and offerings into the store (church) house...and I will pour you out a blessing....I will rebuke the devourer (Satan) for your sake and he shall not destroy your (financial efforts). (Malachi 10B and 11.) Parenthesis mine.
"...I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse, a blessing if you listen to the commandments of the LORD your God, which I am commanding you today -- and a curse if you do not listen to the commandments of the LORD your God...." (Deuteronomy 11:24-26.)
Some feel safe because they are not Christian people. You are not safe from the curse because "...all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD" (Leviticus 27:30) and stealing is stealing whether you are a Christian or not.
When we get our pay check we are holding before us a blessing and a curse. The choice is ours. Bringing to pass the fruit of our choices is God's responsibility. He is perfect at fulfilling his responsibility. What will it be? Heavenly blessing or demonic curse?
Rev. Joda Collins
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/jodacollins
I make no claim that anyone else agrees with me.
Rev. Joda Collins, to tithe or not to tithe is the question. Tho I'm sure you do many good works and I believe your intentions are honorable . BUT! ! ! on this subject imo and in scripture's you are in error. Malachi must be the most abused and misused scripture.
ReplyDeleteWhere the spirit of the lord is there is liberty /' Freedom. Galatians 3, 23-27 23 Before the coming of this faith, we were held in custody under the law, locked up until the faith that was to come would be revealed. 24 So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be justified by faith. 25 Now that this faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian / LAW.
26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. End quote. As Jesus spoke, he said the only law we were under is the law of love and grace.
Even if we use old testament law we would still be in error, 1. only the Levites were allowed to receive a tithe, also a tithe was not money, it was food. There were also I think 3 tithes the jews followed. The Old Testament was written for the Jew to follow not Christians, to Christians it is a history lesson only and a book of prophecy with some still yet to be fulfilled. Godspeed!