NO LONGER ASHAMED OF PROSPERITY #15: Key Concepts Concerning the Tithe

This may be the most helpful post in the series…

As I mentioned in the last post, my wife and I have been practicing tithers for close to 40 years. I think it is important to tell you that through those years we have generally been a very middle-class, American couple. We have no personal jets, do not drive a Rolls Royce, or have a 15,000 square foot home on the ocean. Not that there is anything intrinsically wrong with any of those things. If you can afford it and God has genuinely released you to purchase it, then there is no condemnation from me. For us, we have determined that great prosperity entails even greater responsibility, and our resources should go to more Kingdom expanding projects and needs. I mention our middle-class existence because I want to underscore that prosperity has purpose and the keys we have learned to tithing are meant to lead us to greater obedience and in turn greater favor.

Through the years, I have met many people who “tithe”, but have missed some key concepts in exactly how the tithe is returned. While being dutiful to God in their financial obedience of tithing, if they were asked, might actually say that tithing has made little tangible difference in their life. This was true for our house for a number of early years until the Holy Spirit taught us some things about tithing that have been gamechangers in our understanding and consequently demonstrated in the fruit of our obedience.

Let’s review quickly the foundational principle of tithing. The tithe is 10% of your material enlargement which is returned to the Lord as an act of obedience and allegiance to demonstrate that everything you own is actually His. The tithe is not 5%, 7%, or 9.8%. It is not a synonym for an “offering”. You do not give the tithe, but rather you “return” the tithe. If not, God Himself states that it is robbery with appropriate repercussions of divine justice for the offense (Malachi 3:8-12). Most often, the tithe is returned to the local church as God’s House, to be used for the ongoing work of the ministry. How the tithe is used by the church is a lesson not germane to this blog series, but for the individual believer, it is returned with no strings attached. The tithe is undesignated because it is not yours. It is God’s. To designate the tithe would be controlling God’s finances. Any attempt to control the Lord or what He lays claim to never turns out well.

People ask me on occasion about the practical aspects of tithing in a 21^st century economy which functions in a monetary, rather than agrarian society. There are THREE insights which helped our household tremendously in our faithfulness towards the Lord in this regard.

1. The Tithe is FIRST.

What this means is that the tithe comes BEFORE any other bill or earthly financial responsibility is addressed. This should be unsurprising but is amazingly neglected. For many, the tithe is the last check (or last financial dispersal) which happens after ALL the earthly bills are addressed.

This causes many to see the diminished bank account and begin to question whether the tithe should be returned or not. It might also present a register balance below what the actual tithe should be, thereby causing them to withhold the tithe.

The tithe should be returned first. Not only for the practical reason mentioned above but for the very basic reason that the Lord is FIRST. He is priority. His commands are not suspended or neglected due to our financial mismanagement or challenging circumstances. Whether a person makes $10 or $100,000, the return expectation is simple and equitable upon both persons. In fact, I maintain that if a person has difficulty being faithful with the tithe making $10, then it is unlikely they would be anymore faithful should they become millionaires. God is first and foremost in my obedience. The tithe is a consistent reminder and demonstration of that fact. (The first also redeems the rest which is a principle I mentioned in a previous blog.)

2. The Tithe needs to be Returned Swiftly.

This is somewhat similar to the above point but perhaps applies to those who may be in a better financial position. As soon as you are financially enlarged, you need to return the tithe as quickly as possible. Why?

As I mentioned, our household has tithed for years, but often times I would wait until the end of the month to return the tithe after I figured out how much the various income streams of our house added up to. It wasn’t that I didn’t tithe, but rather I held it until it was convenient for me to release it. In other words, I was slow in my obedience.

The Bible tells me that God is not slack (slow) concerning His promises (2 Peter 3:9). I am glad about that. I want God to be swift with regards to His blessings and promises. Like most people, I don’t like waiting. Yet, I was slack (slow) concerning my obedience. The Lord reminded me of this verse:

“Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.” (Galatians 6:7)

I was “sowing” tardiness and slackness before the Lord. Should I be surprised if I am tardy with His tithe (or really any aspect of life) that His blessings might be tardy and slow towards me? Before you balk at such thoughts is it not true that if I sow unkindness, I will reap it? If I sow ingratitude I will reap it? However, if I sow mercy, I shall reap that. If I sow forgiveness, I shall reap it. (You getting the point?) I needed to jerk the slack out of my obedience. When I did that it was amazing to see the speed at which favor started to manifest.

3. The Tithe Needs to be Complete.

We are enlarged financially far more than we realize. Again, the Holy Spirit quickened me to this point years ago when I felt compelled to add up all the ways financial blessing came to me outside of the normal paycheck. I started adding up gift cards given to me, birthday presents, Christmas presents, anniversary presents, pastor appreciation monies, bonuses, appreciation vacations from supporters, and the like. I started to think of the (used) car that was given to me when I had a need. All of these gifts financially enlarged me. How have I handled such things? In our house, we actually add up the ways God has enlarged us through such things, and we return a tithe of it. If we don’t know the exact price of a gift, we estimate accurately the fair market value of such a gift and tithe on it. We have never regretted such acts as God has incredibly blessed us.

But let me get to a real challenge. I have bought and sold a number of houses through the years. Most of the time the equity from the sale of one house gets placed in the next house. This is normal. But was I not financially enlarged through these transactions? Years ago, I was able to sell a house in a short amount of time for an incredible and unusual profit. (Understand, the enlargement is the net profit, not the final sales figure.) Would I be able to write a check with a lot of zeros on it and return the tithe to the Lord? To the glory of God, my wife and I were committed to tithing and joyfully did exactly that. Why? The Lord owns everything.

What about inheritances, stocks, CD’s, interest from savings accounts?

Yep, we have tithed on it all. It’s called being “complete”.

Let’s also review our paychecks. What most of us receive is the net amount after taxes, social security, retirement funds, insurance, dues, etc. Do we tithe on the net amount or on the gross amount, before all those deductions? You know the answer. If God is first, He comes before the government, my insurance, and my 401k.

This is becoming “complete” in the tithe.

The Lord said to bring ALL the tithes into the storehouse (Malachi 3:10).

People have called it legalism. I have found it to be liberating.

Faithful is not legalism. It is a position for blessing, elevation, and favor.

And it’s another reason…

I am not ashamed of prosperity.