Tithing: The Rest of the Story

This blog is the 4th in a series, "The Top Ten Questions People Ask Pastors."

The 8th most common question asked of Pastors involves money. "If tithing is never mentioned in the New Testament, why do we still teach it?" This query is is rooted in the thought that tithing is a complicated practice from the Old Covenant, and that it ceased with the end of the Old Testament. Indeed, if tithing were simply a requirement of Old Testament Law like the sacrifice of goats, we should not impose it on followers of Jesus Christ. However, that is not the case.

God delivers the Law as a gift to his chosen people, beginning in Exodus 20. First, Moses explains the crux of the Law- the Ten Commandments. Then over the course of the months that follow, he fleshes out the sacrificial system and all the other rituals that are integral to Old Testament faith. The Law has now been fulfilled in Christ. But the tithe is an integral part of worship and devotion in redemptive history long before the coming of the Law. In fact, tithing dates all the way back to Genesis, cropping up in one of the earliest chapters.

• In Genesis 14:20, Abram recognizes that a mysterious figure named Melchizedek is a priest of the Most High God. In reverence and gratitude, he offers the priest a tenth of the treasure he has just won in battle.


• Genesis 28:22 records this promise made by Jacob to God: "And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God's house, and of all that you give me I will surely give a tenth to you."

For generations before the Law was established by God, people of faith worshiped the One True God in a fairly unstructured way. But returning a tenth reflected the prevailing assumption of faith that God owns everything and human beings are simply allowed to manage a share. One part in ten denotes it all belongs to Him, and we are returning a token of that underlying truth. Returning the tenth to the Lord reflects that my heart is in sync with his divine authority.

In the New Testament, Jesus never suggests that New Covenant faith is designed to make our lives more convenient or less rigorous. To the contrary, Christ doesn't lessen the commandment about murder. He raises the standard, teaching that we must not even tolerate hatred of our fellow man. Rather than diminishing God's command that we must not commit adultery, Jesus actually raises the bar: don't even look upon a woman with lust in your heart! In fact, one of the highest compliments Jesus offers anyone in the New Testament goes out to the widow who gives her last two coins in an offering at the Temple.

The claim that the tithe does not belong in the New Testament may sound appealing, even rational at first glance. But the claim should be followed by a question- "If that's true, do you plan to give more than a tithe to God's kingdom- or less?" Paul writes in Romans 14:23 that "Whatever is not from faith is sin." I always want to be sure than the prevailing choices of my life are based on faith, not fear.

Selah.

Adam's In-laws

This is the third in a series of blogs, "The Top Ten Questions People Ask Pastors."

Top Question #9 is, Where did Cain and Abel get find their wives?" In Genesis 4:17, Cain and his wife give birth to a son. Just a few verses later in 4:26, brother Seth and his wife have a son. The text concludes, "At that time, people began to call upon the name of the Lord."

"So who were all those people who began to call on the name of the Lord?" skeptics ask. Did God make them after he made Adam? Or were they already in existence on the Earth when God specially crafted Adam and Eve? I find that some people are just curious about what Genesis really means, while others are looking for ways to fit the accounts of Genesis and the theory of Darwinism neatly together. So where did Cain find the woman he married?

Answer: Cain married either his sister or a niece. If his bride was a niece, it means that one or more of his other brothers married sisters. Here in the Twenty-first Century, it's normal for us to cringe at the idea of intermarriage. It's more than a legal matter. There are genetic liabilities inherent in close relatives marrying. But in fact, consider this:

• The first two chapter of Genesis narrate an exceptional period when the Earth is brand new, the human bloodline is pure and uncorrupted by the physical wear and tear of sin, and there are only two people available for filling the planet.

• According to Genesis 5:5, Adam lived 930 years. I wonder how many sons and daughters he finally had over that length of time? It makes sense that there would have been plenty of generations for the necessary intermarriage so that human beings could begin to fill the Earth.


• We know for a fact that Abram married his half-sister not that many generations later (Genesis 20:12.) Nobody had a problem with that. That's because the Law,which forbade sexual intimacy among siblings, came hundreds of years later.

There is a theological reason why this is important. Adam's sin did not simply influence or motivate all other human beings to sin. Rather, his sin nature was passed along to all the rest of us as his descendants. For this reason, Psalm 51:5 indicates we are sinful from the time our parents conceive us. For this same reason, Jesus explains to Nicodemus (John 3:5) that no one can enter the Kingdom of Heaven unles he is born again. Everyone born of Adam is born into sin and spiritual death.

If there were originally multitudes of other specially created people who were not descended from Adam, they would surely have ancestors today not genetically stamped with the curse of sin. There are no people like that today, nor have their ever been. For this reason, God sent his own son into the world to rescue us from the curse of Adam, and offer us the gift of a new life.

This is why it is clear that Cain's wife was either a sister or a niece.

Selah.

Question #10: Why Wait?

This blog is the second in a series "The Top Ten Questions People Ask Pastors." All ten questions are listed in last week's session.

Top Question #10: Why shouldn't a young man and woman move in together if they are already engaged to be married? In the expensive area where I live just outside of Washington, DC, the economic situation is commonly offered up as a good rationale. That is, it would cost a fortune for two young adults to maintain separate residences until the wedding.

Of course, when you begin to base your ethical decisions on financial calculations, you have already lost your footing and are on your way down. Think about it. Why go to all the expense of raising a child when a quick abortion is so much cheaper? Think of all the money a family could save for college by going ahead and letting an aging parent die, rather than allowing her to continue at home for a while. A lot of sick children would never survive if parents failed to get them medical treatment just because hospitals are expensive!

Once you rule out the economic excuse, there's only one other rationale for two Christians shacking up before marriage. That last rationalization would be, "Everybody's doing it." I presume we don't have to explain why holy people refuse to base ethical decisions on public opinion polls. Even if you really are that one couple in 1,000,000 who can remain chaste under those circumstances, you have created the appearance of willful disobedience. God instructs us, "Be holy as I your God am holy."

But in case you're not convinced yet, here are three more scriptural commands that ought to have some bearing on our choices.

1. 1 Thessalonians 5:22 warns us to "Abtain from every appearance of evil." A few unmarried couples have assured me, "We still plan to wait until we're married to have sex. We will have separate bedrooms in our new apartment." If I'm the average American, I don't believe you for a moment. In fact, even if I'm your pastor, I don't believe that skinny little rationalization. Godly young men should man up and do what the Lord commands.

2. Galatians 5:17 is very clear. "For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature, so you cannot do what you want." That's not the Holy Spirit urging you to move in with your fiancee' I can assure you. It's the flesh. And the moment you sign the lease on the apartment you'll share, the flesh has won over the Holy Spirit of God.

3. Romans 13:14 advises us, "But rather, clothe yourselves in the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature." Tyndale even translated the Greek more precisely, "Make no provision the lusts of the flesh to fulfill." Moving into a residence with a member of the opposite sex to whom you aren't married is what we call "making provision for the lusts of the sinful nature." Only a fool would call it "economics."

So what about the young couple who truly has financial constraints? There are many alternatives. Let one partner live with parents for another few months. Perhaps one partner can live with friends for a few months. If all else fails, move up the wedding ceremony and tie the knot earlier. When a tender young woman mentions that she can't fulfill all her wedding fantasies that quickly, I have a simple reply. As a follower of Jesus Christ, which is more important to you: your fantasies of what your wedding should be like, or the Lord's desires about how his servants should live?"

Selah!

Next week, we'll pick up Top Question #9.

The Top Ten Questions

A few weeks ago, a friendly teller at my bank asked me what I do for a living. When I replied that I am a pastor, he commented, "That must be a very rewarding profession!" He was right! Sure, there are frustrating and irritating moments in leading a church, but I'm sure that even professional golfers and Hollywood movie stars have to endure occasional personality clashes and difficult days as well. Beyond annoyances like that, I enjoy preaching and teaching the Word of God; I get a lot of satisfaction offering counsel and encouragement; I love the staff members I've been called to lead; and I even get a kick out of growing people through ministry tasks and committee meetings.

Then there are all those questions! People make appointments to come by the office. On other occasions, they drop in or buy me lunch. Sometimes, Bible Study classes dispatch their teacher to get my take on a major issue. And finally, there are emails, telephone calls, conversations in the corridor, and even notes left in the offering plates.

Over the last year, the questions have ranged from the very practical to the very theological. Some have been rather unique, but many have turned up time and again in one form or another. So as 2011 gets underway, I thought you might enjoy reading the ten most frequent questions from 2010.

10. Why shouldn't a young man and woman move in together if they are engaged and committed to be married?

9. Where did Cain meet his wife?

8. If tithing is not mentioned in the New Testament, why do we still teach it?

7. How can I know when my child is old enough to be baptized?

6. How can I convince my spouse to come to church with me?

5. Don't some Bible verses suggest you can lose your salvation?

4. Why should I be baptized again if I was christened as a child in a Christian church?

3. How can a loving God justify sending innocent people to Hell forever?

2. How can you share your faith with coworkers who may be offended and report you for harassment?

1. Can unbelievers be condemned for rejecting Jesus if they never heard the Gospel in the first place?

Those are the most frequent questions that came my way during the last 12 months. If you'd like to know the answers, check in next week at this space.

Selah.