The Purpose of Tithing

Good morning, brethren. Good morning. It's good to be here with all of you. We've got a little bit of a special opportunity this Sabbath because we're going to have an opportunity to tape and film this particular message and to be able to share with some of our brethren overseas. And so I want to say hello to you in Sri Lanka and also in India and Pakistan and Burma and Nepal and, of course, other countries around the world that may see this. We want to bring you greetings from our brethren here in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. We're in the cold, tundra part of the country. In fact, there's a storm that's snowstorm that's forecast, possibly as much as 7 to 11 inches. But right now, the roads were clear. We were able to get here. And we want to let you know that we love you and that we send you greetings from your brothers and sisters here in Cedar Rapids.

Further now, I'll begin the message today by asking a question. Does God need our money? Does God need our money? Because, after all, He created the entire universe. Billions of galaxies. And in each one of those galaxies, billions of stars. You know, just look at the Earth. And maybe you've seen it through the eyes of the astronauts or through a satellite. This beautiful jewel of the Earth and just how marvelous and how stupendous it is. And, of course, God even singles out the jewel of the Earth when He says, in the beginning He created the heavens, and of course, as expansive as they are, and the Earth. Isn't that interesting that God signals it out as a very special place? And so it is. So we look at the Earth and the beauty of it.

And we think of all the things that God has made. Is there anything that God doesn't have that you and I can give to Him?

You know, is there anything? And is this the reason why He asked us to give Him tithes or offerings? Is God like this potentate or this king that just wants to acquire everything? He wants to own everything?

You know, really, if God wanted more silver, He could just go out and create it, couldn't He?

If He wanted more gold, He could go out and create gold. If He wanted more emeralds, He could create mountains of emeralds or rubies or diamonds. He could do all those things, if that's what was important to Him.

So then, why is God so concerned about the few pennies or the few dollars that we have?

You know, we work hard for a paycheck, and some of us live on very limited means.

Why would God ask us to give a tenth of the increase that He gives us back to Him?

This is the second of a two-part sermon on tithing, and we're going to continue with our discussion with the first tithe.

We're going to review some scriptures that we covered last time, and then we're going to go on to some scriptures that Jesus Christ talks about tithing, and also the Apostle Paul talks about tithing. And we'll cover some of those things, and then we'll also get into what is known as a second or festival tithe, and also a third tithe.

When God owns everything, and obviously anything that He doesn't have, He could create. So He doesn't need anything from us, including our tithes. So what is He trying to do? What's He trying to teach us with all of this? Because we, in a sense, when we give to Him, we're really only giving back to Him what's already His.

Let's notice that King David had that understanding in 1 Chronicles 29. Let's go back and take a look at that scripture. 1 Chronicles 29.

And verse 11 is where we'll pick it up here.

You know, the context here is that King David is helping to gather an offering to help build a house for God, a temple for God. Solomon's actually going to do the building, but David's in the process of acquiring the materials and helping it to get ready. And he shares some things with us here. 1 Chronicles 29 and 11.

David says this, So David understood that everything belongs to God, as we will read about later, that He is the possessor of heaven and earth.

He goes on to say, Notice verse 12.

And then he says this in verse number 14.

Brethren, I think it's clear in the scripture here that all riches and all wealth come from God. We simply give back to God what God has already given to us. And notice that the heart is involved as we jump to verse number 17. He says, As for me, in the uprightness of my heart, I have willingly offered to you these things. And now with joy, I have seen your people who are present here also to offer willingly to you.

Brother, we're going to talk about tithing here in this second of a two-part series on tithing.

And we begin to see here that the command to tithe really is for our benefit.

God's trying to teach us something.

You know, He has the characteristic of being a giver.

We covered last time that every good and perfect gift comes from God.

And so, as chips off the old block with His sons and His daughters, He's trying to also institute to create in us the same character that He has.

You know, Jesus Christ Himself said, it's more blessed to give than to receive. So He understood that concept as well.

So the Son of God and the Father are on the same page.

And God is asking you and I to begin to get onto that same page as well.

We covered several things last time on the topic of tithing.

We talked about how tithing honors God, that it is holy to God. It's His. It belongs to Him.

And He decides how it's used.

We talked about the fact that it's an act of worshiping God, showing honor, respect, obedience, trust, and faith, that He will provide for us and will continue to do so.

We touched on the fact that it teaches us how to give. It teaches us how to be like our Father is and our elder brother.

It's a way of loving God. The Scriptures talk about, if you love Me, you'll keep My commandments.

So it's a way of loving God and indirectly it's a way of loving neighbor because of the fact that how many of the tithes and offerings in the past have contributed to the information that was eventually shared with our generation and changed our life.

There are many that have gone before us that have honored God and respected this command of tithing. And we are the benefits. We've been benefited by that.

It's a way for God's work to be done. God utilizes that tithe for His work to be done.

He said, go to all the world and preach the gospel to every nation. That's a pretty big job that He's given His disciples to do.

So let's review a few Scriptures here that we covered last time. I won't spend as much time, but let's begin by turning to Genesis 14, verse 12.

We'll cover a few Scriptures we covered last time, but then we'll also get into some new ones as well on this particular topic.

This is the most ancient record, the biblical record, of anyone giving a tenth or a tithe of anything to anyone.

And it was about 400 years before the time of Moses. Genesis 14, verse 12. And to set the stage a little bit, this is the time when Abraham, whose name at that time was Abram, hadn't been changed yet.

And he had made God his God. He built an altar to him, and he said, you are the one I'm going to honor. You are the one I'm going to worship. You are the one I'm going to show respect and obey.

And he built an altar, and God blessed him. He had many herds. And then we read about, in Genesis chapter 13, about his nephew Lot and how God blessed Lot.

And they had all of these herds and all of this wealth that they had accumulated in silver and gold, as it talks about in Genesis chapter 13. They had a lot.

So much that they couldn't occupy the same space. They were too close in proximity. So Abram said to his nephew Lot, he said, Well, you know, let's not have this strife between you and me. Let's not have this strife between your herdsmen and my herdsmen.

You know, Lot, you go ahead and look, and you see what looks good to you. And you make a decision which direction you want to go.

Lot lifted up his eyes, and he looked to the east, and this was the area of Sodom and Gomorrah before it had been destroyed.

And it was plush. It was green. And there was well-watered. And there was all of these grasslands and plains. It was beautiful.

So he decided to go that way. Abram went another direction.

But then in the process of time, there was a battle, and the certain kings came into the area where Lot was, and they took Lot and his family, and they took the goods, and they took other people, and they were removed.

And one of the servants of Lot told Abram what happened. He escaped. He told Abram. Abram sent a small army to try to rescue these people, and of course, his nephew Lot and Lot's family, and was successful.

God blessed it. So we'll pick it up here in verse 16. There was an occasion of great rejoicing. We get into verse number 17 here. It says, And the king of Sodom went out to meet him, referring to Abram, at the valley of Shabbat, that is the king's valley, and after his return from the defeat of Kedal Amor, and the kings who were with him. And then Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine, and he was the priest of the Most High God.

And he blessed him, and he said, Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth.

So Melchizedek also understood that God Most High was possessor of heaven and earth.

Verse 19, and he, referring to Melchizedek, blessed him, referring to Abram, and said, Blessed be Abram of God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth, and blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hands. So it was God that helped Abram. God. And that's what a God does.

You know, you worship, you obey, you look to that God, and that God says, You obey me, and I will take care of you. And he did. He delivered them all into Abram's hand. And Abram understood that. And it says in verse 20, And blessed be God Most High, who has delivered your enemies into your hand. And he, referring to Abram, gave him, referring to Melchizedek, who is the priest of the Most High God. He gave him a tithe of all. So there are several factors in this account that are highly significant here. Take a look at this. We are told that Melchizedek was a priest of God. He was the priest of this Most High God. We're distinguishing who this God was. There's no other God that's higher than him. And he is a possessor of heaven and earth. We are also informed that Abram was of the Most High God. Meaning that that's who he looked to. That's who he obeyed. That's who he honored. That's who he respected. And we are also informed here that this Most High God is possessor of heaven and earth in verse number 19. So, brethren, by Abram's hiding in this context, there was a direct acknowledgement of God's sovereignty and lordship over everything. Over the entire... well, over the whole earth. I'll just refer to Haggai chapter 2 and verse 8. Because God later reveals, as he says here in Haggai chapter 2 verse 8, that the silver is mine and the gold is mine. So the Lord of hosts. And in Genesis chapter 13, we see that Abram had been blessed with quite a bit of silver and gold. But he understood where it came from. Brethren, giving God back a tenth of what is entirely his anyway was apparently a way of acknowledging God's sovereignty over every kind of wealth.

I'm just going to refer to Galatians chapter 3 and verse 29. Galatians chapter 3 and verse 29, referring to Abraham. It says that if you are Christ, then you are Abraham's seed and your heirs according to the promise. Abraham was a father of the faithful, as it talks about in Romans chapter 4. His life was to be an example. It was to be a prototype, an exemplary example for the rest of humankind that would become part of the people of God. Whether it be saints of God or whether it be Christians of God, God recorded Abraham's act of tithing for a reason. For a reason, to provide his people with an example of the life of this righteous man. And as it says in verse 29, if you are Christ, then you are Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise. The promises that God made to Abraham were phenomenal. He is a father of the faithful. A lot of these things start with our father, Abraham. Let's look at a second example of tithing in Genesis chapter 28 and verse 20. Genesis chapter 28 and verse 20, because God has provided us with another mention here of the practice of tithing prior to the time of Moses and setting up his nation of Israel. And it's the account of Jacob. Genesis chapter 28 and verse number 20.

It says, then Jacob, and of course Jacob was Abraham's grandson. We had Abraham, Isaac, and then Jacob. And then Jacob's name was changed to Israel, and then he had several sons, and they became known as the tribes of Israel. But we're talking about Jacob here. He made a vow. And he said, if God will keep me, or God will be with me and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat, and give me clothing to put on, so that I come back to my Father's house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. A little bit different than Abraham here. I think Abraham honored God first, and then God blessed him. And I'm guessing that Jacob saw the blessings that his grandfather Abraham had, and he understood that Abraham, his grandfather, probably told him about this God, this most high God.

Well, Jacob, if you remember, he's on his way. He's kind of fleeing for his life from his brother. He has this vision, and he says this after he has this vision. He's leaving his home. He's going to another land, and eventually he's going to come back. But he says, he makes this vow, if this God, my grandfather's God, will be with me and keep me in the way that I'm going, and give me these things that I need, so that I can come back to my Father's house in peace, then the Lord is going to be my God. I'm going to set him up as I'm going to worship him. Verse 22, it says, in this stone, which I have set as a pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give to me, I will surely give a tenth to you. You know, brother, he set up a pillar, it says, and very similar to his grandfather, who had set up also something, an altar, to worship God. He sets up a pillar here, and he says, this shall be God's house. Verse 22, and of all that you give to me, I will surely give a tenth to you. You know, again here, talking about these patriarchs, in a sense, that are here in Scripture, that God is acknowledged by them, and it's an expression of worship. This tithing is an expression of worship. Whether they set up an altar here or a pillar to God, they are expressing his sovereignty and their worship of him through giving back a tenth of what he has given to them. He is the giver of all, and it's an act of acknowledgment that God is sovereign over everything. Let's go to Hebrews 7, verse 5. Hebrews 7, verse 5. Now we get to the Mosaic period here, when Moses leads these children of Israel out of Egypt, and God begins to share his laws with them, his way of life with them. Tithing isn't, again, discussed in the Pentateuch, which is the first five books of the Bible, until the time of Moses and with the establishment of the priesthood in Israel. So let's pick it up here, Hebrews 7, verse 5. It says, and indeed those who are of the sons of Levi who receive the priesthood have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law. So we know that part of the law of God is tithing, and that I think some renditions of Scripture say that they had the command to take the tithes from the people, and receive the tithes from the people. So we see here that God says the sons of Levi have this command according to the law. But was the tithe that they took, was it their tithe, or was it God's tithe? Well, let's take a look, because the Scripture tells us. Let's go back to Leviticus, chapter 27, and verse number 30. Leviticus, chapter 27, and verse number 30. The Levites took the tithe, but was it theirs? Not according to Scripture, not according to God's law. Let's notice that. Leviticus, chapter 27, and verse number 30. It says, And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's. And it is holy to the Lord. Now there's a lot here in verse number 30. We talked about this last time. The tithe belongs to God. It is. It doesn't say it's the Levites. It says it's the Lords. And then it goes on to say, not only does it belong to God, but then just like the Sabbath day, it says it is holy. It's separate from other things. It's sanctified, just like the Sabbath is sanctified and set apart for specific use by God. The tithe is holy, and it is sanctified and set apart for God's use in the way that He determines it'll be used.

Now at that time, God designated the tithe to be used by the Levites for the service of the tabernacle and for their service, for their living. Let's take a look at that in Numbers 18, verse 21. Numbers 18 and verse 21. How did God use it at that time? Numbers 18 and verse 21. And behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel foreign inheritance. So God, it was His tithe, but He decided to give it to the children of Levi. And if you remember, when they came into the Promised Land, that there were twelve tribes, and the other eleven tribes received an inheritance. They received land. They received places to go to live on, to plant their crops and to make a living. They could grow crops and they could harvest them, they could sell them, and that's what provided their living.

But the children of Levi, the tribe of Levi, didn't get any land. Their inheritance was the tithe. And so it says, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance and for the service which they serve. So they needed to, of course, have a certain amount of money to pay their bills, to raise their family, to be able to have food, and to be able to have clothing, and to have a place to live, and all of those types of things.

It says, for their service which they serve, and even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation. So they're serving God.

They taught the people the law. They helped disseminate the truth of God. They had a big responsibility.

So the tithe represented several things. It was the reward for them, or their inheritance, or their wages, if you will, the priests and the Levites, for the service that they performed. And here God was defining as part of His law how His holy tithe was to be used. Because it's His. He decides how it's going to be used, how it's set apart for His purposes.

I'm just going to refer to Nehemiah chapter 10. You can turn over there. Nehemiah chapter 10 and verse number 37.

We know according to Scripture that God's people, He called them out actually to be a light, to be an example, to have an evangelistic, in a sense, influence on the nations around them.

These other nations would say, what type of God do you have such as this that is so great? And these people are so blessed.

But we know because of history that in the ebbs and flows of their history that they eventually got off track. They began to worship false gods and idols.

And they began to become corrupted in a sense. And they would often have to be restored.

We covered the Scripture last time. It talks about the fact that God's people, the house of Judah, had been taken captive up north into Babylon. They were there for 70 years because of their punishment.

Because they'd gotten away from their Creator. They'd forgotten the covenants that they had made. And they came back.

God allowed them to come back. Now, there were millions of them that left, but there were only 50,000 that returned.

Nehemiah was very instrumental in helping to restore things. It was a very exciting time, in that sense, a restoration.

It says in verse 37, it says, at that time, to bring the first fruits of our dough and of our offerings, the fruit from all kinds of trees, the new wine and oil, to the priests, to the storehouses of the house of our God, and to bring the tithes of our land to the Levites. For the Levites should receive the tithes in all of our farming communities.

And the priests and the descendant of Aaron shall be with the Levites, and the Levites receive the tithes, and the Levites shall bring up a tenth of the tithes to the house of our God, to the rooms of the storehouse. So even the Levites tithed on the 10% they received, they would tithe the 10% as well, and that would go into the storehouses of God.

And as long as everyone diligently performed their responsibility in paying the tithe the temple services flourished, it was a time of restoration, excitement, spiritual renaissance, and blessings as they began to be restored to this nation of Judah. Well, here's a scripture we didn't cover last time. Let's go to 2 Chronicles chapter 29.

2 Chronicles chapter 29.

The nation of Israel was sometimes rarely obedient to God for long periods of time, and often there would be a restoration. And this is one here where there's a religious ruler or a king who would occasionally begin to institute reforms to bring the people back to God. So let's look at 2 Chronicles here.

Chapter 29, and we'll see Hezekiah was one such leader that led such a reform. 2 Chronicles chapter 29, we'll pick it up here in verse number 1. It says, Hezekiah became king when he was 25 years old. Now that's not very old, is it? To have that responsibility to be over the people of God and a great nation.

But he was 25 years old, and he reigned for 29 years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Abijah, the daughter of Zechariah. And he did what was right in the sight of God. Not what was right in his own sight, but he did what was right in the sight of the Lord, according to all that David, his father, had done. And we know that David was a man after God's own heart, and he would strive to obey God. And he would even say, God, examine me to see where I fall short. And so we see that Hezekiah begins to do this. What did he do? Let's jump over to chapter 31. Second Chronicles, chapter 31. We'll read here in verse number 20. Second Chronicles, chapter 31 and verse 20. It says, Thus Hezekiah did throughout all Judah. So he did a lot of things throughout the kingdom. He did some of these things throughout all Judah, and he did what was good and right and true before the Lord his God. So now he's referring to this God as his God. Let's go back to verse number four and see some of the things that he did. Verse number four of Second Chronicles, chapter 31. It says, The children of Israel brought in abundance of firstfruits, of grain, and wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the produce of the field, and they brought in abundantly the tithe of everything. And the children of Israel and Judah, who dwelt in the cities of Judah, brought the tithe of the oxen, the tithe of the sheep, the tithe of the holy things which were consecrated to the Lord their God, and they laid them in heaps.

There was so much they didn't have a place to put it. You know, it kind of reminds me here in our part of the world where we raise a lot of corn that sometimes when it's harvest time and they fill the elevators and they're in enough room. Have you seen it where they put it on heaps in the ground where they just put down these huge tarps and then they they they auger the corn into these big huge heaps and then they try to cover it or protect it from the weather sometimes sometimes not.

But you can imagine that type of a blessing. Heaps.

And verse 7, in the third month they began laying them in heaps and they finished in the seventh month and when Hezekiah and the leaders came and they saw the heaps and they blessed the Lord and his people Israel. The Hezekiah questioned the priests and Levites concerning the heaps. What is all this stuff?

Verse 10, Nazariah the chief priest from the house of Zadok answered and said, Since the people began to bring the offerings to the house of the Lord, we have plenty to eat and we have plenty left for the Lord has blessed His people.

And what is left is this great abundance.

Let's go over to Malachi chapter 3 and verse 8. God has promised to bless when we obey Him in His commands.

One of those commands is the command of Ty that He wants to bless us.

We touched on this last time in Malachi chapter 3 and verse 8, but there's a message here of one of God's prophets. Last book of the Old Testament, Malachi.

We know that after the time of Nehemiah, God's people again began, after the time of Hezekiah and Nehemiah, they began to stray again.

And God tries to get their attention. The people began to lose sight of God, His love for them. Things began to deteriorate again. And God appeals to them. In verse number 7, He appeals to them to give Him their wholehearted honor and respect, to worship Him the way that they should.

So when the people ask God in verse 7, well, okay, God, you say we've strayed from You and we need to return. In what way should we return?

And I think it's interesting. This is the first thing He addresses here. He could have probably addressed many things, but this is what He says. In verse 8, He says, God asks the question, will a man rob God?

You know, we know one of the things that God condensed in the Ten Commandments was, you shall not steal.

That was that important, that we not rob anyone. Don't take anything away from anyone that takes anything away from someone else that doesn't belong to you or to me.

And God says, will you rob me? Yet you've robbed me. And the people say, well, in what way have we robbed you? And God responds in tithes and in offerings.

You know, it's His. It doesn't belong to us. It's His. And He decides what holy use it's to be used for.

God didn't say, well, a man robbed the Levites because after all it wasn't theirs. It was God's. He said, you've robbed me. He didn't rob the Levites. He robbed me. God still claims the tithes as His. Nothing's changed. The tithes was something bigger than them. It was something bigger than their administration.

God was simply allowing them to use it.

Verse number nine. You're cursed with a curse. These are God's words. Because you robbed me, even this whole nation. So it implies that this was pretty prevalent throughout the entire generation that lived in the nation at that time.

Yet verse 10, God in His mercy and His love and His patience, He says, you know what?

I'm going to make a promise to you if you do your part. I'm going to make a promise of what's going to happen.

He says in verse 10, bring all the tithes into the storehouse. And like what we heard about in Hezekiah, that there may be food in my house. And then watch and see what happens. Watch and see what happens to your life. He says, try me now. Put me to the test, is what God says.

And if you do that, and if you put me to the test, if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such a blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.

These are God's words. This is His promise. This is what He is saying. If you will put aside my tithe, I will bless you more than what you had before.

And after you pay me what's mine, you'll end up being ahead of where you were before. Sometimes we try to hold on to what we've got.

And it doesn't result in anything. There's a proverb that says, there's one that scatters and has more. There's one that withholds more than is right and suffers. It's not human to think the way that God thinks, and yet that's where God's taking us. It's where He's taking us. Why would He take us any other direction than to be like He is?

And to realize that it is more blessed to give than it is to receive. I mean, both parties are blessed. That's the way God's way works. It's a win-win situation.

God challenges them to put them to the test if they would repent and fulfill His tithing laws as He instructed in Scripture that once again He would pour out a blessing.

Verse 11, I'll rebuke the devourer for your sakes so that he will not destroy the fruit of the ground.

So there was a devourer, apparently, that could destroy the fruit of the ground. God would rebuke the devourer, whether it be insects, whether it be disease. We don't know.

Whether it be not rain and dew season, we don't know. For sure. We can speculate. So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear its fruit in the field. And notice verse 12, when all nations will call you blessed, they'll see something. All nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land.

So God made several promises here.

Further, once again, tithing appears repeatedly as an act of worship, of saying, God, I know you are sovereign. I know you've given me everything. I'm going to obey your command because I love you. I'm going to give you 10% of my increase. And I'm going to trust that you'll take care of everything else.

And I know you'll use that for good. I know you'll use that for the work that you have to do until your son, Jesus Christ, comes back.

It takes faith, doesn't it? It took faith for us. When we first had to make that decision, okay, I'm going to give God 10% of my increase.

Things are pretty tight right now, but I'm still going to obey God.

And I'm sure many of you have got your own stories, or you've heard the stories of others, of how God took care of you.

That's His promise. And it's an act of love. Not only acknowledges the giver of everything that we have, and there are so many different ways we have been blessed, it's an act of love because He asks us to do it.

And so, because we love Him, we obey that command. And it shows indirectly our love to our neighbor so they can receive the same truth that we've received over time.

That speaks pretty harshly about not doing it. He talks about it as robbery, that not tithing is an affront to Him.

It was just another symptom of, at that time, of the children of Israel, the national disrespect that they had for the Creator.

You know, Malachi chapter 1, verse 6, talks about the fact here that a son honors his father and a servant is master, and if then I am a father, where's my honor?

Where is my honor? And He goes on to talk about how they've turned away from Him, including sacrifices, including offerings, including the tithes.

Somehow, God's people had forgotten that everything belongs to God, and everything we have comes from Him. He owns the earth, as it says in Exodus chapter 9, verse 29, the earth is the Lord.

It's His, the Lord. That's Exodus chapter 9, verse 29. And they had forgotten that all things came from God and belonged to God.

And He tells us, He lets us keep 90% of our increase and simply give 10% back to Him.

He reminded His people to repent of not obeying His command, and if they would give that tithe to Him, which was His, that He would pour out a blessing that they wouldn't have room enough to receive it.

Same is true today. Same is true today.

Let's turn over to Matthew chapter 5, verse 17. We'll talk a little bit about how tithing continues under the terms of the New Covenant. Matthew chapter 5 and verse number 17, because Jesus Christ warned against assuming that God's laws were abrogated or were done away by His coming. Matthew chapter 5, we'll pick it up here in verse number 17. Matthew chapter 5 and verse number 17.

Jesus said, don't think that I came to destroy the law, because He knew that some of them would.

He said, don't think that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy, but I came to fulfill. Fulfill means, if we look at that Greek word, it means fill up to the fold. To help people to understand what God's law really meant all along, and the standard that it set really right from the beginning. You know, Jesus touched on the fact that not only is it wrong to kill someone, it's even wrong to hate your brother in your heart. That in a sense is doing the same. So Jesus is filling this law up to the fold. He's making it honorable, as one of the Scriptures in the Old Testament says. He's making it honorable. He's helping us to understand what it is meant to teach us. Verse 18. For assuredly I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, which they haven't done yet, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law, until everything is fulfilled. And whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. So we know and understand that we have to be very, very careful that we just don't assume that all these laws are gone. What did Jesus teach about tithing specifically? Let's go over to Matthew, chapter 23 and verse 23. Matthew, chapter 23 and verse number 23.

He's talking to the scribes and Pharisees here, religious leaders of the day, and he shares this with them.

Matthew, chapter 23 and verse 23, he says, Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you pay tithe of mint and common ananous, and you've neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done without leaving the others undone.

You know, he says you are tithing of some of the smallest things. You know, these herbs and these spices, you know, that we read about here, as it talks about of mint and anise and common. And you've neglected, though, some of the weightier matters of the law. He says these you ought to have done and not to leave those other things undone. You know, Jesus Christ says, you know what? That tithing of the mint and the common and the anise were okay. But you should have also been doing the other things. You should have been doing everything. It was right at the tithe. You know, you ought to have done this.

Jesus Christ, I'm just going to refer to Galatians 6 and verse 16. You can write that down. You can turn there if you like. Galatians 6 and verse 16, when Christ came to start the New Testament church, the New Covenant church, we're talking about there and it refers to it as the Israel of God. You know, we had the Israel of God in the Old Covenant, and we have the Israel of God in the New Covenant, which is the church. It's the Eclaecia. It's an assembly. Church means called out. We know there was the church in the wilderness back in the Old Covenant. We know that there is a church in the New Covenant. It's now called the Israel of God. It's a spiritual Israel of God. And so it is still called that today. We are the Israel of God today, a spiritual Israel of God. And the needs for tithing that God addressed among the Israel of God in the Old Testament, there are the same needs that we have of the Israel of God in the New Covenant. God's way of life needs to be taught to the whole world. In fact, the gospel message needs to go forth to every nation. Those are things that need to be done. And those disciples that are called need to be nurtured and need to be cared for. And members are to continue to assemble together according to the commandment, the Holy Convocation, on the weekly Sabbath and on the annual Holy Days. And the poor and the widows still need to be taken care of and shouldn't be neglected. There are needs. Let's turn over to Hebrews 9 and verse 8. Hebrews 9 and verse 8, we're going to find the temple-based physical liturgy has now been rendered obsolete. But the remainder of God's law, including tithing, remains. Let's take a look at that. Hebrews 9 and verse 8.

There were these fleshly ordinances that were done under the Old Covenant, of the Mount Sinai Covenant, which are identified with the temple, including animal sacrifices and food and drink and washings and some of these things. But they're now obsolete. There is no more a temple. There is no more a Levitical priesthood at this time. And there has come a time of reform in the worship of God. Let's take a look here. Hebrews 9 and verse 8. Previously, I'm in verse chapter 9.

There has been a change in the Levitical priesthood. There has been a change in the priesthood. You know, the removal of the fleshly ordinances that was imposed until the time of Reformation does not abrogate the law of tithing. Let's take a look, though, that it did necessitate a change of who was to receive the tithes. Let's go to Hebrews chapter 7, just a page over or so, in my Bible. Hebrews chapter 7. We'll pick it up in verse 1. We're going to see it necessitated a change in who was to receive the tithes, because initially, Melchizedek received the tithes. He was the priest of the Most High God. He received the tithes. Later, it was changed to the Levitical priesthood, and now we're going to see it reverts back to the priesthood of Melchizedek, the ministers of Jesus Christ. Let's take a look at that. Hebrews chapter 7, verse 1. For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham, returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him. We read about that in Genesis already, chapter 14. To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated king of righteousness, as it's referring to Melchizedek. He has this name translated as king of righteousness, then also king of Salem, meaning king of peace. And notice this Melchizedek was without father, without mother, without genealogy. We're not talking about a human being here, are we? We're talking about someone who didn't have a beginning, someone who doesn't have an end. I think we'll see as we go along here, we're talking about the word, the one who became the son of God, Jesus Christ in the flesh. But let's read on. Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils. So it shows respect, it shows honor. He's receiving this tithe from Abraham, who's going to give it to God Most High. Or utilize it in the way that God Most High says it should be used, because it belongs to God Most High. Verse number five, and indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, now we read the Scripture already today, who received the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law. So it is part of God's law that the Levites received the tithe. It was their inheritance, it was for their service, for the temple, for what they provided, for their service. It says that they have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law. That is from their brethren, though they have come from the loins of Abraham. So we're talking about how great this priest is, who would receive these tithes from Abraham. And in a sense, the Levites tithed through Abraham, because Abraham came first, then Isaac, then Jacob, whose name was changed to Israel, and then he had the twelve sons, one which was Levi, and we have the tribe of Levi, who became priests. But in a sense, they tithed through their ancestor, Abraham, as we'll read about that. It says, verse number 6, But he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham, and blessed him who had promises.

Melchizedek was not of the genealogy of the Levites. He preceded the Levites. He's the one that met with Abraham before Levi was even born later on, and became a people, and became a tribe, and became priests. So verse 6, But he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham, and blessed him who had the promises. Now beyond all contradiction, the lesser is blessed by the better. So the better, of course, is Melchizedek, and he blessed the Brahm. Verse 8, Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives. So Melchizedek continues to live, without beginning, without end. Verse number 9, Even Levi, who received tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak. And we touched on that already. Verse 10, For he was still in the loins of his father, when Melchizedek met him.

Verse 11, Therefore if perfection were through the Levitical priesthood, for under it the people received the law, what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchizedek, and not be called according to the order of Aaron. Further, perfection did not come from the Levitical priesthood, and there was a need for a change in the priesthood.

And notice verse 12, For the priesthood being changed. And there's the change. It's not the tithing law. It's the priesthood has been changed. Of necessity, then, there is also a change of the law. The law changed? Well, only the law in respect to who would be a priest, not the tithing law.

And so the priesthood has been changed, brethren. We don't see a Levitical priesthood today. The priesthood has been changed. The law of who would now be a priest, and who would receive therefore the tithes, has changed.

Further, the work of God. Well, let's read on here. For the priesthood being changed, in verse 12, there's a necessity also a change of the law. For he of whom these things are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which no man is officiated at the altar. For it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah. Jesus wasn't a Levite. He came from one of the other twelve tribes. He came from through David and through the tribe of Judah. It doesn't speak anything about priesthood here. That's why that law had to be changed.

For verse 14, for it is evident that our Lord arose from Judah, which tribe Moses spoke nothing concerning priesthood. And it is yet far more evident if in the likeness of Melchizedek there arises another priest. So there's a different priesthood today, brethren. We know that God has a work that he's doing today, all around the world, and will until the return of Jesus Christ.

The Melchizedek order of Jesus Christ has replaced the Levitical priesthood in the administration of the New Covenant. The Levites in the past lived off the tithes of the people. God says that's how it was to be used at that time. They carried out the work of the ministry under the Old Covenant. And cool! Ways, basic ways, the temple service and the worship, the teaching of the law of God.

Let's turn over to 1 Corinthians 9, verse 4. See what Paul has to share with us here. 1 Corinthians 9, verse 4. For the same a principle applies to the Israel of God and to the New Covenant. 1 Corinthians 9, verse 4.

Paul is defending his apostleship. He was there in the sense of their Father and the Lord, but there are other false apostles that were coming in. They were beginning to question whether Paul was really a true apostle of God. He says in verse 1 of chapter 9, am I not an apostle? You know. He's having to defend his apostleship. He says in verse 3, my defense to those who examine me is this. So he's having to make a defense for himself. Verse 4, don't we have the right to eat and drink?

Do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do other apostles? You know, the brothers of the Lord and of Cephas? This is a little bit of a side note, but you know, we know that Catholicism teaches the fact that the popes were not to be married. And yet we see the apostles here. Paul is saying, don't I have a right to take along a believing wife, as do also other apostles besides me, and also even Peter, who was thought of to be the first pope among Catholicism. He says in verse 6, there is only Barnabas and I who have no right to refrain from working. He says, whoever goes to war at his own expense, whoever plants a vineyard and doesn't eat of its fruit, or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk from the flock, do I say these things as a mere man, or does not the law of God say the same thing also? God's law speaks to how these should be taken care of. Verse 9, for it is written in the law of Moses, you shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain. Is it oxen that God is concerned about? You know, Paul asks the rhetorical question, you know, he's really talking about human beings. He's not talking about animals. You know, God's concerned about, well, and the Israel God and the Old Covenant, the Levites, and he's concerned about the Israel God and the New Covenant, the ministry. Verse 10, or does he altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt. That is written that he who plows should plow in hope, and he who thresses in hope should be a partaker of his hope. Verse 11, if we sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things? Is it that big of a deal? Verse 12, if others have partaken of this right, so apparently it's a right under the New Covenant. If others have partaken of this right over you are not we even more? Nevertheless, we have not used this right, but we endure all things, lest we hinder the gospel of Christ. Apparently at that time Paul thought, well, you know what? They're just not ready. So I'll be a tentmaker for a while. I'll do what I can or what I need to do so I don't hinder what work is being done here, and he did that for a time. Notice verse 13, don't you know that those who minister the holy things heed of the things of the temple? You know, we're talking about the Levitical priesthood under the Old Covenant. Don't you know that those who minister the holy things heed of the things of the temple? And those who serve at the altar partake of the offerings of the altar? He's reminding them of what God had done in the Old Covenant. Even so, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel. Remember we talked last time about how Paul was in a very unique situation in our Bible study in the book of Romans. We talked about the author of Paul of that book, and how God, or Jesus Christ, spoke specifically to him and taught him, possibly for up to three years in the desert of Arabia. And Paul is saying here in verse number 14, Even so, the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel. And so this law of God, this first tithe, is to be used the way God decides in the Old Covenant. He gave it to the Levites, and in the New Covenant, he's given it to the Melchizedek priesthood, the ministers of Jesus Christ. The work still needs to be done. There is no doctrinal discussion at all of the fact that the tithing law has changed or ceases to exist. There's nothing there at all to suggest that in Scripture.

Let's talk about second tithe, also known as the festival tithe. Let's go over to Deuteronomy chapter 12, verse 17. Deuteronomy chapter 12 and verse number 17. I'm going to find here an interesting Scripture here, because here is a tithe that is consumed by the tithe payer.

Deuteronomy chapter 12 and verse number 17. We know this has to be a different tithe than the first tithe, because the first tithe didn't belong to you and me, it didn't belong to them, it belonged to God. He gave it to whomever he chose to give it to. But this talks about a tithe that's different. It's a separate tithe, it's a different tithe. It's a tithe that was consumed by the tithe payer and his family. Deuteronomy chapter 12 and verse 17 says, Boy, no, it can't be the first tithe, because that wasn't yours. It belonged to somebody else, belonged to God. Now there's a tithe that God says, I want you to eat, but I also put stipulations on how you eat it or where you eat it. You know, you can eat this tithe. It's a separate tithe, the second tithe. The first tithe was holy, but this tithe is something that could be eaten, but not within your gates. You couldn't eat it within your dwelling places. You had to eat it in a place that God says that he was going to choose. So it says in the middle of verse 18, you and your son and your daughter and your male servant and your female servant and the Levite who was within your gates, and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God in all the to which you put your hands. God says, I want you to go to a place that I choose. I want you to eat it there. I want you to rejoice in all that God has put into our hands that he's given to us. So we see this is a different tithe. Second tithe. Let's go over to Deuteronomy chapter 14 verse 22. Deuteronomy chapter 14 verse number 22.

It says, you shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year. And that's where we get the word increase. We tithe on our increase. That's here in verse number 22. And you shall eat before the Lord your God. So again, we're eating this tithe that can't be the first tithe. And you shall eat before the Lord your God in the place where he chooses. So again, we can't eat it within our gates. We have to go outside of our gates to where God tells us to go.

To the place that he chooses to make his name abide, the tithe of your grain and your new wine and your oil of the firstborn of your herds and your flocks. Notice that you may learn to fear the Lord your God. It's a way of respecting, reverence, awe, respect, knowing where all this comes from and saying, God, you're trying to teach me some things and I'm going to listen.

And I'm going to be a giver just like you are. And I'm going to keep this second tithe like you asked me to. And I'm going to go to a place that you choose that I can consume that. So in a sense, we just can't consume it the way we want. The second tithe also is put aside for a separate special use, isn't it?

Can't just eat it wherever we want. We eat it in a place that he tells us to go. Deuteronomy 16, verse 13. You see that we really are to consume this tithe. Those that are faithful with the second tithe are to consume it at the festival. Deuteronomy 16, verse 13. The context here of the Feast of Tabernacles. Here, Deuteronomy 16, verse 13, You shall deserve the Feast of Tabernacles seven days when you have gathered from your threshing floor from your winepress, and you shall rejoice in your feast, you and your son and your daughter and your male servant and your female servants, and even the stranger and the fatherless and the widow who are within your gates.

For seven days you'll keep this a sacred feast to the Lord your God in the place which he chooses. And because the Lord your God will bless you in all of your produce and in all the work of their hands, so that you shall truly rejoice. And three times a year, all of your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place which he chooses, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Tabernacles, and they shall not appear before the Lord God empty-handed.

So we see that God commands us to go to these places where he chooses, and that takes money. You have to have travel expenses, you have to have lodging, you have to have that tithe to consume to eat, you know? And he says in other places if it's too far you can convert it into money. And then we've read about those in other places in Scripture. So all of that takes money, and God decided a way within his law to make sure that all of that could be financed, so all of that could be taken care of.

He has a way. He has a law that works. For the sake of time, I'm going to refer you to some Scriptures that Jesus Christ regularly traveled to attend the festivals, to attend the Passover, to attend the Feast of Tabernacles. I'll give you three Scriptures here for reference. Luke 2, verses 41 and 42. That's Luke 2, verses 41 and 42. Jesus Christ is 12 years old at this time when he goes up to keep the peace in Jerusalem.

Also, John 2, verse 23. John 2, verse 23. Again, Jesus Christ is in Jerusalem at this time at the Passover season. And then John, chapter 7, verses 1 through 10. John, chapter 7, verses 1 through 10. You may remember that story where Jesus is talking to his brothers and they didn't believe in him. And he says, they say to him, well, you know, if you are really the Messiah, show yourself to the world.

And Jesus said, well, your time is always ready, but my time is not yet. You go to this feast. I'm not yet ready to go to this feast. But once they leave for the feast, he follows very shortly after. But let's take a look at some examples of Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, traveling back and forth to Jerusalem to observe these days. Acts, chapter 18, verse 18. This is 20 years after Jesus' death and resurrection.

And we see that the church is still keeping the festivals. And he's still observing the festivals. Acts, chapter 18, verse number 18. It says, Paul still remained a good while, then he took leave of the brethren, and he sailed for Syria, and Priscilla and Aquila were with him, and he had his hair cut off at Sentria, for he had taken a vow. And he came to Ephesus and left them there. But he himself entered the synagogue, and he reasoned with the Jews. So he's spending some time in the temple, the synagogue in Ephesus. Verse 20, when they asked him to stay a while longer, he did not consent, but he took leave of them saying, I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem.

So that's where he wanted to keep the feast. This is again two decades or so after Jesus is gone and has ascended up to heaven. But I'm going to by all means keep this feast coming in Jerusalem, but I will return to you, God willing, and then he sailed from Ephesus. All right, let's go over to Acts 20, just a few pages over, in verse 16.

Acts 20, in verse 16. And we see here, again, that Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he would not have to spend time in Asia because he was hurrying to be in Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost. So for some reason he wanted to keep the festival in Jerusalem that particular year. He could have kept it in the other places, but he wanted to keep it in Jerusalem. And of course we know about 1 Corinthians 5, where he says, Jesus is our Passover and let us therefore keep the feast, referring to the feast of the days of Unleavened Bread.

And of course that was a Gentile people, a Gentile church, and he's talking to our brothers and sisters in Corinth, saying that they should be keeping the festival. So we know that God's festivals continue and God has placed in his plan a festival tithe so that we have the ability to observe those festivals to the place that he chooses for us to go.

Brethren, how do you and I calculate these tithes? How should we calculate and pay our tithes? Well, we've already read that we tithe on our increase. We tithe on our increase. So how do you determine one's increase? You know, for a wage earner, it's maybe a little bit more simple. If you get a salary, you know what you get.

You know what you get in your take-home pay, so to speak. It can be a little bit more complicated, maybe, for somebody who has their own business. And over the years as a tax preparer and accountant, I had several farmers that I worked with. And so, you know, to determine their increase, they would take their gross sales from grain, and in this part of the world, it's usually beans and corn, and then they would subtract their input costs. They would subtract the cost for their fertilizer, for if they had animals, their feed. They would subtract the real estate taxes they pay on the land, the cost of the seed, the cost of the equipment, all the farm-related expenses that they had in order to try to generate this income from the sale of grain or the sale of livestock.

So as we determine our increase, because God wants us to give a tenth back to Him, and He uses it for the support of His work, if we have regular paychecks, it's maybe a little bit simpler, but it can be a little more complicated if you have your own business. But the key is it's on our increase.

Now, for our kids, when they grew up, and, Jamie, you may remember this, and I may not have all the facts correct, but we worked with our kids in saving their tithes and their increase. Now, they didn't get paid a lot.

They had chores that they had to do. We had this list of chores that they had to do during the week, and we paid them allowance. I think it was right around $7 a week. I think it was probably ebbed and flowed depending upon their age. But $7 a week, and they would faithfully save their increase. What's the increase of $7? Ten percent would be? Seventy cents. Seventy cents! So they had their little tin boxes. I think Kelly's was the yellow one. Jamie, does that sound nice?

Okay. I think it was actually two tins each, because one was for the first tithe, and one was for the second tithe. They had other income, too, from time to time, paper routes, babysitting, things like that. They would put in the first tithe tin, and they had their second tithe tin. So from young children, they began to put that aside. Then that change started to turn into dollar bills. Then, as the year went on, it was $5 bills in there, $10, $20 bills, and they'd get pretty excited.

They'd get pretty excited, because they started thinking... The first tithe tin was emptied fairly frequently, because Grandpa Shriver was the one that would receive the tithes locally if he wanted to tithe to the Southern Minnesota congregation, and we'd see him pretty regularly. So the money would be given to Grandpa Shriver. He'd put it in the church account.

The second tithe, of course, was saved for the feast. So it was set aside on a regular basis, and it began to accumulate. We'd see the currency that would begin to replace the coins as it began to grow, and the excitement about the coming feast. It was pretty exciting. And so we suggested to them, and I guess I suggest to all of us, when it comes to the first tithe, you're going to send it in fairly regularly. Don't be tempted to take from it. Don't be tempted to borrow from it, because that can be a human tendency. And for the second tithe, to set it aside as you go.

You know, I know there have been some members, and not a lot, but some that I've talked to, that comes to the feast, and you know, they're going to use their final two paychecks to be the second tithes for the whole year, and then something happens. Either they get laid off, or something happens, and they haven't been setting it aside. So I suggest you set it aside, your festival tithe, and don't send it. Set it aside.

And so, there's different methods you can have to fulfill the laws that God has given to us, and there's different training methods to teach your children. This is just one thing that we did.

And I think it helped, over the years, to be able to get into a regular habit of setting the first tithe aside, and then giving it to God, and then setting the second tithe aside to be used as God instructs to eat in a place that He chooses and to rejoice. And I think there's been good faith that's been born over the years by obeying God's commands.

So we tithe on our increase. We're going to talk about what our increase is when it comes to wage earners here in a moment, but before I do that, I want to cover the third tithe, and let's begin to address that a little bit. There is an additional biblical instruction in God's Word that talks about tithing and helping the poor. Let's notice that in Deuteronomy chapter 14 and verse 28. Deuteronomy chapter 14 and verse number 28.

We're going to see this is different than the first tithe, and we're going to see that this is different than the second tithe.

It's often referred to as a third tithe. Deuteronomy chapter 14 and verse 28. It says at the end of every third year, you shall bring out the tithe of your produce of that year and store it up within your gates. So now this is something that's going to be stored within your gates. And the Levite, because he has no portion or inheritance with you, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, who are within your gates, may come and eat and be satisfied that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do. Again, God says this is going to be a blessing if you follow this command in all the work of your hand which you do.

So in other words, this is also a tithe that is eaten. It's going to be eaten so we know it's not the first tithe. We're going to see here it's not the second tithe either. When was this tithe to be consumed? Let's notice Deuteronomy chapter 16 verse 13. Deuteronomy chapter 16 and verse 13. When is it consumed and where is it consumed? Because we know the second tithe cannot be eaten within your gates and has to be to a different place that God tells us to go. Well, what is this third tithe all about? Deuteronomy 16 verse 13.

It says, you shall observe the feast. Oh, I got the right one. Deuteronomy 16 verse 13.

No, I'm in the wrong place. Deuteronomy 26. Deuteronomy 26 verse 12.

It says, when you have finished laying aside, so again we put it aside. Don't touch it. When you've finished laying aside all the tithes of your increase in the third year, the year of tithing, and you've given it to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your gates and be filled.

So now we're talking about the needy, the people, the fatherless, the stranger, that they're going to be able to eat in the gates. So we know we're not talking about the second tithe because you couldn't eat that within your gates.

We're talking about a third tithe every third year that's helping the poor, the stranger, the fatherless, the widow, that someone who's lost their spouse, or maybe possibly a main wage earner, so that they may eat within your gates and be filled.

Verse number 13, then you shall say before the Lord your God, I have removed the holy tithes from my house, and also have given them to the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, according to your commandments, which you have commanded me. I have not transgressed your commandments, so we know these are commandments in the law. This third tithe is a commandment, nor have I forgotten them. So it's a way of showing love to them, isn't it? Those that are in need.

Verse 14, I have not eaten any of it when in mourning, nor have I removed any of it for an unclean use. I'm not going to do anything with it that's improper, nor given any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the Lord my God, and I have done according to all that you commanded me. So we see these examples, brethren.

Brethren, it's important to note that there was a seven-year cycle in ancient Israel. Let's notice that in Leviticus chapter 25 and verse 1. Leviticus chapter 25 and verse number 1.

There was a sabbatical year.

Leviticus 25 and verse number 1.

It says, Let's jump to verse number 18.

Then I will command my blessing in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth produce enough for three years.

And you shall sow in the eighth year, and eat the old produce until the ninth year. So that six-year produce would be eaten until the ninth year, until its produce comes in. You shall eat of the old harvest. So we see that God was going to bless his people with enough in the sixth year to go all the way through a ninth year that would follow.

But, brethren, we see that every seventh year there wasn't going to be anything to tithe on. And in a sense, if we go every third year, then every twenty-first year there would be, in a sense, there would be... the two laws would come in conflict with each other. There wouldn't be anything to have a third tithe on in the twenty-first year because there is nothing that you're going to harvest. And so our understanding, this has led to the conclusion, when we talk about every third year for the third tithe, we're talking about twice within a seven-year period. And a first year, and then, you know, a sixth year, and then you skip the seventh year, and then you begin again to tithe third tithe twice within a seven-year period. And this, again, is for those in want and in need. Because there would be no increase in the land during that seventh year. So any other conclusion leads to a problem with the twenty-first year, there would be a conflict with those two laws. And so that's our understanding, is we tithe third tithe twice in a seven-year period. But rather than modern times, some national governments have instituted some pretty heavy taxation and some mandatory taxes for social welfare and care for the poor, which actually has led to a dilemma. You know, do those who are obedient to God and they pay a third tithe twice every seven years, do they have to pay it twice? Once to God and once to the government. You know, are we obligated to have to pay a special tithe in addition to taxes for welfare for the care and maintenance of the poor? Well, the Church had to make an administrative decision back in 1996. I'm going to read a statement here about third tithe, that it's important for us to understand so that we're all, in a sense, on the same page.

It says the Bible teaches that Christianity involves the care and concern of less fortunate. The Old Testament gives instructions regarding contributions, commonly called third tithes, for those in the community who are typically in need of assistance. Many nations in our modern world have various social programs, the effect and intent of which is to fulfill the purpose of the biblical third tithe.

These programs are financed by an involuntary system of taxation. In most cases, the annual rate at which the social taxes are extracted is substantially greater than the third tithe. You may be familiar in the United States, we have Social Security and Medicare, which is around 7.65% of your wages. If you were to add that up for three years, 7.65% would be even over 22%. And those are monies that are used to benefit people that are in need in this country. It says, in most cases, the annual rate of social taxes that are extracted are substantially greater than the biblical third tithe. In 1982, Mr. Herbert Armstrong was presented with these facts regarding the form of taxation that was in Britain and Scandinavia at that time, and the impact that it had on an individual's wages in those nations. Mr. Armstrong recognized that these modern states in Europe had to a large extent assumed the church's responsibility in caring for the needy. Therefore, Mr. Armstrong made an administrative decision that members in Britain and Scandinavia did not need to pay what in effect amounted to an additional third tithe to the church. As Mr. Armstrong put it, the state, to a large extent, takes care of the widow, the elderly, the unemployed, the orphan, and the destitute. We have elected this through contributions deducted by the government at its source. He also reminded the church that despite the national government's programs that do help the disadvantaged, there still will be needs within the church that national programs don't address. Therefore, from time to time, we should make offerings to the church assistance fund to help people in need. Later, because of the same principles applied, the same administrative decision was applied to other countries in Europe, and eventually for all nations within the church outside of the United States. So, it eventually came to the point where this administration policy of understanding third tithe was applied to every state or of every country except for the United States. At no time did Mr. Armstrong deny the biblical teaching of third tithe that the church's responsibility to take care of its needy.

This was expanded to the United States in 1996 by the United Church of God, Council of Elders. I'll read the following. It's resolved, the Council of Elders has resolved, that where governments provide programs, the intent and purpose of which is to provide for the needs of those at the biblical third tithe was designed to assist, and that where such programs are funded by an annual rate of taxation greater than the biblical third tithe, members are not obligated to pay what amounts to an additional third tithe to the church. The Council of Elders hereby resolves that since there will always be members of the church whose needs will not be adequately provided by national governmental programs, and since the clear example of scriptures that the church care for its members in need, that those members of the church who are able are encouraged to contribute to the church's assistance fund so that the biblical injunction to care for the needy within the church can be fulfilled.

So, brethren, that's our understanding right now when it comes to third tithes and how it works not only within the United States but all around the world. Now, some still pay a third tithe. I know that they do. Every third and sixth year out of a seven-year cycle. And we do have the responsibility to contribute to the church's assistance fund as we are able. But because of the heavy tax burden, that's the decision that's been made. Now, I guess it depends on your income because not everybody is a wage earner. You know, I do know some of the brethren that what they have, as far as the type of earnings that they have, is like rental income. They own a lot of commercial property or residential property, and their increase, they don't have to pay social security tax on rental income. So they would still have the obligation before God if that was their situation to still pay the third tithe every first and sixth year out of a seven-year time cycle. But for those wage earners, it's our understanding that the taxation rate is, in effect, greater than what a third tithe would be in the first and sixth year because of the heavy taxation of social security and the Medicare tax. Now, also the question comes up concerning whether we tithe on our gross income or our net income. And so that needs to be addressed as well. And the Council of Elders also addressed that back in September, or I believe it was May of 1996. So I'm going to read a statement on that as well. It says, as a result of questions about the administration of tithing, the Council of Elders has approved the following statement. Again, this was back in May of 1996. This statement deals with the administrative area of tithing on net income, not on the doctrinal aspects of tithing, because the United Church of God is committed to the belief that tithing is commanded by the Lord. That the tithing is commanded for Christians today. But the Church has needed to make decisions from time to time regarding the administration of tithing. There are many factors that demand that such decisions be made. Our modern world creates situations and circumstances which require that we address how to administer the doctrine of tithing. In 1982, Herbert Armstrong came to the conclusion that since brethren in the various European countries had no control over the taxation of their income and derived only minimal economic benefit from the payment of such taxes, that the taxes withheld should not be considered increased for the purpose of tithing. Mr. Armstrong subsequently applied this to other nations. Further, our system of taxation has a greater impact on wages and salaries than in previous ages. If we take into account the various forms of taxation such as income tax, sales tax, value added tax, property taxes, social security tax, Medicare tax, the burden is often oppressive. There was a long-time pastor that relayed a story to me that at a ministerial conference back in 1963, there was a member from Australia, and his tax rate was 90%. So after taxes, he only had 10% left over. So the question that was brought to the ministerial conference at that time was, what do I tithe on? Because if I were to pay tithe on my gross, I've got nothing left at all. So the church recognized that. The church recognized the confiscatory nature of such taxation. Therefore, the Council of Elders has adopted the following proposal.

While the church acknowledges the validity of God's law of tithing, it also recognizes the excessive levels of taxation and their impact on individual incomes. And the church believes that the appropriate definition of increase is net income after income tax. Of course, members are free to tithe on gross income if they so choose, and they are free to make contributions above their tithes and expectations of God's way of giving.

So I hope that explains and clarifies as far as the understanding the church has presently on third tithe, and also on when we tithe for the first tithe and also the festival tithe, also known as the second tithe, what we tithe on is net income after taxes is the understanding.

So, brethren, in conclusion here, God doesn't need our money. That's not what He asks us to give. He doesn't need it. He's trying to teach us how to be like He is. Tithing is a test of our heart, a test of our obedience, whether we're going to have faith in Him and obedience and honor Him and recognize Him as the repossessor of heaven and earth, and to give Him what's His, and to set aside that second tithe for the purpose that He says it's to be used for. It demonstrates our willingness to keep the commands and to obey Him and not to rob Him. And the Bible clearly teaches there are three tithes, and they each have a separate, unique function that helps the whole to work the way God designed it to work. Earthen tithing is still in force today, and God wants us not to rob Him to give Him what's His, and then He promises the blessing that follows, that He'll open the windows of heaven and bless us in ways that we will not even imagine. Have a good rest of the Sabbath. Again, our greetings to those of you overseas and our love to you from those of us here at Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Thank you.