Dale Partridge - Real Christianity #51： Why Tithing is Biblical but It's Not Christian

00:00:00.000 Welcome to Real Christianity. Today we are talking about generosity. And the title of the episode today is Why Tithing is Biblical, but it's not Christian.

00:00:13.560 And if you haven't noticed, we're doing this show Solo Dale today. Veronica has been at a homeschooling conference and we just couldn't make schedules work, so I thought I would do the show solo today.

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00:01:09.640 So, we're going to dive through.

00:01:11.200 Today's conversation is based off an article that I wrote under the same name,

00:01:16.620 titled, Why Tithing is Biblical But It's Not Christian.

00:01:21.200 Now, it's not just a conversation about tithing today.

00:01:23.500 we're also going to talk about generosity. What is biblical generosity? What does the Bible

00:01:29.020 call Christians to do in regards to giving? And because it's an article, you'll see me 0.87

00:01:34.800 reference back to my laptop if you're watching this on the video today. I'm going to do a lot

00:01:40.320 of reading from this. I've got lots of notes, so it won't come off so monotone, but it'll be

00:01:47.800 much of a discussion around giving, not just around the idea of tithing. So over the years,

00:01:54.020 I've heard this idea from the pulpit, right? The Lord tells us to bring our tithes to the storehouse.

00:02:00.000 You guys have heard this if you've been at church for any longer than a decade. You've heard this

00:02:04.300 idea. But what is a tithe? Well, the dictionary defines a tithe as a tenth part of something

00:02:10.240 paid as a voluntary contribution to the support of a religious establishment. What a very boring

00:02:16.180 definition, but that's what the dictionary says a tithe is. But does this idea of giving 10% of

00:02:23.320 your income actually exist in the Bible? Do we ever see New Testament Christians tithing? 0.98

00:02:31.120 The answer to both those questions is actually no, we don't. And so we're going to look at what

00:02:35.720 the scriptures say in regards to that. So where do we get this concept of tithing and why do so

00:02:41.440 many pastors and Christians, or pastors, I should say, preach that Christians should actually be

00:02:47.040 tithing. I've heard this over and over and over again at the variety of churches we pass around 0.96

00:02:52.000 the offering tray. And again, you know, offering is a little bit different than tithing,

00:02:57.620 but I've still heard it quite a few times over the years preached from the pulpit.

00:03:01.360 So I'm going to explain where it comes from, and then we're going to dive into the three areas of

00:03:06.020 giving that every Christian is called to. But let's go back to the Old Testament.

00:03:12.540 It says, in the Old Testament, Jacob, you know, whose name was changed to Israel,

00:03:19.880 and you can see that in Genesis 32, 28, he had 12 sons. These are the 12 tribes of Israel. Now,

00:03:26.620 these men became those founders of those 12 tribes of Israel, the nation of Israel. In Deuteronomy

00:03:33.940 18, 1 and 2, we see that all those tribes were given land to inherit and could attain regular

00:03:41.300 means of acquiring an income except for one of those tribes. And that tribe that couldn't do 0.94

00:03:46.860 that was the Levite tribe. And those were the children of Jacob's son, Levi, the lineage of 0.86

00:03:54.940 Levi. Now, the Levite's inheritance was God himself. And in the sense that they were the ones

00:04:02.480 chosen to oversee the worship of the entire nation of Israel, and the Levites were responsible for 0.90

00:04:09.340 the tabernacle. This is kind of the moving temple, right? And its implements as well as overseeing the 0.91

00:04:15.360 sacrifices and offerings to the people. Now, bear with me, guys, a little bit of historical theology

00:04:20.020 that we're going to talk about today, and we're going to get very practical here in a moment.

00:04:24.000 In Numbers 18.21, it says, Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel

00:04:30.500 as an inheritance in return for the work for which they perform,

00:04:34.480 the work of the tabernacle of meeting.

00:04:37.500 In verse 24, it continues with,

00:04:39.480 For the tithes of the children of Israel,

00:04:41.460 which they offer up as a heave offering to the Lord, 0.97

00:04:43.480 I have given to the Levites as an inheritance. 0.97

00:04:46.420 Therefore, I have said to them, 0.99

00:04:47.900 Among the children of Israel, they still have no inheritance. 0.96

00:04:51.000 In other words, the tithes from the other 11 tribes, 0.84

00:04:56.040 which were food and not money, 0.53

00:04:58.480 were basically the nation of Israel's taxation system. 0.92

00:05:03.920 The Levites were the government workers, 0.77

00:05:07.120 the government servants, 1.00

00:05:08.820 and the other 11 tribes were the public, 1.00

00:05:12.880 and they paid for their service

00:05:15.240 through a variety of national tithes,

00:05:17.620 very similar to a taxation system

00:05:19.780 that we have here in the United States.

00:05:22.120 Now, we might assume that the Old Testament Israel

00:05:24.300 gave a total of 10%, 0.63

00:05:25.760 because the word tithe means tenth, right?

00:05:27.760 It's actually difficult to discern how much was given in the Old Testament,

00:05:32.400 and we don't have time to debate it on the podcast right now,

00:05:36.000 but some scholars think that Israelites gave 14 tithes over seven years.

00:05:40.860 Others believe it was 12.

00:05:43.020 Regardless, when we add them all together, it's far more than 10%.

00:05:46.580 It was probably somewhere between 20% and 30%, which, hey, hey, hey,

00:05:50.360 is close to the taxation of the national government even that we have today.

00:05:54.960 Now, to challenge a few modern practices, tithing was about food, and it wasn't about money.

00:06:02.260 And the idea of bringing it to a storehouse is interesting, too.

00:06:06.760 There's not one passage of Scripture telling any Jew or Christian to give 10% of their money to a religious institution. 0.72

00:06:14.560 That's a pretty big statement, right?

00:06:17.000 Second, as I titled this article, while tithing is biblical, it's found in the Bible,

00:06:22.620 It's not a Christian practice.

00:06:25.800 And this was strictly a practice for the nation of Israel under the Old Covenant,

00:06:30.880 which has been fulfilled by Jesus Christ in the New Covenant.

00:06:34.020 And furthermore, we don't see the instruction or example of New Testament Christian tithing.

00:06:40.700 I would equate it to temples and sacrifices and priests.

00:06:46.340 All these things have been pinned to the cross and no longer have an active role in the new covenant.

00:06:53.200 So if tithing isn't Christian, what do the New Testament scriptures instruct us to do in regards to giving?

00:07:01.120 And this is a really important question.

00:07:02.640 It's one that we're going to answer today.

00:07:04.840 The answer, in short, is just be generous.

00:07:07.940 We're called to be a generous people.

00:07:10.120 And as it pertains to money, that could be 2% of your income.

00:07:13.160 That could be 10% of your income.

00:07:14.520 that could be a hundred percent of your income. And you see, this is a really big shift in

00:07:20.480 thinking when you get down into it, because many Christians believe that if they just give their

00:07:24.300 10%, uh, then the other 90% is all theirs to keep. And that's, that's, uh, you know, if I've

00:07:30.740 checked the generosity box off, um, you know, for the month and I can now, you know, check out from

00:07:37.880 the additional needs around me because I've already done my duty of giving my 10% and now

00:07:42.120 everything else here is mine, and I don't even need to think about that I'm greedy because

00:07:45.540 I'm not greedy because I give 10%, right? The New Testament narrative goes much further than

00:07:52.220 this 10% narrative. It calls us to actively seek out the poor. Matthew 19, 21 talks about that,

00:07:59.440 to seek out the needs of our brothers and sisters, 1 John 3, 17, to share with those in the church

00:08:05.820 who have lack, and to do it all with a cheerful heart, which is 2 Corinthians 9, 6-7, which we're

00:08:11.900 going to talk about a lot today. I'm going to read this passage for you real quick in 2 Corinthians.

00:08:16.880 Again, this is 2 Corinthians 9, 6, and 7. It says,

00:08:19.880 But I say this, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will

00:08:26.800 also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or out of

00:08:33.280 necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. So this passage leverages what's called the law of the

00:08:41.660 harvest. And put differently, we reap what we sow. That's what it's saying here in the opening part.

00:08:47.180 It's leveraged in a variety of places in scripture, and I'll give you a few examples.

00:08:52.500 Proverbs tells us that if we walk with the wise, what'll happen? Well, we'll be wise. If we walk

00:08:56.360 with fools, then we'll be fools. That's Proverbs 13, 20. Galatians 6a says, for he who sows to his 0.98

00:09:02.440 flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the spirit will of the spirit reap

00:09:08.200 everlasting life. Again, this is the law of the harvest. What you reap is what you sow.

00:09:12.780 Now, this law continues in a variety of manifestations, including giving throughout

00:09:17.920 the scriptures. Now, to keep the proper context of 2 Corinthians in view, it's not saying to use

00:09:25.980 giving as an investment strategy. Man, just go and law of the harvest, man. What you reap is what

00:09:31.380 you're going to sow. You're going to give, give, give, and you're going to receive, receive, receive.

00:09:34.360 It's not what it's talking about there.

00:09:36.700 It continues on in that passage later to conclude that the giver of seed, God,

00:09:41.900 will continue to give more seed for the purpose of planting more seed,

00:09:46.480 not for storing up seed in the human storehouses for material benefit.

00:09:50.700 And you can see that in verses 10 through 14 if you want to go back and reference that.

00:09:54.500 But there's no getting around the idea of money.

00:09:57.960 God talks a lot about money.

00:10:00.680 And you don't talk a lot about what you don't care about.

00:10:05.040 So I'm going to just kind of just break it down how much the Bible talks about money.

00:10:09.920 16 of the 38 parables were concerned with how to handle money and possessions.

00:10:15.500 In the Gospels, 1 out of 10 verses, 288 in all, deals directly with the subject of money.

00:10:22.660 The Bible offers 500 verses on prayer, less than 500 verses on faith, and more than 2,000 verses on money and possessions.

00:10:32.080 And it's undeniable. The management of money and generosity at its core are part of the Christian faith.

00:10:38.360 It's clear. Giving is the mark of a mature believer.

00:10:42.700 And I would actually say keeping is the mark of an immature believer.

00:10:47.660 So you've got to identify yourself. Are you a giver or are you a keeper?

00:10:51.620 Those are really good marks of if I'm mature or if I'm immature.

00:10:55.220 But if giving isn't built on tithing, how should biblical Christians view giving?

00:11:02.300 And in my understanding of the New Testament, generosity really falls into three categories.

00:11:06.440 And I want to walk you guys through those three categories in this episode.

00:11:11.700 So the first category is giving to the poor.

00:11:15.000 And I don't even think I need to list the plethora of scriptures featuring Jesus' heart for the poor.

00:11:21.920 So let's just go back to God's book of wisdom, which is the book of Proverbs.

00:11:25.820 Proverbs 19, 17 states,

00:11:27.820 Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay them for his deed.

00:11:34.040 If this scripture is true, which, again, I believe it is.

00:11:37.060 I'm a believer in the inerrancy of scripture.

00:11:39.820 Then any giving to the poor is merely a loan to God.

00:11:44.720 And God never fails to make good on his promises.

00:11:46.800 This is a really powerful concept here.

00:11:48.460 In Luke 12, 33-34, Jesus says,

00:11:52.640 Sell your possessions and give to the needy.

00:11:55.600 Provide yourselves with money bags that do not grow old,

00:11:59.140 with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail,

00:12:02.420 where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.

00:12:05.180 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

00:12:08.940 Now, this scripture, along with a variety of others,

00:12:11.740 I'll just give you a few, Matthew 5, 24, Matthew 25, 35-45, Matthew 6, 1-4.

00:12:18.460 They're all pieces of a system of generosity that lead up to this incredible statement that the Lord makes in Luke 6, 38, regarding giving.

00:12:28.900 He says, give, and it will be given to you.

00:12:32.580 Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.

00:12:38.180 For with the same measure that you use, it'll be measured back to you.

00:12:42.740 Now, in theological circles, we talked about the law of the harvest.

00:12:46.440 This law is called the law of reciprocity.

00:12:48.460 Jesus wraps up his entire heavenly economic system with this gigantic promise, you know, the law of reciprocity.

00:12:58.800 And interestingly, many Christians ignore it. We really do. It's sad.

00:13:02.320 Instead, they go about calling themselves kind of victims to unfortunate financial circumstances,

00:13:08.820 when in reality, they're only meeting the financial rebound of their own choices.

00:13:13.280 when we're stingy, I see stingy people have really not really graceful lives in terms of

00:13:23.580 just opportunities and easy breaks. And we're going to talk about the Lord actually being able

00:13:29.980 to make the grace of God abound toward you. It says that in 2 Corinthians, which we'll talk about

00:13:34.900 here in a bit. In other words, those of God's children who are not generous are generally

00:13:40.440 wanton and greedy. That's just, that's just what happens. You might have lots of money, but you're

00:13:45.480 greedy. It reveals their heart. They cannot let go of their treasure. They simply don't have enough

00:13:53.180 faith to engage in this passage. Giving requires a lot of faith. Now, this scripture, I don't think

00:14:01.060 it's allegorical. I think it's a direct promise that, man, you know, I'll read it again. Give and

00:14:07.720 it'll be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over. It'll be put

00:14:11.780 into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it'll be measured back to you. I don't

00:14:16.360 think that that is allegorical. I think it's a direct promise of our Lord and confirmation that

00:14:22.260 generosity to any of these three categories, as we're going to talk about today, will be paid

00:14:26.840 back generously in some capacity. Now, it's claiming to be repaid, but it's not claiming

00:14:34.340 to be repaid strictly in money. So that's why, again, our heart shouldn't be like, I'm going to

00:14:38.340 go give money to make more money. That's not what we're here for. But the Lord does affirm

00:14:43.800 that in some way, whether relationships, opportunity, money, or sustenance to meeting

00:14:48.880 your needs, you who give will be paid back in blessing from on high. And that's a promise that

00:14:55.540 we can rest in. So I want to ask you guys a question. Do you seek out the poor? Is that a

00:15:01.720 heart of your generosity and your life? Do you seek out the poor? Do you make it a priority to

00:15:08.260 give to those who have needs locally or around the world? And, you know, let me spare you from

00:15:18.140 the very real circumstances that many are facing around the world right now. You guys know that.

00:15:24.760 You know that the starving children, you know about the sick individuals around the world,

00:15:30.220 you know about the missionaries that are in need, that are living in poverty.

00:15:36.120 You know, the Lord says what you do for the poor, you do for him.

00:15:40.100 So, you know, sponsor a child, support a Christian charity, give to the poor in your own city.

00:15:47.020 Again, why not? You're simply loaning money to the Lord.

00:15:51.260 And so that's my statement is, first, is give to the poor.

00:15:55.160 Man, if you guys aren't giving to the poor in some capacity,

00:15:57.500 i just want to challenge you guys to do that the second area that christians are called to give

00:16:04.180 is the needs of the saints to give to the needs of the saints

00:16:08.180 romans 12 10 through 13 says be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love

00:16:15.480 in honor giving preference to one another not lagging in diligence fervent in spirit serving

00:16:21.700 the Lord, rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continually steadfasting, or continuing steadfastly

00:16:28.440 in prayer, distributing to the needs of the saints given to hospitality. Now this is one of just many

00:16:35.820 passages that command Christians to meet the needs of the saints. This is also the principle that's

00:16:42.480 clearly upheld in the New Testament with the overwhelming number of one another's. These are

00:16:48.140 called the mutual pastoral mandates, the one another's in scripture. There's over a hundred

00:16:53.320 of them in the New Testament. And we're called to carry those one another's out with our brothers

00:16:58.960 and sisters in Christ. Sadly, most churches have nurtured a culture that inhibits this closeness

00:17:09.340 and connection required to hear about needs and facilitate an opportunity for those needs to be

00:17:16.660 met. That's what happens when you have a big crowd. Instead, the churches give much of their

00:17:22.680 gathered funds to outreach that has little to do with their own community, all while sitting in a

00:17:28.920 large crowd of their own local church members living on credit cards and digging themselves

00:17:33.160 into deeper holes of debt. I've seen this over and over again is that we're, you know, we're giving

00:17:37.840 and giving and giving while we're having bad stewardship decisions and at the same time going

00:17:43.660 deeper in debt and living on credit cards right here in our own churches. It's a different type

00:17:48.620 of poverty. It's just pushed back poverty or extended poverty. Now, I'm not ignoring the need

00:17:58.740 for biblical financial stewardship and the education for that. I'm a big fan of, you know,

00:18:04.540 Dave Ramsey's financial principles. I think it's great. I think that's something that we should all

00:18:08.360 embrace. However, I am pointing out that when churches are small, when they're close, and

00:18:15.400 relationally connected, the needs of the local saints, like people in your own community, begin

00:18:21.460 to surface. And that's what happens with closeness. And again, that's also what doesn't happen in

00:18:26.460 crowds. And that's why I'm such a big advocate on small biblical church. And I say this because

00:18:33.440 the command discussed above in Romans

00:18:35.640 is the universal

00:18:37.680 doctrine for the church,

00:18:39.680 but it's to be played out locally.

00:18:41.560 And I'm going to read that verse again.

00:18:43.040 Be kindly affectionate to one another, with

00:18:45.340 brotherly love and honor, giving preference

00:18:47.340 to one another, not lagging in diligence,

00:18:49.160 fervent in spirit, serving the Lord, rejoicing in hope,

00:18:51.680 patient in tribulation, continuing

00:18:53.160 steadfastly in prayer, distributing

00:18:55.440 to the needs of the saints, giving to hospitality.

00:19:00.760 Now, to say

00:19:01.520 that international giving is wrong, that's not what I'm saying.

00:19:03.440 but it should not replace the call to meet the needs of the local saints in your own life.

00:19:13.220 The question you have to consider asking yourself is, am I meeting the needs of those around me?

00:19:18.840 And I would say even a better question is, am I close enough with the people at my church

00:19:23.700 that they would even express their need to me if they had them?

00:19:29.460 And sadly, I think a lot of people answer no to that.

00:19:32.520 they want to be, but when you're in a system that actually nurtures distance or privacy or

00:19:39.600 independence or consumerism and not a connected spirit, that's usually the result. Verse 11 says

00:19:48.360 not lacking in diligence in fulfilling this passage. So that is to say, this is something

00:19:55.460 we should pursue in our communities. And like Christ, we're called to meet people's needs.

00:20:00.340 that's what we're called to do as the church generosity is one of the i would say it's probably

00:20:06.840 one of humanity's greatest forms of love to receive what you didn't earn is some way a

00:20:13.680 reflection of the gospel it's just another way or another form of continuing the grace that the lord

00:20:20.260 has bestowed on each one of us and so are you meeting the needs of the saints and so these i

00:20:28.280 think come up sporadically, especially if you're close. I would even put money aside so that you

00:20:35.420 can meet those needs when they come up. I have a friend who has a giving account, and he just

00:20:41.160 puts money in there. And when a need comes up, he expresses his generosity to that need. He also

00:20:49.320 gives to the poor at all times, and he gives to this third category at all times, which we're

00:20:54.440 going to talk about. So the first category is give to the poor. The second category is giving to the

00:21:00.260 needs of the saints. The third category is to give to the shepherds in your life. And I'm going to

00:21:08.380 open up with a passage from 1 Corinthians in which Paul discusses the rights he has as a spiritual

00:21:16.320 shepherd in the lives of the Corinthians to collect payment for his spiritual labor. And

00:21:23.320 for those that are biblical scholars or seminarians who know this passage, Paul declines actually his

00:21:32.200 liberty to exercise this right because he doesn't want to give the skeptical Corinthian church any

00:21:38.840 reason to believe that his motives for sharing the gospel are connected to some sort of financial

00:21:43.400 return. So the example that I'm going to give you, Paul says he actually denies his right,

00:21:47.980 but he still says his right. And Paul absolutely does exercise that right of receiving spirit or

00:21:57.840 a financial gift. In other churches, you know, it talks about it with the Philippians in

00:22:04.500 great detail. And just because Paul has chosen to waive his right here with the Corinthians

00:22:13.780 is not to say that all pastors are to waive their rights to be paid for their spiritual labor.

00:22:20.360 So I want to break down this verse in 1 Corinthians chapter 9. It's verses 5 through 12.

00:22:26.140 It says, do we have no right to take along a believing wife, as do also the other apostles,

00:22:31.300 the brothers of the Lord and Cephas?

00:22:34.280 Or is it only Barnabas and I

00:22:35.840 who have no right to refrain from working?

00:22:39.160 Whoever goes at war at his own expense,

00:22:41.780 who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit,

00:22:44.620 or who tends to a flock

00:22:46.080 and does not drink of the milk of the flock?

00:22:48.760 Do I say these things as mere man,

00:22:50.740 or does the law say the same also?

00:22:53.640 For it is written in the law of Moses,

00:22:55.640 you shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain.

00:22:58.380 Is it oxen God is concerned about?

00:23:01.300 Or does he say it all together for our sakes?

00:23:05.240 For our sakes, no doubt, that it is written that he who plows should plow in hope,

00:23:10.820 and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of this hope.

00:23:14.540 If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things?

00:23:20.820 If others are partakers of this right over you, are we not even more?

00:23:25.380 So let's first discuss what he means about muzzling the ox, and then we'll go back.

00:23:31.240 So what is a muzzle?

00:23:33.140 So a muzzle is a device that prevents an animal from eating while it's working.

00:23:42.900 And Paul makes the argument that clearly says,

00:23:46.040 is it oxen that God is concerned about, or is it the benefit of the plowman?

00:23:51.860 The lesson that Paul is teaching to the Corinthians is,

00:23:55.120 don't allow the ox who is working in the spiritual fields of your life to stop working, to stop eating, right?

00:24:06.140 And it's not about the ox, is what Paul's saying. It's about you.

00:24:11.680 He's saying don't muzzle your ox.

00:24:15.820 Now, who's your ox? Well, he's saying your spiritual shepherd, your spiritual leader is your ox.

00:24:20.540 don't muzzle or don't stop the shepherd in your life from eating.

00:24:28.740 Why?

00:24:30.080 Because if you stop your ox from eating, he's going to quit working.

00:24:34.600 And if he quits working, then you will no longer be fed spiritually.

00:24:39.900 So that's what he's saying in this passage.

00:24:42.880 And I, man, I can't tell you enough.

00:24:45.440 Many ministers have been forced to limit or even end their spiritual labors and ministries because of this.

00:24:55.140 Their study time, their private meetings, their discipleship meetings, their phone calls, their emails, and their answering of spiritual questions.

00:25:02.020 Man, guys, I get so many spiritual questions through Instagram a day.

00:25:07.500 It's crazy.

00:25:08.660 And I try to answer a lot of them.

00:25:09.900 And they have to stop solely because they were unable to sustain the time required.

00:25:17.140 In other words, they need to go somewhere else and do something else,

00:25:21.640 which provided an income for their families and naturally prohibited their ministries.

00:25:27.820 And even Paul had to make tents for a season.

00:25:29.900 We talk about that in the scriptures, that even he had to go get some work because he wasn't provided for.

00:25:35.440 um and man this is so true even in in um our own life as ministers here uh there's days where you

00:25:45.620 know if donations aren't coming in i have to go and do consulting calls and you guys know that i

00:25:52.400 was a business person and so i'll go do consulting calls and i'll try to make some money um and you

00:25:59.660 know we're in a great financial position because we were uh we were blessed with wealth prior to

00:26:04.480 going into ministry. We sold those companies, and now we live on a modest income, far less than we

00:26:14.420 used to, but we don't have a mortgage. We paid off our mortgage, and so a modest income can do us

00:26:19.080 well, but there's times where donations to the ministry are low, and I'd like to labor continually

00:26:27.260 in the field. But I can't. I have to go and make some money elsewhere. And I do that all the time.

00:26:36.260 And I think a lot of bivocational ministers do that. But not because it's just, but because

00:26:44.680 it's reality. And so, Paul continues to defend that shepherds have a right to receive payment

00:26:52.300 from those that they minister to.

00:26:55.820 In verse 11, he says,

00:26:57.380 I should say 11 and 12,

00:26:59.560 if we have sown spiritual things for you,

00:27:02.480 is it a great thing that we reap your material things?

00:27:05.680 If others are partakers of this right over you,

00:27:08.040 are we not even more?

00:27:10.580 So I have a couple of questions for you.

00:27:13.160 How much would you pay a doctor

00:27:15.820 to heal a throat infection?

00:27:19.160 Maybe 100, 125 bucks,

00:27:21.360 plus whatever the expense of the medicine costs, maybe more.

00:27:26.060 Now, why do we hesitate to pay the pastor who heals the infections in your soul?

00:27:31.440 Is the healing of your pornography addiction not more valuable than the hearing of your throat infection?

00:27:36.700 Is the saving of your marriage not more valuable than the changing of the oil in your car?

00:27:43.240 Is the wisdom and counsel on how to navigate huge life decisions

00:27:48.140 Not more valuable than the guy who installs your dishwasher at your house.

00:27:52.800 See, all these individuals, these contractors, these people,

00:27:57.080 exercise their right to collect money for the material that they provide,

00:28:01.860 for the services they provide.

00:28:04.420 Do shepherds not have the right to collect an income for the spiritual labor that they provide?

00:28:10.280 That's what Paul is saying here.

00:28:11.820 um paul and jesus affirm this idea in other books in the new testament um luke 10 7 and first

00:28:22.940 timothy 5 18 when they say the laborer is worthy of his wages galatians 6 6 brings um some more

00:28:31.160 support it says let him who was taught the word share in all good things with him who teaches

00:28:37.520 and one of my favorite 18th century theologians, Adam Clark,

00:28:43.980 had a commentary on that Galatians 6.6 passage.

00:28:46.200 I'm going to read it to you.

00:28:48.360 He says, contribute.

00:28:50.620 This is what his commentary is on that verse.

00:28:53.660 He says, contribute to the support of the man

00:28:56.240 who has dedicated himself to the work of the ministry

00:29:00.300 and who gives up his time and his life to preach the gospel.

00:29:05.020 It appears that some of the believers in Galatia

00:29:07.300 were receiving the Christian ministry

00:29:09.420 without contributing to its support. 0.99

00:29:12.720 This is both ungrateful and base.

00:29:15.780 We do not expect that a common schoolmaster

00:29:18.440 will give up his time

00:29:19.780 to teach our children the alphabet each week

00:29:22.620 without being paid for it.

00:29:24.740 And can we suppose that it is just for any person

00:29:27.540 to sit under the preaching of God's word

00:29:30.380 on a regular occurrence

00:29:31.620 in order to grow wise unto salvation by it

00:29:34.500 and not contribute to the support

00:29:36.800 of the spiritual teacher.

00:29:39.360 It is unjust.

00:29:41.540 Pretty heavy passage right there.

00:29:43.680 Earlier in the passage to the Corinthians,

00:29:45.320 Paul makes the remarks that

00:29:47.640 he who plows should partake of the harvest

00:29:51.480 and he who threshes should enjoy the fruits of his labor.

00:29:56.860 So if you're sitting under the regular teaching

00:30:01.260 of Christian doctrine, 1.00

00:30:04.000 please determine a way to allow the plowman or woman

00:30:08.140 to enjoy the fruits of that harvest.

00:30:12.180 That might be gratitude.

00:30:13.800 That might be honor.

00:30:14.700 But it's surely also financial if that's possible

00:30:18.620 and you're willing to do so.

00:30:23.800 Ultimately, the biblical understanding of giving

00:30:27.180 must begin with the Christian view of money.

00:30:33.100 In other words, your money isn't your money, and that's a really hard concept to grasp in the flesh.

00:30:38.440 It's God's money. You're simply a steward of that money.

00:30:41.800 The question you must answer is, can God trust you with his money?

00:30:47.660 Next, I want to kind of directly confront this idea of the sum of money or the size of a donation.

00:30:57.060 it's not about the size it's it's about the heart that you have the lord can distinguish

00:31:05.060 between a generous spirit and a stingy spirit and let's look again at that second corinthians

00:31:11.980 passage at the very end it says but i say this he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly

00:31:20.480 and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully so let each one give as he purposes

00:31:25.740 in his heart, not grudgingly or out of necessity, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able

00:31:33.340 to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things,

00:31:38.860 may have an abundance for every good work. We're not to give out a compulsion. That's one lesson

00:31:45.500 that we're having there. We're not to give out of a stingy spirit. God loves a cheerful giver.

00:31:52.100 He wraps it up with a promise that God has the ability to make all grace abound toward you.

00:32:00.760 And that's a really important concept.

00:32:03.160 And what he's saying is that don't worry about supporting the financial need of God's kingdom.

00:32:09.160 The king himself can assure that your needs are always met.

00:32:14.900 In closing, it's not about tithing.

00:32:19.520 It's about giving.

00:32:20.740 It's about a heart of generosity.

00:32:23.180 Giving, however, is difficult for the flesh.

00:32:25.780 Money, like God, has the ability to give you what you want.

00:32:29.980 And that is why it has become an idol for so many people in their lives.

00:32:34.340 Did you hear that? I want to say that again.

00:32:36.760 That money has the ability to give you what you want.

00:32:40.640 And it's like God in that capacity.

00:32:42.720 And that is why it has become an idol in so many people's lives.

00:32:46.640 Tithing is also easy because it formulates giving.

00:32:50.260 It formulates the need to discern and to use the heart.

00:32:55.760 There is no discernment required, really, in tithing.

00:32:59.980 Simply give your 10% and check off that box.

00:33:03.780 It's not that easy when you embrace biblical generosity,

00:33:06.900 and you have to feel the needs and walk by the Spirit

00:33:11.900 and give where it's uncomfortable.

00:33:15.980 Lastly, if the message of generosity hurts,

00:33:20.260 it's likely because greed is occupying a place in your heart

00:33:24.320 that God alone should hold.

00:33:27.760 And I've learned this in my own experience with giving.

00:33:30.560 I will say that Veronica and I give.

00:33:32.680 We give to all three of those categories.

00:33:37.360 And it's been a journey.

00:33:39.200 But I can speak on authority without a plank in my eye

00:33:41.880 on the idea of generosity because we give.

00:33:44.860 And I want you to know that.

00:33:46.740 I'm not saying how much we give,

00:33:48.460 but I'm just saying is that we give.

00:33:49.400 It's not about the sum. It's about a heart. And on the other hand, if you're already walking out

00:33:58.500 generosity and you've yielded your money to be his money and you're giving to the poor and you're

00:34:03.720 giving to the needs of the saints and you're giving to those shepherds, those people that

00:34:07.400 you sit under, whether in person, whether by video, whether by podcast, I give to several

00:34:16.100 podcasts that I listen to.

00:34:20.340 This conversation about giving shouldn't be convicting.

00:34:22.900 It should just give you pure joy.

00:34:24.440 And that's what it does for those that are walking out generosity.

00:34:28.820 So examine yourself.

00:34:30.440 Seek the Lord and show your love for your brothers and sisters in Christ

00:34:36.180 and the kingdom that God is building through generosity.

00:34:41.340 I want to be clear that the Lord has met our needs.

00:34:45.240 And so this isn't a disguised plea to ask for money.

00:34:50.220 This is an authentic teaching on generosity.

00:34:52.940 If you feel so compelled by the Spirit to give and support our ministry,

00:34:57.120 you can do that.

00:34:59.220 And many people do.

00:35:03.720 But this is about generosity.

00:35:06.300 The Lord has taken care of Veronica and I.

00:35:09.680 And he will continue to do so.

00:35:13.560 But if you do feel compelled to give, we will be a wise steward of those donations so that we can fulfill the work that the Lord has for us.

00:35:26.500 Generosity is a critical part of Christian maturity.

00:35:30.820 As I said earlier, it is the mark of a mature Christian, and keeping is the mark of an immature Christian.

00:35:36.300 so find out ways that you can give to the poor

00:35:39.540 give to the needs of the saints

00:35:41.160 and give to those shepherds that are in your life

00:35:44.600 that will close up this episode

00:35:47.880 on generosity

00:35:49.300 hopefully that was encouraging

00:35:51.120 and answering a lot of your questions

00:35:52.460 around giving and tithing

00:35:53.500 what the biblical narrative is

00:35:55.480 this is also an article that you can find

00:35:57.720 and really get the transcript of this

00:36:00.000 as well as all the scripture references

00:36:01.680 you can also do that at relearnchurch.org

00:36:04.520 forward slash listen

00:36:06.040 you can also go to the website and search giving and this article will come up as well

00:36:09.980 on that note one more reminder to leave a review if this podcast has been helpful and edifying for

00:36:15.860 your journey with the Lord we would appreciate that and you can also follow us always at

00:36:21.560 Instagram and we'd love to have you there as well thanks for joining us on this episode

00:36:28.260 of Real Christianity we will see you guys next week take care

Dale Partridge - June 26, 2019

Real Christianity #51： Why Tithing is Biblical but It's Not Christian

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