Is Tithing Commanded in the New Testament?
Tithing was the way that the Bible made provision for Israel's priests and the poor. Many Protestant pastors preach that the Bible commands Christians to tithe. They usually insist that the tithe be given to the local church attended by the donor. Other offerings in support of missionaries or para-church ministries should be given in addition to the tithe. However, the New Testament is relatively silent about this issue. What little it does have to say about tithing cannot be construed to be a command.
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History
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The Old Testament concept of tithing was similar to a tax. The simplest definition is that the people were commanded to set aside one tenth of everything that they harvested, earned or produced. This was given to the priests and a second tithe was collected every three years to support the poor. When the prophet Malachi accused the priests of robbing God, they did not understand what he was trying to say. He clarified by saying that they had robbed God by withholding the tithes. See Malachi 3:8-10.
Significance
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Malachi went on to challenge the priests to test God in the matter of tithing. He promised that if they tithed, God would so bless them that their storehouses would be too small to contain what they harvested. Four hundred years later, the most legalistic sect of Jewish priests, the Pharisees, had embraced the message. They were famous for tithing mint, cumin and other minutiae. However, instead of praising them for this obedience, Jesus harshly condemned them. He accused them of neglecting the more important spiritual deeds like justice, mercy, faithfulness and loving God. He ridiculed that they tithed with the image of straining a gnat out of their soup but neglecting to take out the camel that they swallowed. See Luke 11:42 and Matthew 23:23.
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Function
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Jesus called these Pharisees hypocrites because of the disconnect between their faithfulness to tithe and their neglect of more fundamental spiritual disciplines. He even told a story that featured a Pharisee at prayer in the temple. The Pharisee's prayer was a long narcissistic recitation of his piety. Not content with boasting about his own record, he bragged to God that he was not like the tax collector who stood praying beside him. The obvious point of the story was that the tax collector appealed to God in humility for mercy. The humble prayer was accepted, according to Jesus. See Luke 18:9-15.
Considerations
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Only one other passage about tithing is in the New Testament, Hebrews 7:5,6,8 and 9. The conclusion that this passage leads to is not easy to understand. It is a philosophical argument about whether Jesus can be considered a priest since he did not come from the tribe of Levi. Abraham, Levi's great-grandfather, paid a tithe when he gave one tenth of the spoils from a battle to a spiritual priest, Melchizedek. The passage explains that Levi also paid the tithe since he descended from Abraham. Then it declares that Jesus' priesthood is "in the order of Melchizedek" according to Hebrews 7:17ff.
Potential
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In effect, the New Testament passages about tithing do not issue any specific command. Jesus did tell the Pharisees that they should still tithe, without neglecting the more essential spiritual acts of justice, mercy and loving God. However, none of the apostles imposed the tithe on the Christians in the first churches. Instead, they promoted cheerful freewill offerings. In fact, the first churches habitually shared what they owned so that there was no lack among their members. See Acts 4:32-35. While there is no New Testament command about tithing, Christians do not disregard the promises in the Old Testament. Many Christians who have made a habit of tithing associate this discipline with the level of financial blessing that they enjoy.
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Comments
View all 6 Comments-
work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, after all you will be the one blessed or cursed.
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New generational pastors don´t even care about the well being of members and they are into setting up schools, but the commoners in the church cannot afford the fees. Those without money in the church are less important, compare to the rich members, this is fraustrating.
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New generational pastors don´t even care about the well being of members and they are into setting up schools, but the commoners in the church cannot afford to the fees. Those without money in the church are less important, compare to the rich members, this is fraustrating.
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So in a way according to Mosaic Law, nobody should receive tithes since we are not Levites.
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akendall
Jan 23, 2009
Jesus never received tithes because He was of the tribe of Judah (Hebrews 7:14) and tithes were for the support of the Levites. If Jesus received tithes He would have been tried and stoned by the Pharisees. The Disciples were fishermen and not priests so could not receive tithes or they would have been tried and stoned to death.
