Robbing God

"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse--the whole nation of you--because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of Heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it." ~ Malachi 3: 8-10

I ponder that verse a lot. This has been a tough year financially for the husband and me, but we've fared well in spite of it. I don't mean that there's been any extra cash, but we've not been late on any bills, and we still have a roof over our heads and food in the pantry. Somehow, we still manage to give as we've planned. God wants our contributions to be free-will, so I wonder what He thinks when one decides that he or she absolutely will not give--not that they have nothing to give. God has been so good to me, so I usually feel sad that I don't have more to give.

So, are we to give a literal tithe (tenth) of our earnings? The New Testament law doesn't tell us that, but it can be asssumed as a starting point for our giving.

In Genesis 14: 1-24, Abram gave a tenth of everything to Melchizedek, priest of God Most High, because he was grateful to God for his victory in being able to rescue his nephew, Lot, from King Kedorloamer and his allies.

Mosaical law commanded a tithe as an act of gratitude and allegiance to God for His deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage (Lev. 27: 30-33; Deut. 14: 22).

How do we conduct ourselves in giving under New Testament law today? God doesn't need our money. He owns everything already. It's a test of our own faith. In faith, the poor widow in Luke 21: 2 gave literally the last money she possessed of her own free will. Likewise, in giving of our means of our own free will we're telling God that we trust Him to provide for our needs (2 Cor. 9: 8-11) (and no, that doesn't mean we need a Hummer or a Lexus). We're commanded to lay aside for the offering weekly in 1 Corinthians 16: 2.

The money we give to the Lord has practical uses in the church's business: building upkeep and utilities, preachers' and support staff's salaries, mission work, outreach programs, benevolent support to church members and within the community, educational supplies for classroom activities, etc. These are all worthy uses of the money we give back to God. We are more effective in collectively pooling our monetary resources in these areas than we could ever be individually, but we're all obligated to support the Lord's work.

Back to Malachi: God was scolding the people for their negligence in not bringing Him the firstfruits, but their leftovers (Prov. 3: 5, 9; Mal. 1: 8). He let them know in no uncertain terms that their offerings were deficient. He was actually criticizing their attitude of giving. We are to give on purpose and be happy about it (2 Cor. 9: 6-7). I realize that sometimes people become anxious about giving of their means for fear of lack. I've been there myself when my faith was weak. God knows we are weak and harbor these anxieties. When the check's not come in at our house, we've given double the next week. I believe God's probably more agitated by one's lack of seriousness in serving Him.

I think God understands when we're in dire straits financially. I think he would undertand when there's absolutely not two thin dimes to rub together for you to give them both. However, I think He does expect you to give when you can, and I have personally found that we can still give, even when it seems impossible.

The most important thing you can give God is yourself (Mar. 8: 34-37 and Rom. 12: 1). Once upon a time, a wealthy church purposed to build a state-of-the-art facility. Special collections were taken up for it over and above the weekly donations. A contractor who worshiped there deeply discounted his normal fee for the project. Some companies donated fixtures and building supplies. One man, a less fortunate member of the congregation, stood nearby feeling sad that he couldn't make such a grand gesture. Before long, he climbed atop a pallet of bricks, stretched out his arms, and said, "I have no money to give, but I give all of me."

Only we can truly know if our hearts whether or not we're robbing God, whether it's of our finances or our time and talents. Examine your heart today and make any needed changes for the upcoming new year. According to Malachi, your payback will be in God's blessings.

Love Ya,
God Bless!