Will a human defraud Elohim? For you are defrauding Me. Yet you say, in what way do we defraud you? In the tithe and the heave offering! With a curse you curse Me, and Me you are defrauding - the nation, all of it! Bring the entire tithe to the treasure house, and viands shall come to be in My house. And test me, indeed in this, says Yahweh of the hosts, if I will not open for you the crevices in the heavens and I empty for you a blessing until there is insufficient storage.
Malachi 3: 8 - 10, Concordant Old Testament
Who doesn't want to be blessed by God? In fact, how about being blessed with the riches of heaven poured out upon you? Sounds good, right? But wait, there's a catch. How much did you tithe this week? Because if you did not tithe then perhaps your blessing might be delayed until such time that you are right with God financially. You could even say that you are robbing God. What? Who in his right mind would ever rob God? Yet the book of Malachi and countless Christian pastors have told us that when we withhold our tithes that we are indeed robbing God {Malachi3:8-10}. I've even heard a pastor proclaim that these words we find in Malachi are a covenant with God that should never be broken. Feel guilty yet? I've been in too many congregations where these words from the Lords prophet and servant have been misunderstood and confused. Yet far too many pastors continue to jump on the robbing God bandwagon without at least providing some context of what Malachi was speaking of. It sounds much better to say that we are robbing God when we don't tithe. Why? Because it keeps the collection plates full that's why. These days, a church with empty offering plates does not stay a viable church for too long. And so todays church leaders continue to misconstrue the meaning of the words of Malachi. I've been in many a congregation. I've heard the accusations of guilt spoken by the pulpit pounders each Sunday. You MUST give ten percent of your income to the Lord! They institute tithing challenges, promising to reimburse you in full if God does not indeed bless you for tithing to the church. Then again, what well meaning Christian is going to approach a pastor and ask for a refund? Think of the stigma attached to that. And so we go along, not wanting to rob God.
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are taking the tithes from the mint and the dill and the cumin, and leave the weightier matters of the law, judging and mercy and faith. Now these it was binding for you to do, and not leave those. Blind guides! Straining out a gnat, yet swallowing a camel! "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are cleaning the outside of the cup and the plate, yet inside they are brimming with rapacity and incontinence."
Matthew 23: 23 - 25, Concordant New Testament
So, what was it that the Lord was speaking to when He spoke through the His servant Malachi? First off, we're not talking about a collection plate offering here. The purpose of this tithe was to provide for those who ministered in the temple. The storehouse was the place where the tithes were brought that there might be food in Gods house for His servants in the temple. For those who served in the temple were not allowed to work outside of it. The ministry in the temple was their vocation. This tithe was never meant to financially support the temple itself. Can you see how the truth of the tithe has been misconstrued by todays church leaders? Today we commonly reference a scripture spoken to provide for the Lords servants to place a unnecessary burden of guilt upon the church. How do you suppose God views those who continue to speak these words to the Lords children? Is it Gods intent to demand a percentage of what we earn? Let's be perfectly clear, everything we will ever have is a direct blessing from the Lord. He alone knows our needs and our desires before we speak them. God is also not in the business of punishing us for not tithing. His love for us is beyond our comprehension. I recently had a revelation in my spirit of something radical. How is it that I do not see that I am living a life of the Fathers blessing each day? I live in the Lords blessing, yet I haven't tithed in over 15 years. How does that happen? Am I still robbing God? Perhaps if you were a pastor you might consider someone like me public enemy number one.
"Yet take heed not to be doing your righteousness in front of men, in order to be gazed at by them, otherwise surely you have no wages with your Father who is in the heavens."
Matthew 6: 1, Concordant New Testament
~Scott~
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