Are You a Tither???

I remember in my former church a common question asked by the pastor, his family, and his staff was, "Are you a tither?" and " Are they tithers?"

If someone asked for prayer for something, someone to agree with them, healing, a situation, or any need they may have the pastor or his family members first response was "are they tithers???" They also claimed what they wanted from God and demanded it because they were "tithers"

At times when invitations were received by staff or the pastor's family members they wanted to know if the one the invitation was from was a tither before they made a decision to go or send a gift.

Many times when people wanted an appointment for counseling, I was instructed to pull up their tithing record so a decision could be made if they could see the pastor or anyone for that matter.

The staff was REQUIRED to tithe in order to be employed by the church. If the pastor or one of his family members became suspicious that a staff member had fallen behind in their tithing, I was instructed to pull up their tithing record and the staff member who had fallen behind was called in for a correction conference.

In reading the new testament and the eye witness accounts of those who came in contact with Jesus I am amazed that he never once asked anyone if they were a tither!!! He only asked them if they believed! Multitudes came to Him.

Some asked Him to bless them.... tithing was not required for Him to give His blessing.
Some asked Him to heal them.... tithing was not required for Him to heal them.
Some asked Him to COME with them and heal or minister to their family members... He ALWAYS went willingly and tithing was not required for Him to go with them.

My former church wanted the congregation to believe that tithing was a requirement in order for you to receive anything from God. Maybe this was because of the luxurious lifestyle they were living as a result of their enormous salaries and the personal things that were paid by the church for them.

Sadly they neglected to put the emphasis on the BLOOD OF JESUS that purchased everything we will ever need from God. Tithing is not required for us to receive everything that God has for us but the blood is what was required.

We should give to God and His work out of a heart of love, not because it is extorted with fear and promises of riches and material things. A person who gives out of a willing heart and giving nature gives way beyond the tithe anyway.

You can't buy God with your tithes. The bible doesn't say that we overcome anything from tithing. It does say ... that we overcome by the "blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony".

That is the blood and believing...... not tithing.