February 2, 2012
Today’s Text: Read Genesis 28:22, Malachi 3:10, 1 Corinthians 16:1-2
Today’s Key Thought: When we obey God with our giving by tithing, we express our willingness to trust God to meet our needs.
God created us, redeemed us, owns us, and provides for us. Do you believe that? I hope you have seen this to be true from God’s Word this week as well as in your own life. Yesterday we said that a right response to God is a response of serving Him with our whole lives. Today we are going to be specific about how we respond to God in obedience through our giving, specifically through tithing.
The word tithe means tenth. It was practiced by God’s people before God gave the Judaic law (Genesis 28:22), was established during the law (Malachi 3:10), and proportional giving was practiced in the early church (1 Corithians 16:1-2- “as” or “according to” or “proportionally to”).
Dr. James Sewell in his paper “A Biblical Basis for Storehouse Tithing” says this about 1 Corinthians 16: “Interesting enough Paul’s request for an offering was sent to the churches (I Corinthians 16:1), not individuals. A New Testament principle on giving may be found here stating that Christians should give through their local church. …The Bible never teaches the individual is to send his/her tithes and offerings to the storehouse. Rather he/she is to bring them. This indicates tithes and offerings are to be given to a local storehouse and in the New Testament this is the local church.”
Tithing is biblical giving 101. It’s basic to Christian faith and practice. I believe that God commanded this kind of habitual, spiritual, and financial giving because He knows that “where our treasure is, there will our heart be also.” I also believe that it is an issue of trust in God. Do we trust in the created (our money/stuff) or in God? Obeying God through our proportional, regular giving tells God that we trust Him enough to do what He says.
Application:
Are you practically trusting God in your life by being obedient to Him in your giving the tithe? Even if you are, are you doing it purely out of habit or out of worship?
Study the Scriptures with Ben Jennings 
I don’t always tithe. To be honest, I don’t do it half as much as I should. I don’t have a job so it’s not like I’m getting money all the time, but I know it’s what God calls me to do when I have money, to give ten percent to him first! It’s not just something God wants us to do because He wants or needs money, I honestly believe He wants us to tithe for our own good. When we give money to God, it’s showing that we trust God enough to give him money (which we sometimes for food, pay bills, things like that) and trust Him to take care of everything else! I know us teens don’t have to worry about paying bills or needing money for food, but we will one day. And if we learn to tithe now, it’ll be so much easier to do it when we get older! 🙂
Sometimes I just don’t want to give my money to God and I have started to give but sometimes I want to buy something use my money for something else besides giving it to God and I’m not saying its wronge for me to buy stuff but God wants 10% of are money and that’s very fare but sometimes I feel like I don’t need to give that’s the adults thing teens don’t have to give there money but God even wants my money and when I do give my money it’s nice to know it went to a good cost.
i don’t always tithe i guess i get too carried away wanting to buy things, and i fear that if i give some too offering i wont be able to get that new i pod or video game or whatever it is. reading this message i realize that i need too trust God and not worry about the other things.
Bryce you rock!!! I am so exited to see you on here!!! thats awesome!!!
This can be tough, because i dont always give as much or as often as I should. Its kinda funny because God is the one who gave it to me in the first place. What I should be focused on is not I made the money so it should be mine, but how can God use this.
I’m awful at tithing, to be honest because I don’t have much to tithe, but I know that reason shouldn’t stop me. This is something that I really need to add to my relationship with God. I give back to Him in other ways all the time, but this is such an important thing I need to start getting better at.
I would have to say we do tithe. I love giving to the church for God. One area I could be better would be with gifts of money. I sometimes forget to tithe that.
this is Laura talking. I am accidentally on Mikayla’s page
This actually Mikayla. I forget to tithe all the time! It’s something I need to work on doing more. I don’t have any cash most of the time, but I have decided to give when I have it.