P1020997 – We Love God!

It seems fair to ask, “God, do You really expect less of me – who has your Holy Spirit within and lives in the wealthiest society in human history – than You demanded of the poorest Israelite?”… The tithe is God's historical method to get us on the path of giving. In that sense, it can serve as a gateway to the joy of grace giving. It is unhealthy to view tithing as a place to stop, but it can be a good place to start… Tithing isn't the ceiling of giving; it's the floor. It's not the finish line of giving; it's just the starting blocks… True, some would be sacrificing more by giving 5% of their income than others would be by tithing or even giving 50 or 90%. Certainly the affluent should never “check off the box,” as if giving 10% automatically fulfills their obligation. The 90% belongs to God, too. He doesn't look at just what we give. He also looks at what we keep… When people tell me they can't afford to tithe, I ask them, “If your income was reduced by 10% would you die?” They say, “No.” And I say, “Then you've admitted that you can afford to tithe. It's just that you don't want to”… I have no problem with people who say “we're not under the tithe,” just as long as they're not using that as justification for giving less. But in my mind the current giving statistics among Christians clearly indicate most of us need a jump-start. If you find a gateway to giving that's better than the tithe, wonderful. But if not, why not start where God started His First Covenant children?

Randy Alcorn