Yes, Father gave me a simple key to financial freedom by changing the way we handle our tithe. It also changed our scrambling to pay for unexpected expenses and ending up in further debt. No, we didn’t win the Lotto or gain an unexpected inheritance. At the time, we were suffering financially and desperate.
Because we’d been financially faithful according to the teachings of most churches, we were sure the windows of heaven would open up.
But it didn’t happen. Year after year it didn’t work. Now in despair, it was time to let Father out of the box and listen only to Him. He is a good Father and we simply don’t believe this is an example of His good plan.
Right off the bat, He stressed the fact that we are The Temple of the Living God. So the first thing we had to do was accept who Father says we are and then agree with Him. We are The Temple and there is no other temple in existence.
Yes, it was difficult not to think of our church as a temple. And we worried that we were on the edge of unforgivable heresy. But it’s still a fact that the church is not the temple. No matter how popular that perception.
Next, He pointed out that the 10 percent tithe is for the temple and had always been so in the Old Testament. This made me wonder what Jews were doing with their tithe these days.
So, I asked a Jewish friend how they handle this scenario today and he said that Jews pay no tithe simply because there is no temple. Paying the tithe to the synagogue would be sacrilegious to God, who made that law.
He also explained that his local synagogue sold pews to the congregation. Each family bought the pew where they would sit all year. It’s a fairly simple solution to acquire the support they need.
Old Testament scripture says that the Jews bought food with their tithe in order to celebrate the goodness of God with their families in the temple. They had a big thanksgiving meal. They also used it on the journey to the temple, not only for needs but also for wants.
Some part of the tithe supported the Levites (ministers) because they had no other source of income, but it wasn’t for making them wealthy. They lived inside the temple and traveled the countryside. They didn’t need houses or servants.
The Old Testament Jews and New Testament Christians believed in supporting their orphans and widows, or those financially struggling. There was no Welfare Assistance or SSI. However, this support came from free will offerings garnered from financial surplus. It did not come from the tithe.
We began to realize that the tithe is not a hardship promoted by guilt and fueled by fear of a curse. The scriptures so often quoted from Malichi are actually an urgent plea on behalf of rebuilding the temple so they could celebrate the goodness of God again. It was meant to wake up the lazy who’d forgotten what it was like to have a temple.
Now that we embraced our identity as The Temple of God, we opened a savings account and began putting our tithe into it. We did it with all the faithfulness and diligence we had used when we’d given it to churches and ministries before. Father also pointed out that we are ministers unto the Lord and the tithe was not put there to make us wealthy.
It was a mighty paradigm shifting in our life.
Something miraculous began happening almost immediately. While we had previously struggled, we now seemed to have extra money even without touching the savings account. If there had been a curse connected to tithing, then it’s evidence was fully obvious now. We had been living under it before we made the shift.
Now, when unforeseen expenses arose, the funds were available in our savings account and it became a blessing we celebrated each time. The goodness of God was finally obvious and apparent.
This simple shift turned our finances around and for 12 years we’ve been doing it this way. And Father has proven Himself constant in His blessing.
We believe this was the key to financial freedom He intended for Believers. His plan was to keep us out of debt and free from the guilt of forced obeisance. We are His temple, and His kings and priests. We now accept that identity and honor it.
It’s not about self-absorption, greed, or foolishness but about respecting His great Love toward us.
Thank you for sharing our journey. Blessings on yours.
Faith
Good word. The Levites did not pay tithe and were the Old Testament priests. We are the New Testament priests. Also as Levi tithed to Melchizedek while he was in Abraham, so we also tithed as we were in Abraham by faith.
Thank you for the comment, Christopher. Always welcome. 🙂
Hi Faith! I had already red your other article about that, it is very interesting… My background is catholic, and the Catholic church doesn’t expect 10% but 2% for the living of priests and paying other leaders or employees of the church. It is not for the local church but managed corporately in a region, so the priests of a region are paid the same whether they have 400 members or 40 in a remoted village… So the tithe is not a difficult subject for Catholics like it can be for protestants, 2% being very reasonable. I basically give 2% to the church, and then ask God to lead me how much to give for special offerings or when I feel like giving for a missionary, a specific mission, or someone in need. I’m pretty sure it attained 10% in some seasons, but it is offerings discussed between me and God, so I didn’t feel any pressure about that. (I don’t have debt problems and I wanted to be more generous so I was willing). I find interesting to see that jews don’t have this concept anymore. But paying a pew is maybe not a solution for me as I want to evangelize and see anyone being free to attend freely (it is only with time, when they can feel they identify as christians that they can freely have the desir to contribute.) Also, it is not in the heart of jews to spread (evangelize or contribute to some evangelistic missions), so I guess they save that money that the synagogue maybe doesn’t need… Anyway, I wanted to ask you what is now your point of view about contributing to the church. Do you proceed each time as free offerings (asking God how much to give each time), or do you fix a lower percentage like it is done in the Catholic church, or have you just simply stopped supporting a local church?
I loved reading your journey through that, I don’t like seeing protestant friends feeling bad to give so much or of not being able to do so when they are truly poor, the tithe shouldn’t be seen as a legalistic thing… As you said, it was at the beginning to help poors, so it is non-sense to consider you should tithe if you are in a survival mode…
Thank you, Isabelle. Your background was very interesting for me to read since I’ve never been inside a Catholic church. I enjoy reading how others do tithe. Anyway, no, I haven’t been a member of a local church in several years. I’m a free spirit, so-to-speak. 🙂 Blessings.
Oh ok, if you don’t go to church anymore, it simply makes sense that you don’t tithe at all… Thank you!
But I was going to church when Father gave me this revelation. And I was going for several years afterward. He is not inherent in church. Nor are His revelations meant to maintain our current positions. They usually catapult us into new territory. As this did for me. Thanks.
I would like to add that it is a protestant thing to call the church a temple. Maybe that explains why protestants came to think that their people had to give 10%, thing that was never there in the Catholic church. In the Catholic church, we just know that there is no temple anymore… And the 2% expected are only what is recommended if we want to support the Church. They never introduce it as a legalistic thing. We just have to understand that priests are paid only by our offerings, and so it seems normal to contribute.
On the other hand, we have to notice that the first tithe was Abraham toward Melchisedech… so far before the existence of the law or the temple… So it shows also that we don’t need a temple to see that notion of offering…
So what do you do with the tithe you are saving? And if everyone does this how what will the Pastors live on and how will they cope with the upkeep of the the Church buildings… just wondering.
Good Word!! 22 years ago I called synagogue and asked the same question. He said the same thing about the Temple..and referred to Deut. 14:22-29. The spirit of God led me to read Malachi Chapters 1-4 is a scathing indictment against the priests.
The tithe was meant for the people, widows and orphans, and for the Levites (who had no houses or land) not for the priests to get rich!!! Totally agree with you!!
Awesome thank you for sharing. I would say that i actually get a bad feeling in my being when i here tithing being preached and turn the channel or station. I have been in a church for years that i feel abused this the last half an hour Of every single service Asking for money not once but 3 to 4 times. Promising blessings after blessings for people who gave and left those who did not feeling condemned. I have since left that church but it was hard for me to shake off the dust
Be blessed, Celeste. You are a Child of God and you only owe HIM your love. 🙂
Thank you i am learning that it me and God thats it for now, what a journey as i started out in rest and somehow got religious and now going back to my first love i love your messages right wher God wants me praise god