Inherited wisdom tells us that the tithe is what we put in the offering on Sunday. Most Christians assume this and do not give it a second thought. But is that all there is to it? How are we to properly view tithing in respect to the local church, the universal church, and those outside the church?
The New Testament speaks of money being given to the poor and needy (Matthew 6:2, Luke 18:22, Galatians 2:10), other believers (Acts 2:45, 4:32), those doing the work of God (1 Corinthians 9:13-14, 2 Cor. 9:10-12), the local church (1 Cor. 16:2), and other churches (Romans 15:26, 1 Cor. 16:3). Other than giving to the local church, these are not commands, just examples. I do believe we are obligated to give regularly to the local church we have chosen to attend, but we must not make the mistake of thinking that our tithe is equal to what we put in the offering plate on Sunday. It is much broader than that.
I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately to the Parable of the Talents. I previously applied it to beliefs given to a person by the Holy Spirit. But what about the actual subject of the parable: money? The servants were commended and condemned for their ability to manage the funds given to them by their master. This is our example to follow when we are entrusted with God’s money.
More specifically, I am accountable for what happens with that money. It is not enough for me to just write a check to a church or charity and be done with it. If I am not handing my money directly to the poor family or the church plant, then it is my responsibility to do my research and to carefully choose who will. If they spend my money poorly, it is my fault.
Now, God is a God of grace, and He honors actions done out of faith. If a servant does his best, he will not be rebuked. (Who knows how the widow’s offering in Mark 12 was used by the temple?) But if I am frugal or conservative with my own money, then how much more frugal or conservative should I be with God’s? I take great care in managing my own finances. God deserves no less from me.
Now the hard question: Say I am convicted that my money should be given to the poor and the hungry in a third-world country. What happens when I find that a non-Christian organization can take my dollar farther than a Christian organization?
In order to answer your question as to what happens when a person give to a non-Christian organization rather than a Christian organization, you must first clarify who or what and by what definition is “Christian.” An organization in my book is a tax id number- it therefore can not be “Christian”- an organization does not believe, it does not accept, deny, etc. Assuming we agree on that point, the answer becomes much easier. Certainly a secularly-defined organization can be made up of Christian individuals just as Christian organization may employ unbelievers. Neither scenario warrants preference based on affliation with or without Christians. Therefore, my conclusion would be that the organization that best stewards your gifts deserves your support.
Check out my site… theGenerousLife.net
The division between Gods money and your money is imaginary. When I realized all of the money I earn and receive is my is God’s money, I started actually giving to the Body and the mission of Jesus instead of dropping in His share.
My friends used to debate a bit over the tithe and justify less than 10% but I have never heard of anyone arguing to defend giving overall more than 10%. In other words te people who argue against giving more to the church usually do so to keep more for themselves.
Instead if we believe in giving less to a church we should lead others in a winsome way to do the same with clear conviction. Since this rarely happens the church will keep spending as heR God-given leaders see fit and as they see social needs.
Jason,
Read a few posts on your site. It’s so great that you can dedicate focus on one subject, and write so frequently and in-depth about it. As you can probably tell, I am very scattershot in my subject matter, which requires much less discipline! I added a link to your blog in my “Further Reading”.
Regarding your comment, I think I was headed in the same direction. It’s just another manifestation of the sacred vs. secular debate, to which the conclusion is always that God owns the world and everything in it. As Christians, we naturally want to make these distinctions, but when it comes down to it, where do I draw the line? What if, hypothetically, I discovered that Heifer International was run entirely by Christians, and World Vision had a corrupt president who had been stealing money for years? Any distinction between sacred and secular or Christian vs. non-Christian, in relation to inhuman things anyway, is something we have made up ourselves.
This is also, as Brooks said, making another distinction: tithe vs. non-tithe. Partly unnecessary, since everything is God’s—but partly necessary, since we are commanded to regularly give part of our money to others, and we all need to decide what amount that should be. But this is by no means the extent of our giving. We can give more than just money, and we can also use our money in ways that honor God without specifically giving it away.