Are you cheating God? If you are a typical Christian, the answer is yes. Is God going to withhold blessings from you because of this? Probably. God requires his people to turn over ten percent of their income to their local congregation. The money is not to go from the donor to other charities—only to the local congregation. This is not taught by the church today. It has not been the official position of any denomination, and has not been adhered to in church history. Why not? Because churches do not want to conform to the explicit requirements of biblical law. Theologians and pastors would rather see the churches beg for money than honor the God who does not beg for anything.
Theologians and pastors say that (1) the Old Testament’s laws of the tithe no longer apply, and (2) nothing has replaced them. The first statement is true; the second is not. Christians are therefore said to be authorized by God to “give as the Holy Spirit leads.” There are two great evils that result from this view. First, church members give too little, thereby forcing the churches either to beg or cut programs. Second, this open-ended standard creates guilt in dedicated Christians, because they never know when they have given enough to meet their obligations.
The Covenantal Tithe presents the case for the Christian tithe in chapter ten. The previous nine chapters are detailed discussions of the pre-Christian doctrine of the tithe: who, what, when, and where.
Since The Covenantal Tithe is fully integrated with Logos, Scripture passages are linked to your favorite translation for quick reference and to your Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts for original-language study! You can also read this volume along with your Bible dictionaries, encyclopedias, and the wealth of other Bible study tools in your digital library.
