(OPINION) Anytime we talk about giving money in the body of Christ it stirs up a flood of emotions from many who think believers should never discuss the topic or that all preachers, churches, and ministries want is your money.
While this may be the case for many that have wrong motives I want to share with you six powerful blessings that are directly associated with honoring God through our tithes and offerings.
Before we get started, I will not go into a long debate here on the origin of tithing and the fact that Abraham practiced this before the Law of Moses was even instituted despite many that argue it was directly connected to the Law of Moses.
I will just say that although the subject is extremely controversial in the Church today and isn’t as pronounced in the new testament letters as giving offerings, it is still mentioned. For example, Jesus told the Pharisees and teachers of the Law:
“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone. – Matthew 23:23
Notice here that Jesus still commended their practice of tithing here but emphasized the greater importance of law, justice, and mercy. Then we have the Book of Hebrews which was written some thirty-five years after the crucifixion had taken place and where the writer states:
“Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives. Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him”. – Hebrews 7:8-10
In this passage, the writer clearly informs us that the practice of tithing was still intact some decades after the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ. So this would no longer be a practice done under the Law of Moses.
The point is there is a lot of evidence that tithing was a regular practice in the early Church well after the crucifixion. Now that we have established this I want to show you the blessing associated with both tithing and giving according to the Word of God.
1- It opens the windows of Heaven in our lives – Before we elaborate deep into this study I already know there will be those who insist that this entire discussion is directed at Israel, and them only and can only be interpreted within the context of the covenant between God and that nation and that all of these blessings can only be attributed to Israel and not the New Testament believer however, there are many passages that disprove this.
In the Book of Malachi chapter three, the Lord tells us that honoring him with our tithes and offerings actually opens the windows of Heaven over our lives. So what does this even mean?
Bring all the tithes into the storehouse,
That there may be food in My house,
And try Me now in this,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“If I will not open for you the windows of heaven
And pour out for you such blessing
That there will not be room enough to receive it. – Malachi 3:10
One of the best illustrations of this is found in the Book of Genesis Chapter twenty-eight where Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran and came to a certain place and stayed there all night because the sun had set. There he took one of the stones of that place and put it at his head, and he lay down in that place to sleep.
Then he dreamed, and behold, a ladder was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. And behold, the Lord stood above it and said: “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants.
Also, your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”
Then Jacob rose early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of that city had been Luz previously.
Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
There is some powerful revelation in this event that took place involving Jacob that so impacted him that he was impressed to make a covenant with the Lord with a “tenth” of all of his increase. What did he see? What did he encounter that changed his life? The Bible tells us that Jacob saw a ladder ascending to Heaven and angles of God going up down and coming down from this ladder.
Jacob then tells us that the Lord himself stood above this ladder and stated “I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants”. So remember Abraham giving a tenth to Melchizedek was the first recorded account of tithing in the Bible and he was the father of Isaac.
The Lord then reveals his destiny for Jacob stating “Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.”
Jacob was so moved by this encounter that he awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!”
Notice what he did next. He arose and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel, but the name of that city had been Luz previously. Jacob just made this place a “memorial”.
Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
Now why did Jacob vow to give the Lord a “tenth” (tithe) of all of his increase after this encounter at Bethel? The answer was revealed in his dream. I believe what Jacob received that day was a major revelation of the covenant that God made with his Grandfather Abraham and witnessed in his own father as well in regard to the blessings connected to honoring the Lord in his tithes and offerings.
Remember, Jacob’s father sowed during a famine in the land, and the Bible says “Then Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundredfold, and the Lord blessed him. The man began to prosper, and continued prospering until he became very prosperous; for he had possessions of flocks and possessions of herds and a great number of servants”. – Genesis 26.
Jacob saw the windows of Heaven open and angels ascending and descending from this ladder from Heaven to Earth. Why? Could it be possible that these Angels were taking the offerings on earth to Heaven and the Angels bringing blessings black to Earth?
I believe when we honored the Lord with our tithe and offerings it enables the windows of Heaven to be opened over our lives and brings the blessings of the Lord upon our lives. We will discuss what these “blessings” are here in a few minutes.
2- God begins to pour out such a blessing that we do not have not enough room to receive it –
Honor the Lord with your possessions,
And with the firstfruits of all your increase;
So your barns will be filled with plenty,
And your vats will overflow with new wine. – Proverbs 3:9-10
In Malachi chapter three the Lord tells us that not only will honoring him with the tithe and offerings open the windows of Heaven but it states that God will pour out such a blessing that we won’t have enough room to receive it.
The New Testament gives us more insight into what this looks like. For example when Jesus multiplied the fish and bread not only did he supply the needs of those present but there were 12 baskets left over after feeding 5000 men not including women and children. Other verses agree with this concept as well.
Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” – Luke 6:38
The Apostle Paul speaks to the Church of Phillipi telling them that they were the only Church that shared with him concerning giving and receiving but them only. Look what Paul tells them in his letter.
“Nevertheless you have done well that you shared in my distress. Now you Philippians know also that in the beginning of the gospel, when I departed from Macedonia, no church shared with me concerning giving and receiving but you only.
For even in Thessalonica you sent aid once and again for my necessities. Not that I seek the gift, but I seek the fruit that abounds to your account. “Indeed I have all and abound.
I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well pleasing to God. And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen. – Philippians 4: 14-19
Here Paul tells us that there is a principle of “giving and receiving” and that through our giving it is seen as a “sweet, smelling aroma” to the Lord and well-pleasing to God. Then the next part is profound. Paul tells us that as we give and are a blessing to others that God will supply all our need according to his riches and Glory!
Now I want to say here that this is an area that prosperity preachers distort and that is that they make the “blessings” of the Lord all about materialistic things or money. (mammon) but “blessings” are not just material things such as money and things but John tells us that there is there major areas in which God’s people should prosper: “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers”. – 3 John 2
Notice he did say there is a real prosperity in God in regards to substance but he also emphasized prospering in our health and our soul. What good would it be if we prospered in material wealth yet were always sick in our bodies and our mind, will and emotions were bankrupt in being sound and healthy?
The bottom line is that God wants and desires to bless his people not so they can indulge or bask in excess but that they can be a blessing and help others in need. The blessings of God come in many different forms and if we took a step back and paid attention, I would say that we could see this in our daily lives even if we aren’t paying close attention.
3- It’s the only area that God tells us to try him in. – In this passage of Malachi the Lord literally tells us to “try him” Another translation says “Put me to the test”. This is a powerful statement and is the only place in the Bible where God challenges us to “test him” and it’s in regards to tithes and offerings.
What a bold statement from the Lord to say that if we step out in faith and begin to be obedient with our finances that we would in return “pour out such a blessing, we would not have room to contain it”
I remember, over twenty years ago when I first gave my heart to the Lord and my wife and I began to learn to trust him with our finances we read this passage one day and decided to take his word on this area and I can say that after 23 years, exactly what David declared” “I have been young, and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants begging bread”. God has always been faithful as we have remained faithful in the area of our tithes and offerings.
4- God will rebuke the devourer off of your life. – “And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,” Says the Lord of hosts;
The word used here is a term meaning to “consume”, “eat away” and “destroy”. It’s a picture of locusts devouring crops. In today’s vernacular, We would say the Lord preserves our lives from things that attempt to take us under. God can preserve us through hardships, famines, layoffs, recessions, depressions, and the list goes on.
He did this with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob who all made a covenant with God in the area of their tithes and offerings. Remember what Jacob said to the lord? “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
This can be seen in the New Testament as well in Matthew chapter six. “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on.
Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
“So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. – Matthew 6:25-33
Notice Jesus himself, stated here to seek FIRST, the Kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these necessities in life would follow. Sadly, many will not accept this teaching and will attack it with terms like “God doesn’t need my money”,
“This is the “Prosperity Gospel” its “manipulation” and the list goes on but friend it’s clearly in the Bible. Jesus even warned that “For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also”. Show me a man’s bank statements and I will show you his heart.
5- When we give in secret the Lord rewards us openly – Let’s just go right into what the Word of the Lord says in regards to this. “Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise, you have no reward from your Father in heaven.
Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.
So here we see as we honor the Lord in the area of giving in the secret place not to be seen by men but to honor the Lord, he will in return bless us to the measure that others around us will see the blessing of the Lord on our lives.
Look at Malachi three again. “And all nations will call you blessed, For you will be a delightful land,” Says the Lord of hosts”. Here we see that when Israel was obedient in this area even other nations would acknowledge the blessing of God on their lives.
6- God remembers those who give to the Kingdom. – Here is another fascinating point and that is that when we give to the work of the Lord in these areas God himself fees this and even records it in Heaven.
The Bible tells us that in Acts chapter ten that there was a certain man in Caesarea called Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment, a devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people and prayed to God always.
About the ninth hour of the day, he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God coming in and saying to him, “Cornelius!” And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, “What is it, lord?” So he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.
Did you catch that? Cornelius’s giving caught the attention of Heaven and the angel of the Lord stated that it went up before God as a “memorial” before God. Remember what Jacob saw in his dream? The ladder with angels ascending and descending from it?
“Now Jesus sat opposite the treasury and saw how the people put money into the treasury. And many who were rich put in much. Then one poor widow came and threw in two mites, which make a quadrans.
So He called His disciples to Himself and said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had her whole livelihood.” – Mark 12:41-44
I hope you have enjoyed these six powerful blessings that I have seen in my own family over the past 23 years of ministry and you will ultimately do with it what you desire but I encourage you today that if you haven’t stepped out and made a covenant with God in your finances like Jacob and many other men and women of God have you may truly never know or understand the depth of these blessings from the Word of the Lord.
