It always starts with the fact that Abraham paid tithe to Melchizedek, king of Salem. Or pay your tithe and God will bless you or be cursed. This sounds like a ritual or a business negotiation. God really knows why he instituted tithing, when to tithe, how and what to tithe. Tithing is that subject matter that perpetually gets Christians to debate amongst themselves. In whose favor? God or Satan? The more we argue, the more we look confused in the view of unbelievers, hence we have less time to win souls. May be those souls prefer not to be confused.
Is tithing very important? First of all, just ignore the word tithing for a moment. After the Israelites came from the land of Egypt, God decided to bless them per their tribes. He didn’t give the Levites any possession but commanded the people to give a 10th to the Levites and priests. The most important thing is the purpose of the tithe. If you read Numbers 18:21, Deuteronomy 14:27-29 and Malachi 3:1-10 and not only Malachi 3:10 -12, you will notice that God actually commanded the tithe to be used by the Levites, orphans, widows and strangers. Those were the groups of people without an inheritance.
God established what I will like to term as God’s Social Welfare System ( GSWS). This is why I love to refer to it as the next most important vessel of love from God after He gave his only begotten son (John 3:16). God established the GSWS because of His love for the weak or vulnerable in society. God shows His strength in their weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9-11). Our tenth is the premium or contribution to support the GSWS. God is love and He therefore created us in love and breath His love into us. That is why some may argue that it is better to give to the needy or orphanage than to pay their tithe to the church. That is still a manifestation of God’s love in us. Hello! this is called giving and not tithing. Likewise, tithing does not compensate for giving to the needy (Matthew 23:23). Though one cannot replace tithing with giving or offering, I cannot fault them because of how some churches have abused the system.
Most preaching’s on tithing have been focused on Malachi 3:10 but if you read from verse 1, you will notice how God was very angry with the people for not supporting the Levites, orphans, widows and strangers ie. GSWS. The discussions around blessing and curses from verses 10-12 are reminders for the people. Many Christians now claim tithing is an old testament stuff. Maybe orphans, widows and strangers ceased to exist after the old testament. Is showing love to the orphans, widows and strangers an old testament religious activity? Did God abdicate His throne of love? The fact that an insurance company refused to pay a claim does not mean the whole system of insurance is bad. The fact that some churches don’t support the orphans, widows, and strangers does not mean the principle of tithing is evil or a scam. My humble advice, is that if you don’t find your church taking care of the four groups listed above, your tithe may be a waste or the best case has become an offering. The only reason why you should receive the blessings in Malachi is because the Levites, orphans, strangers and widows said “thank you Jesus for this money, food, cloth, rent, job, etc” and not only the Levites or the Pastors and their families give thanks to Jesus.
If Christians pay tithe judiciously and the churches also use it for the right purpose, the church will become an integral part of social development. We can only take dominion over the earth and subdue it by the show of love to what God loves to sho love to (Genesis 1:28; Romans 9:12; Romans 12:21). Why should radio stations or people Christians refer to as “worldly” be the ones organizing food for orphans, paying school fees for very brilliant but needy students, sending relief items to flood victims in other countries, paying for hospital bills for the needy, though it isn’t their core mandate? Such is the mandate of the church through the GSWS. We are supposed to be the powerhouse of blessings to bless others. This is why the system of tithing is the second biggest threat to the devil and hence will forever fuel discussions that may convince people not to pay tithe. God is love and His system of love attracts heavenly blessings.
You may want to reconsider your thoughts on tithing and locate the right church that will not abuse the system. You may not be able to force your church to believe in attending to the orphans, widows and strangers but you can surely locate many other churches using the tithe for that which it was established from the beginning and will not change. He changes not! Shalom.