Tithing, part 5

Today, I’ll ponder the unexpected answer I read to the question, “Should the jobless tithe on their unemployment benefits?” as posed in the March 2011 issue of Christianity Today. If you’re just now joining this epistle, please back up a few days to Tithing…an Introduction.



As I’ve stated previously, we’re no longer unemployed, but we make less than unemployment, so the question posed in the article, still intrigued me because there are many weeks when the thought of letting go of tithe money is very stressful. So I’m interpreting the question for us (and others) as, ‘Should the poor tithe?’ And the final commentator is Gary Moore, founder of Financial Seminary and author of Faithful Finances 101. Before I tell you what he wrote, I’ll add that I could reprint every word verbatim…but that is illegal…so I’ll try to limit myself to the best comments.

In short, his answer is “Probably Not”. I already liked him…but I really did try to read his comments objectively, critically and with the Holy Spirit’s discernment. But he seems to be writing from my heart AND knows the Biblical references to back up what he says.

He states that in Deuteronomy 14:22-29, ”the tithe was a celebration for the affluent and a gift to the less fortunate, including priests. The tithe was created in part to help those on the biblical equivalent of unemployment; requiring them to contribute to the offering when they should be receiving is an unhealthy inversion of the biblical mandate to give to the poor.”

He goes on to point out that the passage in Malachi 3:10 that is always quoted in tithing sermons and articles was not to “fund the temple’s institutional needs” but instead to make sure there was plenty of food available to the needy. The people paid temple taxes (maybe not a bad idea some pastors may say…might weed out anyone that’s just filling a pew!) but the “tithe was something more”.

Wouldn't most of us agree that the majority of the money contributed to American churches is used for buildings and programs? After all, multi-million dollar state-of-the-art facilities are not cheap! Moore goes on to say, “Most churches should therefore not expect the full biblical tithe, particularly if it’s to support a comfortable lifestyle for the church’s leaders.”

Someone who commented on a previous post of mine pointed out that the Israelites received the land, the animals, everything free and clear as God had promised. The tithe therefore was the inheritance of the Levites who did not inherit any land because they were the caretakers of the temple.

Moore does add that while giving should not be required for someone receiving unemployment, doing so is “undoubtedly a great act of faith”. He also states, “Requiring the poor and unemployed to tithe is an overly legalistic and harsh—and unbiblical—interpretation of Scripture.”

So where am I on this wide spectrum? Obviously, you can tell I’m more inclined to agree with Moore. I believe the poor should never be coerced into or made to feel guilty for not tithing. But God used this article, His Word and several years of struggling with the American concept of tithing to lead me to His heart. Tomorrow I’ll share what I believe He’s calling our family and our “tithe” to do for His Kingdom.