Will A Man Rob God?

[FONT=&quot] Will A Man Rob God?
A closer look at the tithe[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Ronald W. Robey[/FONT]

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[FONT=&quot]On any given Sunday, there will be Pastor’s who will stand behind the pulpit and will preach a well-known message out of the 3rd Chapter of the last book of the Old Testament, Malachi.

“Will a man ROB GOD?,” will boom through the air with emphasis on ‘rob God.’ Many preacher’s will put the emphasis on ‘rob God’ to instill an automatic fear into the very minds of the hearer. It causes the automatic cringing of the people the preacher wants to put in a spirit of condemnation.

“Yet YOU HAVE ROBBED ME. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for YE HAVE ROBBED ME, even this whole nation.”

Every single believer in the congregation who is not placing money in a tithe envelope and placing it in the offering plate is automatically pointed out by this man (figuratively) who is supposed to be speaking for God as being robbers and are therefore under a curse which will NEVER BE LIFTED as long as one is disobedient to God.

This is why it is important for each and every person who has been adopted into the family of God by faith in the substitutionary blood of Jesus Christ on the cruel cross of Calvary to “Study to shew thyself approved unto God a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth. Jesus said in John 17 during His prayer to His Father acknowledging all that the Father gave Him these wonderful words that we all need to embrace and realize that He wants us to study diligently; “Sanctify them through Thy Truth; Thy Word is Truth.”

Once we learn that it is God’s Holy Word that sanctifies, that sets us apart from the world, that separates us from false teachings, then we have a responsibility to study that Word and begin to apply its truths to our walk. When we walk according to the Word of God, we will not be so easily swayed by preachers who do not study as they should.

Oh, but the preacher has doctorates given him by a famous seminary that has turned out many wonderful men of God! Don’t be fooled, Brethren. The only thing that will turn out a wonderful man of God is God Himself.

And the best place to go to learn who God is and what He expects of man is to the very Words of God… The Holy Bible.

In the accusation of man robbing God in today’s Christian community, a charge is generally given out of Malachi that not only was not speaking of money, but it was not speaking of the Gentile nations at all.
The Gentile nations were not required to tithe according to God's Word.

Let’s begin to look into the passage and learn what God is truly addressing when the prophet Malachi said “Will a man rob God? But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.”
First off, we must address who is being spoken to in the passage. It will shock many to realize that it was to the Israelite’s.

Look at verse five:

Malachi 3:5 And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts.

Clearly, God is speaking about specific people here that are doing the robbing! Those who oppress or defraud their employees (servants), those who defraud the widows, the orphans, and that turn aside the stranger from his right. To see exactly what is meant here since it is speaking of tithes, we must go into the Book of Deuteronomy:

Deuteronomy 14:22-29 Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year. And thou shalt eat before the LORD thy God, in the place which he shall choose to place his name there, the tithe of thy corn, of thy wine, and of thine oil, and the firstlings of thy herds and of thy flocks; that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always. And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household, And the Levite that is within thy gates; thou shalt not forsake him; for he hath no part nor inheritance with thee. At the end of three years thou shalt bring forth all the tithe of thine increase the same year, and shalt lay it up within thy gates: And the Levite, (because he hath no part nor inheritance with thee,) and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within thy gates, shall come, and shall eat and be satisfied; that the LORD thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine hand which thou doest.

Here, we learn more than just one wonderful truth.

1. We learn that the tithe was “all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year.” The tithe was a yearly event, not weekly.
2. We learn that the tithe was to be eaten.
3. We learn that the purpose of the tithe is that the Israelites learn to revere the LORD their God.
4. If the tithe was too heavy to carry to the destination that the Lord had chose to place His name, the tithe could be sold for money. This tells us the tithe was not money as many have been taught in many Churches across the world.
5. Once the tither arrived at the destination that the Lord had chose to place His name, the money was to be used to buy the tithe that was to be eaten there before the Lord.
6. On every 3rd year, the tithe was not to be taken to the Levite’s who worked in the Tabernacle, but rather, the tithe was to be kept on one’s own property to feed the Levite that was living on one’s property, the widow, the orphans, and any stranger that happened to be on one’s land at the time of the tithe. These people were fed the third year tithe.
7. The Levite's that worked at the Tabernacle were the only one's who were qualified to receive the tithe of the tither for the sole purpose of their sustenance. The tithe was to be given to them because they were not allowed to own their own any property on which they could raise crops or herd livestock.

If the principle set forth in the Book of Deuteronomy was followed, the LORD God promised to bless the one who tithed of the work of his hand.

When one reads Malachi 3:5 in light of Deuteronomy 14:22-29, we see that Malachi was addressing the tither who was not following God’s command concerning the 3rd year tithe!.

When God said, Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it, He was telling the tither to take his grains and meats, his foodstuff, into the barn so that there would be food for the Levite, the widow, the orphan, and the stranger living on the tither’s land.
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[FONT=&quot] If the tither would do this, God would cause the windows of heaven to open, the rain to fall, and the crops to increase in such a way that the tither would have more than he needed for his own self.[/FONT][FONT=&quot][/FONT]

 

They didn't have money?

Read Deuteronomy 14:26.

Were the tithes not sold for money?

Money was around way before the tithe. It was even around before Abraham's tithe. Genesis 13 tells us Abraham was rich in silver, gold, and cattle.

Oh, they had money.

As to Melchizadek, careful study of history will show pagans tithed during that time and that Abraham's tihte to Melchizadek was mimicking the tenth that pagan's gave to their false deities.

Also, according to Numbers, God only required 1% of the spoils of war, not 10%.

Abraham was a priest himself and built altars and sacrificed.

There is no Scriptural account of Abraham tithing except that one solitary time.

Deuteronomy records in the 14th chapter that every third year tithe was to be eaten by the Levite that lived on the tither's land, the widow, orphans, and strangers.

We cannot change that.

Also the giving is according as the man purposeth in his own heart, not as the Lord purposeth in his heart. The Lord is not mentioned in 2 Corinthians 9 until the latter part of verse 7... after Paul said man is to give according as he purposeth in his heart.

2 Corinthians 9:6-7 But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.

btw, the 'he' you are referring to when you say 'he's right...' is me. I wrote the OP after many months of study on the topic of tithe.

Tithe was never money and there is no Biblical account of it changing to money. So, you say you tithe? Or are you mistaking an offering for what you think is a tithe but according to the Word of God is not?

 

"Let every man give as 'he' purposeth in his heart."

Paul was speaking of the man as 'he', not God. Read the previous verses. God is not the subject that the 'he' is accentuating.

The tithe given by Abraham was of the spoils of war, not personal property. Abraham was never said to have tithed his own property.

Money was not mentioned as a tithe in Deuteronomy 14 because the tithe was never money. Read the whole chapter. In the first few verses, God establishes what the tithe is... crops, flocks and herds.

Also, silver and gold was money. do a careful study of silver in the Old Testament. Also gold. It was used as money. Abraham bought a parcel of land for an hundred shekels of silver. Money.

Also, if money could be used as a tithe, God would not have commanded to buy "sheep, oxen, wine, strong drink, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after" for a tithe. They could have given the money as a tithe.

No, the fact remains money was never tithed.

 

Scripture doesn't tell us to tithe, period!.

The tithe was for the land of Israel... nowhere else. God did not put in His Word that He extended the tithe beyond the land of Israel, did He?

Also, the Levite's were the only one's qualified to receive a tithe.

Now, unless you can prove that you are a Levite, or that your pastor is a Levite, neither of you is qualified to receive tithe according to the Word of God.

 

Tithing is only mentioned briefly in the New Testament.

The first occasion mirrors the second. Matthew 23:23 and then Luke 11:42.

In both of these passages, Jesus commends the Pharisee for tithing grains and spices. Surely the Pharisee had money, wouldn't you think? And yet, Jesus never mentioned that the Pharisee tithed money!

Surely if money was to be tithed, Jesus would have told the Pharisee he left money out, but no, he had tithed right, but neglected the weightier matters of the law... which also had nothing to do with money.

Then, the author of Hebrews mentions tithes again. And this time it is of the spoils of war and not of Abraham's own property.

Surely if money was a required tithe, the New Testament would have recorded it for those God wanted to be in obedience.

But, it did not.

 

Since tithe was never money, am I to assume you are a farmer or a herder and the tithe you speak of is crops, flocks or herds?

Is your tithe of your crops, flocks and herds going to the workers of the Church/Tabernacle? i.e. pianist, organist, treasurer, custodian, choir director, teachers, Sunday School superintendant?

Are all of these workers of the tribe of Levi? Do they live on the Church/Tabernacle property or on your own property as the Word of God specifies the one receiving the tithe is to live because they don't own property of their own?

In not, they are not qualified to receive the tithe according to the Word of God.

sw, tithe was never money in the Word of God, nor is it money now. God didn't change what the tithe was, we can't.

 

Nowhere in that passage about the widow's two mites was her offering called a tithe. All were able to see her drop two mites in the same plate. She did not designate 10% of that to be used as tithe, she 'gave her living' as Jesus stated.

What she gave was not a tithe.

The means of our increase is anything today. But in the times of the Bible, people had increase of money as well as crops, flocks and herds. God's Word declares the tithe was of the produce of crops, flocks and herds... not of the silver, gold, shekels, pennies, or anything eles.

The tithe was given to the workers of the Tabernacle who performed the daily duties. They, in turn tithed 10% off of that tithe to the High Priest.

The tithe was never put into the offering plate to take care of bills. It was given directly to the Levites for them to live on because they were not allowed to own land.

The land was solely for Israel and not for those lands outside the borders of Israel.

We are not required to tithe.

 

God wants 100% of what one purposes in his or her heart to give. nothing more than that.

 

If you feel that is what you need to give, give it with cheer. But it is not a tithe according to what the Word of God says the tithe consists of.