Luke 6:32-38 (NRSV))
“If you love those who love you, what credit is that to
you? For even sinners love those who love them. If you do good to those who do
good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. If you
lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you? Even
sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again. But love your enemies, do
good, and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you
will be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the
wicked. Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.
“Do not judge, and you will not be judged; do not
condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven;
give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken
together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give
will be the measure you get back.”
Way back when I was in confirmation we had the pastor
come into our class and talk about tithing.
Do any of
you remember when you first heard that concept?
He shared that as followers of Jesus we are asked to
tithe our income to support the work of the church
I thought that is no big deal
--- my parents had always taught me to set aside part of my allowance and any
money that I earned to take to Sunday School class and put in the offering
Then he explained exactly what a tithe is
Dave Ramsey
defines it this way:
Simply put, the tithe is the first 10% of your income
that should be given to your local church. It’s strictly measured in money, so
you can’t replace it with giving your time or your talents.
And the first thing that came to my mind was NO WAY!
I am happy
to share --- but 10% --- you have got to be kidding me
Fast forward probably about 10 or 15 years --- I am a
recent seminary graduate
And as far
as I remember I was not taught anything about "giving" in school
If
I was, I must have slept through that class
Now I am sitting at Garrett Evangelical Theological
Seminary attending a continuing education event on evangelism.
Bob Tuttle was leading the class and he made a couple of
rather distinct points that have always stuck with me
First --- he said that unless
you become generous and give as the biblical text teaches your spirituality will
always be stunted.
Second --- that you cannot ask
other people to support the biblical concept of the tithe if you are not
willing to do it yourself.
I remember when I got home I began to wrestle with this
idea of a tithe.
The verses he had shared with us were stuck in my mind.
According to Leviticus 27:30, “A tenth of the land’s
produce, whether grain from the ground or fruit from the trees, is God’s. It is
holy to God.”
And 2 Corinthians 9:7, says, “Each of you must give as
you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves
a cheerful giver.”
And also Luke 6:38
(CEB)
Give, and it will be given to
you. A good portion—packed down, firmly shaken, and overflowing—will fall into
your lap. The portion you give will determine the portion you receive in
return.”
But that passage poses some interesting questions --- do
we give so that we can receive?
If we are tithing to God so that we can get more
blessings from God in return --- it is clear that our motive is selfish and
self-serving.
We give --- we tithe to God --- simply to express our
honest thanks and gratitude for all that God has already given us.
Tithing forces us to not focus on ourselves and our own
needs --- but to focus on God and how everything we have --- everything we are
---- is a gift from the hands of a generous God.
Repeatedly scripture reminds us that God owns it all
Everything
that you have comes from God
Giving 10% back to God is just a practical way for us to
say thanks for the 100% that God has given to us
Tithing is not a legalistic requirement like paying dues
to the Rotary Club or some other service organization or social club.
Tithing is an act of obedience and should be given freely
with pure motives. In other words, we give without expecting anything back in
return. And it teaches us to be good stewards of what God has given us.
As much as I was struggling to originally believe it: tithing
was created for our benefit.
It teaches us how to keep God first in our lives and how
to live unselfishly.
Unselfish people make better spouses, friends, relatives,
employees and employers.
And they usually have better finances.
In order to tithe we must take the spiritual stance that
Henri Nouwen wrote about in his little book: With Open Hands. We must open up our lives and our hearts and
trust God by not holding on so tightly to the blessings --- the things --- we
have received.
When we open our hands and give generously to God then we
are in the open handed position in which we can receive from God.
If we live with our fists tightly closed --- keeping our
resources to ourselves --- keep our love to ourselves ---- we close ourselves
off from receiving that which God wishes to put into our lives.
The only way we can truly give to God is with open hands
And it is
the only way that we can receive
We live in a society that encourages greed --- encourages
us to grab as much as we can and to hold on to it tightly.
The only antidote
for greed is generosity
One cannot
be generous and greedy at the same time
Let’s go back to this passage from Luke, because I find
it fascinating.
Jesus says: “A good portion—packed down, firmly shaken,
and overflowing—will fall into your lap”
In order to grasp the meaning, we need to know that it is
set in the context of a Middle Eastern market where the buyers and sellers
would haggle together over prices, quality, and amount.
It is a scene often repeated in many developing countries
today.
Farmers bring their grain—wheat, corn, barley—and spread
it on a mat on the ground. Potential customers examine the grain, make an
offer, and the haggling begins.
When a price is finally set, the customer offers his
container—usually a large bowl or pot—and the seller uses a scoop to fill the
container.
It’s exactly at this point that the process becomes
fascinating.
In Jesus’ day there were basically four stages of
measuring grain for a customer:
First, the
seller fills the container to the top.
Second, he
presses the grain down and fills some more.
Third, he
shake the container so the grain will settle and then fills some more.
Finally, he
fills the container until it overflows.
The seller would catch the overflow grain and pour it
into the pouch of his robe.
Jesus is describing a situation that took place every
time a person went to market.
It’s unusual to us because everything we buy at the store
is already measured, sealed, and wrapped with shrink wrap.
It’s also
labeled on the outside: “Contents sold by weight not by volume.”
But in Jesus’ day grain was sold by volume not by weight.
Hence why we are told that the grain was pressed down and
shaken together.
What exactly is Jesus trying to teach us here about
Christian giving?
Let me suggest two things
1. When you
give, God gives back to you
2. God uses
the same measure you use!
Or to put it in modern terms …
If you are stingy, God will be stingy in return!
If you are generous, God will be generous in return!
When I came home from that continuing education event
Nancy and I made the commitment to tithe ---- my salary at the time was $13,300
We had not
been married all that long
And
soon three little girls would start coming along
I can tell you this --- it wasn't always easy
But we made the conscious choice that God would get the
first fruits. We gave our tithe to the
church --- along with offerings above the tithe and gifts to many other
agencies.
Even when the church I was serving didn't have the funds
in the bank to pay me, we found a way to give our tithe on what I should have
(and eventually would) been paid.
All I can say is --- it was the best decision we have
ever made
Tithing forces us to put God first.
And then
our wants and desires can fall into their proper places
Let me close with this story:
A pastor came to Mr. Jones and asked him, "If you
had a million dollars would you give half of it to the Lord?" Mr. Jones
replied, "Of course I would, pastor!" "If you had two houses
would you give one of them to the Lord?" "Of course I would,
pastor!" Then he asked, "If you had two cows would you give one of
them to the Lord?" Mr. Jones answered, "Now pastor, that's not fair!
You know I have two cows!"
God doesn't want what we cannot give.
God however desires for us to learn to be generous ---
just as God has been generous to us.
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