There is a proper place to give your tithes to and this is a tithing commandment that we must remember.
How will you feel when you receive a bill that you have to pay to a bank that you’re not sure you’ve already visited? Will you be happy or excited to look for that place? It will feel like sending something to an unknown address.
For example, you want to send a gift to an overseas friend. How will you make sure that your friend will receive it? Will you not ask for his/her address?
The same thing with our tithes, we ought to send it to the right address. Where does God live? What address shall we send back the tithe?
We Ought to Tithe in Our Place of Worship
In the Old Testament, we can see that the tithes were given to the Levites or priests. In the New Testament, the early Christian churches were the ones receiving the tithes and offerings which they used in spreading the Gospel. Now, in our generation, one may ask, “where are we supposed to tithe?” God said that we must bring the entire tithe into the storehouse so that they may be food in His house. This simply means that we are to bring our tithes to the Kingdom of God.
In other words, we ought to tithe in our place of worship. The place where we go to grow more in the love and presence of God is His Kingdom. Our local church is a storehouse where we can bring our tithes to God.
For example, you eat in one fast food chain, but you pay in another branch of it. Is this possible? Surely, it is not. We all know that where you eat is where you pay. Just like with our tithes and even offerings, we do not just give it anywhere. We give it to God in His Kingdom, the storehouse.
The Offering
Many people think that their giving is already good because they give to missionaries, charities, reliefs, etc. But, this kind of giving is not tithing. It is purely offering. Tithing is giving back the tenth of every blessing to God, Himself. If we give that 10% of our blessings to others and not to God, then that is not a tithe.
An offering is part of the remaining 90% of what we have. We can share or help out with this 90%, but remember that the 10% is God’s. It is to be returned to Him alone. Therefore, any giving apart from tithing is also not an offering. Why? This is because the money that we share or offer is basically not ours but God’s.
To maintain the integrity of the tithe, it is not just enough to give it wholly and completely. We must make sure that we deliver it to the right place and as it is. We should tithe to God in His storehouse before we can make an offering to others.
Tithing Commandment – Some Things to Ponder Over
Where do you think God is asking you to deliver your tithe? Why do you think so? How will you differentiate a tithe from an offering? Has there been any point in your life that you gave without tithing? How do you feel about giving to others without giving to God first?