Tithe

 

Is there really a loophole when it comes to tithing?  A person should really begin at the beginning of tithing.  "God created the heavens and the Earth and saw that they were good."Now if you are thinking, "Don't you think you went a little far?"  No because here we are reminded of who gave the gift in the first place.  Who gave you life and everything that is within the world around you.  The things that you enjoy, the food you eat, the clothes you wear, even the job you do, the health and the friends and family you enjoy.  All of these things were given to you from the one who created them. Truly all of these things are there for you to enjoy, cherish, and even love those who are within your life. 

Yet one must also realize that these things are all a gift, even the life that you live.  The tithe is something that was put in place to remind people of that very thing.  The tithe was given to the church, the church would then use that money to help those who were in need: sick, widowed, poor, the elderly, and even helped educate those in understanding the importance of living in this way.  This would be done so that the whole community would be cared for, this would also be the education that would be given to all people so that they could understand their native language or the language of the religion.  For Jewish people they would learn Hebrew so they could understand the original language the scrolls and thus the lessons were written in.  In Christianity, Latin was chosen to the be language so that all Christians would practice and hear the same worship service and message.  Only the sermon, message on the text, would be in the native language so the people could understand what was happening.

Within our modern society, few people practice the tithe.  For one thing, organizations have formed to educate, care for the sick, care for the aged,  to help those who are homeless or in need of food. What does the church still do for the community?  The church gives the community a sense of identity, it should instill within the people a generous spirit, and encourage the people to live out the love within these organizations.  So how much should a person give?  Well truly I think that it would be best for people to still give 10% to the church.  This 10% does not mean entirely money either. A person can give of their time or talents or even do something else for the community such as volunteer with others from the church at a community organization.  Then from the church money can go to support those organizations.  This would instill within others the reminder that the church is the source in which they encounter God and even from there go out into the world and be the hands and feet of God for all those who are in need.

So I would encourage you to enjoy 90% of all that you have been given but be reminded of where that whole 100% comes from so that you enjoy that 90% all the more.