Many a man, many a woman has a heart that’s divided – torn between wealth and God. It’s deep, it’s devastating. We don’t think too much about it, let alone talk about it.  But it’s there.  And it hurts.  How do we deal with that?  How do we make a change for the good?   How much Should I Give? Over these last few weeks we have been chatting about money matters. Trying, I guess, to take a Kingdom view; a Kingdom of God perspective on this whole issue of money. God talks so much in His Word about money and the influence it has over us – the fact that it can drag it away from Him as we chase so hard after the riches of this world. First Timothy chapter 6, verse 10, says that: The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from their faith and pierced themselves with many pains. We are so eager in our love of money, at least we can be, that we wander away from our faith in God, little by little, and before we know it, we have pierced ourselves with many, many pains. I was in a lift, an elevator in a large shopping centre, the other day and stood next to a young woman with a young child in a pram and she had cut marks all down her arms – self mutilation; cutting that had left scars. Horrible! And you wonder, "Why does she do that?" It’s the same with the love of money, we pierce ourselves with many pains, it leaves scars. And you have to ask yourself, ‘Why do we do that?’ Because it’s the most natural thing in the world for a person to do, to chase after wealth. The problem is it only brings pain. And what we are seeing over these last few weeks together is that God offers us a solution, a very simple solution, to give into His work – generously, sacrificially. That’s what sets us free from the pain, the devastating impact of the love of money, which is the root of all kinds of evil. One of the things that people often ask me is, "How much should I give? If I indeed need to let God heal me of this malady for my giving, how much should I give?" The Old Testament talks about tithing – should I give a tithe; a tenth of my income? Will that do? It that the answer; is that the formula?’ Funny how we are all looking for a formula isn’t it? "I’ll set up a direct debit of ten percent to my church and then I’ll be free." Tithing comes from the Old Testament Law; the Torah. God’s people in the Old Testament were commanded to give ten percent. It was a legal requirement for them, much as paying taxes is a legal requirement for you and for me. This finds its roots way back in Genesis chapter 14, verse 20, when Abraham gives thanks to the Lord. It works its way into the Law so that the Levites can be ministers to God’s people to pay, in effect for their ministry. And we see quite often how God uses the tithe to bring His people back to Himself through obedience. That oft quoted passage on tithing – you may have heard it, in Malachi chapter 3 – is set in the context of God’s people having wandered away from Him, realised that and asks Him for a path back and He gives it to them through this one simple act. Read it for yourself. Malachi chapter 3, verses 7 to 12, towards the end of the Old Testament. Have a listen: Ever since the days of your ancestors you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. “Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. But you say, “How shall we return?” Will anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing me! But you say, “How are we robbing you?” In your tithes and offerings! You are accursed with a curse, for you are robbing me—the whole nation of you! Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing. Do you see how, God, through this one command in the Law is giving them a solution to their wandering off from Him? I wonder if it isn’t a solution for someone today. But the tithe, the giving of one tenth is no longer a legal requirement. People who believe in Jesus are Christians and they are no longer under the law of the Old Testament; we are under the law of grace. We walk according to the Spirit of God. Indeed, as the Apostle Paul, in Romans chapter 8, verse 3, says: … the reason is that God, by sending His Son, has done what the law weakened by the flesh couldn’t do. He’s dealt with our sin. Do I think tithing is a good idea? I think it’s a great idea, a brilliant idea and I would encourage anyone who has strayed away from God to return to Him and through this one simple principle, make a sacrifice to God. The good thing about one tenth is that it typically represents a fair chunk of our discretionary expenditure. We all have bills, we have to have somewhere to live and rent, mortgage and food and clothing and all those things – they consume, for most of us, most of our income. What’s left is the money that we use for discretionary expenditure. Giving a tenth of our household income to God restricts our discretionary expenditure. It’s a significant sacrifice and it’s changed many a heart. Remember that’s what God after all, wants – our hearts. He knows that our hearts are linked to our wallets and that’s why He calls for this sacrifice. But do I think that tithing is the answer is that what God is looking for? No! James L. Kraft, the founder of the Kraft Phoenix Cheese Corporation, still a household name in many parts of the world today, was well known as a tither. When asked whether he believed in tithing he said, ‘No, although I guess it’s not a bad place to start.” If someone is looking to honour God, to invest their treasurer in heaven rather than here on earth, as Jesus taught, how much should they give? Well, the answer I think lies in Second Corinthians chapter 8. Have a listen. Paul is asking the Corinthians to contribute to his ministry. It’s a fundraising letter, if you will, at least, this chapter is: We want you to know, brothers and sisters, about the grace of God that has been granted to the churches of Macedonia; (Remember he is writing to the Corinthians here. He is talking about the Macedonian church. He says about them,) for during a severe ordeal of affliction, their abundant joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For, as I can testify, they voluntarily gave according to their means, and even beyond their means, begging us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints—and this, not merely as we expected; they gave themselves first to the Lord and, by the will of God, to us, so that we might urge Titus that, as he had already made a beginning, so he should also complete this generous undertaking among you. Now as you excel in everything — in faith, in speech, in knowledge, in utmost eagerness, and in our love for you — so we want you to excel also in this generous undertaking. I do not say this as a command, but I am testing the genuineness of your love against the earnestness of others. For you know the generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that by his poverty you might become rich.” So, two things: the first is that the Macedonians themselves were struggling terribly. In those days that meant not having enough food to eat. But even though they themselves were going through an ordeal of affliction and extreme poverty, they were generous. They gave beyond their means, to God’s work, through Paul. In fact, they begged him for the privilege of giving. Imagine what this world would look like if we did the ...

Released on 22 Nov 2020