Bible Studies

TITHING The preachers have it wrong

by John Tyler
06/04/15
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GIVING MONEY VERSUS TITHING - WHAT JESUS SAID Let me state up front that 95% of church leaders call for individuals to TITHE - and they are teaching wrong! Don't be upset with me until you read this entire message. Not only are these "clergy" teaching giving wrong, they are not using faith - the faith that they tell us to have. Also, they are depriving church members of the many blessings concerning MONEY that God and Jesus tell us they want us to have. Okay - let's get right to the heart of the subject of MONEY - according to God's Word and not an opinion of this author. There are TEN REASONS why church attendance is way down. The number one reason is from the lips of those who took the survey. "I don't attend church anymore because all they want is my MONEY." 37% of divorces are over MONEY. 70% of people live paycheck to paycheck - Why? (I'm about to demonstrate why). 46% of us don't even have $10,000 saved up for retirement! If a family gets an unexpected bill (say $1,500 to fix a furnace), they have to pay it using a credit card! - Why? (I'm going to tell you shortly). 4,000 churches close their door EACH YEAR - for lack of money. 1,700 "clergy" leave their ministry EVERY MONTH- because churches can't pay them enough money to take care of their family�s needs - so, these preachers go to work for Burger King where they can make $400.00 a week! You laugh - but it's true! God speaks about MONEY over 1009 times in the Bible. When I say MONEY, I mean that God uses these terms: Wealth, mammon, lucre, silver, gold, treasure, talents....so it's very important for us to learn about MONEY according to what the Bible actually teaches. Jesus spoke more about MONEY than He did about heaven and hell - COMBINED! Luke the physician and friend of Jesus (but not an apostle) - wrote the Book of Acts and the Book of Luke. In Luke, he writes about MONEY one time out of every seven verses! Jesus spoke 39 parables (earthly story with a heavenly meaning) and, of those, eleven (11) of them (that's 35% of them) speak about MONEY, so MONEY is a very important subject for God to teach us about. God does not need money, nor does His Son, Jesus...so why would they speak of MONEY over 1009 times? Yes, for OUR BENEFIT. All of us fit into one of three categories concerning MONEY. (1) We are IN DEBT - credit card debt, auto leasing debt, mortgage debt - up to our eyeballs. (2) We are content - like the apostle Paul. If we get a bill in the mail - we write a check and pay it. (3) We have so much money that we hardly know what to do with it. Pastors usually want a show of hands when this statement is made! :) The FIRST THING we have to know about MONEY is who owns it all. God tells us in the Book of Haggai 2:8 - "All the silver and gold is mine." He makes the statement that all of the wealth in the world (not paper currency which is worthless)....is His. So, who gives you and me the power to GET WEALTH that God owns? God spells that out in Deuteronomy 8:18. "Remember the Lord thy God for it is HE who gives us the power to GET WEALTH." The second thing God wants us to know and do - is to GET OUT OF DEBT. You ask, "Where does it say that?" We can start in the Old Testament if you like. Remember the story of the old widow woman whose husband worked for Elisha the prophet of God? - 2 Kings, Chapter 4. Well, her husband died, and she approached Elisha to say, "The CREDITORS have come to take my two grown sons from me to WORK AS SLAVES for them until the debts are repaid." The lesson we should get from that is this: If we are a DEBTOR to a CREDITOR...we are the slaves and they are the masters. Jesus had a lot to say about getting out of debt, too. He tells us to have a BUDGET. "If we cannot count it - we cannot manage it." "Where does He tell us to have a BUDGET, John?" Luke 14:28 and 29 clearly tells us this: (in red letters- so Jesus said it)...."For which of YOU intending to build a tower (now it would be house or building) does not sit down FIRST, and COUNT THE COST - whether you have enough (MONEY) to finish it? Jesus continues in verse 29 to tell us of a builder who started a project - and only got the foundation in...because he ran out of money and never had a BUDGET! His friends and relatives laughed him silly because he didn't have a BUDGET, so all the weeds began to grow in and around his foundation that eventually deteriorated into dust! So, I can tell you this from first-hand experience - God will NOT bless you financially until YOU develop a budget and get out of debt. You can do what I did...go online to www.OpenOffice.org, and download their FREE spreadsheet and use it as your budget. It's really easy to use. I'm a senior citizen and I figured it out! Now comes the TOUGH QUESTION! "WHY DO WE GIVE MONEY TO THE CHURCH?" If I was standing before your congregation right now, I would be the only one in church to tell the truth! "WE ARE TAUGHT THE MANDATE OF TITHING - GIVING UNDER COMPULSION - IT'S MANDATORY THAT WE MUST TITHE - WHICH IS TO GIVE TEN PERCENT OF OUR INCOME (gross or take-home will be taught momentarily...and both are wrong)...... Our leaders have hammered Malachi 3:7-12 into our brains since birth! "WHAT - WILL A MAN (OR WOMAN) ROB GOD? HOW? - IN TITHES AND OFFERINGS". I used to go on a guilt trip every time I heard that. I would say to God, "I don't want to rob you...am I doing everything right?" I used to bother preachers somewhat back in the day that I learned how to give - why to give - what to give to - how much - and all from the New and Old Testaments! I would ask the preacher - "What does this mean?", and I would ask him to read Galatians 3:12 with me. Let's read it together - YOU AND ME! - "WE WHO TRUST CHRIST ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW ANYMORE. IN FACT, THE LAW IS NOT BASED ON FAITH...ON THE CONTRARY, ANYONE WHO LIVES UNDER THE LAW MUST LIVE BY THAT LAW." I would say, "Pastor...this tells me that I'm not under THE LAW anymore and it tells me that If I trust Christ...the LAW is not based on FAITH at all." Pastor - the LAW is NOT BASED ON FAITH! It became logical that if I was mandated to TITHE - under THE LAW, then it takes NO FAITH to do that LAW....simply because it is THE LAW. But I am NOT under THE LAW, Jesus told me. So, the preachers would have to get their old Seminary Manual out to find a way to transition me from the Old Testament Law given to Jews by their Jewish prophet Malachi. Their Seminary Manual taught them to relate the story in Matthew 23:23 about the time Jesus approached a Pharisee...so, let's visit that scene together. Jesus reamed out the Pharisees in starting in verse 13 where He condemned them from directing their congregations away from heaven, and for taking the homes of widows when they could no longer afford to pay for them...but in verse 23, Jesus said, "Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees......" - "WOE" means - "Oh, the sorrow that awaits you".....so Jesus wasn't real happy with them. In fact, Jesus once told them, "You guys are like whited sepulchers (burial tombs) ....all nice and squeaky on the outside...but you are really like the decayed remains of what is on the inside - because you steal from widows, and rob the poor, and teach people traditions of men, rather than things that would get them into heaven. "Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees - hypocrites! You pay a TITHE of your spices (mint, anise , and cumin. You have omitted the weightier (more important) things of THE LAW....like judgment, mercy and faith: these you should be doing and NOT LEAVE THE OTHER (TITHING) UNDONE." "Aha", said the Seminary teachers to their pastor students, "this is what you preachers need to hammer into the brains of your congregation.....Jesus is telling us that we are NOT to leave this Law of TITHING undone." So, there it is...the transition from the Old Testament to the New Testament. The Seminaries taught their pastor students, who taught their congregations, and it was passed down from teacher to teacher - pastor to pastor - to where 95% of them (clergy) teach it to their congregations - even in 2015. Ah, but let's go back to that very scene again. Here is Jesus...looking the Pharisees and Sadducees in the eye and telling them His disdain for them. Who were these Pharisees and Sadducees? They were part of the 71 member Sanhedrin....those who were like our Supreme Court. They ruled on the LAWS OF MOSES, and made sure every Temple member obeyed the letter of THE LAWS OF MOSES. Jesus was telling these JEWISH leaders and rulers of THE LAWS OF MOSES that they "ought not leave TITHING undone....because - as JEWISH LAW RULERS...they couldn't leave it undone. How would that look to their congregations if they did not keep THE LAWS they ruled on? So, Jesus was telling the JEWISH LAW MAKERS that they must continue to tithe....and nowhere does Jesus tell the Gentiles (us) that we must obey THE LAWS of Moses. He tells us the OPPOSITE...."There is NO FAITH if we live under THE LAW, which is THE LAWS OF MOSES." - Galatians 3:12. Ah, but there is another verse in the New Testament that all of these preachers (clergy) avoid telling us about! I call it the "redacted verse" because it must be blacked out....nobody in the pulpits stop at this Bible verse! WHY NOT? Here's WHY NOT! This Bible verse in Hebrews 7:5 clearly spells out WHO is supposed to collect a TITHE...and from WHOM. Let's go read that redacted Bible verse together........"Now THE LAW requires".......(what Law? - The LAW OF MOSES)...."That the descendants of LEVI".......(Those are the only ones of the twelve tribes of Israel who can become priests in God's Holy Temple)......"who become priests (now called Rabbis) ...."collect a TENTH (Tithe) from the people".......(What people?...Jesus, through His unknown writer of the Book of Hebrews spell that out, too) ...."that is from their fellow ISRAELITES....even thought they are also descended from Abraham." In that verse alone, we now realize that God's WORD tells us that the JEWISH Levite priests are the only ones who should be collecting a tenth - and from their brethren...the other eleven tribes of Israel.......and He adds, "Even though those ISRAELITES are also descendents of Abraham." Jesus, by way of His writer of Hebrews, tells us that the ISRAELITES - JEWS - must pay the tithe...."even though they are also descendents of Abraham...the patriarch of Judaism. Here is why Jesus added those words. Abraham was NOT A JEW. Abraham had two sons....Ishmael was the first.....and he was an ARAB...from the loins of Hagar, his Egyptian mother whom Abraham had sex with. He was supposed to have a child with Sarah, but he and Sarah both laughed at God and said, It is not possible for us to have a child together, so Sarah told him to have a child with her Arab handmaiden, Hagar. Thirteen years later, Abraham and Sarah conceived and bore a son named Isaac. This was the son that God intended to bring the nation of ISRAEL through. Isaac was NOT a JEW nor an ISRAELITE. Isaac had two sons - Esau and Jacob. It was later in Jacob's life that God told him, "Jacob...yo will not be called Jacob anymore by me. Jacob "the supplanter" or sneaky one (because he stole his firstborn brother Esau's birthright over a bowl of stew), - from now on you will be called "ISRAEL". SO, ISRAEL was born with the advent of the naming of JACOB.....and JACOB or ISRAEL had twelve sons. They would become the "twelve tribes of Jacob" or the "twelve tribes of ISRAEL" This is why Hebrews 7:5 tells us that ISRAELITES - JEWS shall pay a tithe...even though they descended from Abraham a NON-ISRAELITE and from his son, Isaac - a non- ISRAELITE. THEREFORE - ONLY JEWISH LEVITE PRIESTS ARE ALLOWED TO COLLECT A TITHE FROM THEIR JEWISH CONGREGATIONS, and that still holds true today, and I will demonstrate why - directly from God's Word....in the Old Testament. Are YOU Jewish? No. And, if you are Jewish, but are now a follower of Christ, you are exempt from having to pay a MANDATED TITHE under the LAW OF MOSES. We now must know why God chose LEVITES to become His priests in His Holy Temple. Quickly, There's a story in Exodus 32 that tells the story about how Moses came down from a 40-day meeting with God in the mountain, and he brought with him ten tablets of stone - THE TEN COMMANDMENTS. When he came down to the base of he mountain, he saw his brother, Aaron - and the entire congregation of Israel drunk and half-naked...and they were all worshiping a golden calf idol that they had fashioned while Moses was away the short 40-days talking wit God. God said, "Moses - get out of the way for I am going to wipe these Israelite s off the face of the earth - much as I did in Noah's generation." Moses had a tine of reasoning with God and God decided to let Moses handle the situation. Moses asked the Israelites...."Who will stand with me - your anointed leader by God, and who trusts God enough to stand with me and let's move forward?" Only the tribe of Levi stood behind Moses. Only the tribe of Levi trusted God and His leader. THIS IS WHY GOD CHOSE ONLY THOSE FROM THE TRIBE OF LEVI TO BE HIS PRIESTS IN HIS HOLY TEMPLE, AND HE NOW TELLS US IN NUMBERS 18:6 - HOW HE IS GOING TO PAY HIS CHOSEN PRIESTS. Numbers 18:6 - "I, God, have chosen your fellow Levites from among the tribes ...to be used for my service in my tabernacle." In Number 18:21, God tells Israel - for the first time in the history of mankind.....that He wants money to be exchanged. He wants the tribes of Israel to USE MONEY to pay for something specific. "As for the tribe of Levi, I will compensate them for their service in my tabernacle"...(here's how)..."Rather than giving them an allotment of land".... (Joshua would divvy the promised land up by lottery to all eleven tribes, but none to Levi...once they get to the Promised Land)......"I will give them THE TITHES from the entire land of ISRAEL..." (the other eleven tribes). Hebrews 7:5 had to be written to the JEWS because right after Malachi told ISRAEL to TITHE...and NOT ROB GOD, they robbed God anyway. So, God exiled all of ISRAEL for 400 years, and did not speak to them again for that long period of history - until Jesus came upon the scene in the year zero A.D. - "Anno Domini" - The "Year of Our Lord". 400 years is a long time. JEWS would forget the law imposed by God way back in Numbers 18:22-24, so the writer of Hebrews spells out that mandate of tithing TO JEWS ONLY from Numbers 18. God said, "THIS IS A PERMANENT LAW FOR YOU (JEWS) TO BE OBSERVED FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION (FOREVER)." That, my friend, is specifically WHY Hebrews 7:5 was written to the JEWS....it is a permanent (FOREVER) Law of Moses that those who live under THE LAW must continue to observe....and Rabbis must still take a TITHE from their ISRAELITES. Okay, John..."Maybe I'm convinced that we don't have to tithe and we are not JEWS and nobody but a Levite priest can take a tithe......so how do we give according to Jesus now? How will my church survive?" The PRINCIPLE OF TITHING MUST BE TAUGHT. I say the PRINCIPLE of tithing must be taught - but not as a LAW OF MOSES - a MANDATE - COMPULSION.......and here's the PRINCIPLE that God wanted to teach us about TITHING. He told us - in the Old Testament Book of Numbers, that it takes money to pay for the priests to operate....the TEMPLE cost money to operate. God spelled out that it costs specifically ten percent of the congregations' MONEY to support the temple or church now. In fact, when Malachi said these words, "Bring ye all the tithes (a full ten percent) into the STOREHOUSE...that there may be MEAT in my house." The Temple had a huge STOREHOUSE behind it. Malachi instructed ISRAEL (and now us) that a tenth of the congregation's income (which was food grown by farmers, or meat raised by herdsmen, or MONEY raised by investors from Israel) was ALL to be brought into the STOREHOUSE for the purposes of feeding the priests who had no other inheritance or means of income....and the food was also used to help the POOR within the community. The "MEAT" or FOOD was distributed to the POOR. James tells us to CONTINUE doing this. In James 1:27, He tells us, "PURE RELIGION in the sight of God the Father, means caring form the orphans and widows (and poor) in their distress..." This is exactly right, and what the Old Testament Jews did with the MEAT in the STOREHOUSE. So, the principle that it takes ten percent of the congregation's income to pay for the church obligations is what needs to be taught. You should now be saying, "John, are you telling me that God wants ten percent (not mandatory) out of my wallet...and then Jesus is going to want more?" Short answer is "YES", but Jesus is also now going to tell us how HE plans to give you so much MONEY that you can easily do both - and still have plenty of MONEY left over for yourself! THIS IS WHAT IS MISSING IN THE PRINCIPLE OF GIVING TODAY! It's all about the TITHE, and the TITHE only covers the "nut" - the obligations of the church. How then, can Jesus accomplish much greater things through His church? All of the New Testament teaching about giving is all coming up next. Glad you stayed with me this far! PRINCIPLES OF GIVING IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Okay...we should now KNOW that God would like us to give ten percent of our income (I'll explain whether gross or net in awhile) to support HIS HOUSE. This is the PRINCIPLE of the Old Testament that needs to be taught. Now, we shall learn that God will take care of ALL OF OUR NEEDS...and then Jesus will show us how He will take care of our Daily Bread Needs ..and give us an ABUNDANCE to spend on OUR DESIRES. God essentially passed the torch to His Son, Jesus in the New Testament. If you recall the beginning of Jesus' ministry, He was standing in the River Jordan with John The Baptizer. A voice from heaven said, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased...from now on - hear ye Him." - Matthew 17:5 God was telling us that He is stepping aside and His teachings (through His prophets) was coming to an end...and from now on, "LISTEN TO THE TEACHINGS OF JESUS, MY SON." All 630 laws of Moses were set into TWO NEW COMMANDMENTS by Jesus. "Love the Lord, your God and love your neighbor as yourself for all of the Commandments lie within those two." Everything from day one of Jesus' ministry is geared toward voluntarily doing things because we love Him. "If you love me - keep my commandments...my teachings." The FIRST New Testament PRINCIPLE of giving from Jesus comes from Philippians 4:13 when Jesus told us, "My God shall supply ALL YOUR NEEDS..." Okay, there's the first part of the Promises of Jesus....His Father will supply everything we NEED...not WANT...NEED. How will God supply our NEEDS? He continues in Philippians 4:13...."according to His riches in Glory"...... Do you recall that God said that He owns ALL THE SILVER AND GOLD - ALL THE WEALTH? This is what Jesus was referring us to....."My Father will supply ALL of your NEEDS because He, in Heaven (Glory) owns all the wealth, and only He can give US the power to get it." The verse continues to tell us that God will supply all of our needs according to His riches (wealth) that He hold from heaven..."THROUGH CHRIST JESUS." What does that mean? God told us to now LISTEN TO WHAT JESUS TEACHES US....."Through Christ Jesus means that Jesus will now teach us all that we need to know (especially about MONEY) as Christians - Christ followers....not JEWS unless we are born again Jews, which makes us Christians. God makes us a PROMISE right up front in Matthew 6:33. We've read it a million times, but somehow...we don't really understand it. God makes a PROMISE to take care of our DAILY BREAD NEEDS - if we do something first. He says, "Seek ye FIRST - the kingdom of Heaven"..and if you do, ALL THESE THINGS shall be given to you." Okay...How do we seek the kingdom of heaven? How do we get into heaven? There is only ONE WAY to get into heaven, and that is to call upon the name of Jesus to "be saved"....saved from The Lake of Fire, and saved into heaven. Jesus tells us how to do that. He said, in John 14:6, "I am the way into heaven...I am the truth, and I am the life (eternally speaking), and NOBODY gets to the Father (who is in heaven) unless they go through me." It is also said, by Jesus in John 3:3, "Unless a man (or woman) is born again, they cannot enter the kingdom of heaven." Finally, Jesus said, in Acts 4:12 "There is SALVATION in no one else."..(no guru, Imam, prophet, saint, monk....no one)..."For there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved." THEREFORE, God is telling us that if we SEEK THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN through His Son, Jesus (the only way), then ALL THESE THINGS shall be given to us." What things? Our desires...a new car, boat or Golf Course Membership? No - He spells what THESE THINGS are in Matthew 6:24-33..."Why concern yourself over food. clothing or shelter (your DAILY BREAD NEEDS)? ..."Even the Gentiles seek after THESE THINGS." - Matthew 6:32. THESE THINGS are DAILY BREAD NEEDS....Food, clothing and shelter. God PROMISES to take care of those Daily Bread Needs immediately upon our seeking (and finding) the only way into heaven - through repentance and salvation that is found only in His beloved Son, Jesus. To emphasize this, Jesus instructed us in His famous prayer....Ask the Father to "Give us THIS DAY...our DAILY BREAD"...trust God to deliver on His promise. Where did Jesus get that from? Remember the ISRAELITES - wandering in the wilderness for forty years (because they continuously failed to trust God)? They complained - "Where is something to eat?" God dropped a BREAD FROM HEAVEN...onto the desert floor - EACH DAY. He said, "Do not take more than one day's needs". They did! God turned the extra into worms. He told us that He wanted ISRAEL to trust Him for their DAILY BREAD (also water from a rock and quail from the skies), and to trust Him for TOMORROW'S NEEDS tomorrow. Back then, God supplied Israel's DAILY BREAD NEEDS each day. This is why Jesus repeated that story in His "Lord's Prayer". "Lord, give us today what we need, and take no thought for tomorrow Let us trust you for today's needs only." So, we now know that God promises to take care of our DAILY BREAD (budgeted) items if we FIRST seek His Son, and the reward of heaven. Now, Jesus teaches us further - how to GET EXTRA MONEY to take care of what HE wants...over and above the money that is needed to operate the church. Remember Haggai? Well, he pointed out that God was concerned about HIS HOUSE - and OUR HOUSE. Sorry for this long dissertation, but if you don't get the full concept of giving - you'll likely never get it somewhere else! God said, through Haggai, "1:4 - Is it time for you to dwell in your fancy homes, and my house lies desolate?" This is why God spelled out that the congregation needs to give money to operate HIS HOUSE- the Church (or Temple if you are Jewish)....But, for Jews, it's the PERMANENT LAW OF MOSES that they choose to live under. For Christ followers, it is not a mandate...it is simply an instruction that you ought to follow...but from your heart because you realize that God pointed out the needs....and that He will take care of getting you the money for THAT ...and extra for yourself..through the teachings of His Son. Jesus teaches us - in Matthew 25:14 and beyond..the PARABLE OF THE STEWARDS". We hear it preached to us. We read it...BUT - we don't really get it because we are brainwashed with TITHING. What we say to our-self when we read this parable - or hear it preached....or anything else that deals with MONEY...."I am already forced into paying ten percent of my income, so I'm struggling to meet that obligation...I don't want to hear about giving any more!" So this time, let's read it and HEAR what Jesus was really trying to teach us about how HE WILL GIVE US TONS OF EXTRA MONEY to meet the obligations of God's house - and our house. Now that your minds are free to listen because you have absorbed all that is being taught here....let's move forward to the real SECRET of giving....the New Testament way. Jesus tell us a PARABLE (earthly story with a heavenly meaning)...."Now the kingdom of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country...." - We all know that Jesus is talking about Himself leavening heaven for a far country - the earth...."and THE MASTER calls His servants to himself...." Jesus refers to Himself as the MASTER, and He calls to Himself His servants. We realize that He is our Master, and we are His servants. Here's what 99% of the congregations miss! The Master is now teaching us the EARTHLY part of His story. He calls His servants to Himself. What the MASTER DID NOT SAY, and what we DO NOT GET, is this: He did NOT SAY, "Hey- guys...you all know that I have this huge earthly estate here, and you work for me. You know that I have given you your DAILY BREAD NEEDS...for free. I have provided housing for you...food and clothing, too. I'm not here to ask you to pay me a percentage of what that has cost me - I freely provided those DAILY BREAD NEEDS for you and your family." No. The MASTER said this next: "And He delivered to His servants HIS RESOURCES - HIS MONEY." Jesus tells us that the MASTER put EXTRA MONEY - AN ABUNDANCE - PROSEPERITY - into each of the THREE SERVANT'S HANDS. He did that because He wanted to now TEST His servants....just like He will ALWAYS TEST US WITH EXTRA MONEY to see what we will do with it. Now, here is what we also missed while covering this PARABLE: We missed the fact that Jesus tells us HE WANTS TO GIVE US EXTRA MONEY - TO TEST US. He said, "I am going away on a journey, but I will return and I want you to give an account of what you did with the money I wanted you to INVEST IN MY KINGDOM." Jesus wants you and I to know that He will be coming back and He wants you and ME to give an account of that money that he trusted us with to invest in His kingdom. The first guy - "George" said, "I invested that PROSPERITY (over and above what you provided for my DAILY BREAD ITEMS), and I doubled it!" Here's MORE of what we did not hear or understand........Jesus (The MASTER) told the servant, "Well done - you good and faithful servant....because you did this, and I can now trust you, I will make you RULER OVER MANY THINGS." Jesus wants to teach us that He will make US "ruler over many things".....here on the earth...We will become even MORE PROSPEROUS because we invested HIS MONEY into HIS KINGDOM. He established already that God will take care of our DAILY BREAD NEEDS when we ask Jesus to save us....but now, in the PARABLE, He is teaching us that He wants to TEST us with MONEY to see if we will be trustworthy and invest it into His Kingdom....and if we do, He will reward us by giving us MORE PROSPERITY to invest into His Kingdom...and KEEP A LOT FOR OURSELF. I'll be proving this shortly. The second servant - "Fred" doubled the investment for the Master, so the Master promised to make him ruler over many things...to give him MORE PROSPERITY for the Master's work - and for himself to enjoy. Now comes "Iggy" - the third servant. "Iggy, what did you do with the money I trusted you with - to invest in my kingdom?" Iggy said, "I knew that you were going to be tough so I was too afraid to do anything with the MONEY you put into my hands...I did NOTHING with it...I buried it because I figured you'd yell at me if I didn't invest it right." My friends, this is where the Lord spoke directly to me. You see, God trusted me with MILLIONS of dollars. In 1986, when I had no money at all, He opened a TEST for me. I paid a guy in prison $5,000 for a bunch of land that he was about to lose to the government for running from justice. I won't elaborate on his case, but the opportunity appeared to me. I had zero money, but decided to offer the guy $5,000 in cash (that I would borrow from my MasterCard in my wallet) if he would sign over his lad with $350,000 worth of liens on it that he could never repay anyway. He agreed. I sold a 150 acre parcel to a developer for $1,800,000.00...another for $60,000...another for $60,000.....and kept a 40acre parcel for myself to build a mansion on it overlooking a pond. In December of 2007, I asked God to "Show me your plan and purpose for my life"....and, "Open my eyes spiritually speaking, so that I might read, understand and comprehend YOUR WORD. You wrote your Bible - the Owner's Manual For Life, to me, so please let me read it - and understand it." God honored both prayer requests, but drove me into what I call God's Boot Camp where I had to learn a bunch of tough lessons from Him. I would not trade all of His guidance and wisdom ("if you ask for wisdom, I will give it to you liberally") for anything today, but I wanted to say all that to tell you that God's PROMISES are real - exact....and they happen to those who love Him and who are called according to His purposes. Romans 8:28. I discovered that if we do not ask God..He will not do anything for us. James 4:2-3 - "You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on pleasures." Since then, I have learned to invest in God's Kingdom...and THEN He will bless me abundantly - which He has. BUT - the first thing God showed me was that He would honor His promise of Matthew 6:33 - He provided ALL of my DAILY BREAD BUDGET needs. When Jesus (The MASTER), heard Iggy's sob story...Jesus tells us (in a moment, the details) that He would take Iggy's money from him and give it to others. Iggy did NOTHING with God's TEST MONEY. I cried like a baby for fifteen minutes upon reading that story because I was WORSE THAN IGGY. When Jesus asked me (in my mind), "What did YOU do with those huge sums of TEST MONEY, John?" I had to confess that I not only didn't bury it and do nothing with it - I leveraged God's MONEY! I BORROWED AGAINST GOD'S MONEY. I added DEBT to His investment money! I built a huge mansion on a 40-acre waterfront lot. I bought three Mercedes Benz cars one year! Oh sure, I gave $350,000 to my church so they could buy land next door for their Christian School, but all the rest was blown on ME. Did I do what Jesus instructs us to do with the TEST MONEY? No....I borrowed against that talent (MONEY) He put into my care, custody and control. ...adding plenty of debt to the MONEY He trusted me with. I was totally ashamed to know that I was WORSE THAN IGGY! Here is what The Master said to His other servants standing by - and it is what He tells US as a warning: "Take his money from him!" I'll elaborate in the next paragraph. So, now Jesus teaches us HOW MUCH HE WANTS US TO GIVE. He demonstrated, so far, that God will supply all our NEEDS if we seek out His kingdom - through Jesus (repentance and salvation). Jesus taught us that He will give us plenty of TEST MONEY - like He did the parable of the stewards....and He wants so see how we handle the TEST. "Take the MONEY from this servant (Iggy), and give it to the one who did the most with the TEST MONEY....George. To those who use well what they are given, EVEN MORE WILL BE GIVEN, and THEY WILL HAVE AN ABUNDANCE...But, from those who do nothing (or like Tyler...leverage my MONEY), even what little they have will be taken away." If we FAIL THE TEST of PROSPERITY, what little we do have will be taken away. THIS IS WHY MOST OF THE CONGREGATION IS BROKE TODAY...AND IN CREDIT CARD DEBT, AUTO LOAN DEBT AND MORTGAGE DEBT - UP TO THEIR EYEBALLS! On the other hand, Jesus promised us that "If we use His TEST MONEY well, He will give us MORE, and WE WILL HAVE AN ABUNDANBCE...to use for His kingdom...and for our own pleasures...like the boat, bigger car or better house." Now, let's get to the real meat of the New Testament lessons for giving (and RECEIVING) MONEY. STEP NUMBER ONE - is found in 2 Corinthians 9:7 - Jesus tells us, through His apostle Paul, "Let each of you - - - - -TITHE". Jesus could have taught Paul or Peter - or ANY pastor who started churches all over the area...to "Tell the congregation to TITHE"...but Jesus did not teach them to say that. Yet, Seminary teachers teach it! WHY? I now KNOW WHY. The pastors are AFRAID to trust Christ for their money. How can they teach us to trust Christ when they can't? They are afraid that if they don't hammer the congregation on TITHING, they won't have enough to keep the doors open. But...Jesus wants MORE than just keeping church doors open! No...Jesus did not teach that His churches should TITHE. He said the opposite. "Let each of you give what you have decided to give from your heart." When I first read that, I said to myself..."Boy this is great....I fell like giving ten bucks!" Of course, I realized that God instructed me to voluntarily set aside a tenth of my income to pay for the cost of the church, and that is His PRINCIPLE from the Old Testament. God further instructed me as follows: "John, I already told you that I would take care of your DAILY BREAD NEEDS - your Monthly budget items that you need to pay for DAILY BREAD stuff...like your mortgage, car payment (although I own my car now) and food, clothing and other obligations that you owe others like electricity, heat, etc. In addition, I told you that I did not want MY HOUSE to lie in ruin while your house is fine, so I will include that money for MY HOUSE in your DAILY BREAD BUDGET....I will supply all of that. So, John, If your household budget is $3,000 a month (NEEDS ONLY), add $300. (ten percent) to that a month. That means that your new DAILY BREAD BUDGET is $3,300.00 a month. I will supply all of those needs in accordance with my promise of Philippians 4:13 and Matthew 6:33. Beyond that, my Son, Jesus will show you - like He did the three stewards- how to PROSPER so that you can do what my Son needs done...and have an ABUNDANCE left over for yourself." Jesus taught me (and now YOU), in 2 Corinthians 9:7, "Let each of you give as you decide to in your heart (voluntarily), NOT RELUCTANTLY...NOT UNDER COMPULSION".....which means DO NOT TITHE - UNDER COMPULSION OR MANDATE......."because God loves a CHEERFUL GIVER."...one who gives willingly, cheerfully, and not UNDER COMPULSION which is what the TITHE is....it is a LAW OF MOSES for Jews who live under the LAW. Giving that way takes away FAITH - Galatians 3:12. Okay, we get all that, but WHY SHOULD WE GIVE this NEW TESTAMENT WAY? Lets' learn first, that we must NOT GIVE MONEY that we do not have. I have been told by many a preacher to give sacrificially. I have even heard, "I don�t care that you owe the phone company $100.00...you must give the TITHE first!" Is that Scriptural? Absolutely not! Proof? 2nd Corinthians 8:12. "Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly and GIVE ACCORDING TO WHAT YOU DO HAVE - NOT FROM WHAT YOU DO NOT HAVE." Therefore, if you steal MONEY from the obligation you have to pay a bill, it's NOT YOUR MONEY...it's THEIR MONEY. Do NOT give according to what is NOT YOURS." And preachers wonder, "Why are the congregation members slowly dwindling down to where the church cannot keep the doors open any longer?" Duh! What is the closest thing to God's heart? What about the closest thing to the heart of Jesus? Jesus makes that question plainly answered in Mark 16:15. He instructed His apostles (and us) to "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel message." Jesus is interested only in saving souls for the Kingdom of Heaven. He then eliminates any doubt whatsoever about His Fathers' will. In John 6:40 Jesus says, "And this is the will of Him who sent me...that all who see the Son - and believe shall have eternal life." So the MOST IMPORTANT thing to God the Father, and God the Son....is SOUL SAVING, and using MONEY to get that work done. Let's find out WHY JESUS WANTS US TO USE OUR MONEY in the New Testament. Pastors have preached on Luke 16:9-13, but many miss the context and the point. The SOLE REASON that Jesus wants to give us PROSPERITY or ABUNDANCE of MONEY is found in one verse.....Luke 16:9. Let's read it together...... "I Jesus tell you this: Go and make friends with your unrighteous mammon (MONEY) so that when YOU FAIL, they will welcome you into heavenly habitations." (Most versions - other than the KJV, say "when the MONEY fails...and we miss God's intent. "When WE FAIL or DIE" is what Jesus is saying. Jesus does not mean for us to use the MONEY He puts into our hands to invite ten friends to Joe's Bar and Pizza parlor. Jesus always means things in the light of ETERNAL THINGS. Now, let's read that in English. "I Jesus, tell you this: Go and win ETERNAL FRIENDS with the money that I entrusted you with so that when you die...and cannot give another dime to my work (winning souls), these eternal friends that you won into heaven using your money will welcome you in." Example: I die...I enter heaven. 100 people head my way. The first says, "John - thank you for obeying Jesus's words in Luke 16:9. You gave your money (invested it) into His kingdom..Thank you." THAT IS THE SOLE PURPOSE FOR JESUS TO GIVE YOU OR ME ANY MONEY....TO WIN SOULS INTO TE KINGDOM...AND TO HAVE AN ABUNDANCE FOR OURSELVES - "making us ruler over many things here on the earth"....to gain PROSPERITY here. Now, Jesus will teach us THE REST OF THE STORY. If we give to His kingdom (Luke 16:9), He tells us this PRINCIPLE: - Verse 10-13 - "Whoever (you or me) can be trusted with very little (MONEY, for it is Unrighteous Mammon that He speaks of), can also be trusted with MUCH MONEY. Whoever (you or me) is dishonest with very little (THE TEST MONEY) ...(Like John Tyler was with blowing over two million on himself), will be dishonest with much money. So, if YOU have not been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth (MONEY), do you really think that I will trust you with true riches - souls? No way! "And, if you have not been trustworthy with MY RESOURCES (that wealth that God told us He owns in Haggai 2:8) , do you think that I will give you resources (MONEY) of your own?" Clearly the answer is NO, and this is why 99% of the congregation is broke and in debt! Verse 13: "Nobody can serve two masters. You cannot put MONEY first and God second. Either you will look at MONEY as a resource to be used for God's Kingdom primarily, or you will view MONEY as something for YOUR KINGDOM primarily and thereby you would be putting God behind money. "Thou shalt have NO OTHER GODS BEFORE ME" First commandment in Exodus 20. Once we get our MONEY PRIORITY straight, Jesus tells us more about money. Is TITHING - or giving the New Testament way - a Weekly (Sunday ) thing? NO! Oh sure, we are taught from 1 Corinthians 16:2...this: "Upon the first day of the week (Sunday), let each of you lay by him (or her) in store, as God hath prospered you that there be no gatherings when I come." From that verse, preachers tell us that God wants us to bring the TITHE into the STOREHOUSE every Sunday. This is totally WRONG, and out of context. I asked myself this question...and Googled it: "Why did Paul say to the church at Corinth (1 Corinthians 16:1-2) - 'Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye. Upon the first day of the week (Sunday), let EACH OF YOU lay by him (or her) in store (save up) as God has prospered you (over and above His meeting your daily bread needs), that there be no gatherings when I come...(I won't have to take up an offering when I arrive...start setting it aside now)." The sole answer to that question is found in Romans 15:26 - Paul says to the church at Rome, "For it has pleased them in Macedonia and Achaia (both in Greece -as are the churches of Thessalonica - the present capital of Greece, and Phillippi) - to make a certain contribution for the poor saints at Jerusalem." Now, Paul is speaking in 1 Corinthians.....the church at Corinth about that same offering. If you trace Paul's footsteps, you would see that Corinth is in Greece. South of there is Turkey where Galatia and Ephesus are located, and south of there is Israel and Jerusalem in particular. From Corinth to Jerusalem is a road trip of 1890 miles. It would take Paul a long time to travel from Corinth to Jerusalem. When Paul was speaking to the church at Rome (now Romans 15:27-29), he tells them, "It has pleased them (the churches making the contributions) because, indeed, these churches owe the main church at Jerusalem because they have sent us and others out to them to bring the salvation of the Gospel of Christ to them, so they are thrilled at the notion of sharing their financial blessings (prosperity) with the main church at Jerusalem. So, AFTER I have completed the task and have made sure that they (Jerusalem) have received this contribution, I will go to Spain - but I will stop by here in Rome to visit with you once again." So there you go...SOLVED. I say all of that to prove (prove the Bible with the Bible) that the verse quoted by Paul the apostle was NOT, "Bring a TITHE in each Sunday)." The fact is that we can bring in the offering (the amount of PROSPERITY that God has decided to place in our possession) to church and give it at any time...once a week...once every two weeks...once a month. But, from that verse we do discover a truth...several of them. Paul did NOT say, "On the first day of the week (Sunday) let each of you TITHE." He could have said that. Nowhere in all of the New Testament does Jesus instruct any of His apostles or preachers at ANY CHURCH (Corinth, Ephesus, Macedonia, Rome, even the main church at Jerusalem where Peter was the leader....NOWHERE..did He teach those men to have people bring a TITHE. No, Paul said, I want you to give as Jesus has PROSPERED YOU...just like He did with the three stewards. From YOUR ABUNDANCE (over and above what you need to operate your home and God's house)......bring that money....from the goodness of your heart or as the Holy Spirit leads you to give. Now, Jesus instructs us (YOU AND ME) exactly HOW MUCH TO GIVE, and it is NOT a TITHE. 2nd Corinthians 9:6 tells us exactly how Jesus wants us to give, and HOW MUCH. How can Jesus be clearer than this? "But I tell you for sure....He (or she) who INVESTS SPARINGLY in my work....(which is willing souls into the kingdom), They shall also reap SPARINGLY." - "You give to me cheap...I;ll return back to you cheap." ...."But, Whoever gives BOUNTIFULLY to my work..they are the ones who will get back BOUNTIFULLY from me." That, my friend, is the SECRET of giving the New Testament way.....YOU GIVE CHEAP TO MY WORK- YOU GET CHEAP BACK....YOU GIVE ABUNDANTLY TO MY WORK...I"LL MAKE SURE THAT I GIVE BACK TO YOU ABUNDANTLY! Some church leaders recently told their audience (where I sneak in to listen here and there) that they have learned a principle of TITHING, and that is that their church now TITHES (gives ten percent of the total income of the church) to other missionary outreaches, and "As a result of that, God is opening doors of blessings for us that we have never before experienced." They say that intending to prove somehow that TITHING is Biblical. The facts remain that they are learning (by default) that God gives BOUTIFULLY to their church when they give BOUNTIFULLY to His work, which is to "Spread the gospel throughout the world". God's blessings upon them has NOTHING to do with the fact that they are TITHING. It has to do with the PRINCIPLE of, "You give to my work BOUNTIFULLY, I'll return the favor." So, I'm done...except for leaving you with these pearls of wisdom: Ask God to show you His plan and purpose for your life. He did not do it for me until I asked Him to do it. Sort of like Jesus and the blind beggar - Bartimaeus. of Mark Chapter Ten. Jesus knew he was blind as a bat, yet He asked him, "What is it that you want me to do for you?" Unless we ask...we won't get. Then, ask God to open your spiritual eyesight so that you can read, understand and comprehend His Words found in the Bible. He will do it for you. If it's MONEY that you need.....asking won't do it. You FIRST have to seek the kingdom of heaven (Accept Jesus as your Lord & Savior) - then God will take care of your DAILY BREAD NEEDS. Then, if Jesus decided to test you with MONEY...learn from this message, and do it His way. From that standpoint, you will learn...you will be TESTED..and you will grow. Be patient because TESTING takes time. God wants you to be more conforming to His Son's ways than your own, so that involves teaching. Learn well, my friend. P.S. I did a complete 1.5 hour video of this on my YouTube channel, so if you would like to share this information with your preacher or friend...copy and paste this link into your browser. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yObBHIHstwc John Tyler, Author of nine books. FIVE of my books are bible-bases, so those are FREE! www.RelationshipBooks.com