Tithing Is No Quick Fix
Often tithing proponents promise all kinds of blessings to anyone who gives a tithe: prosperity, health, happiness, success and who knows what else. They also make a scene when anyone receives an unexpected monetary increase after giving their first tithe payment. They sound more like travelling salesmen offering cure-all elixirs. When someone suggests they may not be right they become bombastic pronouncing curses on those who fail to give. These extreme methods provide a lot of fuel to those who oppose tithing. Read more
One Way To Put God First
God will have no place in your life other than first. If He isn’t first He isn’t on the list. Jesus was focusing on this very matter in the Sermon on the Mount and He said,
Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these (material) things shall be added unto you. (Matt. 6:33)
The one thing Jesus said would compete with God for first place is money (Matt. 6:19-34). He referred to our material resources, or money, as mammon and in His words, either God or mammon comes first. If God is first, money will be our servant. If money is first God is pushed out.
Too Poor To Tithe
Argument number four against tithing: Some People Are Too Poor To Tithe
Not everyone is equal in terms of financial worth. They range from very wealthy to very poor and we usually relegate those who are the poorest to the category of “Non Contributing.” In fact, we categorize people on the basis of their expendable income (upper class, middle class, lower class and poverty) and we do this for all the wrong reasons.
We envy and are intrigued by those who have money, who seem to make it with ease. We are drawn to the wealthy but rarely for noble purposes. The default attitude is mindless admiration and in extreme cases slavish devotion but never love. Money is a useful tool in achieving success (as well as one evidence of success) but it cannot buy love or make you significant and it is never a good indicator of character. People with money are not always the smartest, most reliable or most helpful. Read more
How Are Money and Success Related?
Christopher Morley said,
“There are three ingredients in the good life: learning, earning and yearning.”
If Morley’s statement is correct, we would understand that money is only one of three essential ingredients to success, not the essence of it, and in fact, any one of the three without the others is success distorted. Read more
Is It Right To Make Money?
Absolutely! People should be encouraged to find multiple and diverse ways to create legitimate streams of income other than just getting a job. In fact, another way to ask this question is:
Is a job the best way to make money?
And the answer is, no, never! Jobs are the most common way to earn money but by far not the best and should never be your only source of income. Read more
Tim Pepper - Beautiful Frustration