Tithing = celebration?
“So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver.” (1 Cor. 9:7)
How many of you reading that verse winced just a little … or maybe a lot? It’s those last two words, isn’t it? “Cheerful giver.” They almost seem to expect too much commitment to the process. Trust me, I am not throwing any stones here – there have been many times over the years that I played with this phrase like the lawyer in Luke 10 who toyed with the idea of just who is a neighbor? You know, how cheerful does cheerful need to be, really?
But I had an amazing shift in my understanding when it comes to the aspect of tithing recently as I was studying Deuteronomy in my quiet time with the Lord. I will admit that tithing had become something that I did out of habit when paying my bills, and I had become rather pleased with myself that I was obeying the Lord so faithfully. Who would have thought there was more to this than an act of obedience? Oh, dear friends, I should have known that when it comes to God, there’s always so much more!
An Old Testament tithing experience
Deuteronomy 26:2-5 says:
“You shall take some of the first of all the produce of the ground, which you shall bring from your land that the Lord your God is giving you and put it in a basket … And you shall go the one who is priest in those days and say to him ‘I declare today to the LORD your God that I have come to the country which the LORD swore to our fathers to give us.’ Then the priest shall take the basket out of your hand and set it down before the altar of the LORD your God. And you shall answer and say….”
“Say …” what? I encourage you to read for yourself verses 5 through 11. The detailed description of God’s amazing faithfulness that the individual was to give voice to reveals quite decisively that what was in hand was nothing compared to what God had done for His people. Verse 11 even goes on to say that a celebration is expected to follow. Suffice it to say, this is NOT the usual course of events in our time.
As I read and prayed through those verses, I saw the tithing experience very differently than I ever had before. God’s people weren’t told to file past the altar, drop off their offering and move on to the next aspect of the ‘service.’ His Word describes intentionality: a thoughtfulness designed to draw the one offering closer to the One receiving by means of personal appreciation.
I was convicted as I pondered this passage. I saw that what I thought was my act of tithing obedience was in actuality a pretty sad attempt at an experience that God designed to be powerful and transformative for me. He doesn’t need anything from me. His command to tithe isn’t meant to take away anything — in fact, it is just the opposite. Tithing is meant to fill me up further by enriching my relationship with Him in every way possible.
Receiving, remembering and giving back
So with this week’s tithe I did something different. I prepared my tithe and I stood up — holding it in my hand — and asked Jesus, the eternal High Priest to accompany me as I went from room to room in my house and began to pray out loud all the ways God had blessed me. It started with the provision of the room and all that was in it, but then memories flooded into my mind — priceless memories of family, friends and experiences. It was almost overwhelming to give voice to them and certainly far more valuable than any tithe amount I could think of. It was an incredibly moving and very sacred time of preparation. By the time I was done, there was NO doubt in mind about the privilege of presenting this offering back to the Lord.
Deut. 26:11 “Afterward you may go and celebrate because of all the good things the LORD your God has given to you and your household….”
Dear brothers and sisters, I can assure you that when I put the tithe “at the altar” that morning at church, I was ready to celebrate. What a difference – no thoughts of anxiety or worry or doubt … just joy! I can’t wait until it’s time to do it again. I pray to see you all soon at the celebration!
Becky Ely is chairman of the personnel committee and a member of the church council at Rice Memorial Baptist Church in Northborough, MA. This article was first published on Rice Memorial’s church blog.