Tithe

The Old Testament description of tithe:
The concept of tithe seemed to be in general a part of the Old Testament regulations concerning giving (in addition to the various offerings that were expected: sin offerings thanksgiving offerings etc.)

First mention of tithe It is first mentioned in Genesis 14:20 when Abraham offers Malchizedek a tenth of everything he had (who was perhaps even Jesus Hebrews 7:5-9) perhaps as an acknowledgement of who he was and his allegiance to him.

Purpose of OT tithe: To take care of the Levites who didn't own land (Numbers 18:21-28) but even more than that it was intended to be a direct gift to the Lord because even the Levites had to tithe on the tithes they received from the people. Also there is mention of tithes taking care of "the aliens, the fatherless,and the widows" (Deut 14:28-29). More importantly though this giving of a portion of ones income (in that time produce and livestock) was a reminder that all they had was the Lord's and he deserved their "firstfruits"- the best of what they had. God wanted his people to fear him and show their allegiance to him in a material way (Deut 14:23,29) so he in turn would bless them. This makes sense since during the Old testament times the way people demonstrated their allegiance to God was
in more tangible ways (sacrifices actual gifts etc).

The community element in tithe: Deut 12:7-19 says not to eat ones tithe in one's own town but "Instead you are to eat them in the presence of the Lord your God in the place the Lord your God will choose--you, your menservants and maidservants, and the Levites from your towns- and you are to rejoice before the Lord your God in everything that you put your hand to. Be careful not to neglect the Levites as long as you live in the land." This indicates that giving to God was something to be mutually enjoyed by God his people, and his servant the Levites. Perhaps this indicates that one's giving to God
is something that ought to bring people together and rejoice in God's provision.

The controversial passage Mal 3:8-10: I'm not so sure that there is much to say here except that this is an instance where the Israelites broke the law that required them to tithe and so they were being reprimanded in prophecy.

The New Testament: Though there is no specific teaching on tithe Jesus does mention the concept with reference to the Pharisees who were quick to tithe even on their herbs but were forgetting the more important requirements of the law such as justice and mercy (Luke 18:42, Mat 23:23). Seeing that there is no specific teaching on the subject in the New Testament only in reference to the fact that one could keep every detail of the law and forget what it's really about seems to me to say that giving a tenth on one's income is not necessarily a bad idea but to be bound to it so as not to be open to giving more (as Paul talks about sacrificially, the parable of the Widow's mite etc.) or to doing it in a religious way and forgetting the purpose of giving to God. One thing that makes me think that the New Testament Church was not so hung up on the OT tithe rule was the way Paul mentions various collections for people in need (1 Cor 16:1-2) saying that everyone should set aside a sum of money in keeping with one's income. Then what he praises is generosity and sacrificial giving elsewhere (2 Cor. 8:2).

Bottom line: Having a general rule of giving ten percent is not a bad thing, in fact it is probably a good idea for most people since if they didn't give that they would give less (giving less than that doesn't seem to be in the spirit of generosity and sacrifice of the NT or in keeping with giving tithes AND OFFERINGS in the OT). One thing though is for certain, to give in expectation of a physical return (which is often made mention in tithe sermons) is wrong you can't buy God's gifts with money (Acts 18:20) but there is an expectation of blessing that could be spiritual or physical in nature (2 Cor 9:6-11) "You will be enriched in every way for great generosity". I don't fault pastor's for speaking on money so much (though perhaps not in the context where unbeliever's are present) because Paul
certainly did talk about money a lot. I simply think that the issue of giving should be based more on teaching about generosity than a specific amount because this puts it back into the context of being a heart issue before the Lord and that I think was Christ's intention to give us a picture and example of following the spirit of the law which is honoring God and blessing others with the best of what you have been given!