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2 Corinthians 9:6-15
Malachi 3:6-12
"For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not
consumed. From the days of your fathers 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 man rob
God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, 'How have we robbed you?' In your
tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are
robbing me, the whole nation of you.
"Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my
house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not
open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until
there is no more need. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it
will not destroy the fruits of your soil, and your vine in the field shall
not fail to bear, says the Lord of hosts. Then all nations will call you
blessed, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.
ESV
Tithing is Thanksgiving
1. Thanksgiving results in tithing
Genesis 14:17-21 "After his return from the defeat of Chedorlaomer and the kings
who were with him, the king of Sodom went out to meet him at the Valley of
Shaveh (that is, the King's Valley). And Melchizedek king of Salem
brought out bread and wine. (He was priest of God Most High.) And he
blessed him and said,
'Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
Possessor of heaven and earth;
and blessed be God Most High,
who has delivered your enemies into your hand!'
And Abram gave him a tenth of everything. ESV
Genesis 28:20-22 "Then Jacob made a vow, saying, 'If God will be with me and
will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat and
clothing to wear, so that I come again to my father's house in peace,
then the Lord shall be my God, and this stone, which I have set up for a
pillar, shall be God's house. And of all that you give me I will give a full
tenth to you.'" ESV
Leviticus 27:30-32 "Every tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or
of the fruit of the trees, is the Lord's; it is holy to the Lord. If a
man wishes to redeem some of his tithe, he shall add a fifth to it. And
every tithe of herds and flocks, every tenth animal of all that pass under
the herdsman's staff, shall be holy to the Lord." ESV
Deuteronomy 26:12-15 "When you have finished paying all the tithe of your produce
in the third year, which is the year of tithing, giving it to the Levite,
the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within
your towns and be filled, then you shall say before the Lord your God, 'I
have removed the sacred portion out of my house, and moreover, I have given
it to the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, according to
all your commandment that you have commanded me. I have not transgressed any
of your commandments, nor have I forgotten them. I have not eaten of the
tithe while I was mourning, or removed any of it while I was unclean, or
offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the Lord my God. I
have done according to all that you have commanded me. Look down from
your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless your people Israel and the
ground that you have given us, as you swore to our fathers, a land flowing
with milk and honey.' " ESV
Deuteronomy 12:6 "and there you shall bring your burnt offerings and your
sacrifices, your tithes and the contribution that you present, your vow
offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herd and of
your flock." ESV
Matthew 23:23-24 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you
tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of
the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done,
without neglecting the others. You blind guides, straining out a gnat
and swallowing a camel!" ESV
Mark 12:41-44 "And He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people
putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums.
And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny.
And He called His disciples to Him and said to them, 'Truly, I say to
you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to
the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but
she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live
on.'" ESV
2 Corinthians 8:1-5 "We want you to know, brothers, about the grace of God that has
been given among the churches of Macedonia, for in a severe test of
affliction, their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty have overflowed
in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave according to their
means, as I can testify, and beyond their means, of their own free will,
begging us earnestly for the favor of taking part in the relief of the
saints- and this, not as we expected, but they gave themselves first to
the Lord and then by the will of God to us." ESV
2. Tithing results in Thanksgiving
2 Corinthians 9:6-15 "The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap
sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each
one must give as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under
compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all
grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all
times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written,
'He has distributed freely, He has given to the poor;
His righteousness endures forever.'
He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and
multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your
righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for all your
generosity, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. For the
ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints, but
is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. By their approval of
this service, they will glorify God because of your submission flowing from
your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your
contribution for them and for all others, while they long for you and
pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. Thanks be
to God for his inexpressible gift!" ESV
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