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MUST READ: Tithing is for ‘Gullible’ Christians

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Before I came across this article, I’ve always held the belief that tithing is a scheme the early smart religious leaders used to STEAL money from their poor followers…

What is the point in giving your little money to a pastor who will very much used it to buy a private jet, a BMW or send his children to the best schools while you continue to linger in poverty?

And it is even compulsory; a certain percentage (10%) of whatever you earn including the bonus or gifts must be taken to the house of God—pretty cunning if you ask me.

I will rather put that 10% in a bank and give it to my children when they grow up. And if you think I am the only person who sees the deep fraud embedded in the concept of paying tithes to enrich some few, read the below article…

***Note: Do not miss the sarcasm in the article…

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….Not Christian Economists

At a point, one of my best friends was a Buddhist. He had been an atheist for a long time until he resolved it was time to believe in something. He decided the Abrahamic religions were too arrogant and didn’t quite give room for dissent. He found that those who subscribed to their teachings were usually very gullible and vulnerable. They were those who found it sacrilegious to pry into the wherefores of the very things that underpin their beliefs. He satisfied himself that Buddhism allowed him to think outside the defined confines of the art of living. He passed away three years ago. His name was Jason Roberts, Buckinghamshire, United Kingdom. May Buddha keep his soul.

Jason was right about the gullible part, and maybe the vulnerable bit, too. If today a trusted archaeologist discovers the bones of Jesus in a certain tomb, Christianity will be the biggest fraud ever cooked. It requires some amount of gullibility and indeed some vulnerability, to believe that a certain gentleman died some 2,000 years ago and rose again, so all mankind is saved if they believe. Prof Richard Dawkins will not buy that and I don’t blame him. He is too intelligent to settle for a story. Jason didn’t buy it, too.

Now, the real test of the gullibility: Work very hard, so hard and sign away 10% of your hard earnings to a church or a pastor, and pretend that you gave it to God. Suddenly, you will be so blessed that you will not have room for your blessings, pressed down and shaken together, running over until your blessings pour onto your laps. (Luke 6: 38). If you don’t do this, you are stealing from God. You will also deny yourself your blessings. Do it and He who walks on the wings of the wind will open the Heavens on your account and rain material prosperity on you and your generation, until you are too blessed.

Keep the 90% for yourself. Do whatever you want with it but the 10% is your first fruit, which comes back to your source of provision–God. The principle behind tithing is that you are merely making an acknowledgment that you may have worked hard through the month to earn your wages, but the source of your enablement–that which made all Grace abound to you (2 Corinthians 9:8), to be able to work in the first place–deserves a little bite of what He gave you. And it is not that He needs your money; it is because you are privileged to be able to give unto Him who first gave you.

My great-great spiritual grandfather, the Archbishop Nicholas Boye Duncan-Williams, has often asked: What is it that you have that you did not receive? It is not so much that the hardworking reaped more, or that the swift galloped a bigger distance, but time and chance happened to them all. It is God that showeth mercy. And He would have mercy on whom he chooses to have mercy, and He would show compassion to those that He decides deserve compassion. That is why He is God. (Romans 9: 15).

If God would bless me anyhow, whether I tithe or steal from Him by not tithing, then why do I bother to tithe? Why don’t I keep my money and decide to commit the same amount I would have paid in tithes to sponsor a needy neighbor’s education? Isn’t showing a needy person some kindness pleasing unto God than giving the money to a bling-bling pastor who is already living in luxury? Or look at this way: instead of making a monthly commitment of GH400 to a church or a pastor with a guy-name (that is if your monthly salary is GH4000), I could add up the GH400 for a year or two and contribute the lump-sum towards a development initiative in a poor village community. And for those who live abroad, many have wondered whether there is wisdom in paying your tithe to your local church in Ghana when you worship in a new church in Atlanta.

Whenever we talk about tithing, a certain presupposition is immediately operative: Where is the money going go? Perhaps if we were in the days of old where the currency for commerce was foodstuff or some farm produce, we would not find it necessary to discuss the economic merits of tithing. True, parting with a tenth of GH100,000 is not exactly an easy effort, but those who have dared to remain faithful have had reason to count a thousand fold of the little seed they sent away to God. It is a biblical principle, not an economic decision or an academic exercise. There are no pros and cons here; there are only constants: Fill the tithe card every month and send the money away.

The thing about being a Christian is that you cannot be too much of a Christian to know more than the Bible. It does not matter what interpretation you give to Malachi 3: 8-10, or Amos 4: 4. Those who question the instruction on tithing are not Christians. Tithing is not for discussion; it is just to be obeyed. And often times those who find reason not to pay, citing context and Israel and Levites, are usually those who have never actually tried paying any tithe at all in their lives. The pastor’s Bentley or private jet should not prevent you from obeying God’s word. His wife’s shoes and headgear should not stand in your way. Yours is to do it in obedience and watch Him exceed His promise.

Presently showing on American television is ‘Preachers of LA’, a documentary that has received a lot of commentary around the world. What does a man of God need a Bentley or a private jet for? Well, what does a CEO of a company need a great car for? My pastor doesn’t have a Bentley or a jet, but if he had one, I wouldn’t revise my tithe paying commitments or offering obligations. Any pastor who buys a jet may have given away several jets to many others. And a Bentley is just an expensive car whose value can be quantified. You couldn’t put a monetary value on your faith. It is by faith that you dispense a 10th of your earnings to God, and it is by faith that you would receive the blessings that were promised Abraham. Tithing is an expression of faith, not money.

Unless you do not identify as a Bible-believing Christian, you are obligated to pay up your tithe every month, and promptly too. If your church is rich and your pastor owns a Rolls Royce, still pay up. Tithing is consecration, a private consecration which will ultimately reveal the public manifestation of God’s glory on you (Bishop John Francis, Roach, London). Ooops it is that time of the month. Where is my tithe book?

Article by Kwesi Tawiah-Benjamin, Ottawa



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19 thoughts on “MUST READ: Tithing is for ‘Gullible’ Christians”

  1. wow! this is a very interesting and thought provoking piece. GC, we need more of such articles not the other kinds you publish just hating on one celebrity or the other. Good job to the writer.

    Reply
  2. The vast majority of “Christians” are totally clueless as to the truths of Scripture and the deceptions perpetrated by deceivers.

    Tithing is but one common example. It is an old covenant point of law, and in Acts 15 it states that it is a subversion of a Christian’s soul to teach them old covenant points of law.

    Tithing also is a twisting of Scripture and its application, seeing as no one was ever commanded to tithe on their wages.

    Reply
  3. Tithing is a must and a request from God. Unfortunately, it is how the process is conducted and what some pastors use it for that has become questionable. When you read through the Bible, there are many instances when God’s people were blessed by giving more and tithing more. Read 2 Chronicles 5-11 for example. Don’t be deceived my dear fellow friends. Read the Bibles yourself, and ask God to give you wisdom to understand. Look for churches that use tithing to do great works for the people and for the country. Don’t go to these one man churches who just enrich themselves with what is meant for God’s work. Don’t be deceived by reading articles like this one to make you think tithing in itself is completely wrong or a riboff. Have a blessed day.

    Reply
  4. oh GC, Chris, when I read these articles your publish, it sets me thinking whether you are aiming at saying that church in itself is wrong for everybody or that you expect us to go to it but not contribute anything to the upkeep of the place… such as electricity bills, programs that they organize such as counselling, retreats, printing materials, water bills; rental (some churches have rented premises), employed workers, etc. How will the leaders do all these if me and you don’t give out anything for the services we get from them. I fully understand the situation where an owner of a church has been enriched that much but do you consider that there are other churches that are duely formed just like any other organization and operates sincerely but only making their expenses paid by members.. where pastors and any body on payroll is adequately just like a profit-making organization… where pastors must equally fight for an increase just like I do at my work place…. Some people have been exploited, we all know that, just like some profit making companies have also exploited people… but the assumption that CHURCH in general is bogus really bothers me. Because the church I attend, I wish you could come see it. I as a member is not being forced or coerced to give…. I give based on what I understand of the church’s role in my life and society at large. My local church is into taking God’s word to hurting souls while still meeting their material needs in so many ways and I question how they can do that if members don’t give anything. The pastors are on the payroll where we all get full account of financing from outside auditors. Please do not generalize or preach the gospel of telling people CHURCH IS BAD… NOT REALLY!!!!

    Reply
      • @Cece enima, …thanks… I know that, but i was generally referring to some other articles I read from GC regarding churches in general or church activities or biblical references and I just get this feeling that the church’s position or biblical instructions are archives to some people….This tithing thing is church related… if somebody says tithing is for gullible christians (christians who are susceptible to believing anything at all), without taking into consideration that it is actually a christian’s duty (but not necessarily money) and that promises of the bible are true, then where or what is this article pointing at?

        Reply
  5. Thank you for bringing up such a gud topic.
    Do we even know how tithe started?Tithes were paid to d Levites bcos they didn possess any land wen lands were shared among d 12 tribes of Israel.R we descendants of Levi?
    However,d oda tribes paid more than 10% to d Levites.The tribes paid different types of tithe…festival(Deut.14:22-27),charity(Deut.14:28&29),priestly tithe,Laws of leftover(Lev.19:9&10) etc.
    Read Deut.5:1-15
    If its about water,electricity etc…..den why do we pay offering in church?
    Let’s strive to give out of free heart instead of getn reasons to rip pple of their monies.May God grant us more understanding of His word.

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  6. Pls…to those who support paying of tithe,back ur points up with bible quotations instead of speaking from our canal minds…….let’s learn from one another.

    Reply
    • @bigmouth, http://www.openbible.info/topics/tithes_and_offering . there were a lot, about 173 verses about tithing and offerings for different purposes and reasons… for those who think that instead of tithing, they can give their 10% to charity themselves, you can’t… tithing is bringing the 10% into your local church… if you do anything with it, it is not tithing….

      Personally, I do ot tithe at the moment, I only give offering, I give more when I received some gift or expected something or when I am doing some kind of thanksgiving etc… but I am not going to condemn what the bible has said about it… If we won’t do it, don’t let us discourage others from doing it.

      Reply
  7. My issue with tithes is not just it’s fraudulent nature but how no one actually even pays the RIGHT amount—including those who claim to be paying it.

    Honestly, most Christians I know do not do exactly as the Bible requires, which is pay 10% out of their earnings—including any gift they will receive. What most do is, they take any amount they want and assume that is their best shot, therefore it is their tithes.

    In fact if we are going by the bible, then such persons will not get any blessing-meaning majority of Christians .

    I dare any Christian on here to tell me they give exactly 10% out of their wages and go as far as give 10% out of any little money they get, this include finding 10 pound on the floor or someone giving you some free money

    Reply
  8. For those of you who live in the US, theres a show on the oxygen network called ‘preachers of LA’, after watching the show i have decided not pay tithe and all that stuff anymore, i rather find homeless orphan shelters and donate to them directly, these pastors are nothing but fraudulents.

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    • @LA,well done! if we all were like you, there’d be less suffering in the world. My dear, it’s because they have videotaped the LA pastors that’s why you have seen it but if someone was to also tape pastors in Ghana, they’ll see worse things.  I worked as a secretary for one of the big ‘modern day’ churches in Ghana but I left after seeing the flashy lifestyle of the pastor while church members couldn’t afford even a meal a day. I would always advice people that rather than giving offertory & tithes to all these people to chop, better to use it to help the poor as that is much better. 

      Reply
  9. http://www.openbible.info/topics/tithes_and_offering
    … This link tells us all about the 173 verses in the bible where God talks about tithing or offerings in so many different ways…. Yes, people have chopped people’s monies but please don’t let us look at what somebody is doing and neglect what God wants to do with your money… we are all thinking individuals… do what is right.. what is right maybe having to move from one church to another where you see accountability for the money you give.. where you see that the money is being used for God’s work … but to say you won’t give at all to your own local church may hinder your own blessing… I personally do not tithe because I cannot commit to it, but neither will I stop others who do it because God’s promises are true… I used to do it and I saw the abundance of blessing that came with it.. I stopped when I married and my husband isn’t very pleased with it and so on…. I give as I please, I sometimes give more that 10% because some more money came my way or I am doing some thanksgiving and things. I still see God’s hand in a lot of things I could not have controlled and I am not going to condemn christians who do it and say they are gullible… the bible says THE FOOLISH THINGS OF THIS WORLD ARE THE WISE THINGS IN HIS SIGHT… if the well-learned and economic experts see these things as stupid and foolish, it is okay with me and I will continue to uphold what God upholds…

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  10. @Sally,please ders a difference between tithing and giving.With the link u gave me,most talked about giving & not tithing..with the tithing however,we shd know d context in which it was placed.We shdnt jux read one quotation & conclude…..I’m also not condemning giving but tithing.
    Thanks for sharing dat link.

    Reply

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