TWELVE REASONS WHY THERE IS NO "UNIVERSAL TITHING PRINCIPLE" CONTINUED INTO THE NEW TESTAMENT
1. Not one of the Apostles of Jesus Christ were ever recorded as tithing themselves to anyone, teaching anyone to tithe, receiving a tithe, reprimanding churches or individual Christians for not tithing, or wrote any guidelines for New Testament tithing. These Apostles taught no one to tithe anything to anyone at anytime; Peter; James; John; Andrew; Philip; Matthew; Thomas; James, the son of Alpheus; Bartholomew; Judas Thaddeus; Simon Zelotes or Paul. Tithing teachers seem to believe that they know more than the Apostles did and can add their own doctrines of tithing to the teachings of the Apostles.
2. The New Testament contains no guidelines as to who a tithe is to be given to. The assumption that a "tithe" must be given to a church or ministry are nothing more than the traditions of men making void the Word of God, and are not found in New Testament scripture. There are no statements in the New Testament that a tithe of any kind is to be given to a church, other type of ministry, or to any Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, or Teacher. There are no guidelines for tithing found anywhere in the New Covenant.
3. God's tithe was given to the Levites, not to any Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, or Teacher. God has never taken the tithe from the Levites and given the tithe to anyone else. Numbers 18:21 clearly states "And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation." That has never been repealed, changed or altered in any manner at all.
4. Abraham tithed to Melchisedec, not to any New Testament Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, Pastor, or Teacher. The Bible contains no instructions, not to Jew or Gentile, not to anyone under the New Testament (of which a Christian is under) to tithe because, or as, Abraham did to Melchisedec. Being the seed of Abraham, which a Christian is, does not conclude that a Christian must tithe as Abraham did. Abraham circumcised 300 in his household; should we do as Abraham did in circumcision, why only in tithing? Abraham's tithe to Melchisedec succeeded in proving the superiority of the priesthood of the Order of Melchisedec, which is established after the power of endless life, over the priesthood of the Levites, which was established after the law of carnal commandment. It does not have to be further proven again with any New Testament Christian tithing to Melchisedec or to anyone else.
Referring to Melchisedec, Hebrews 7:16 states "Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life." Abraham's tithe was given pursuant to the law of the land, not the Law of God. He gave ten percent of the spoils of war to Melchisedec (God's tithe does not come from war), not the tithe of the increase of the land provided by God. Furthermore; Abraham gave a little less than 90%, after his tithe to Melchisedec, to a pagan king, the King of Sodom; if a Christian is to "tithe as Abraham;" should the New Testament tither give the remaining 90% to pagans after tithing? Abraham did; why not the New Testament Christian to do the same if Abraham is to be our "example of tithing?"
5. There is no scripture that indicates that God has transferred the tithing requirement under the Law of Moses for Israel to Grace under the New Testament to Christians.
6. The first Church Council, held in Jerusalem in 50AD, did not conclude or instruct that anyone had to tithe anything, and did not refer to any form of "New Testament tithing."
Additionally; Hebrews 7:8 instructs no New Testament Christian to tithe, as many tithing teachers claim, and Hebrews 7:18 clearly puts an end to, and cancels tithing for anyone under the New Testament, Jew or Gentile. The council concluded;
Acts 15:19-20 - "Wherefore my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to God: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood." ...NOT ONE WORD ABOUT TITHING.
And...
"Forasmuch as we have heard, that certain which went out from us have troubled you with words, subverting your souls, saying, Ye must be circumcised, and keep the law: to whom we gave NO such commandment:" - Acts 15:24 ...NOT ONE WORD ABOUT TITHING.
If there existed a "tithing principle" extended into the New Testament for Christians, the first church council knew nothing about it and expressed no guidelines or instructions for any such "principle" or requirement.
7. If tithing was required and taught in the New Testament for Christians, it would have to be clearly detailed and outlined in the terms and conditions of the New Testament like all promises and commands of the New Testament are. Tithing instructions would be clearly included in the New Testament, there are NO SUCH INSTRUCTIONS TO BE FOUND. No such terms, conditions or details are outlined anywhere in the New Testament. Tithing was never, is not now, and will never be part of the New Testament. The New Testament KNOWS NOTHING OF ANY COMMAND FOR A BELIEVER TO TITHE.
8. In Hebrews Chapter Seven tithing is mentioned 7 times, verses number; 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9 and 9 again, focusing CLEARLY ON TITHING, and while proving the superiority of Christ's priesthood, ALSO places tithing (along with the rest of the law of Moses) in a position of INFERIORITY and declares ALL THREE ARE WEAK, ALL THREE ARE UNPROFITABLE, AND ALL THREE ARE DISANNULLED (i.e.; ENDED, CANCELED, DISCONTINUED)...INCLUDING TITHING. "For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof." - Hebrews 7:18
9. There are three tithes in the Old Testament established and commanded by God NOT FOUND IN THE NEW TESTAMENT, they are;
>> THE FIRST TITHE - Leviticus 27:30-33 defines this tithe as a tenth of crops and animals in herds and flocks. Numbers 18 and Nehemiah 10:37-38 gives the ordinances, or instructions, for this tithe, and commands this tithe be taken by the Levites.
> Purpose of this tithe: to support the Levitical Priesthood, Temple and Temple workers.
>> SECOND TITHE - Deuteronomy 14:22-27: aka; The Festival Tithe - a tenth of crops, plus add to that the firstborn animals, and take to the yearly feasts.
> Purpose of this tithe: that thou mayest learn to fear the LORD thy God always
>> THIRD TITHE - Deuteronomy 14:28-29: aka; The Three-Year Tithe, aka; The Poor Tithe - a tenth of crops, kept at home, and invite the Levites, widows, orphans, stranger to eat.
> Purpose of this tithe: to feed the poor and support the Levites.
None of these three tithes are found anywhere commanded to be paid under the New Testament.
10. Malachi states that the tithe was to be brought into the Storehouse by the Levites (remember; Malachi is addressing the Levite-Priesthood of his day, Malachi 2;1); the New Testament Church is not the Storehouse; Ref.; Nehemiah 10:38 - "And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes: and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house." NO SCRIPTURE designates a New Testament church, or any other person or ministry in the New Testament as a "storehouse to be tithed to." Tithing teachers like to claim "the storehouse is where you get fed from." In fact the common people were NEVER fed from the storehouse, only those serving in the ministry were fed from the storehouse; the priests on duty in the temple in Jerusalem, the singers and the porters of the temple. The common people were not even permitted to bring a tithe to the temple, and if they attempted to do so, it was the death penalty;
If you were not a Levite accompanied by a Priest descended from Aaron and you brought a tithe to the Storehouse, the penalty was death.
Nehemiah 10:38 - Who brings the tithe to the Storehouse?... "And the priest the son of Aaron shall be with the Levites, when the Levites take tithes: and the Levites shall bring up the tithe of the tithes unto the house of our God, to the chambers, into the treasure house."
Numbers 18:22 - In the clear context of tithing... "Neither must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the congregation, lest they bear sin, and die."
11. The tithing that God established, i.e., in the Torah (The Law), was the Law Malachi was writing under the authority of. The Law was, and is, the details of the Covenant between God and the People (or Nation) of Israel. Though Gentiles would ultimately benefit from the Covenant (i.e.; Jesus our Savior), nowhere did God call or command Gentiles to tithe in The Law or in the New Testament.
12. God has never commanded that a tithe be paid from anyone's income. "Income tithing" does not exist in God's word. The tithe that God commanded was from the increase of the land and of the herd, and was the personal inheritance, personal property by inheritance from God Himself given to the Levites, NOT the property or income of the rancher (herdsman) or farmer. See Numbers 18:21-24. The tithe of the land from the farm or ranch was never the income or property of the rancher or farmer, it was the Levites property by Divine decree; hence the Levites were instructed to "take the tithe;" Hebrews 7:5 - "And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham:" They were told to TAKE IT because they owned it.
...THERE YOU HAVE TWELVE REASONS, AND THERE ARE MANY MORE.
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