Give God His Tithe (4)

‘…those who fear Him lack nothing.’

Psalms 34:9

There are three kinds of givers: the flint, the sponge and the honeycomb.

To get even a spark from a flint you have to hammer it.

To get anything out of a sponge you have to squeeze it.

But a honeycomb just overflows with sweetness.

So which kind of giver are you?

The Psalmist writes, ‘Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him…for those who fear Him lack nothing’ (vv 8-9 NIV). Tithing is an act of worship. Of the 118 hours you’re awake each week, almost half are involved in earning money. So when you give God your money, you’re giving Him your brain, your brawn and yourself.

When you go to the Lord’s house on the Lord’s Day, partake of the Lord’s Supper and put the Lord’s tithe into the Lord’s treasury, it’s an act of profound worship. Now, let’s be clear: a God who paves heaven’s streets with gold isn’t going to go broke because you don’t give Him a tithe of your income. But you might! This sign appeared on a church marquee: ‘Give God a tithe in proportion to thine income, lest He be displeased with thee and give thee an income in proportion to thy tithe.’

The act of tithing isn’t about the tithe; it’s about the tither. It’s not about the gift; it’s about the giver. It’s not about the money; it’s about the man or woman. It’s not about possessions; it’s about the possessor. As the songwriter Isaac Watts said, ‘Were the whole realm of nature mine; that were an offering far too small. Love so amazing, so divine, demands my soul, my life, my all.’

Luke 20:27-47, Ps 110-112