Tithing

What does the Bible says about tithing? Could we tithe to the poor, to the non-profit organization, to the specific person, or to the church? What's the difference between tithing and donating? Could I "donate" my tithing?

Let us explore the definition for those terms:

Donation- An act or instance of presenting something as a gift, grant, or contribution.
Tithe- The tenth part of agricultural produce or personal income set apart as an offering to God or for works of mercy, or the same amount regarded as an obilgation or tax for the support of the church, priesthood, or the like. (dictionary.com)

The dictionary shows that our donation is our act of presenting gifts and our tithe is our income set apart as a holy offering to God or to the church. Our donation is based on our preferences, we can donate any amount to whoever we like. Our tithe is based on our committment to set the tenth of our incomes apart for God, which is our act of sacrifice. Okay, so how do we know that we are properly setting our incomes apart for God? That's a good question! Let us look into the verses and discern.

What does the Bible says about tithe:

In the beginning (the individual):

Abraham gave Melchizedek a tenth (it was the first tithe mentioned in the Bible) of everything. Melchizedek was priest of God Most High who came to bless Abram with wine and bread because God had delivered his enemies into his hand. -Gen 14:18-20

Abraham's grandson, Jacob, made a vow to God, "If You will give me what I need and keep me safe until I return to my father's house, then I will give a full tenth to You." Jacob simply trusted God and vowed that whatever God gives him, he will give them back to God in tenth. -Gen 28:20-22

Under Mosiac laws (the group):

Abraham's offsprings, Israel, was commanded by God to give every tithe to the Levites for the first time when they came out of Egypt. The tithe was directed to the Levites for their service in the tent of meeting from age 25 til their retirement at age 50. Yet God warned the Levites, "But you shall not profane the holy things of the people of Israel, lest you die." -Numbers 18:21; 32

The Levites, the sojourner (staying temporarily), the fatherless (orphans), and the widow within your towns shall receive the portion of tithe in the third year, which is the year of tithing, so that they shall be filled. -Deut 14:28-29; 26:12-14

Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me. But you say, "How have we robbed You?" In your tithes and contributions. -Malachi 3:8

Conclusion:

Hebrews 7 tricked us by pointing the tithe back to Abraham's first tithe to the priest of the Most High God who is not of Abraham's descendant and to the descendants of Levi who received the priestly office tithe from their own brothers. Then it suggested that Levi who received tithes had also paid their tithe through Abraham who paid his tithe to Melchizedek.

Okay, God works in mysterious ways. What I have seen here is that the body of Christ are paying tithe to their own brothers, the Levites, who did nothing but to minister the Lord and the people. And then the Levites somehow had paid their tithe to the people living out of their towns through Abraham. Sort through this cycle if you like.

Anyhow, I would point it back toward to what Jesus said about the widow. Jesus had set his eyes upon the temple treasury to see the rich putting in thier gifts and the widow putting in her two small coins. Then he said, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she have to live on."

Jesus didn't commented about where the poor widow decided to put her money into, the trustworthy temple treasurery or untrustworthy temple treasurery, but he commented that she was trusting and willing.