Teens and Tithing

Think about your favorite math class—or your least favorite. Such classes involve basic arithmetic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, calculus and statistics. Each lesson builds on the previous one. By the time you get through all these courses, you will know how to work well with numbers.

But there is another form of math unique from all the rest. Once you learn it, it can change the rest of your life. This form of calculation can be called “God’s math.”

With God’s math, the typical rules of arithmetic do not apply. Usually, the more you give, the less you have. Not so with God. According to His calculations, the more you give, the more you are left with. How is this possible? With God, all things are possible (Matt. 19:26)!

In fact, God ties His math to a promise: “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you mete withal it shall be measured to you again” (Luke 6:38).

The giver gets back not just the amount he gave but more.

It may not make sense when you first think about it, but it is true. Ask your parents or anyone who has been in the Church a while, and they will tell you that God delivers on this promise. With God’s math, when we give to Him and others, we get back extra.

An important way we give to God is through tithing (Deut. 14:22). The word tithe simply means a tenth. To tithe is to give 10 percent of the money you earn.

Tithing is a percentage, so it works no matter how much you make.

If you make $20, a tithe is $2. If you make $2,000, a tithe is $200. God’s financial plan is for everyone.

A common question is how to calculate a tithe payment. Is it taken from the amount of money you receive in your paycheck? Or something else?

Even though you may get paid after taxes and other fees are removed, it is important to calculate your tithe payment based on your gross income. Gross income is the amount you earn before taxes and other deductions are taken out.

For instance, if you make $5 per hour and work an eight-hour shift, you earned $40 in gross income that day. Though you may only take home a portion of that $40 after taxes, you would calculate your tithes on $40 since that is the amount of money you actually earned. The $75 your neighbor pays you to clear and organize his backyard, once again, is the gross income you earned for the job. You would calculate your tithes on $75, meaning you would tithe $7.50.

It is also important to pay your tithes as soon as possible and not hold them back. A good rule is to pay tithes whenever you get paid. Today, many choose to pay their tithes online.

Most know that tithes are paid to the Church but may not know why. The first part of Malachi 3:10 explains, “Bring you all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house.”

The tithes go to God’s storehouse, the Church, to provide “meat” for what is needed. Once again, God’s math is in effect. Read the rest of the verse: “Prove Me now herewith, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.” Again, more comes back than what was given. God even challenges the tithepayer to prove whether He will come through on this promise.

You are starting to see how tithing helps you as much as it helps others. Paying God fully and paying Him first as a teenager brings many wonderful blessings.

God Owns Everything

Malachi 3 is a great place to start to learn about tithing. It begins with a question: “Will a man rob God?” (vs. 8).

Strange question, right? How is it possible to steal from the most powerful Being in existence, a Being we cannot even see? The response to God’s question: “Wherein have we robbed You?”

God’s answer: “In tithes and offerings.”

Robbing God by not paying tithes and giving offerings sets up an important principle: He owns everything. He says in Psalm 50:12 that “the world is Mine, and the fullness thereof.” He repeats this in Psalms 24:1, saying that the Earth and everything on it belongs to Him.

Everything belongs to God—including all money. God proclaims in Haggai 2:8, “The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine.”

There is an estimated $40 trillion in physical money and money deposited in savings and checking accounts in circulation worldwide. This is a staggering number. Yet it all belongs to God.

Most believe the money in their bank account, wallet or purse belongs to them. It does not. God allows people temporary control of what ultimately belongs to Him. When we earn money by working, we are paid a portion of what actually belongs to God. We are stewards or guardians over those funds until we spend them.

After understanding that all money belongs to God, it becomes easier to see why He gets to decide what we should do with it. God says to use a portion of His money that He gives us to pay tithes and give occasional offerings. When people do not do this, God says they are stealing from Him.

The understanding that we are stewards of the money God gives us is important. Money is power. It gives us the authority to buy the things we want. With this comes responsibility. Self-control is required to avoid spending money on something just because we want it. Managing money properly teaches accountability and proper decision-making.

God gives us control of money in part to see how we spend it. This says a lot about us and our character.

Paying God first through tithing shows that we are willing to put Him first in our lives. But our stewardship and responsibility does not end there.

Your Funds Help Others

Many believe that the tithing command was done away. They claim it is an Old Testament requirement and thus no longer in effect after Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. Yet those who believe this do not understand the crucial importance of tithing today.

Tithing is how God funds spreading the gospel message to the world and feeding the flock of God. The Father sent Christ to Earth to preach the gospel. The word gospel means “good news.” Jesus taught the “good news” of the coming Kingdom of God (Mark 1:3). The gospel message still needs to be preached. Continuing to spread the gospel is the job of the Church. This is known as the First Commission.

Once people come into the Church as members, they need to be cared for spiritually. Jesus, who was called a shepherd, told His disciples to “Feed My sheep” (John 21:17). This is known as the Second Commission.

Your tithes and offerings help fund both these crucial commissions. They are used to pay employees to perform essential functions such as printing and distributing books and booklets, writing articles, designing magazines, posting items on rcg.org, editing video sermons and sermonettes, and much more. Your tithes and offerings also help pay for campus maintenance and office supplies for doing the Work, halls around the world for brethren to meet for services, Feast sites, and so much more. Take a moment to stop and think about how many people you help through your contributions!

Tithes and offerings are similar yet different. Tithes are the steadier form of Church income. They are based on the income people receive from their jobs. Whenever a member gets paid, they obey God and help fund the Work by automatically sending a portion of what they earned.

Offerings are also funds given but are calculated differently than tithes. Instead of being based on a percentage of earned income, they are based on the giver’s desire to contribute. Offerings are based on the person’s reflection of how much God has blessed them. There are seven annual Holy Days on which offerings are commanded. We cannot show up empty-handed (Deut. 16:16). However, smaller offerings should also be given throughout the year at any time. These also fund God’s Work. Members, contributors and sometimes complete strangers are moved by God to give. The amounts vary from many thousands of dollars down to a small amount of change. It all goes to fund the Work and help others.

God could simply open the sky and pour out money for His Church. He could charge angels to gather all the funds His Work needs. However, He chooses not to do it this way.

Instead, in God’s system, He uses people to help people. He wants us to learn to be as generous as He is. God is a perfect giver. He gives and gives and gives. The reason God “loves a cheerful giver” (II Cor. 9:7) is that giving helps us become more like Him.

What Tithing Does for You

God knows people like to receive things. That is one of the reasons He makes so many promises to give to us. While reciprocity—receiving something in return—should not be your primary reason for giving, there is nothing wrong with looking forward to God fulfilling His end of a promise. When He said in Luke 6:38 to “Give, and it shall be given [back] to you,” He meant it.

But sometimes, the return on our generosity takes time. It may not come as fast as we want. There is a lesson in this.

Ecclesiastes 11:1 says to “Cast your bread upon the waters: for you shall find it after many days.” Humanly, this does not make any sense. Picture someone standing on the riverbank and throwing pieces of bread into the water. Somehow, they will find it again later? Won’t it be soggy?

Yet God uses this illustration to promise that when we give to others down the river, He will give something back to us. But note the caveat: The return can take “many days.” We should avoid giving with the expectation of an immediate return.

This willingness to believe and wait for a return builds patience and faith in God’s promises.

Often, return blessings come in unexpected ways. Sometimes they take the form of opportunities or special favors with indirect financial benefits. A “cheerful giver” can be offered a job for which others more qualified were turned down. Or they could also “coincidentally” find the last sweater on sale on the rack at the mall.

Other returns are not financial at all but are tied to our happiness and well-being such as getting selected to participate in the school play or getting an A in a difficult class. God fulfilling His promise to give back to the giver has no limits. The more you give, the more He gives.

You cannot outgive God!

Another important thing that obeying God through consistent tithing does is teach you how to budget. A budget is a plan for spending or saving money. It is the target amount you spend or plan to spend in a given area of your life. A good budget takes into account the amount of money you make and how you plan to use those funds. Learning how to budget effectively is a special gift that can help you for the rest of your life. Sadly, many in the world do not know how to budget properly, and they suffer for it.

Allocating funds to tithing first also forces you to be mindful of where the rest of your money is going. Those who tithe are less likely to be wasteful with money in other areas of their life.

Proper budgeting helps with decision-making. If something exceeds your budget, you decide not to buy it or save to buy it later. While budgeting helps with knowing where funds are allocated and where they are supposed to go, it also has the impact of taking your focus off of money. Once you devise a good spending plan, you can put your financial situation on auto-pilot and focus on other things such as school, work and your future.

Budgeting teaches the power of patience and self-control that will benefit all areas of your life—most importantly, following God’s Way.

Work with your parents on a simple budget if you do not have one already. Our booklet Taking Charge of Your Finances is an excellent resource.

True Prosperity

Not trusting God and disregarding His principles about money is the primary reason so many struggle financially.

For instance, the United States, considered the wealthiest nation in the world, is $31 trillion in debt. Some argue that this is a good thing and allows for prosperity. God views it differently. He says that “the borrower is the slave of the lender” (Prov. 22:7, Revised Standard Version)—meaning those who do not manage their funds properly are clearly not prosperous.

To truly thrive, financially and otherwise, we must do things God’s Way. Learn to trust God with your finances. This includes obedience through tithing. Set out to prove God. Make it your goal to give the way He commands you.

As you do, be ready for Malachi 3:10 to come to life. God will pour out so many blessings that you will not have room enough to receive them!