Understanding God’s Math

Tithing is a simple command to follow, right? Periodically you receive a paycheck, determine 10 percent of the gross amount, and give it to God’s Work.

If you have been doing this for a while, the act of tithing may have become habitual. You diligently write a check and pop it in the mailbox every pay period—or you do not even think about it as the tithes are deducted automatically through your online banking’s bill-pay.

Of course, as duty-bound Christians, we follow God’s command to tithe, recognizing that it belongs to Him: “And all the tithe of the land…is the Lord’s” (Lev. 27:30). Anciently, Israel gave its tithes to the Levitical priesthood, as God tasked them with the service of the Tabernacle (Num. 18:21). The Levites did not own land and tithes were instituted by God to fund His Work on Earth, which continues today through Christ’s ministry (read Hebrews 7).

God also commanded His people to set aside a second tithe for the purpose of keeping the Feast of Tabernacles: “You shall truly tithe all the increase of your seed, that the field brings forth year by year. And you shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place which He shall choose to place His name there, the tithe of your corn, of your wine, and of your oil, and the firstlings of your herds and of your flocks” (Deut. 14:22-23).

Ancient Israelites brought the increase of their tillage because their society was agrarian. In today’s cash-centered economy, tithes are paid on our income. We set aside a tenth of all our wages and monetary increase before we apply the rest to our needs.

Again, a simple command, right?

As with all of God’s commands, tithing is fairly cut and dried. Once the basics are understood, it is easy to obey. Yet it should never become an old hat or pro forma event! Otherwise, we can miss out on some of the incredible benefits that flow from obedience.

For instance, tithing provides a way to demonstrate what can be called “God’s math.”

In regular mathematics, 10 minus 1 equals 9. When tithing, 10 minus 1 equals abundant blessings. While this sounds impossible from a human perspective, God promises to prove it is true: “Bring you all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in My house, and 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” (Mal. 3:10).

Put simply, if we subtract our tithes from our gross income, God promises to pour out blessings to the point that there is not even “room enough to receive it”!

Stewardship

When we first began tithing, one of the immediate benefits was learning proper money management.

Unlike taxes, there is no deductible element to tithing. It is always at least 20 percent of your gross income—10 goes to God’s Work, and 10 is saved as funds for you to keep the Holy Days. This forces you to budget—to keep track of cash flow—and to practice prudent spending. You reprioritize by focusing on needs and rooting out wants.

Think back to when you first started setting aside your tithes. At first, it may have felt like you were in a financial crunch. Over time, however, you began finding ways to cut back on expenses. For instance, perhaps you realized you could do without having one subscription each of Hulu, Netflix and Amazon Prime. You cut back on your utilities bill by lowering temperature on the thermostat, or reduced water usage. You may have searched on Google: “How to get 50 miles per gallon.”

Re-evaluating your expenses is an invaluable life lesson. It forces us to lead simpler lives.

As it states in Hebrews 13:5, we must learn to be “content with such things as we have: for [God] said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you.”

I Timothy 6:6-8 states: “But godliness with contentment is great gain…And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.”

The terms “great gain” literally mean “big money getting,” according to Strong’s translation of the Greek. In other words, remaining content with the portion God allows us actually gets us more than we would have if we had kept back our tithes!

Now look at the scenario for those who focus on accruing wealth: “But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is [a] root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (vs. 9-10).

Paul is warning us that simply wanting a lot of money can set you on this spiral into “many sorrows.”

Another blessing in this area is that tithing can assist you in preventing or reducing debt.

Consider. Those in the world are pressured to buy now and pay later. Many quickly accumulate too much debt in an unbridled attempt to keep up with developing trends and unnecessary pleasures.

We should be different and see supporting God’s Work as top priority. This shifts our focus away from accumulating funds and goods in this life, and instead toward investing in our future rewards in God’s Kingdom (Matt. 19:21; Luke 12:34). In doing so, you are avoiding the world’s approach to money by choosing not to put your “trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy” (I Tim. 6:17).

A Part in God’s Work

Another tithing benefit is it gives anyone the chance to participate in God’s Work. No matter who you are, where you live, or what you do—you are helping spread the good news of God’s coming Kingdom across the world!

Flipping burgers? Housekeeping? Sewage cleanup, bus driver or cleaning parks? No matter how insignificant a job may seem, it allows for the tithes that accomplish God’s Work!

This is a special privilege.

Sometimes we may think that only those who produce literature or preach from the lectern are directly doing the Work, but this could not be further from the truth! Remember that God places each member in the Body where it pleases Him and that each supplies to the increase of the whole (Eph. 4:16)—“supplies” in this verse means contribute.

Consider. God is able to call people and teach them His truth through free literature because of your faithful tithes (Matt. 10:8).

Think back to the “first love” you experienced when you learned God’s truth. Part of the reason for this initial excitement was the realization God specifically chose you—out of billions of others He could have picked.

Compare this with any other company. In the interest of advancing their corporation, employers look for individuals with special skillsets, advanced education degrees, or with vast experience working in a particular field. This is all for a company that, at best, reaches only a percentage of the world with its temporary products or services.

You, on the other hand, are essentially employed by the Work of God, which reaches all nations with its “product,” the gospel.

Keep this in mind whenever you clock in at your job. Even if your current position is not your favorite, you can remind yourself that you are working for God (Col. 3:23-24) and your tithes help preach the gospel to the world. A tenth of your income, no matter the amount, helps bring the good news of how mankind’s ills and sufferings will end.

Never forget: Because of the tithing command, you get to work for God!

Practicing the Give Way

Realizing your full potential involves living a give (not get) way of life. God’s tithing law is a natural way to practice this lifestyle. After all, it is an opportunity to give to God.

Notice: “Remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how He said, It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

The point about giving is clear. No doubt, receiving a gift can make a person feel “blessed,” which in the Greek is defined “fortunate” and “well off.” But giving does so even more.

Each time you pay your tithes can be a reminder of the give way. We can also add small freewill offerings to our tithes to help drive this point home.

It is unnatural for people to equate giving away finances with happiness. Little do most know how much joy they could experience from giving to God! But faithfully tithing from the earnings of our labor accomplishes this as it allows us to develop a giving mindset.

Building Faith

Always keep in perspective that God does not need our money for His Work to flourish. Remember that everything belongs to Him (Ex. 19:5; Deut. 10:14; Hag. 2:8) and that He brings the increase (I Cor. 3:7). Ultimately, what He wants to see from us is not our money, but our faith!

Every time you obey the command to tithe, you are exercising faith. Recall Paul’s statement, which can apply to any biblical command: “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (II Cor. 5:7).

To those who “walk by sight,” giving money away toward something that does not seem to earn you back does not make sense. To the natural mind, 10 minus 1 simply equals 9!

Our total belief in God’s Word is why we consistently give from our paychecks. We know that when God says He will bless those who give, He means it!

Being obedient to the command to tithe even when it is difficult pleases God, and He will bless you for it. “But without faith it is impossible to please [God]: for he that comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him” (Heb. 11:6).

Even if you are new to God’s truth, you have seen this reward principle in action. You have stepped out in faith to obey the truth—sometimes in what seemed to be impossible circumstances—and God provided. At times, He miraculously intervenes. Regardless of how the solution comes, it always does when we obey Him, which builds our trust in Him even more.

Be sure to claim God’s promises when you pray to Him and as you give your tithes. Also, look for the places where He is delivering you.

God wants to bless you (Psa. 37:4; III John 2; Prov. 3:9-10)! But He cannot if you disobey Him.

Giving to our Creator provides us the opportunity to build our faith. When we give to Him, He can show His ability to provide. But it also gives God the opportunity to see our faithfulness and obedience, which has big implications. Christ stated in Luke 16: “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much…” (vs. 10).

Tithing is God’s method of testing how well we can be responsible with much more than dollars.

Give Cheerfully

True Christians live truly happy lives when they obey God’s tithing laws. That is because there are immediate rewards and benefits from keeping them.

Your calling presents an opportunity to faithfully pay tithes and bring offerings before your Creator. Deeply appreciate the abundant blessings that obedience to this law offers to His Church now, and in His future Kingdom soon to come.

Remember: God loves a cheerful giver! Read II Corinthians 9:6-7. His math of physical and spiritual abundance applies to you now. He promises you will reap bountiful blessings that go well beyond anything we could ever give.

This ultimate promise is stated in I John 2: “And this is the promise that He has promised us, even eternal life” (vs. 25).