Tithing at TCBC and in the NT

Our church treasurer came into speak to us about the workings of the finance department. It is quite humbling the amount of work that is required to handle all the finances in a relatively large church such as ours and help is always welcomed. We were encouraged to give faithfully (and regularly to help even the annual finances). Thanks to all those who asked some interesting questions.

Matt 5:21-22 & 27-28 teaches that Christianity goes beyond OT legalism. The OT law is not to murder; Christ asks us not to hate. The OT law is not to commit adultery; Christ asks us not to lust. So if the OT teaches us to tithe 10%, what is the New Testatment teaching? The only conclusion I can come to is that all our money is God's. We are to dedicate 100% of our income to God. We are just stewards. This is consistent with our ultimate meaning of life: to glorify God and to enjoy him forever. All of our money is to glorify God, not just the portion we "give back" to Him. To me, how we spend the other 90% of our income is far more challenging than what we give in tithes and offerrings.

We then made the connection between spending and work. Whatever we spend on, someone else is working for it. If we don't think certain work is acceptable to Christians, we shouldn't be spending on that either. Likewise, if we condemn someone else's job, we need to condemn those who spend money on that service. Do Christians drink beer? If so, then there needs to be Christian brewers and breweries. Instead of a hypothetical discussion on what jobs Christians can do, we should have a very practical discussions on how Christians spend money.