THE GOD OF AN OPEN WINDOW

11/4/84

THE GOD OF AN OPEN WINDOW
Malachi 3: 8 - 10

JESUS CHRIST said, "you ought to" tithe" (Matt. 23:23).
Jesus was speaking to His staunchest religious opponents. These
religious bigots had upheld the Law of Moses which left no doubt
about tithing. They had meticulously divided the leaves on their
herbs and given one out of ten as a tithe. They had done this
while not showing people the slightest bit of justice or mercy
and demonstrating little personal faith. Jesus commended them
for the good they were doing and used it as a lance to burst
their self-righteous bubble.
If tithing was a part of the law that could have been dropped
under the new covenant, this was the ideal time for Jesus to
drop it. He didn't.
Tithing pre-dates the Law of Moses. In Genesis 14:17 Abraham is
depicted as paying the tithe to the Great High Priest
Melchizedek. This was hundreds of years before the Law of Moses
was established.
Tithing was enforced by the law in Lev. 27:30 "And the tithe of
the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the
tree, is the Lord's. It is holy to the Lord." Thus, the law
established the fact that the tithe was "holy to the Lord."
Tithing was endorsed by Jesus Christ centuries after Abraham
initiated it and Moses confirmed it in the Law. Jesus said, you
"ought to" tithe. No more elevated reason can be given than
that. Appropriately the question can be asked, "WHY?".
1. It avoids selfishness. Malachi asked the question, "Will a
man rob God?" Remember the Word of God said the tithe is "holy
to the Lord." It is His property which He allows us to possess.
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