In
last week's “Feedback” someone said they have never heard Malachi
preached on. Today's section is the one place in Malachi where
preaches do go, especially if they are looking for a good text about
Christian giving! But the way it is written forces us back to the
beginning of the book, and makes us read it as part of the whole book
of Malachi. There are a number of echoes from the rest of the
prophecy: the Lord's character, mention of Jacob, and the repeated
pattern of arguing with God, saying “how have we...?” We need to
read this passage, not on its own, but in the context of the rest of
the prophecy of Malachi.
And
the basis for God's challenge to the nation, is “I have loved you”
This section begins “I the Lord
do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.”
It is only my steadfast nature, my constant love, that means you
descendants of Jacob the cheat, who are so like your ancestor, are
not just greasy spots on the carpet. God's love doesn’t change,
even if we do. That is why we have not ceased – to exist, to be
people in a covenant relationship with the Lord. So this call to
return to how things were, how things should be, is based on a
response to God's love.
“OK”,
the people ask, “How are we to return to you?” God says “Well,
you are robbing me, mugging me” And the people say “How are we?”
God
says “in the business of tithes
and offerings.”
Tithes
is an old-fashioned way of saying “tenths” – and reflects a
farming community. One tenth of the harvest, one tenth of the flock,
had to be given to the Lord. Offerings
means in particular those parts of the sacrificed animal that was to
be given to the priest (Lev 7. 32)
So
what was that all about? It sounds like rules and regulations
creating a kind of “tax” that was used to support the Priests and
Levites in their work. Yes,
the tithe was part of a system that supported the whole structure of
priesthood. With God, nothing is wasted! The tithe was part of the
income for the Levites who had no land – and therefore no income –
of their own (Number 18. 23-24) . And that is how many churches and
ministries want to understand the tithe: they
see it as a
God-given instruction for Christians, so that those in ministry can
be supported financially. But the idea of the tenth simply being a
tax to support religious professionals, is miles away from the
original plan.
So
what was the original plan?
Let's go back to that farming society in the Old Testament.
When
the crops began to be gathered gathered, the people were to bring the
“first-fruits” to God. Every first-born animal belonged to God
anyway. And when they brought the first-fruits, Dt 26.
5-10 tells us the prayer that they used which ends “
[God] gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey; now I
bring the first-fruits of the soil that you, Lord,
have given me. (Dt
26. 9f). The first-fruits are a recognition that the fruit – and
the livestock – came from the Land that God had given – or more
correctly, lent them. They made the whole harvest “holy”. The
first-fruits says “God owns all the do-nuts.”
And
by the time the people brought their tithes, they had already given
the first-fruits. The tithe is the tribute that is due by the tenant
farmers, to the landowner. So what the tithes are all about,
firstly, is surrender.
It's not “Here is your share”; it's “All I have is yours!”
But
that is not the full story. It
was more than that: when the tenth was brought to the Tabernacle or
Temple, some of it was eaten – in a shared family celebration that
included those who brought the tithe, along with the Levites, – all
as the Lord's guests! (Dt 14. 22-27) They were even allowed, if they
lived too far away, to sell their tenth for cash, and with the cash
buy “whatever they wanted” when they got to the place of worship.
One
scholar (Walther Eichrodt) says “Sacrifice
represents God's gifts to man as well as man's gifts to God.” So
there is a sense of Celebration
in this practise. God is good, and just loves to bless us and look
after us.
But
God also expects us to use the good things he has given us, to
support the poorer members of society. So every third year, the
tenths
were to be used specifically for not only the Levites but the
“foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns”
(Dt 14. 28-29) ..,
No wonder Malachi's message is “bring the full tithes into the
storehouse that there may be food in my house!” The tithe is also
about solidarity
with all who have need within the community.
So,
when the Lord
says “Bring the full tithes into the storehouse,” this is more
that a demand that people “pay their dues”. It is more than a
temple tax. It is a moment of surrender to God; a moment of
celebration in his presence; and a moment of solidarity with the
least among his people. The meaning of the tenth – the principle
behind it, is about surrender, and celebration, and solidarity.
How
does that work out for us in the new Covenant?
In Jesus' own day, those who recognised Him as their Messiah,
would give a tenth of their income – not to the Church but to the
Temple. Both Jesus and Peter paid the “temple tax” (Matthew 17.
24) although
as Jesus says normally
it is the servants, not the sons of the King who pay tax to the King.
Peter and Paul continued to observe the Jewish law so we can guess
that they brought a tenth to the Lord from what they earned. And that
meant, to the Temple. The NT Church doesn't appear to have
consciously swapped the tenth over from the Temple to the Church.
They certainly didn't buy the idea of a “tax” to support the work
of a professional religious class. Rather, they started fresh.
Firstly,
they kept the same principles:
the old Covenant always prepares the way for the New Covenant. In
the Kingdom that Jesus brought, the same principles apply: we
respond to God's love – shown to us with such amazing generosity
in Christ – with Surrender, Celebration, and Solidarity. We hand
our lives over completely to God. “Love so amazing, so divine
demands my soul my life, my all.” We celebrate, because we don't
give to Jesus, he gives to us. We don’t feed him, he feeds us.
When Christians break bread together, Jesus invites us to share a
sacrificial meal at his expense. And we express solidarity with one
another; with
those in full-time Christian work; with
those involved in mission; with
those
who are struggling to survive.
Secondly
under the New Covenant, the price
was radical:
Jesus commended the widow who put in the
offering,
everything she had to live on. (Mark
12. 41-44)
He told the rich young ruler to sell all he had and give to the
poor. (Lk 18. 22) The early Church sold up and shared their
resources. Lots of people didn't do what the Acts 2 church did.
Lots of people ran businesses, carried on a trade, even had slaves –
but still took that attitude that everything they owned belonged to
God.
And
finally, they
took practical
action.
Although
it wasn't the Old Testament “tenth”, Paul told
the Christians in Corinth to “Set aside each week as God had
prospered them” (1 Cor 16. 2) in solidarity with the struggling
Church in Jerusalem. There is still something good about a planned
and committed approach to giving.
So,
should we “Tithe”? Should we give a tenth? Do we have
to? That would be legalism, a temple theology won't work when our
life together is the temple and Jesus is the high priest. But a
tenth is a good starting point. Something to aim for. It's a lot
easier to work out than an eighth, or a twelfth!
Blessings.
Things were tough anyway in the period after the exile, and drought
or a swarm of locusts would have made things worse. Giving their
offerings was an act of faith. But God promises to people who are
faithful to him in this area, that he will open the windows of
heaven, send the rain that they need, so the next years crops will
grow; and he will keep the pests away! All their neighbours will see
what God has done for them. (verses 12-13) “The
nations will call you blessed” –
it was to Mary
who used these words in the New Testament.
And she was pregnant
with the Messiah, because she had said to God's angel “let it be to
me according to your word!” God
is promising material blessings that are not to be spiritualised
away. But just as the tenths and offerings have a deeper spiritual
significance, so do God's material blessings. And I believe that as
we trust god, respond to his love with surrender, celebration and
solidarity, worked out in our giving, God will open the windows of
heaven, and pour out blessings – his Spirit flowing into our lives,
and his provision of our daily bread. And the world will notice.
©
Gilmour Lilly June 2016
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