By Olusegun Ibikunle
DID JESUS PAY TITHE?
The New Testament scriptures do not command anyone to tithe and the Church didn’t formally institute the tithe until 777 AD under Charlemagne. For over 700 years no one who followed Christ tithed anything to the church.
Let us continue from part one (1) where we stopped last week by critically reasoning together with the scripture as it is biblical to reason with the scripture – Isaiah 1:18 KJV “Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord…”
New Testament Christian giving – by revelation knowledge, what I called the Biblical giving is New Testament Christian giving which is only by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. The New Testament calls Christians to give by faith (life) and not to give by law (death).
The Old Testament expired as a result of the New Testament by the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ – Hebrews 8:13 KJV “In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.”
DID JESUS PAY TITHE?
Jesus and His disciples never paid tithes neither did they instruct anyone to do so. Paul wrote three quarters of the New Testament and had many opportunities to talk about tithes but he never did! He spoke a lot on true Biblical giving and as a matter of fact giving is mentioned 176 times in the New Testament – and nothing on tithes! The law of Moses requiring us to tithe had been nailed to the cross by Jesus Christ – Colossians 2:14 KJV “Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross.”
The Lord Jesus Christ never gave any commandment that we (the New Testament Christian believers) should pay tithe in the New Testament after His death and resurrection when the church began.
What I discovered is that many pastors who preach and teach tithing don’t read, study and think critically by searching the scriptures with revelation knowledge and understanding in line with the word of God through the help of the Holy Spirit (the best teacher) on what the Bible correctly says on tithe payment.
And what Jesus Christ says about it? There is no place in the Bible where the Lord Jesus Christ said we Christians should compulsorily pay tithes but He did not condemn it because during His earthly ministry while speaking as at that time, the Law of Moses was still in place and very much active as He had NOT gone to the Cross to die for our sin at Calvary, be buried and resurrected – that is, the New Testament had NOT started in Matthew 23:23 KJV “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.”
The New Testament scriptures do not command anyone to tithe and the Church didn’t formally institute the tithe until 777 AD under Charlemagne. For over 700 years no one who followed Christ tithed anything to the church.
The early Christians only practiced a freewill offering, not a mandatory ten percent (10%) obligation. Those who abide in Christ (the genuinely born again Christians) are automatically ordained into the Priesthood of All Christian Believers – 1 Peter 2:4-5 and 2:9-10 KJV and Revelation 1:6 KJV and Revelation 5:10 KJV “To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious, Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ… But ye ar] a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light: Which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy….. And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen…. And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth”
I am NOT writing to condemn the tithe payment in the church today but it is good to know and understand what exactly the Bible teaches correctly on tithing and everyone will be blessed and appreciate with much love what the Lord Jesus Christ did for us on the Cross of Calvary.
Next week, we shall continue to look at what the Lord Jesus Christ says about tithe and true Biblical giving in the New Testament. The essence of this publication is to make us appreciate what the Lord Jesus Christ did for us on the Cross of Calvary.
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