What did the Pharisees value?

1. They value legalism above the lost.
2. They value prosperity above people. Do not misunderstand me that Jesus is against prosperity. He is not. In fact, He wants us to prosper in every aspect and not just financially. Here, He was referring to the love of money more than the people in whom they were called and set apart to serve – Luke 16:14,15. (more…)

1 He also said to His disciples: “There was a certain rich man who had a steward, and an accusation was brought to him that this man was wasting his goods. 2 So he called him and said to him, “What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship, for you can no longer be steward.” 3 Then the steward said within himself, “What shall I do? For my master is taking the stewardship away from me. I cannot dig; I am ashamed to beg. 4 I have resolved what to do, that when I am put out of the stewardship, they may receive me into their houses.” 5 So he called every one of his master’s debtors to him, and said to the first, “How much do you owe my master?” 6 And he said, “A hundred measures of oil.” So he said to him, “Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.” 7 Then he said to another, “And how much do you owe?” So he said, “A hundred measures of wheat.” And he said to him, “Take your bill and write eighty.” 8 So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light. 9 And I say to you, make friends for yourselves by unrighteous mammon, that when you fail, they may receive you into an everlasting home.10 He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much. 11 Therefore if you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if you have not been faithful in what is another man’s, who will give you what is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. 14 Now the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, also heard all these things, and they derided Him. 15 And He said to them, “You are those who justify themselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

Luke 16:1-15

In this parable, it is talking about the values we hold in our life. Values are very important. It is also very powerful. Our values drive us. They dictate our thoughts and our actions. They also determine our behaviour. Our values mould our decisions at all time. (more…)

6. Effects of Tithing on our Future Generations

Let’s take a deeper look at tithing in Genesis 14:17-20 to gain a deeper understanding. We will take a look at how tithing has changed from the Old Testament to the New Testament and the Perspectives of Tithing in the Old Testament and New Testament. (more…)

4. It is a Part of God’s Economy

Tithing is a system created by God to supply the needs of the people, the church and the workers. In the Old Testament, the Levites did not receive any lands. Instead, the tithes given by the people became the inheritance of the priests. In Numbers 18:24, the Lord says, “Instead, I give to the Levites as their inheritance the tithes that the Israelites present as an offering to the Lord. That is why I said concerning them: They will have no inheritance among the Israelites.” (more…)

2. It is an Expression of Worship

When we tithe, it is an act of worship to God. Tithing is not about the needs of the church. We are tithing to God and not to the church. When you tithe, you are giving first and foremost to God, the Almighty. Giving is not dependent on how much financial needs the church has. If your church is big and rich, then the congregation can say that we do not need to tithe to the church. That is not the spirit of tithing. Tithing is about our relationship with God. It is an expression of our worship to Him just like the Jews who understand the sovereignty of God to give, to provide. We, in turn, like the Jews, bring back to God a tenth of our wealth as an action to express our love and worship to God. Proverbs 3:9-10 tells us to do so, to “honour the Lord with your wealth, with the first-fruits of all your crops, then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” The order is first we honour God with our wealth and the rest will then follow after. (more…)