Tithes and Offerings ...
How Much Should Christians Give?
By Steve Chappell
Pastor of Business Services
I’ve heard many Bible-believing pastors teach that Christians should give a tithe or 10 percent of their income to their church. I’ve even heard a pastor teach that as long as you give 10 percent of your income to God (i.e. your church) you can do whatever you want with the remaining 90 percent as long as it’s not being used for sinful activities. Are these biblical teachings? What did Jesus and the apostles have to say about giving to the church?
Interestingly, nowhere in the New Testament is giving a tithe to the church taught. Some people say it is taught when Jesus said to the Pharisees that they should give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin (Matthew 23:23). However, looking at the context you will find that Jesus is condemning the Pharisees as hypocrites because they practiced this part of the law while neglecting what is more important – justice, mercy, and faithfulness.
How is a Christian supposed to give?
The short answer: generously and cheerfully! And the Bible gives us three principles to guide us in generous giving:
• Proportionate (Deuteronomy 16:17; 2 Corinthians 8:11-12)
Our giving is to be proportionate to how God has blessed us financially and materially.
• Planned (2 Corinthians 9:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2; Proverbs 3:9-10)
We are to prayerfully plan our giving to God.
• Progressive (2 Corinthians 8:7; 2 Corinthians 9:6)
Our generosity should grow over time.
The Bible teaches that God owns it all and we’re called to be good stewards of all that God gives us: time, abilities, passions, and money. On this question, I think C.S. Lewis had the right idea: “I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.”
Listen to God as you read the Bible verses listed above and pray about how much you should give. Look at your income and determine an amount or percentage you can give beginning today. Plan how you will give (e.g. via offering during services or online automated giving) and at what frequency (e.g. weekly, biweekly, or monthly). Follow through by giving faithfully. When there’s a special financial need, give over and above your normal giving to help with that need. When God blesses you with a promotion and/or raise, prayerfully consider increasing the percentage you give to God. Strive to grow in the grace of giving.
If you do these things, you will become a more Christlike giver. You will also increasingly experience freedom from the things of this world and greater love for God and others. Sometimes lyrics of a song can really speak to our hearts. Take a moment and meditate on this verse from Michael Card’s Things We Leave Behind:
Every heart needs to be set free
From possessions that hold it so tight
'Cause freedom's not found in the things that we own
It's the power to do what is right
With Jesus, our only possession,
Then giving becomes our delight
And we can't imagine the freedom we find
From the things we leave behind