To tithe or not to tithe?

[Aquila]

I believe in Grace Giving. Vows (pledges) and free will offerings. No required tithing.

Psalm 50:14-15
King James Version (KJV)
14 Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most high:
15 And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

There are many promises connected to vows (pledges).

[Aquila]

With vows... people give as they have purposed in their hearts. Also, people are bound to their vow. A person may also vow in accordance to their faith. And it need not be a hardship on the poor because a vow can be a percentage... or an amount.

[Aquila]

Vow vs. Tithe...

The tithe is law.

The vow is grace.

[Jacob's Ladder]

Originally Posted by Praxeas

A requirement for participating in ministy? Well I don't know. I know of no biblical reason other than assuming its a matter of faithfulness and in that regards goes beyond tithing but to the whole heart of selfless giving in many areas besides what Pastors live on.

I'd like to see the storehouse full to help those in need

Sorry, I've been very busy. I suppose it all boils down one question. How is Abraham's "tithe" relevant now? How does Abraham's event instruct us to presently tithe?

[Praxeas]

Originally Posted by Jacob's Ladder

Sorry, I've been very busy. I suppose it all boils down one question. How is Abraham's "tithe" relevant now? How does Abraham's event instruct us to presently tithe?

It was relavent, if one followed the discussion, that tithing is not limited to what the law taught of Moses taught

[Pliny]

Originally Posted by Praxeas

It was relavent, if one followed the discussion, that tithing is not limited to what the law taught of Moses taught

One question begs to be asked:
Who taught Abraham to tithe?

There is no mention of it until the event with Melchizedek. Then out of nowhere Abraham seemingly initiates something that was heretofore unknown and everybody seems to know and understand it. So it begs the question of why?

Why did Abraham tithe?
Who taught him?
Why did everyone seem to know and understand?
No one questioned what was happening.


Just some thoughts to ponder...

[Rudy]

Originally Posted by Pliny

One question begs to be asked:
Who taught Abraham to tithe?

There is no mention of it until the event with Melchizedek. Then out of nowhere Abraham seemingly initiates something that was heretofore unknown and everybody seems to know and understand it. So it begs the question of why?

Why did Abraham tithe?
Who taught him?
Why did everyone seem to know and understand?
No one questioned what was happening.


Just some thoughts to ponder...

It seems this was a practice among pagans as well. Nothing unusual.

[Praxeas]

Pagans tithed their posessions to priests?

[Rudy]

Originally Posted by Praxeas

Pagans tithed their posessions to priests?

Here is one reference:

The Antiquity of Tithing
Many Christians are unaware that tithingwas not first practiced by the ancient Jews.It was an ancient practice to be sure, but it was exercised in many cultures. [6] Even prior to the earliest biblical record of tithing (Gen. 14:20), it was a custom practiced by several people groups as noted by Christopher Hill in his Economics of the Early Church:

• The system of appropriating 10 per cent. [sic] of the produce of the community to the maintenance of a priest is of great antiquity. It existed not only among the Jews, but also in many pagan tribes. [7]

And, according toHastings' Dictionary of the Bible:

• the institution of offering tithes of the fruits of the field and of the flocks is one which dates back to a period greatly anterior to Israelite history. A tenth of the flocks, fruits, and possessions of all kinds, as well as of the spoils of war, was given to their gods [referring to pagan tithing] by many peoples. [8]
  The widespread practice in the ancient world of tithing by giving a portion of one's profit or spoils of war extended from Greece to China. Donation of a tenth portion was common apparently because most people "counted in tens, based on ten fingers.

[Praxeas]

Awesome. So not only biblical but universal