Who Robbed God?
Malachi 3:8-12
Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.
Thought For Today:
There seems to be so much controversy about paying tithes into the kingdom of God. Why is tithing a doctrinal teaching point; and why is it essential to you? Tithing teaches us about money management and discipline. If you cannot manage your finances, it can lead to debt, distress, and discontentment. In many cases, this can lead to sickness, divorce, lying, cheating, stealing, and even death. It causes sin. Paul said, "For sin shall not have dominion over you" (Romans 6:14). Malachi asked, Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows" (1 Timothy 6:9-10). Notice, because of the love of money, many have caused themselves hurt. What kind of hurts? Stress, discontentment, indebtedness, divorce, sickness. All because they fell in love with money. Isn't it amazing that we allow the world to tell us that when we eat out we should leave at least a 20% tip based on the total of our bill to the server and we don't question it. But when it comes to the church, we question giving God 10%! James said, " My brethren, these things ought not so be." If you don't give God what is rightfully His, He has no problem taking it. Ask Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, who sold a possession, and kept back part of the price (Acts 5:1-2). You cannot put a dollar amount on the value of your life.
