Word of Encouragement (11/30/2022)
When you have finished paying all the tithe of your produce in the third year, which is the year of tithing, giving it to the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, so that they may eat within your towns and be filled, 13 then you shall say before the LORD your God, ‘I have removed the sacred portion out of my house, and moreover, I have given it to the Levite, the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow, according to all your commandment that you have commanded me. I have not transgressed any of your commandments, nor have I forgotten them. 14 I have not eaten of the tithe while I was mourning, or removed any of it while I was unclean, or offered any of it to the dead. I have obeyed the voice of the LORD my God. I have done according to all that you have commanded me. 15 Look down from your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless your people Israel and the ground that you have given us, as you swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.’ (Deut. 26:12-15)
We saw how the Israelites failed to carry out the injunction to take care of the poor because of 1) their sinfulness and 2) the inability of the law, though good in itself, to make them good. We also saw how Christ did what the law could not do, making us rich by becoming poor for us (2 Cor. 8:9).
We see the effects of this in the life of the Jerusalem church. On the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was poured out on the 120 disciples in the upper room and enabled them to speak in tongues and prophesy. When Peter preached to the crowd, who were marveling at this sight, three thousand Jews believed and were baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, and the first church was formed. “And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need” (Acts 2:44-45); “There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need” (Acts 4:34-35).
How could they do this unless the Holy Spirit was working in their hearts to show them that, in Jesus Christ, they possessed something far more valuable than their earthly possessions? For the people of the world, money is the hardest thing to part from. “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils...” (1 Tim. 6:10) and it is a root that is deeply embedded in the hearts of people. Few are free from the love of money. Even though many have said, “Money can’t buy everything” and “Money can’t buy happiness,” most people sure want to try and see it for themselves. After all, we all live in a world where “Money talks.”
Money is a powerful, efficient predator. You give it an inch, and it will take a whole yard. It can make a slave of the haves as well as the have-nots—the haves in their desire to keep what they have and gain more; the have-nots in their desire to have more. It can make slaves of the frugal as well as the wasteful—the frugal in their constant obsession with saving and finding fulfillment in the best bargains and discounts; the wasteful in their addiction to spending and buying. How pathetic is the life that is dedicated to making more money, which we cannot take to the grave! Many are so busy making money that they don’t even have the time to use it. Even those who are “wise” enough to go on vacations and enjoy themselves, do they find lasting satisfaction and meaning in them? Are they worth all the time and effort they put into work? Are the weekend and vacations worth living for?
The tithes the Israelites were called to offer were meant to be a blessing to them. They blessed them by reminding them that their lives were too precious to be spent on attaining more earthly treasures that perish away; their lives and resources should be spent for causes greater than themselves. God has designed our life in such a way that “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). We experience greater joy in sharing with others than in hoarding riches for ourselves.
They blessed them also by setting them free from the idol of money and greed. By dedicating “the sacred portion” out of their harvest, they declared their independence from the idol. In doing so, they experienced the restoration of their humanity as God’s image-bearers. May this be the blessings we enjoy as we give faithfully and generously to the Lord in our regular offerings and the diaconal offering we give on every fifth Sunday of the month!