Tithe Commitment Sunday – Food in My House
Introduction:
Today is Tithe Commitment Sunday.
- Our tithes and offerings will be brought a the end of the message today.
- 2022 I taught on the importance of a giving lifestyle:
Acts 20:35 (NKJV) 35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ” - A giving lifestyle begins with giving ourselves first to the Lord.
2 Corinthians 8:5 (NKJV) And not only as we had hoped, but they first gave themselves to the Lord, and then to us by the will of God.
- See a need, meet a need.
- If the Lord has given you eyes to see then believe the resources to act.
Main Text: Mal 3:10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.
- Today I want to make a sincere, transparent appeal for you to consider and/ or continue to bring the Tithe into the House of God.
Asking you to prayerfully consider becoming, renewing, or reactivating you being a tither in this house. - It is no secret that the Lord uses His people to provide for His work upon the earth.
- I suppose the Lord could have set it up differently meaning that Churches and ministers lived free of all expenses required to survive and operate. Buildings would be given to the Church without cost, utilities provided by the vendors, staff and team worked for free because they too received the same benefits in their family. But we know this not to be the case.
- “That there may be food in my house. “
1.1. The purpose of bringing the whole tithe into the House of God is that there may be food in the house of God.
1.2. But the food in the house of God is not just to be any type of food.
1.3. So that there is Fresh food in the House of God.
1.3.1. That there may always be something fresh in the House of the Lord when we come.
1.3.2. Ela… When we go to a restaurant to order food we have certain expectations correlating with how much we are paying for it. Now how we respond tot hose expectations are interesting: if our steak comes back over cooked, our salad come wilted, we find a hair on our plate or Lord help us if we see a mouse… there was one noce restaurant on a date night that I saw a mouse scurrying across the floor. We have not been back.
1.3.3. Returning the tithe into the house connects our heart and expectations of the House. Both of which are needed.
1.4.The tithe provides for the house of God.
1.4.1. Food so that when we come there is fresh worship.
1.4.2. Food so that when we come the preacher had ample time to prepare and cook up a meal.
1.4.3. Food so that our youth and kids are cared for and discipled and opportunities for connection.
2. Fresh bread always before the Lord.
1 Chronicles 9:32 Some of the Kohathites, their fellow Levites, were in charge of preparing for every Sabbath the bread set out on the table.
Exodus 25:30 (NKJV) And you shall set the showbread on the table before Me always.
2.1. Every week fresh bread was prepared for the Table of Showbread.
2.2. The Levites prepared the fresh bread.
2.2.1. The Levites were also the ones who ate what was prepared.
2.2.2. The Levites were able to prepare the fresh bread because they were being taken care of by the tithe.
2.2.3. The people of God can tell if the bread is from the fresh rack or the 2-week old moldy rack.
3. Throw the tobiah mindset out of your life.
Nehemiah 13:4-12
3.1. The Tobiah mindset in summary is taking the space that was meant for the Lord and work of God and using it for our own purpose.
3.2. Tobiah was given the space meant for gathering the tithes and used it for his own home and so the tithes were no longer brought into the House of God.
4. All provision is from above.
Isaiah 55:10 (NKJV) “For as the rain comes down, and the snow from heaven, And do not return there, But water the earth, And make it bring forth and bud, That it may give seed to the sower And bread to the eater,
4.1. The Lord pours out His provision from above upon all people.
4.2. Making the earth spring forth and sprout. The rain and snow fall.
4.3. All eaters get to partake to different degrees of the provision of bread.
4.4. Ela… The Prophet Habakkuk and even King David often asked the Lord why the wicked seemed to prosper. The Lord always assured that the wicked would have their day.
4.5. Ela… From my observation there are many well provided for people out there in the world that do not serve the Lord or return the tithe to the House of God. Some of these same people are very generous in their own right.
5. All eat the bread but not all sown their seed.
2 Corinthians 9:10 (NKJV) Now may He who supplies seed to the sower, and bread for food, supply and multiply the seed you have sown and increase the fruits of your righteousness,
5.1. Bread is for eating.
5.2. Seed is for sowing.
5.2.1. The Lord places seed in the sowers hand.
5.2.2. Seed is placed in the hands of people who will sow it.
5.3. Your bread and your seed look a lot alike.
5.3.1. Don’t sow your bread.
5.3.2. But don’t eat your seed.
6. But, the Lord always comes through anyway…
6.1. Ela… Well, Pastor that all sounds good but I am not a tither and the Lord always bails me out. What do you have to say about that?
6.2. First, Jesus said “the poor you will always have among you”
6.2.1. But this is not to be interpreted that we need to stay poor.
6.2.2. Though many of us start very poor.
6.2.3. Who was extremely poor at one point in your life?
6.3. Secondly, practically speaking I would say that many of us have times when our material needs seem to out weigh our bank balances.
6.3.1. In those times we believe god for manna.
6.3.2. For ravens to bring provision.
6.3.3. For the loaves and bread to be multiplied somehow to meet the need.
6.4. Thirdly, Spiritually speaking I would say:
“And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”
6.5. That we hav e promise to live from the overflow rather than live believing the Lord to continue to bail us out.
6.6. We do not have to stay perpetually in a place of want and believing God to bail us out every time.
7. The revelation of a tither.
Genesis 28:20-22 (NKJV) 20 Then Jacob made a vow, saying, “If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, 21 so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the LORD shall be my God. 22 And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.”
7.1. The revelation first comes that what we have we have from above.
7.1.1. The tithe and our seed take on a whole new light once we realize the source.
7.1.2. As long as we live like we are the source then we will hold on much more tightly to what we have.
7.1.3. But then when we realize by way of revelation knowledge and not just head knowledge the God is the source trusting Him back with His tithe becomes much easier to do.
7.1.4. Ela… it has been many a moons since the the tithe has stayed in my account past the day that the Lord provision arrives into my account.
7.2. I return it same day.
7.2.1. It is the first payment I make before doing anything else as a matter of principal, spiritual discipline and thankfulness to there Lord for His provision.
7.3. There commitment of a Tither:
7.3.1. Lord, if you provide it I will give it.
7.3.2. If you will be with me.
7.3.3. If you will keep me.
7.3.4. It is not even a question.
Conclusion:
- Bringing the tithe makes a difference.
- It makes a difference in your life.
- It makes a difference in the House of God.
- Test me in this.
- Bring the whole tithe one month.
- I know it is tight.
- Bring the whole tithe one month and see how it goes.
- Or make it a goal by the end of the year to be able to bring the whole tithe.
- Test me in this.