Will A Man Rob God?

Let us explore the scripture, “Will a man rob God?” found in Malachi 3:8. This verse has been quoted during offerings for centuries. Some of you have heard this scripture and have been brainwashed to believe you can only be blessed if you pay your tithes, or you were able to make ends meet because God honored you for paying your tithes, or you needed money and money came in unexpectedly because you paid your tithes.  The list goes on as to why believers believe the only way to be blessed by God is to pay their tithes.
    You have to wonder, “In order for me to be blessed, I have to pay my tithes, yet the unbeliever does not pay tithes and he is blessed, and other denominations only take an offering and they are blessed.”  Tithing today is giving a tenth of your gross income, whereas an offering is giving whatever you feel like giving.  It is considered a free will offering.   The question in my mind is why does the Pentecostal Faith feel its members have to pay tithes in order to be blessed by God?  Why do members of the Pentecostal church feel they are disobeying God if they do not pay their tithes?  On the one hand, they say they are under grace and truth, but on the other hand, they choose to stay under the curse of the law.  They will emphasize the importance of paying tithes, but continue to eat pork. There are plenty of places in the New Testament where Jesus could have emphasized the importance of paying tithes, but He did not. Neither did the disciples of Jesus pay tithes.
    Indeed, many Pentecostal ministries have used the tithing element as a method for lining their pockets.  Any believer who joins their church is viewed as money, more than a brother or sister of the body of Christ, especially if the new member is a doctor, lawyer, or has a career that pays a good salary.  You might hear a pastor say jokingly, “We have Dr. Smith, his tithes will be big,” but that pastor really means it.
    Will a man rob God? This question continues to echo over the pulpit as Pastors and Ministers prepare their congregation to give their tithes and offerings.  However, the emphasis is on the tithing, rather than on both tithes and offerings. Malachi 3:8b says, “But you say, How have we robbed you?  In tithes and offerings”, (King James Version).  Malachi 3:10-11 states:
“Bring you all of the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat  in my house, and prove me in this, says the Lord of hosts, see 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. (v. 11) And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither will your vine cast fruit before the time in the field, says the Lord of hosts.”
    Let’s get an understanding of the tithe.  Nowhere in scripture will you read where Moses commanded the children Israel to give money for tithe, because they were to eat the tithe.  Even in the New Testament (in Matthew 23:23), Jesus tells the teachers of the Law and Pharisees they are hypocrites because they would give a tenth of their spices –- mint, dill and cumin –- yet they neglected important matters of the law: justice, mercy and faithfulness.  
God never intended for the tithe to be money. In fact, tithes were supposed to be grain, fruit, herd and flock.  According to Leviticus 27:30-32,
“All the tithe from the land, the seeds from the land, or grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, were the Lord’s: it was holy to the Lord.  And if a man was to redeem his tithes, he was obligated to add a fifth of the value to it.  The tithe of the herd or of the flock; whatever went under the rod, the tenth or every tenth animal was holy to the Lord.”
    The tithe was considered a sacred meal offered once a year. According to Mosaic Law, only the owners of farms and flocks were required to tithe. It is also important to note that this law was ordained for Israel only.  To say God requires or commands you to pay ten percent in the 21st century is inaccurate.  Pastors will tell you to give God his first and then the rest belongs to you.  This does not coincide with Leviticus 27:32.  Let’s read this verse again: “And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever pass under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord.” Only the tenth sheep or calf or goat was holy to the Lord: not money.  People did use money back then, but it was atonement money for the souls of the children of Israel.  As it is written in Exodus 30:16, The Lord told Moses to take the atonement money from the children of Israel, and designate it for service of the tabernacle of the congregation; it was to be a memorial to the children of Israel before the LORD; an atonement for their souls.
    To further understand, tithes were to be eaten; carpenters, silversmiths, craftsmen, perfumers, bakers, confectioners, barbers, chamberlains, engravers, goldsmiths, masons, merchants, potters, and widows were not required to pay tithes. (1 Samuel 8:13, talks about bakers, confectioners, and cooks).  Actually, the tithes were for the widows. Today, widows are encouraged by some Pastors to give a tenth of their fixed income.  
Some Pastors, Ministers, and Evangelists teach that God must get his money first. But according to the Bible, “the tenth animal that passed under the shepherd’s rod” belonged to God.  I have heard some Ministers say, the only way God can know if he can really trust you, is for you to pay your tithes.  The children Israel tithing was not based on God wanting to know if he could really trust them, but their tithing did three things: 1) It was God’s blessing plan for the children Israel of always having plenty and never lacking 2) It allowed them to fellowship with God 3) It gave glory to God by them giving their tithes to the Levites, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow. God needs to be able to trust us with something more valuable than tithing/money. He needs to know he can trust you with His word.

    If tithing were implemented today as it was during Biblical times, a believer would be required to pay approximately fifteen to twenty percent, instead of ten percent. In Leviticus 27:31,  If a man was to redeem any of his tithe, he had to add a fifth to the value of it. In the Old Testament, holiness was described as a divine call or ceremony.  It required the total consecration of a man’s life to God’s service, which involved giving one’s self, one’s family, and all of one’s possessions to God.