TITHES AND OFFERINGS

I want to talk a little bit about something different today that I have not discussed before, and that is about tithes and offerings. I want to ask my readers an important question that many are familiar with, and that is on the topic of tithes and offerings. Are tithes and offerings to the church necessary for the “salvation” of the people who go to church each week? Are they necessary? I believe they are necessary for the “salvation” of the staff of the church, such as to pay the salary of the church pastor, secretary, phones, utilities, etc. Yes, they are necessary for the “salvation” of the church. But are they necessary for the salvation of you and me? I think to answer this question we must know what salvation is, and whether the church can meet our needs or not. The spiritual needs of people who go to church vary greatly from one individual to another individual. But whatever it is, if salvation is what we want, and if only Jesus or YHWH can offer the salvation that we want, good common sense tells me that we should follow Jesus, and not Paul, Peter, or His other disciples or prophets. Why? Because none of them can give us eternal life. That, I believe, is what salvation is. Our soul will last forever! Jesus said, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.” John 10:27-28. Doesn’t that make good sense to you too? If it doesn’t, do whatever you want to do because eternal life is not for everybody. Eternal life is offered only to those who love Jesus, and who follow Jesus, and follow no one else. 
Jesus said, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.” John 10:27-28. We will know that we are His sheep when we hear His voice and follow Him. And when we hear His voice and follow Him, He will give us eternal life. That is His promise that we can take to the bank!
Here's another promise of Jesus that you can take to the bank also. "If you love Me, keep My commandments. He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him. Judas (not Iscariot) said to Him, "Lord, how is it that You will manifest Yourself to us, and not to the world?" Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. "He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me.” John 14:15,21-24.
Here’s Paul’s promise of eternal life. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; [it is] the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9. Take it to the pawn shop, and see if they will honor his note.
"Not everyone who says to Me, `Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. "Many will say to Me on that day, `Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' "And then I will declare to them, `I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'” Matthew 7:21-23. As you can see, faith is not worth a penny if we don’t do what God wants us to do. Jesus wants us to work and witness for Him, so we can finish His work soon.
If you love Paul, you can get your “eternal life" from him. If you love Peter, you get your “salvation” from Peter. Follow whomever is your shepherd. Why? Because salvation is not for everyone. And anyone who misleads others does not deserve a penny of the tithe and offering that is set aside for the purpose of advancing God’s work.
And so, if we are misleading people to follow anyone other than Jesus, the tithe and offering money that we get will be a curse to our wives or husbands, and our children. If you read Leviticus 27:30-33 and Numbers 18:21-24, the Israelites were asked to give one-tenth of their produce, flocks, and herds. They were set aside and given to the Lord annually to support the Levites in their priestly service. What do these priests do? They conserve God’s laws, and they teach God’s laws and commandments.
What do our preachers do? They abolished all of God’s laws and commandments. They conserve no law other than the law on tithing and offering. They replace God’s commandments with no laws and no commandments. 
I see a church as a place of job recruitment for people who have little experience and no job. In America, anyone can open a church as long as he or she can pay the rent and have enough friends and relatives who are willing to come, listen, and donate each week. The church carries no liability insurance like a corporate business. They have no malpractice insurance like a medical clinic. All the risk is on the shoulders of the churchgoers. If, for example, we end up in hell, none of our family members can sue the church for damages. We take a huge risk!
If you say no, not necessary, then why are we still paying tithes and offerings to the church? The church offers us no warranty, no membership agreement, and most importantly we don't even know whether what they are telling us is the truth and nothing but the truth! 
If you say yes, then why do we have to work for our salvation? Is salvation not free according to Paul? Don’t we have to work to earn money to pay for our tithes and offerings? Even if we can grow a money tree, we still have to work to grow the money tree, don't we?
Some Christian writers say we pay tithes because God instructs us to pay tithes. God also instructs us to keep the Sabbath holy. Do most Christians keep the Sabbath holy? No, they don't! They go to the beach or Disneyland. WHY? Because most preachers do not talk about keeping the Sabbath holy. They talk about tithes and more money offerings.
Martin Luther, a Catholic monk says that we can be saved by faith alone, and not by work or sacrifice. I am confused! Why are we Protestants following the teachings of a Catholic monk, Martin Luther, and not following the teachings of a Protestant preacher,  Martin Luther King? He may be teaching that we can be saved by faith and work, and not by faith alone, like Abraham who sacrificed his son, Isaac. Yes, faith and work. Abraham proves his faith through his work! Most of today's Christians, however, don't believe in work. So, how do they prove their faith? That's a good question. My guess is that they prove their faith by GRACE - excuses and making more excuses to get grace from God. Why? Because many Christians believe that God can easily be fooled, like our mother.  Is Jesus our mother or our father? No, none of the above. Many of today's Christians don't really love Jesus!  
Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments." (John 14:15). Do many of today's Christians keep God's commandments? No, they do not. Why? They don't love Jesus. Why? Because Jesus makes them WORK. Today's Christians want "grace," and not work! They hated God the Father and God the Son for making them work. They do not love God the Father and God the Son! They never have! The name of Jesus is used only to make money.
Finally, what is necessary for our salvation? Please read my article - The Triad of Salvation God bless.

 

 


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