Question:

Where do I give my tithes if I don't belong to a church yet?

While you are looking for a church to commit yourself to I believe you are best advised to give your tithe to the ministry or church that is feeding you with God's Word by God's Spirit!

If you read again Malachi 3:10 you'll see God intends your tithe to see to it that there is food (translated with the word 'meat' below) in His house.

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.

Malachi 3:10 - KJV

This is not just physical food ('meat') but also spiritual food ('meat'). This suggests that God's desire is for your tithe to have a hand in seeing to it that you are spiritually fed. This is why I recommend you give your tithe to the ministry or church that is feeding you with the God's Word by God's Spirit.

Even in the tithe a principal of sowing and reaping applies. You sow for food (physical and spiritual) and you reap food (physical and spiritual) as well.

Personally I believe the tithe is best presented at one's church and then one's gifts used to support others. I suggest you read the counsel I have given above and then come to a conclusion for yourself through attending to God's Word and hearing the leading of God's Spirit's. In this matter there is no strong direct command in scripture but there are helpful hints.

[The principle of sowing and reaping is explained by in Galatians 6:7-9.]

Question:

While I'm working away from home for a limited time and attending a church in this area is it alright for me to send to my home church my tithe?

It seems to me that that would be fine. Hopefully, you could give offerings to the church you are attending in the area where you are temporarily working while sending your tithe to your home church. This seems to me to be a wonderful and godly way for small, struggling home churches to receive much needed support through members who have moved temporarily away from home to work in large cities or more prosperous countries. This - it would seem to me - fulfils in the sight of God His exhortation in Malachi 3:10. (See Malachi 3:10 above.)

Question:

Why is the tithe 10%?

In English the word tithe means ten percent or a tenth of. It is translated from the Hebrew word mah-as-ar or mah-as-raw which likewise, of course, also means a tenth (part) and from the Greek word de-ka-tay which again means a tenth (as a percentage).

Question:

Since when did the required tithe become money?

It hasn't. It's still the same. The tithe is 10% of your increase. If your increase is in potatoes you could give 10% of your potato yield. However, most people's increase is in money - they are paid in money or they receive profits in money form - hence in most cases the 10% is money.

A tithe is ten percent of your increase - whatever your increase may be. Today nearly everyone's increase is in the form of money - people work and they get money in return. You give a tithe on what you are increased with - if you are increased with money then you tithe money. On the other hand, if you were increased with mint then you would tithe mint.

However, there is a lot more to thriving financially than just giving your tithe and there is more to know about giving the tithe than on what part of your income it should be.

Question:

When during the month should I tithe?

It is not particularly important when you tithe. The important is that you tithe. However, having said that you don't want to leave off giving your tithe until in effect what you're doing is paying all your other bills and then finally getting round to your tithe. This would be wrong priority and counterproductive in terms of proving God.

You also don't want to miss out on any opportunity to be presenting your tithe as part of the church in a tithing service. Similarly you want to be ensuring you're taking all your family tithes and holding them up to God together at some point in the week or month in order to rejoice in your provision and prove God with the tithe as He asked.

I personally don't tithe my incomes the moment they come in. I generally have moments during the month when I look back over my financial records and then calculate the tithe due on all income recently received. I then make out a cheque for the calculated amount making it very preciously 10% and recording it on the cheque book record stub or page. This then becomes my record of tithe giving that I regularly refer back to.

In general I suppose I present two or three cheques a month at the church offering time one of which I will normally be at our first of the month communion and tithe service.

Question:

If we're not under the Law why should I tithe?

Your question suggestions that you perhaps have some misunderstandings about the nature of the tithe for a Christian. The tithe was given long before and as a separate entity quite apart from the Law of Moses and the Levitical Order. For the Christian the tithe is a matter of faith not of law. The tithe is not a commandment to the Christian but a faith principle.

For this reason there is no single scripture to the Christian on the tithe but a wonderful link up of scriptures to build up for the Christian a faith principle which will bless his or her life.

This faith principle of the tithe when properly entered into releases our financial and material affairs from earth's fragile economy into God's secure economy and blessing.

If we were under the Law of Moses and all of the regulations related to the Law then I think inquiring into all the different aspects and ways of presenting tithes under the Old Testament would be worthwhile. However, since we are not I think we should get ourselves established in the faith principles of the tithe and keep the whole matter as straightforward as possible. We ought to major on presenting our tithes at the place where we receive heavenly nourishment and do this presenting them with great rejoicing.

See also the links to related pages to this given below.

Question:

Do you tithe on your gross or your net?

In Proverbs 3:9 the tithe is referred to as "the firstfruits of all your increase". You are then to give back to the Lord the tithe or tenth of your increase in the land. (Lev.27:30)

Your increase is the amount the Lord has increased you during the period from sowing to reaping. Putting it another way, your increase is your total harvest minus what you had to sow to get the harvest.

You might be in a job situation where you are having to put a large amount of money out in order to get a return (an income). In that case, what you tithe is the profit or increase that comes to you.

Let me given you an example of a retailer. A retailer would have to put a large amount of money out on buying in stock. For this reason the income he or she would tithe on would not be the return at the till but the profit the business turns in for him or her at the end of the week or month.

In modern terms we would probably refer to this as giving a tithe on our net income. This is because our increase is the total amount of income that comes to us less what we had to put in as our part in the "crop production". In brief, we tithe before tax but after costs.

This is in no way trying to get away with giving as little as possible but rather being precise and diligent with our tithe. It then leaves us clear to start giving gifts and offerings; honouring the Lord with our substance. (Proverbs 3:9-10.)