"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."
— Malachi 3:10
The tithe has long been a challenge for Christians to completely understand and practice freely. Some Christians may overdo it while others under-practice the grace of generosity. But some of these challenges are based on things that we fail to understand about the tithe and God's message to us in giving this law.
The tithe was a command given by God to the people of Israel that would serve two general purposes: to fund the "storehouse"—or the office of priests and Levites—and to test the hearts of the people. More than just the action, God wanted to use the tithe to challenge the hearts of the Israelites to see where their hearts are at.
While we are not under the same set of laws given to the Israelites, many of the timeless principles that ruled them during that time still rule us today. One of those principles is generosity—the true litmus paper to the heart.
Here are a few things we must understand about the tithe and about Malachi 3:10 that will help us understand giving more.
People Were Looking for Loopholes, Too, at That Time
The entire book of Malachi is actually an exchange that happens between God and the people of Israel where God points out their flaws and man was trying to defend himself. Malachi 3:8 says, "Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, 'How have we robbed you?' In your tithes and contributions."
Here the people were trying to defend themselves and looking for loopholes in what God was doing to credit their non-compliance to giving laws. Today, we see people doing the same thing, not because they want to know what's right but because sometimes they really just want to hold on to their money.
God Wasn't Mad Because He Wasn't Getting the Money
What displeased God most was not the fact that people weren't giving money, but that they weren't giving God their hearts. Matthew 6:21 says, "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." God is not all that interested in our money, but desires first and foremost to have a relationship with us with a trust that goes beyond measure. God trusts us fully with the 100 percent and asks us only to trust Him with the 10 percent.
It Wasn't the First and Last Time Generosity Was Commanded
The first time the tithe was actually commanded was back when God gave the people of Israel commandments through Moses. Leviticus 27:30 says, "Every tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the trees, is the Lord's; it is holy to the Lord."
It wasn't also the last time generosity was mentioned. Paul also spoke about generosity, and while he did not necessarily mention the tenth, He did commend and encourage sacrificial giving. In 2 Corinthians 8:3, he says, "For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord."
