An Unsettling Revelation

I sat down this morning and very candidly asked the Lord if there was anything specific I could write in here to minister to others. That's kind of the goal I have going here, to minister things which will broaden our hearts and our minds to receive from God all the great and abundant things He has in store for us. First of all, you have to believe that God wants to do these things for you. Many religious people do not believe God wants to spoil His kids beyond their wildest dreams. Then there are those people who are coming to understand that the Lord has great things in store for them, but they cannot find out how to get out of their own way and allow Him to work in His fullest capacity (or perhaps they have ridden the "God is Sovereign" approach so hard that they do not believe they can actually hinder God from moving in their lives, and thereby do not even attempt to get out of His way). Anyway, I asked the Lord if there was anything specific on His mind. He said, "yes... go find it." So I began searching places in Scripture wondering what He had on His heart for me, and anyone who may be interested in reading this. I have no problem admitting I am not a big fan of His answer...

Hebrews 7:4 says, "Now observe how great this man was to whom Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth of the choicest soils." This passage in the seventh chapter of Hebrews deals with Abraham establishing the tithe with the high priest Melchizedek. The Lord began strongly impressing on my heart how Abraham gave of his very best - something Ally and I have begun to realize is something that we need to be striving for. While reading this passage the Lord asked me, "Why does the government get a better cut than Me?" I thought about it for a moment and as I meditated on this question He gave me a very clear vision of what He was getting at:

I saw myself bringing my tithe before Him - a tenth of the value written on the paycheck - and He looked over my shoulder and asked, "Why does those men and women [the gov't] get a piece off the top, and yet I get only a tenth of your 'leftovers'?" I struggled with Him asking me this, "But I cannot control that part. They are practically stealing it from me. I cannot afford to give you even more than this, my money is too strapped as it is!" The Lord responds, "You do not think I can take care of the extra 40 dollars a check?! I created you! I promised to provide everything and more! Will you ever get that?! Is your faith in Me really that weak??


The debate has always raged in churches: net tithe or gross tithe? Preachers dance around the subject, because they do not want to upset congregations into not tithing at all, so we ask that cute tithe question and move on. I have struggled with it always. Ally and I have consulted every avenue and resource, and always get conflicting answers. The Lord fixed that for me right quick this morning. Whether we like it or not, those deductions are payments for services to make our lives better - regardless of who is in power in Olympia and Washington. We are not here to debate whether they are used properly, or taken fairly; that is not the issue. Jesus instructs us to give to the gov't what is due them (Matthew 22:17). In God's eyes, all those deductions are "expenditures."

We have been shorting Him. We tell him that we give Him a tenth of what we "make," without realizing that what we "made" is the first number on the check. The gov't gets their piece of it, and God should be getting His. Tithing off the leftover amount is not giving God our best. We claim we cannot afford it - essentially discrediting every promise of provision He has ever made to us. That is why our finances never seem to get to their very highest point. We have been giving God out of shortage and out of fear. Faith says "My God shall supply all of my needs" (Phil 4:19); fear says "If I give God a tenth of the gross income, I will not have enough to get through 'til the end of the month." The Lord came down hard on me for that one. He expects our best, because He is constantly giving us His. Look at Malachi 3:10, "'Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, 'if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.'" In The Message translation, it says God will "pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams." That's what I am striving for!

I want to see God move beyond anything I have ever seen. I want God's revelation to flow in my life beyond anything I have ever experienced before. The reason God has not operated in the fullness of His Blessing in my life is because I have held back from Him. He didn't come down on me because I am not tithing, but because I could be doing better. I shouldn't be so terrified to give up those extra few dollars to Him. He promises to fulfill everything Ally and I will ever need and more (2 Corinthians 9:8-10). If I truly trust God to do all that He says He will do for me, then I wouldn't even flinch at the prospect of giving Him off of the very top. Not only does He promise to give me more than I can ever imagine, God actually dares me to test Him on this issue. It is the only time He does this in Scripture. That is how confident He is in this principle. Now I should be as well. My aunt and I challenged each other to find out the answer to gross v. net tithing. I found it this morning - and I didn't like it.