⁷The LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings.  ⁸“So I have come down to deliver them from the power of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanite and the Hittite and the Amorite and the Perizzite and the Hivite and the Jebusite.  ⁹“Now, behold, the cry of the sons of Israel has come to Me; furthermore, I have seen the oppression with which the Egyptians are oppressing them.  ¹⁰“Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” (Exodus 3:7-10; NASB)

In these passages, we see God’s will for Moses: deliverance of God’s people from captivity. As God speaks to us more  often then not the topic of the conversation is service to others. This is the purpose of promotion from above. God uses people as a source of blessing to others. While the vocational worldview emphasizes the corner office, hefty salaries, and other perks; God focus is on transforming peoples’ lives so that He can enjoy fellowship with them.

Where You Are Does Not Hinder Where You Are Going

And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod. (Exodus 4:2; KJV).

If God is omniscient, why would He ask this question? God knew perfectly well what was in Moses’ hand. He was setting Moses up for a demonstration of His miraculous power through the tool of the shepherding trade: the rod. The rod tangibly symbolized Moses’ authority as a shepherd. Rods were used to protect the flock from animals that would inflict harm. Shepherd boys would often hold contests to determine who could throw their rods most accurately over the greatest distance.

Apprentice shepherds would carefully choose the tree limbs that they would ultimately use as their rod. Once chosen, they would carve these limbs into an instrument that would precisely fit their hands and match their stride. Such meticulous attention to detail took into account the fact that this rod was often the shepherd’s only defense against predators, rustlers, and trespassers.

God brought Moses’ attention to his rod. In effect, he was saying, “I understand you and your situation. Where you are will not hinder where you are going for I AM going with you. As you use the rod to protect the sheep, so you will receive my protection. As you use the rod to minister to the sheep and keep track of them so I will minister to your needs and keep my eye on you.” God was about to give Moses an object lesson that would serve to demonstrate an incredible vocational change with new God-infused abilities, provisions, and responsibilities.

The Lord was also giving Moses a foretaste of his new vocation. Instead of sheep, Moses would shepherd a nation. His divinely turbocharged rod would protect, correct, and keep track of people – lots of them! The skills that he learned in backwater Midian would be magnified by God to liberate a people while changing the destiny of the whole world.

What has God been saying to you about your job? What is teaching you through your present job? What lessons have you learned from past employment?

What is that in thine hand?

Related posts:

1. Your Career: Hiding Your Hands & Guarding Your Heart
2. With God There are NO Dead End Jobs
3. Vocational Probation and Preparation for Liberation
4. Staff Meeting With God: You Can Learn A Lot From A Snake!
5. God’s Game Show Approach to Sowing in Times of Famine

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. (Malachi 3:10 NASB)

We’re going to examine tithing. In this post, I’m going to tackle the “How Much?” questions. This is where I take my inner accountant out for display. Don’t worry! This is not technical stuff. On the contrary, it’s brainlessly simple.

If you Google about tithing, you’ll quickly see that it’s quite controversial. You may see very passionate debates about it. This is ironic. While there are some Bible topics that are difficult to understand, tithing is NOT one of them.

What is a Tithe?

The word “tithe” itself means a tenth. Quite simply the tithe consisted of 10% of one’s income specifically designated for the support of the priest and temple/tabernacle/synagogue.

This is an area where many people take something simple and make it needlessly complicated. Giving less than 10% of your income is NOT a tithe. Giving that is not directed to the local church is NOT a tithe.

The Specified Purpose of the Tithe

Ok, so the tithe is 10% but how do you get the support for the local church purpose? Can’t I just take 10% of my income, throw it up into the air and whatever does not come done is God’s?

Nice try. However the word “storehouse” in the context of Malachi 3:10 (see above) relates to the temple treasury. Additionally, the verse states “that there may be food in my house.” Clearly, the tithe is used to meet the physical needs of the place of worship and the priests.

Gross or Net?

This is one of the most frequent questions regarding tithing. Ok, tithing is 10% but is that gross or net?

Let me make this real simple: the tithe is 10% of your GROSS earnings. Whatever your income is, just move the decimal point 1 position to the left and that is your tithe amount.

Let’s go back to the very first tithe mentioned in scripture. Abram (Abraham) just came back from a spectacular victory brought about from his personal army against five kings. Abram openly acknowledged God’s hand in the victory to Melchizidek, king of Salem and Priest.

20 And blessed be God Most High,
Who has delivered your enemies into your hand.”

And he gave him a tithe of all. (Gen 14:20, NKJ, emphasis mine)

Abram did not quibble over expenses. He took the tithe out of everything. (You can read the whole story here.)

Who Do You Respect More: God or the IRS?

Before we leave the gross vs. net discussion, I think it’s helpful to recall the words of Jesus when the Pharisees and Herodians tried to trick him by asking if they should pay taxes to Caesar (government). Jesus’ answer was simple and to the point: “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.” (Mark 12:17; Read the whole account here.)

We may not like it but generally we don’t challenge the IRS’s authority to take out taxes from our paychecks before we even get paid. Shouldn’t we treat God’s money with the same respect?

10% Off the Top! Yikes!!

Do you mean to tell me that God requires 10% before I get anything? Isn’t that a bit steep?

No. First of all, it ALL belongs to God anyway. If anything, he is being ostentatiously generous by requiring only 10%.

1THE EARTH is the Lord’s, and the fullness of it, the world and they who dwell in it. (Psalm 24:1, AMP)

Yep, the whole planet belongs to God. Not only that but the fruit of the planet (i.e. “fullness”).  Not only does that field of crops belong to the Lord but the harvest does as well.  God owns the gross and the net.  It’s all His.

10%: What A Deal!!

We would be out of balance, however, if we focused exclusively how much is due to the Lord while ignoring what He is promising in return.  Let’s take another look at that verse:

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. (Malachi 3:10 NASB)

The Lord is essentially saying “I double-dare you” to test me in this.  Take care of My house (local fellowship and priests) and I will take care of you even beyond your needs.  The King James Version describes the extent of this Blessing as “there shall not be room enough to receive it.”  The Lord in His giving isn’t quibbling about gross or net.  He’s not holding back!  He is opening the windows of Heaven and letting it flow to excess.  There’s more than enough to meet your needs, your desires, and have plenty enough to spread around to those around you.

All this for the 10%.  That’s pretty cheap!

Related posts:

1. Is Tithing Obsolete?