142. Wala ka sa Lolo ko. For him, a tenth of everything belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord.
14 April 2021
Genesis 14
18 Then Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine. He was priest of God Most High,
19 and he blessed Abram, saying,
“Blessed be Abram by God Most High,
Creator of heaven and earth.
20 And praise be to God Most High,
who delivered your enemies into your hand.”
An offering. A tenth of everything. A tithe of everything.
Genesis 4
4 And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering.
Genesis 14
20 And praise be to God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
Leviticus 27
30“‘A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord.’”
Malachi 3
10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.”
“I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the Lord Almighty. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty. Malachi 3-11-12
"A tithe is 10% of your income given specifically to your local church. (Fun fact: The word tithe literally means tenth in Hebrew.)" From ramseysolutions website/budgeting/daves-advice-on-tithing-and-giving
I was not a tither, although I put some amount in the offering basket at church.
I learned my lesson.
I did not have money for the college education of my children. I did not have a stable job for 5 years. The cars were sold and the house was to be foreclosed by the bank.
Pastor Dan came over our house to give me one-on-one Bible study.
Thereafter, how can I not give my tithe?
The college education of my 2 daughters on free tuition translates to about a million pesos. The Lord loaned me a million pesos, I do not know if I have paid it off.
Even if I have paid it off, I will continue to give to the Lord. As soon I get my salary, I transfer 10 percent of the gross to the bank account of the church.
Psalm 50
9 I have no need of a bull from your stall
or of goats from your pens,
10 for every animal of the forest is mine,
and the cattle on a thousand hills.
11 If I were hungry I would not tell you,
for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
The Lord does not need our money, it is for us to give back for the work of God.
The Lord created the heavens and the earth, the world and all that is in it is the Lord's.
During the time of Apostle Paul, the Corinthians were considered well to do but it was the Philippians who in extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity, pleading for the privilege of sharing in service to the Lord's people.
2 Corinthians 8
2 In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity.
3 For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own,
4 they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people.
5 And they exceeded our expectations: They gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us.
We cannot take our money to heaven, yet we can offer our money to the Lord and we will have treasure in heaven. (Matthew 19:21)
One saying goes: "The world uses people to get money, but Christians use money to get people."
"Lord, "..... Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means "king of righteousness"; then also, "king of Salem" means "king of peace." Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever" (Hebrews 7:1-3). Lord, Son of God, God of blessing, I give You my humble offering, this I pray in Jesus' name. Amen."
Our life is no different from Job.
Job 1
20 At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship
21 and said: “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.”
Someday, my children's children will say, "Wala ka sa Lolo ko. For him, a tenth of everything belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord."
May you be blessed with God's Word. Amen.
Maraming salamat.
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