Bible Believers' Newsletter 912
"We focus on the present Truth – what Jesus is doing now. . ."
ISSN 1442-8660Christian greetings in the precious Name of our Lord Jesus Christ; we are pleased you could join us in fellowship around God's unchanging Word.
Please welcome the author of our main article, Pastor Chibueze Uzoho who shepherds our sister Bible Believers' Church in Nigeria. The Lord has blessed his congregation and vindicated his office, so it is with great pleasure that we commend his teaching "Bring All the Tithes into the Storehouse," first published in Newsletter 624.
In addition to our main article we bring you up to date with current events that have an important bearing on the world situation in this end-time.
This Newsletter serves those of like precious faith. Whoever will receive the truth is welcome to feed their soul from the waters of the River of Life. Everything here presented should be confirmed personally in your own Bible.
Your brother-in-Christ
Anthony Grigor-Scott
From Darkness to Light
April 21, 2014 — As a Muslim imam, Mario Joseph was well-versed in the Koran and in the teachings of the Islamic religion. In fact, it was precisely the Koran that brought him to an encounter with Jesus Christ and with the truth of the Catholic faith. But his conversion did not come without difficulties, and because of it, he has undergone grave persecution. He tells us how he attained his intense love towards the Church, the Cross and Heaven . . . Full story: youtube.com
Comment: He has seen marvellous truths but sadly does not understand one cannot be a Christian and a Roman Catholic. Judaeo-Catholicism is an impersonation of Israel's temple worship and the Koran projects the same philosophy as the Babylonian Talmud.
The Endgame – Full White Genocide
February 24, 2015 — Prophesied by Jesus Christ in Matthew 24:37 "As it was in the days of Noah, so shall it be in the Coming of the Son of Man." Read Genesis 6: miscegenation is a sign of the times, a repetition of the original sin; yet not one denominational or independent church is looking for the second or 'parousia' Coming of the Son of Man who has been present with us since March, 1963!
Apostate Australian Churches are purchasing houses to accommodate refugees from Syria when they are needed at home to stop the invasion and slaughter by cutthroat pseudo Muslim mercenaries recruited, trained, armed, fed, drugged and paid for by Jew-ruled USA, UK, faux-Israel, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the GCC states, France, Australia, etc., Full story: youtube.com thisiseuropa.net.
Comment: Here is a GOOD man, Rev. James David Manning who knows what he is saying, as does President Putin. What about the Jews Angela Merkel, Francois Hollande, David Cameron, Barak Obama, Malcolm Turnbull, Erdogan, the Saudi Royals, Netanyahu, Wesley Clark, Sarkozy, John Keys . . . the advent of discrimination, slavery, segregation is all Jewish.
Is the Truce in Syria a Deceitful Neocon Strategy to launch a Pro-Terrorist Arab Coalition Invasion?
February 26, 2016 — Barring a US led Sunni invasion, the South Front group of geopolitical analysts expect the Syrian-Russian coalition to be finished defeating the terrorists possibly within weeks or at most a few more months. There's good reason why Turkey and Saudi Arabia are Empire's closest Islamic regional allies willing to sacrifice the slaughter of thousands of their own troops to save a few raggedy terrorists . . .
Once news that a truce was agreed upon by Russia and the US this last Monday, on Tuesday before a congressional hearing US Secretary of State John Kerry immediately began hedging, bringing up a contingency plan B delineating a partitioned separate section in northern Syria (i.e., the designated terrorist safe haven stronghold) that would be the outcome should the truce not work out . . .
Saudi Arabia is where the largest military exercises in Middle East history involving those 350,000 troops from 20 different Arab nations are presently being conducted in the northernmost part of the country conveniently closest to the Syrian border. The war games dubbed Operation North Thunder include 20,000 tanks, 2,450 warplanes and 460 military helicopters. Participating nations are Saudi Arabia, UAE, Jordan, Bahrain, Senegal, Sudan, Kuwait, Maldives, Morocco, Pakistan, Chad, Tunisia, Comoro Islands, Djibouti, Oman, Qatar, Malaysia, Egypt, Mauritania, and Mauritius. The Northern Thunder twitter account specifies that the drills that began on February 14th will continue through March 10th; plenty of time to go live for their threatened invasion of Syria . . .
Russia has already warned Turkey and Saudi Arabia that it will not hesitate using its tactical nukes against any invading forces on Syrian soil. Yet because the 6-oligarch owned and controlled Western mainstream media corporations have kept Americans in the dark with 24/7 lies and disinformation throughout the Syrian war, next to no coverage of this impending Turkish-Saudi invasion of Syria has even been reported, so soon Americans may wake up one morning to the breaking news headline "Russia nukes US allies" . . . The Israeli-American strategy to upend Putin's success in Syria could well be setting the stage for the impending Saudi-Turkish-Sunni invasion as a trap where they become the sacrificial lunatic lambs to state-of-the-art war precision . . . Full story: empireexposed.blogspot.com
Will the European Union share the Fate of the Soviet Union?
26 February 2016 — "The disaster of the quotations of European banks shows that something has gone terribly wrong," French economist Charles Gave suggests. "I have never seen a scenario where the collapse of major European banks was not followed by a recession in Europe. So the answer to your question is simple: if a recession happens in Europe in 2016, the euro will not survive . . . in Italy, bank debts already constitute 20% of GDP, and might cross the 30% or even 40% threshold, which is obviously not tenable . . ."
"France, Germany and Italy are real states�Europe is not. Europe is a civilization, not a state. The supporters of the euro have, for 15 years now, been killing the continent's economies, and if a recession begins in 2016, the European people will take the wheel away from those whom they did not elect . . . Full story: sputniknews.com
Comment: The ruling elite has engineered through its lackey leaders of the West and their puppet governments Turkey and Saudi Arabia the perfect storm of events all converging, colliding and exploding in the days and weeks ahead. With Europe overrun and reeling from the globalist manufactured mass migration crisis, the EU is about to go bust. With virtually every honest economist and financial analyst unanimously predicting that the global economy is on the verge of total collapse starting with the Deutsch Bank, like dominoes all the major banks will fail once again while national economies crash. Covert legislation in both Europe and North America will ensure that this time around instead of a "too big to fail" buyout, a buy-in will steal citizens' life savings from their private bank accounts. All the central banks, Homeland Security, FEMA and the rest of the treasonous Washington criminals have been methodically preparing for this moment in history for decades (globalresearch.ca).
Brother Branham said, "When God sends forth a message and tells the people, and they don't receive it, then He withdraws His servant and sends His plagues: famine, death, spiritually speaking, physically also. You watch for a depression, brother. You think you've seen something; you just wait after while. You haven't seen nothing. You think you're dying for a good spiritual revival; you wait till after a bit. You just wait, long and cry to hear the Word of God. The Bible said so. "There'll be a famine in the last days," said the prophet, "and not for bread and water alone, but for hearing the true Word of God" (William Branham, Jezebel Religion, p. 22:100).
Polish Government expands Police State Powers
February 25, 2016 — Poland's right-wing nationalist government has rapidly expanded its police state measures in recent weeks . . . police can legally access virtually all personal data of an Internet user�from passwords and e-mails to medical data . . . police can install surveillance programmes on private computers with court approval, without the affected person being informed about this prior to it taking place . . . The strengthening of the military and state apparatus is aimed first of all at preparing for war with Russia and closer integration into the war strategy of US imperialism . . . from the summer of 2015, 43 percent of the Polish population lived on less than the financial minimum for survival . . .
Full story: wsws.org
My Heart will go On
December 25, 2011 —This video is too good not to share; it is high time such rare videos were introduced into the wider world, not just shared between non-conformists. Enjoy, thousands have already done so. Full story: youtube.com
Comment: Historian David Irving is in good form in this audio address noting the similarities between World War II and the Iraq War. This address was delivrered in 2003; otherwise he might likely have called it Similarities between World War II and the Syrian War/Libyan War (youtube.com).
Horsemeat & Babies
A movie about the post-abortion industry; a film about the racist origins of Planned Parenthood and their main target�African Americans, Slavs and Jews, the increase in Post-birth abortions and the logical endgame of the practice . . .
Full story: youtube.com
Comment: This video should be viewed in conjunction with the following video. You will speedily recognize the Black Nobility, the 'City of London' and the fourth Gentile world empire.
Examining Stalin's 1941 Plan to attack Germany
Are you aware of the possibility the Holocaust was important to some Zionists in order to create the new Israel of today? I have never seen the real explanation presented anywhere for the possible planning of the Jewish Holocaust by the Zionist. The Zionist tried for a long time to populate the land of Israel, and they continually failed, as most of the newly arriving immigrants would eventually move away.
In order to create the new country of Israel, there needed to be a large sized population of Jews who would stay and control the land of Israel. It was only after the events that were related to the great horror of WW2 between Russia and Germany that a large population of Jews finally continued to remain in Israel.
Doesn't this bring suspicion that the Jewish Holocaust was controlled and planned? Here are two references that claim that Stalin always had a very much larger military than Germany.
So why did Stalin delay in attacking Germany? Was the reason for Stalin's delay that the Holocaust was planned, and ending WW2 too soon, by Stalin attacking Germany earlier would have made the Holocaust too small to be effective for the Zionist goal of creating Israel? Full story: Grand Delusion: Stalin and the German Invasion of Russia; Operation Barbarossa and the Russian Historians' Dispute.
Comment: This video, viewed in conjunction with the previous video exposes the Black Nobility and 'City of London' of Revelation 17, the Empire of Papal Rome and false flag black flag operations. The identity of the 'hidden hand' behind this last video will be obvious, so filter all things through the Absolute of God's unchanging Word.
Why are there No Photos of Earth?
In nearly sixty years of alleged space exploration NASA has never been able to offer us a single genuine photograph of the Earth from space�NOT ONE! Even though we've had good, high-resolution cameras for nearly 100 years, NASA has never taken a true photograph of the Earth.
By their own admission, all of the pictures we see are composites, paintings or computer-generated images. Why is this? Could the answer be, horror of horrors that NASA has never been into space�or at least, not far enough from the Earth to get the whole planet in the frame? Full story: exohuman.com
Dead Men's Secrets
Mystery micro artefacts stun modern scientists. Gold prospectors in the Ural Mountains area of Russia are finding unusual, spiral-shaped artefacts made from copper, tungsten and molybdenum. Who, thousands of years ago, was able to manufacture such micro filigree objects—something our technology is just beginning to achieve? Full story: beforeus.com
The Voice of Russia and other Russian sources are reporting that "a 300 million year old" piece of aluminium machinery has been found in Vladivostok. Experts say a gear rail appears to be manufactured and not the result of natural forces. Lighting the fire during a cold winter evening, a resident of Vladivostok found a rail-shaped metal detail which was pressed in one of the pieces of coal that the man used to heat his home. Mesmerized by his discovery, the citizen decided to seek help from scientists of Primorsky region. After studying the metal object, "experts" declared it to be an aluminium gear "300 million years old." Its age was dated from the evolution theory's assumed age of the coal in which it was found embedded. What puzzled them was that it was not created by nature but was rather manufactured by an intelligent person. There have been many other discoveries. Full story: beforeus.com
Comment: "Noah lived in a scientific age, where there was a scientific achievement that they were able to manufacture that were beyond anything that we've manufactured today. They were brighter, more intelligent. Their science was far advanced to ours. And just remember, he had to stand the reproach of the Word that he preached a hundred and twenty years in the face of scoffers. Their great scientific ways proved to them that there was no rain in the skies . . ." (William Branham, Reproach for the Cause of the Word, p. 14:3).
Here we see a type and rebuke for today's faux climate scientists (so-called) propagating the climate change HOAX!
Bring All the Tithes into the Storehouse
By Pastor Chibuze Uzoho
Today, some good folk believe tithing is not as important as it was in the Old Testament Temple system of worship. Others suggest that the freewill contributions of the saints have taken the place of tithing in the Church. However, basic Biblical principles like this do not change. Tithing existed before the Old Testament 'Levitical' order was established and continues to this day.
The tithe is a tenth. We first heard of "tithing" when Abraham met Melchizedek (Genesis 14:1-20), Priest-King of Salem, which means "peace" or "security." Earthly Salem was initially ruled by Amorites, but the Jebusites who ruled in the era of Joshua called it "Jebusi," and when both names were conjoined it became "Jerusalem," or "city of peace" (Joshua 18:28; Ezekiel 16:3). When Abram first encountered Melchizedek, the "King of Righteousness," Creator and Redeemer of heaven and earth He was the theophany that would later manifest as the virgin-born Prince of Peace. And as the Father of the Son of God, His city was not earthly Salem established by the Serpent's seed, but the "heavenly Jerusalem that is free of the yoke of Mosaic Law and is the mother of us all" and will one day "come down from God out of heaven as a Bride adorned for her Husband" (Galatians 4:6; Hebrews 12:22; Genesis 10:15-19: Hebrews 7:2; Revelation 21:1-2).
This is the first mention of the word "Priest" in Scripture. A Priest is an intercessor between God and men; as God's representatives His ministers received God's tithe for their sustenance under grace as they did under the Law (Numbers 18:24). Consequently when Abraham met Melchizedek he was not learning how to give tithes, as this was his custom. Abraham and Jacob like we Gentiles today lived under grace which predated the Law of Moses and the Temple worship, (Genesis 14:20; 28:20-22); both understood the principle of paying tithes which is obligatory to every believer. Leviticus 27:30 states, "All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's. It is holy to the Lord".
As exemplified by the Patriarchs of old, the Christian's life is one of stewardship. Jacob promised a tenth to the Lord. "And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that You give me I will surely give the tenth to You" (Genesis 28:20-22, 30). Hence tithe paying is a principle of stewardship, not a ritual fulfilled on Calvary.
Malachi wrote the last Book of the Old Testament, announcing the first Coming of the messenger of the New Testament and His forerunner, John. Malachi 3:8-12, is often regarded as Old Testament Scripture whereas it is actually a prophecy of the Lord's second or 'parousia' Coming to Israel as "the God of judgment" after the close of the Gentile dispensation, and emphasizes the importance of tithing among God's people.
"Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, How have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of you. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat 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 out for you an overflowing blessing. I will rebuke the devouring locust for your sakes, and it shall not destroy the fruits of your soil; your vine in the field shall not fail to ripen, says the Lord of hosts. Then all nations shall call you blessed: for you shall be a delightful land, says the Lord of hosts" (Malachi 3:8-12).
In this Scripture we see the entire nation of Judah had defrauded God in tithes and heave offerings which belonged to Him and would have been utterly consumed as they deserved were it not for His longsuffering patience for the sake of His elect. This lukewarm spirit has now engulfed the entire world as we approach the end of grace. The spirit of Laodicea is hindering the revelation of Jesus Christ and the expression of the Token of His Life in many in the circle of this end-time Message; God's wrath is restrained only by His longsuffering patience waiting for the last elect to recognize his day and its Message. Once the last soul is baptized into Christ, God's wrath will fall on the earth. We stand at the threshold of the crisis of the ages.
God reproved the Israelites and also promised to bless them abundantly if they would bring the tithes into His storehouse. In fact He declared he would open the windows of heaven and pour an abundant blessing upon them. And God is poised to open the windows of heaven and pour out a more than sufficient blessing upon you who will take Him at His Word for, "there is great reward in keeping your Word" (Psalm 19:11). God wants to show Christians tremendous revelations that will enlighten both wise and foolish virgin, Spiritual and material blessings are withheld from unbelievers and doubters who rob Him of His tenth, impoverishing His labourers as in the days of Nehemiah. "I discovered that the portions of the Levites had not been given to them: so that they and the singers, who did the work, had fled each to his field" (Nehemiah 13:10).
God owns everything "and the cattle upon a thousand hills" (Psalm 50:10, 24:1). He allows us the joy of giving and personally using His possessions for His glory. However, He requires His people to dedicate a good portion, a tithe, for His service. "And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's: it is holy to the Lord" (Leviticus 27:30-32). Tithes belong to God and were portions He exclusively reserved to the Priests and Levites who minister in the Temple. The tithes of Israel were offered as a heave offering and given to the Levites. The "heave offering" was lifted upward once, properly separated from the larger mass and devoted to the divine service of God.
"As for the descendants of Levi, I have given them every tithe in Israel for an inheritance, in return for their services as custodians of the tabernacle of the congregation. Henceforth the children of Israel are never to come near the sanctuary, lest they bear sin, and die. The Levites shall discharge the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear their iniquity: it shall be a perpetual statute forever throughout your generations, that among the children of Israel they shall have no inheritance. For I have designated the tithes which the children of Israel present as a heave offering to the Lord, for an inheritance to the Levites: therefore I have told them, that they are not to own any property among the children of Israel: they shall have no inheritance" (Numbers 18:21-24).
Levites were to pay a tenth, a tithe of a tithe. "Speak unto the Levites and direct them, When you take the tithes from the children of Israel which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then you shall present a heave offering of it for the Lord, a tithe of the tithe. Your heave offering shall be credited to you as though it were the grain from the threshing floor, and as the full produce of the winepress. Thus from all your tithes which you receive of the people of Israel, you are to contribute a heave offering to the Lord, and give the Lord's heave offering to Aaron the priest. Out of all your gifts you are to select from every heave offering for the Lord the best thereof, the hallowed portion of it. Tell them also: When you offer the best part of it, it shall be credited to the Levites as the increase of the threshing floor, and as the increase of the winepress. And you may eat it in any place, you and your households: for it is your reward in return for your service in the tabernacle. You will not bring any sin upon yourselves, provided you contribute the best of it. You are not to desecrate the holy gifts of the Israelites lest you die" (Numbers 18:26-32).
The Levites were God's ministers and they too must pay one tenth (ten percent) of the heave offering that was offered by the children of Israel. The rest was for their own use, because it was the reward for their service in the tabernacle of the congregation. This shows that Ministers of the Gospel are to pay tithes, and the giver and the receiver are of the same fivefold ministry, the blessing comes from God for both ministers, as they give their services to God. Non-paying of tithes is a grievous sin tantamount to despoiling God (Hebrews 10:26-27). In trying to defraud God we only defraud ourselves. As the eagle which robbed the altar would set her nest on fire from the burning coal that adhered to the stolen flesh, Christians who retain God's tithe in their treasuries will surely find it a losing possession. No one loses by serving God with a completely surrendered heart, nor ever gains by serving Him half heartedly, as seen by numerous examples in Scripture. We may compromise with conscience for half the price, but God will not endorse the compromise; and, like Ananias and Sapphira, we shall lose not only what we thought we had purchased so cheaply, but also the price we paid for it. If we would have God open His treasury, we first must open ours. If we want to preserve our possessions we must be faithful stewards in tithing. One cause of loss and barrenness in the Church is the unwillingness of members to pay their tithes and give freewill offerings with a cheerful heart. When Christians refuse to render to the Lord according to the benefits they have received they fall short of the mark of His high calling.
"Windows of heaven" is an expression that speaks of rain for the crops, especially the early and latter rains to bless the field. It indicates much increase to be poured out in the allusion of a vessel completely emptied of its contents, no blessing being kept back as the result of obedience in tithes and offerings. Jesus said, "Give and it shall be given to you, good measure pressed down, and shaken together, and running over." God promises security and protection to the obedient servant. He says, "I will rebuke the devouring locust. I will no longer corrupt the seed, but will rebuke every agency that could hurt it." These magnificent promises speak of the Christian's sources of income and property. In obedience His people are seen as a delightsome blessing in His presence (Deuteronomy 33:29, Zechariah 8:13; Malachi 3:11).
God has opened the windows of heaven to the Church and abundantly poured out His blessings in these last days. Therefore, He reasonably expects us to bring our tithes into His storehouse for His service, but if we have refused and have not planned accordingly to promote the cause of Christ, the Spirit is grieved, and the blessing is withdrawn. Why? Because, we have failed to be liberal when God had dealt so bountifully with us in blessing (Amos 4:9).
When Christians are not consciously dependent on the Spirit but rely on their own resources, God curses their blessings. In many instances, they sin against their own mercies, because they become lifted up with their success, taking credit to themselves and not giving all the glory to God. "If you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to My Name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will even send the curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: indeed I have cursed them already, because you do not lay it to heart" (Malachi 2:2).
Jesus admonishes us, "Give, and it shall be given to you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that you mete withal it shall be measured to you again. God loves a cheerful giver." (Luke 6:38, II Corinthians 9:7b). Don't you know, "the liberal souls shall be fat and he that waters shall be watered also himself" (Proverbs 11:25)?
Malachi 3:10 speaks of bringing all the tithes into his store house. Therefore for a true relationship with the One who provides all things, only a complete tithe is appropriate, which is a tenth of one's increase. To understand the Storehouse as implied, the following Scriptures offer some clue. II Chronicles 31:11-15, "Then Hezekiah commanded to prepare chambers in the house of the Lord; and they prepared them, and brought in the offerings and the tithes and the dedicated things faithfully" (I Chronicles 26:20; Nehemiah 10:38; 13:5, Deuteronomy 12:5-6, 11).
In the Temple the storehouse was the area where grains and produce were stored for use by the Priest and Levites—those whose work it was to minister before the Lord. In the New Testament, this store House is the Church where we receive the spiritual food in due season and the Ministers are the fivefold Ministry. As the Levites lived upon the tithes of their congregation, the fivefold Ministry live upon the tithes of their congregations. And as freewill offerings furnished the needs of the Old Testament temple, our freewill offerings meet Church expenses for maintenance, repairs, electricity, stationary, office staff and so forth. Tithes are not for constructing church buildings or feeding the poor. Congregational freewill offerings serve these ends (Exodus 25:2-8).
In Malachi 3:10, God says "prove me," showing that He wants His people to test Him whether He will keep His promise of blessing them for their loving obedience (II Chronicles 31:10). God's case against non-payment of tithes and offerings is based on robbery, which is a breach of the eighth commandment (Exodus 20:15). Withholding God's property is perhaps the most obvious symptom of indifference to God, though we may feign ignorance. "But you shall remember the Lord your God: for it is He who enables you to prosper that He may establish the covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day. . . Honour the Lord with your substance, and with the first fruits of all your increase: So shall your barns be filled with plenty, and your vats overflow with new wine" (Deuteronomy 8:18; Proverbs 3:9-10).
As mentioned earlier, some good folk believe that returning a tenth to God was a commandment only to those of the Old Testament. This attitude is indicative of the fact that they are not yet born-again because of their inability to rightly divide and measure the Word against appropriate shadows and types rather than adding here and taking-away there to justify themselves (Revelation 22:18-19).
In the time of Jesus' first advent, the Jewish leaders were intent on bringing all the people to perfection . . . according to their man-made paradigms. They figured that God would be obligated to help them conquer the Romans on account of their zeal for self-works. They made extra rules, which told people how to keep these laws, whereby they made the Word and faith of no effect. Back then neglecting to tithe was not an issue. Here is Jesus' comment: "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, for you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the Law: judgment, mercy, and faith you ought to have done, and not to leave tithing undone" (Matthew 23:23, Luke 11:42).
Jesus' statement clarifies that tithe paying is still a requirement, but while honouring their obligation to tithe the Jewish leaders of His day were seriously remiss in neglecting the compassionate elements of the Law. Therefore, Christians are duty bound to tithe a minimum ten percent of their increase to their pastor who feeds them Spiritual food in due season.
Some zealots argue that Jesus' statement regarding tithes pertained only to the Priests. This has no Scriptural support since had the people not tithed the priests would have been exempt from their obligation to tithe a tenth of their increase. The congregation paid tithes to the priests. The Jewish leaders tended to demand observances of the people that they themselves ignored, "for you lade men with burdens grievous to be borne and you yourselves touch not the burdens" (Luke 11:46).
At the Cross, the ceremonial laws which pointed forward to the Lamb of Calvary ended (John 1:29; Matthew 5:17; 27:51), but tithing did not point to the Cross and was not fulfilled on the Cross. Therefore tithe-paying remains an obligation today as do freewill contributions and gifts, and the spiritual leaders of the Church are worthy of support today. "Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour especially those that labour in the word and doctrine. For the Scripture says, You shall not muzzle the ox that treads out the corn. And the labourer is worthy of his reward" (I Timothy 5:17-18).
"Do we have no right to eat and drink? . . . Whoever goes to war at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its fruit? Or who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk of the flock? Do I say these things as a mere man? Does the Law not say the same also? For it is written in the Law of Moses, You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain. Is it oxen God is concerned about? Or does He say it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written, that he who ploughs should plough in hope, and he who threshes in hope should be partaker of his hope. Inasmuch as we have sown Spiritual seed among you, is it remarkable for us if we reap your material things? Since others enjoy the right to share material benefits from you, do not we even more? Nevertheless we have not used this right, but endure all things lest we hinder the Gospel of Christ. Do you not know that those who minister the holy things eat of the things of the temple, and those who serve at the altar partake of the offerings of the altar? Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the Gospel should live from the Gospel" (I Corinthians 9:4, 7-14).
In verse 7 of the above Scripture, Saint Paul asks, "Who serves as a soldier at his own expense?" With the expression "muzzle an ox" Brother Paul is still referring to the Temple Law of tithes. For as the Ox that treads out the grain is worthy to eat of the grain, so the Minister of the Gospel ought to live from the tithing of the Church (Deuteronomy 25:4). Paul teaches that in the sanctuary, priests and Levites were supported by the people and alludes to the New Testament fivefold Ministry that labours daily in the Word. He points out that Christians must remember to be faithful in tithes and offerings (Malachi 3:10; II Corinthians 8:4; I Corinthian 9:4).
The majority of believers are wary of sacrificing too much for God, but He abundantly blesses in ways beyond money all who obey this commandment. Holding back tithes for any reason is not an option. It is a joy to partner with the Lord. Our first obligation is to pay our tithes; bring the tithes and offerings into the storehouse of God where we get spiritual food. Second, we must meet our family responsibilities, settle any lingering debts, and responsibly steward any surplus.
Since Messiah has "magnified the Law and made it glorious" our motivation in serving God is enlarged beyond whatever it was under the Old Testament, such that Christians should go beyond the Old Testament people in consecrating both themselves and their substance to God (Isaiah 42:21). God delights in a cheerful giver and those who worship Him in Spirit and in Truth, becoming written epistles of the Present-Truth.
You are to pay your tithe to your Pastor, however, if you are without a pastor, you should support the minister who feeds your soul with Spiritual food in due season (I Corinthians: 9:1-14; 16:1-2; I Timothy 5:17-18). The tithe is not church property, it belongs to the Pastor to live on and spend as he pleases. If it is insufficient for his needs then he will have to work. He will in turn pay his own tithe to Ministers who feed him. This is the tithe of tithes as in the Old Testament where the Levite was obligated to pay a tenth to the Priest (Nehemiah 10:38; Numbers 18:28-32).
Church expenses should not be met out of the Pastor's pocket but from the free-will offerings of the saints. Tithes and freewill contributions should not be conflated as they are two separate obligations of the believer (Exodus 25:2, 8; Deuteronomy 16:16-17), and these two obligations still rest upon the Church. The assembly does not belong to the Pastor. It belongs to the entire congregation. It is your assembly and the Pastor is your servant, not your benefactor. He should be reimbursed by the church for his telephone, travelling, postage and other expenses incurred in the "business" of the assembly.
How do we calculate our tithe? It is calculated on our "increase" (Deuteronomy 14:22). For a businessman, it is the tenth of his net profit or increase after deducting overheads, materials, rent, wages, tax and other expenses. For a wage or salary earner this should be ten percent of the total income calculated after tax has been deducted.
Contrary to denominational doctrine, Ministers of God do not receive a salary or stipend from the Church, but according to Scripture they derive their living from the tithes of his people. Bazaars, fetes and suppers are not His way of supporting the Ministry. God said, "Bring the full tithes into the storehouse." The man who loves God will always take pleasure in supporting His work. You like to help those you dearly love, and when you help the Church, you are helping God. Jesus said, "Inasmuch as you have done it unto the least of these My Brethren, you have done it unto Me," and the minister being your servant is the least (Matthew 23:11; 25:40). So, brethren, do not hold back any part of your tithes thereby making your Pastor wait for his due as though he were a beggar. Do not defraud God. Pay the full sum of your tithes. Your Pastor has obligations and expenses to meet and having dispensed his duties he is therefore worthy to receive his entitlements. If your Minister has faithfully sown Spiritual things for you, is it remarkable that he reaps your material things? You should pay your tithes as soon as you receive your increase. Hello! My Pastor friends, the tithe is your right from God, it is not charity, so don't be bashful.
Malachi 3:8-12 is a Scripture frequently quoted by those who support tithing and also by those who do not believe in tithing, claiming this is Old Testament Scripture and does not apply to the Church today. However it needs to be said that there are more Scriptures in the Old Testament yet to be fulfilled than there are in the New, and Malachi 3:2-4:6 speaks of New Testament times yet future. Tithing is not simply an Old Testament commandment; it applies in the New Testament dispensation.
Jesus taught us that the commandment to tithe will continue throughout eternity. In the new heaven and new earth, "The nations of the saved shall walk in the Light of the Shekinah over New Jerusalem: and the kings of the earth shall bring their glory and honour [or tithe] into it. Its gates shall never be shut by day: and there shall be no night there. And they shall bring the glory and honour [or tithe] of the nations into it. But nothing unclean [unregenerate], nor anyone who commits abomination, or practices falsehood: but the born-again saints whose names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life shall enter therein" (Revelation 21:24-27). So tithing is most definitely a New Testament requirement. If we neglect to pay our tithes and freewill offerings we are robbing God of His due and as well robbing ourselves of His blessings, and indicate we are not in the Bride.
If God is not opening the windows of heaven to you, rise up now brother and sister and discover the cause of your Spiritual or material dearth before the Gentile dispensation ends. We must endeavour to meet the requirements of God's unchanging Word in order to come into the unity of faith with the Token on display at all times. Now is checking-up time to discover our short comings and amend our lives and prove whether we are living in the promises of God.
In this end-time God has sent us a Prophet, William Branham who was the Elijah of Malachi 4:5-6, to reveal Gods entire plan in such simplicity even the fool should not err. Since Christ's mediation for ignorance of the fullness of the Word ended with the revelation of the Seven Seals: He is no longer winking at men's ignorance but requires us to "live by His every Word".
This is what our 'Elijah' taught on the matter of tithing: "Hebrews 7:7-9, "Without any contradiction the less is blessed of the better. (Certainly. Watch Who He is). And here men that die receive tithes . . . (That's the priesthood of the order of priests and preachers and so forth, men that receive tithe, die. See?) . . . but here He receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that He liveth."
"What would a man take tithings for, if he never was borned, and never will die, and was from beginning to end, and never had no father or mother or descent, and owned the whole heavens and earth and all in it, why would He take tithe? Why would he ask Abraham to pay tithes? You see what a strict thing it is to pay tithes? Tithing's right. Every Christian's duty bound to pay tithe. That's right. Never has been changed" . . . (William Branham, Hebrews, p. 310:122-123).
"Thank you, my little sister, for this tithing. As a minister, I'm supposed to receive tithing" (From that Time, #60-07160).
Question: "Brother Branham, don't you feel that everyone who claims to be a Christian should pay tithes; pay their tithes into the storehouse of the Lord? Please give Scripture to this question.
All right, if you will. . . That is right, that the Bible said in Malachi the 3rd chapter, "Will a man rob God? And you say, 'Where have we robbed Thee?' In tithe and offerings. Bring all your tithe and offerings into My storehouse and prove Me," saith the Lord, "if I will not open up the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that there'll not be room enough to receive."
That's a challenge to any individual. And if I only had the time, and would not get to this little Scripture that I wish to get to in about the next ten minutes, I would like to give you a personal testimony of how that I was even hungry, and my mother and them hungry, and my daddy sick, but I took my tithes out first and give it to God, and you ought to see what happened. I have never seen in my life, that any man or a woman, that if you only make one dollar a week, will bring the ten cents of that money and put it into your storehouse, your church where you come, if God don't bless that, call me a hypocrite. Yes, sir. That's a challenge to anybody. And every Christian . . . That goes to this other question. Every Christian should pay tithes. That's right. It should be done" (COD, p. 617:Q146).
Question: Does a Christian not get to heaven because they do not pay tithe?
"I could not say yes or no to that. But I do believe that every Christian is obligated to pay tithings because it is a commandment of the Lord. "And blessed are they that do all His commandments that they might have a right to enter into the Life, the Tree of Life." Now, I do believe that tithe-paying is essential to a Christian experience" (C.O.D., p. 604:Q136; Revelation 22:14).
Question: Would it be wrong to use tithes on church building funds?
"Well now, here's a touchy little thing for the church now. No, correctly, tithes is to go to the minister. That's right. In the Bible they had a box they'd set at the door in the Old Testament. This box was a fund where the people put in there for the repairing. . . You've read it many times in the Old Testament. They kept up the buildings and things like that. . . All the repairs on the buildings was taken care out of that fund. But all the tithings went to their priests, their pastors. Yes, tithings are to go for nothing else."
"I know people take their tithes and give them to a widow woman. That's wrong. If you've got anything to give the widow woman, give her, but don't give her God's money. That's not yours in the first place. That's God's.
"If you sent me downtown to get a loaf of bread, and you give me twenty-five cents to get the loaf of bread, and I met somebody on the street wanted something else, and I'd give him the twenty-five cents (See?), I give them your money. If they asked me for something, let them get it over here in this pocket and give them my money; but this is your money. And a tenth of it is the Lord's. And Levi the priest could live by the tenth."
"The tenth is to be a tithing that's to be brought into the storehouse with a promise of God to bless it and a proof. He said, "If you don't believe it, come and prove Me and see if I won't do it." See? That's right." "The tithing goes into the church for the pastor and so forth like that to live on. And then the building funds and things like that is a separate fund altogether. Now, that is Scriptural. One time when we get started, I want to take a night. . . I've went here some time ago before I left the tabernacle and taken about two or three weeks and just on subjects like that and went plumb through it and showed what tithings was in the church" (C.O.D., p. 680:Q161).
In Branham Tabernacle there was "a little box on the back where they put their tithes in" (Jehovah Jireh, #56-1209E).
Question: Should a person pay tithes to an individual, or should a Christian work?
"Sure he should. He's the one man that will work, is a Christian. "Pay tithes to an individual?" It depends on who the individual is. See? That's right. In Hebrews the 7th chapter, when Abraham, returning from the slaughter of the kings met Melchisedec, he paid Him a tithe. That was Melchisedec, the King of Salem, which is King of Peace, and King of Righteousness, which was nobody but God Himself. See?"
"But when you pay tithings . . . Really, where you owe tithings is where you get your food. "Bring ye all your tithings into My storehouse, saith the Lord. (That right?) And prove Me herewith saith God, that if I'll not open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that you would not have room enough to receive it." I challenge any man or woman that's not a tithe payer to accept that."
"I could stand here till in the morning, telling you just what happened when I seen that, and what condition I was in. But just as loyal as I ever could, I paid tithes. And when I took my own money from the church here or from my campaigns, I'd take more. . . I'd give a tenth. Then I'd give it out to the ministers, and give the rest of it to ministers. Then when I couldn't do that, then the thing I did, I kept ten percent and give God ninety. And then, when the law told me I couldn't do that, I'd have to take. . . And if I did, it was going to be charged to it, then I had to take and bypass it into foreign missions and so forth, and then just take a wage out of that of a hundred dollars a week; and I pay my tithes from that."
"Yes, sir. I believe in paying tithes. It's one of God's blessings that's proven to be a blessing. You say, "That's of the Old Testament." It is of the New Testament too. Yes, sir" (C.O.D., p. 1034: Q307).
When Brother Branham was in court over the income tax matter his attorney asked: "How do you get your money?"
I said, "What people send me." I'm looking in the face of people right now that sends me tithing continually. I never ask them, they just do it. That's the Holy Spirit. He's able to take care of His own" (The Baptism of the Holy Spirit, p. 17:74).
In Summary, these are Twelve Reasons for Tithing:
1. Tithing is Scriptural—ordered and approved of God in the Old and New Testaments.
2. Tithing teaches the true worshippers of the Lord Jesus Christ to put God and His work first.
3. Tithing teaches us to recognize and acknowledge God's ownership of our lives.
4. Tithing is an act of worship.
5. Tithing gives us more confidence in our prayers to God.
6. Tithing invokes God's blessings upon the tithe-giver.
7. Tithing tends to increase the tithe-giver's ability to give more than just a tenth of his or her income.
8. Tithing allows tithe-givers an opportunity to receive from God His blessings as they give Him their tithes.
9. Tithing creates a commanding position of stewardship in the lives of Christians.
10. Tithing increases the tithe-giver's influence over others to follow his example to practice tithing.
11. Tithing is giving in a systematic manner rather than an emotional or spasmodic giving.
12. Tithing causes the tithe-giver to give freely and spontaneously rather than waiting for an appeal.
Brethren, If we neglect to pay tithes and offerings we are robbing God of His portion and consequently robbing ourselves of His blessing and testifying we are not in His Bride and not in the rapture. We have to ensure we are among God's tenth. Those who are not faithful in tithe paying will have no part in the rapture and translation. The rapture has been in process since Christ opened the Seven Seals in 1963 and revealed them through His prophet�the New Testament Elijah of Malachi 4:5-6 and Matthew 17:11. Thus the translation of the faithful living Saints may be sooner than you think. Those with the Spirit of God will understand and obey the revealed Word but those who know to do righteousness but refuse it are in iniquity and will suffer the awful curse of God.
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Brother Grigor-Scott is a non-denominational minister who has ministered full-time since 1981, primarily to other ministers and their congregations overseas. He pastors Bible Believers' tiny congregation, and is available to teach in your church.
Bible Believers' Church
Gunnedah NSW
Australia 2380e-mail e-mail Bible Believers
URL Bible Believers' Website
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