How to enforce tithing

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In the RPCNA one of the membership vows includes the promise to "...give to the Lord's work as he shall prosper you." If this is not being done (leaving aside for now the question of a 10% tithe or other amount) it is a breaking of vows. This is a double sin. Should the elders not follow up on this? It seems meaningless to me if a person may make such a vow as a condition of membership and then not be held accountable to it. That is just to say that a person can say whatever they want until they're "in" and then live contrary with impunity.

Tithing (Christian giving) is indeed a discipline that ought regulate the Christian life, and one can certainly imagine a disorderly life pattern for a believer to not include attending church, and not giving to the Lord's work, etc.

The difficulty is, how much, by what measure? E.g. is it 10%? Gross or net? What if they have a business? What about capital gains (here today, gone tomorrow)? What if the local church has no substantive ministry to its needy members? May one divide a basic amount, say 5% to a prospering local church and 5% to one providing direct benevolence to needy believers?

It is the details of application like this that make this much more ripe to admonition, good biblical teaching...
that yes, God owns it all, and the believer's life ought reflect something of that, to the end of God's Honor and Glory.

By the way of anecdotal evidence only, many of God's people are consumed by debt, or have become dependent on government, and are in their own "financial bondage," and this is one reason they are not giving more to the Lord's work.

Without the disciplines of saving, spending less than one makes, and working to live within one's means, the end result is lives that have less to tithe, many times rationalizing so.
 
Preachers encourage generosity by consistently proclaiming the gift of God: ""Though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor" (2 Cor. 8:9).

Deacons encourage generosity by making known the financial needs and opportunities of the church, and by collecting gifts.

Elders shepherd hearts. In the course of this, they may inquire about generosity but are advised to do so with the heart in mind, perhaps like this: "How is your heart doing? Are you loving your spouse? Avoiding gossip? Giving generously? etc." The goal being first of all to be a doctor to the heart, not to enforce behavior.
 
How to enforce tithing

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"How should local churches make sure their members are giving regularly?"
Should elders interview members and gather this info, check on them in any way, make them promise somehow in their church covenant, etc?

I agree with the majority of answers that teaching scriptural giving is the best way to encourage giving. Here's how we do it. When we have a new members class we have a specific section devoted to the responsibilites/expectations of the church member. One section in this includes regular giving. I explain to them the biblical model for giving. I also explain to them what their giving supports. Our church budget is pretty much an open book to any member that would like to see it. We also makes specific needs known to the congregation via the bulletin or announcements when we feel necessary. For example, recently one of our air conditioner units went out. We made this need known to the congregation so that they would know we are going to have a pretty significant need added to our budget in the coming months and any extra gifts designated to this would be greatly appreciated. We leave the decision for them to give between them and the Holy Spirit.
 
There are problems with enforcing tithing

(a) In the New Testament tithing can be no more than a useful and voluntary "rule of thumb" regarding the kind of proportion that should ordinarily on a usual regular basis be given to Christ's (our Melchisedec's) cause and kingdom. It does not seem to be emphasised in the way it was in the Mosaic period to in order mean that it is a breach of God's law and sinful not to tithe.

(b) The pattern pre-Moses of Abraham ("the father of all who believe" -Rom 4:11) and Jacob, is of them volunteering their tithes. It would seem to be limited to communicant members as a consideration, or those who profess conversion, rather than non-communicant members/adherents, or those who don't profess to know the Lord, because in the case of Abraham it was his response to Melchisedec (a type of Christ) bringing forth bread and wine, and in the case of Jacob, it may have been prompted on the occasion of his conversion.

(c) In OT Israel part of the tithe came back to the poorer tither in the form of HEW (Health, Education and Welfare). In how many churches where tithing is strictly enforced does this happen?

(d) If there was a better balance between the civil and ecclesiastical spheres, the church would have a greater role in HEW - as she appears to have done in the first century. Therefore those that tithe are justified, if they are so led, in taking a percentage off their tithe, to the extent that they believe that they are already contributing to HEW by taxation.

If tithing isn't taught at all there could be wide discrepancies in basic giving in a congregation, such that e.g. some "feel" only obliged to give less than 1% while others are so guilt laden that they "feel" obliged to give 50% or 60%.

There could be much greater differences in equality of giving within a congregation - with some, poor ones, bearing much more of the burden than others who have the resources to bear it, because there is no "rough guide" to ordinary regular giving.

Our desire is not that others might be relieved while you are hard pressed, but that there might be equality. At the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what you need. Then there will be equality, as it is written: "He who gathered much did not have too much, and he who gathered little did not have too little.'' (II Cor 8:13-15, NIV)

Without the tithe being taught about there is no rough guide to ordinary regular giving, so everything is up in the air.

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. (II Tim 3:16-17)

How was tithing "enforced" in the Levitical Economy?
 
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Is the PB consensus that tithing narrowly applies to one's home church or is there a recognition of broader liberty to support other ministries, para-churches, direct gifts of relief, etc?
 
The only consensus on PB is the confessions themselves which are silent on the issue of tithing. The only thing I think all of us would agree on is that all are under a moral obligation to support the Gospel ministry and mercy to the poor.

I would add that if your own church covenant, which you willingly signed, requires that you give a certain percentage to the church, then you are obligated to do so.
 
Is there a Christian priesthood? If not, there is no Christian tithe: there is the giving of a cheerful heart, which cannot be extorted.

So you would say that even though the tithe was inaugurated before the Levitical priesthood, since it was still given to a priest (Melchizedek) it is only connected with the priesthood?

Tithes appear to be associated with a priesthood. I am not sure if the fact that the Levitical priests themselves tithed what they received as a tithe has any bearing or not. For the question posed on this thread the requirement to give cheerfully seems to militate against any sort of imposition or enforcement.
 
we personally prefer to give cash, as I prefer that no one but God knows what I give. I have been asked to give by check in order to get a tax deduction. Im sorry but a tax deduction should have NO bearing on giving to Christ and His church.
 
we personally prefer to give cash, as I prefer that no one but God knows what I give. I have been asked to give by check in order to get a tax deduction. Im sorry but a tax deduction should have NO bearing on giving to Christ and His church.

Plus, not everyone is going to tithe and give an amount that puts them over the standard deduction amount, so an exact record doesn't matter.
 
I think if the Church was stronger and bigger, and a new relationship was established between the ecclesiastical and the civil spheres, whereby the civil sphere concentrated mainly on defence and law and order, and the church was involved in salvific activities like health, welfare and education, there would have to be some obligation to tithe or partially tithe to help pay for these necessary things.

But in such a situation the civil government would hopefully be taxing much less than many western governments currently do, who take 4 to 5 tithes by percentage of GDP.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_tax_revenue_as_percentage_of_GDP
 
Even if you believed that tithing was mandatory under the New Covenant, rather than voluntary as it was under the Promise, with the examples of our fathers in the faith, Abraham and Jacob, the relatively "light touch" enforcement of tithing when tithes were mandatory under the Mosaic economy, gives no encouragement for heavy-duty "enforcement" today, e.g. church sanctions for non-tithers or partial tithers.

http://www.puritanboard.com/f40/how-tithing-enforced-under-mosaic-law-72640/

Communicant members should be taught about tithing as a voluntary activity as per our covenant fathers Abraham and Jacob, and taught not to tithe too anxiously.

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.
You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel! (Matt 23:23-24,ESV)

But woe to you Pharisees! For you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. (Luke 11:42)
 
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