Proverbs of a 41 yr. old man

If your not managing your money well tithing will not save you or your finances. If your a Christian I know you have heard tithing messages in so many different ways. Many think if we tithe our finances we will always be blessed. Others, why tithe if it's being misused in the church. Not hear to argue tithing, but it's amazing how the Scripture is true: For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. In the book of Nehemiah, Israel was rebuilding after captivity. They were so focused on themselves that they were neglecting the house of God. So I rebuked the officials and asked them, “Why is the house of God neglected?” Then I called them together and stationed them at their posts. (Neh.13:11) Even the spiritual leaders were not doing there duties as called by the LORD. Nehemiah stirred them up and the Temple was being built along side the community of Israel. Now jump forward to the times of the poor widow in Jesus day. Who Jesus said of all the people giving that day she gave all she had in those two small copper coins. The opposite was happening now in Israel. The Temple became a wonder of the world. People came from far away to see the magnificent temple of Israel. The problem was it became a den of thieves rather than a house of prayer. Israel had created a greedy money system of exploiting the poor while filling there pockets. Jesus said he would tear this temple down and raise it up again in three days. That poor widow gave all she had, more than a tithe, which reflects the culture and  economy of people's hearts at the time. Hear my heart in this don't go straight to religion. Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the best part of everything you produce. Then he will fill your barns with grain, and your vats will overflow with good wine. Remember the book of Nehemiah said bring your tithes to the storehouse so that there may food and intercession in my house. The Levites and priest needed to be taken care of. In the same way, many of us are living for ourselves not for the Gospel. We are building a temple to ourselves and neglecting the house of God, the church body and it's leaders. We make the money but our hearts and lives are so mismanaged that we can't even give even close to a tithe. Listen to James chapter 4 starting with verse 1: What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Don’t they come from the evil desires at war within you? You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous of what others have, but you can’t get it, so you fight and wage war to take it away from them. Yet you don’t have what you want because you don’t ask God for it. And even when you ask, you don’t get it because your motives are all wrong—you want only what will give you pleasure. With that same heart posture think about how the churches in our day have become. Many houses of God have become magnificent temples of worship rather than a house of prayer. People are called to tithe and maybe it's all they have because they have mismanaged their wealth and beause of friendship with the world. And also were told if you tithe you will be blessed and not cursed. So in fear you tithe yourself to poverty to avoid being cursed by God. People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the LORD. I digress, I started with this premise, if your not managing your money well tithing will not save you or your finances. Let me close with that. Tithing honors God and his house so all can come and pray to Him. And find help in His Body, the Body of Christ. We must be careful not to make tithing the end all be all, and then neglect the weighter things of mercy, love, and justice. We need to be taught how to live in the power of Holy Spirit and in fellowship with believers. We cant live like the world and expect the Church to follow. Same with the Church. Don't prey on the poor and poor in spirit by giving them hope of riches and glory. Like the poor widow many are giving everything they have and making religious leaders rich in hopes for a better life. People need to be taught the word of God, how to handle money and live within there means before they can even think of tithing. To learn to give and never receive anything back. Scripture like: Trusting God leads to prosperity – Proverbs 30:8-9 Steady plotting brings prosperity – Proverbs 21:5 Don't try to get rich quick – Proverbs 28:20, 22 Do not boast in riches – Jeremiah 9:23-24 No hope in wealth – I Timothy 6:17-19. These are themes in Scripture we need to learn before we talk about anything in our finances. We are called as Christians to each decide in our hearts how much to give. And to not give reluctantly or in response to pressure. “For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.” How is that possible without the natural byproduct of the Spirit of Christ working in our hearts and lives? Just you tithing is not going to fix your finances. And also you living for the world neglecting the things of God, your tithe means nothing if Jesus doesn't have your heart. I am giving no condemnation on either side of this message. Pursue holiness. Yes, make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. Amen. LORD Jesus,  teach us how to manage money and be a good steward, so that we can give you our first fruits, the best that we have. To be able by the power of God to give a tithe, more than a tithe, an offering, and more than an offering, a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to God!