The word tithe is not a common one we use nowadays. It means a “tenth” and is defined in the Bible as the first 10% of a person’s income, or firstfruits of the harvest (See Leviticus 27: 30-34 and Nehemiah 10:35-37). The idea is that to make God FIRST in our lives we have to give to him FIRST before any other obligations. At Emmanuel Church, we suggest tithing as the eventual goal of faithful giving–we recognize that not everyone can at this point in their careers tithe. But more importantly, we do encourage people to give to God regularly first, knowing that giving is like prayer or Bible reading (or exercise, even!) and that we need to practice giving to God first, before any other bills are paid. In other words, we need to practice filling up God’s vessel, as in the miracle of water into wine!
Emmanuel Reformed Church of the United Church of Christ 