My dear readers,

Biblical Management of Tithes and Offerings

Before salvation, we loved Mammon. We loved Mammon because we believed the more Mammon we possessed, the more successful we were. Mammon was the bedrock of life. Mammon made life comfortable. The abundance of Mammon provided confidence for our earthly future. Peace of mind was the result of an abundance of Mammon. A depraved mind reasons in this manner because of the spiritual deadness within. The power of darkness blinded the mind and heart of every unregenerate sinner to waste his life in this irreversible foolishness, until he met Jesus Christ and received Him as his personal Lord and Saviour.

After salvation in Christ, everything changed. From this point onwards, he is a child of light, no, a SAINT of light! What was once the most important is now the least! He loves God and hates Mammon now. He realises that he cannot love both. In Christ, he chose to love God. The Holy Spirit, within him, made this choice for him as evidence of his salvation in Christ. It does not mean he should use Mammon and flitter them away foolishly. All things material can become means of spiritual blessings when used wisely and judiciously according to the Holy Scriptures. If not, they can become a curse, drawing us farther from God toward carnality. Our responsibility before God in using what He entrusts to us is vital as we want it to become a blessing, not a curse.

God commands all believers to give of their tithes. The word "tithe" (Lev 27:30) literally means "ten per cent". 2 Corinthians 9:7-8: "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work." Tithes ought to be given to God out of love for Him. They must never be given out of necessity or reluctantly. When we give reluctantly, the gift may bless someone, but God will not bless the giver. Believers give cheerfully and faithfully, trusting in the
LORD to provide always.

In the church context, tithes are used to support God's people, extend God's kingdom through the preaching of the gospel, and support God's missions, home and foreign. Tithing is voluntarily compulsory. The believer understands from Scripture that all he has belongs to God. He gives ten per cent cheerfully to God, knowing that the ninety per cent also belongs to God, and that God entrusts it to him to use it wisely for his spiritual well-being and that of his loved ones and others.

An offering may be given on top of the tithe as a designated love gift to God. An offering is entirely voluntary. When God moves His servant's heart to give toward a person or a mission in need, the servant will give freely to God's glory. The Old Testament calls it a free-will offering.

The church's management of tithes and offerings must be according to the Holy Scriptures, as these tithes and offerings belong to God. In the Presbyterian system of church government, God has entrusted the most spiritual men to manage them. They must follow biblical guidelines. Some of the biblical guidelines include:

• Faithful in the least -- Luke 16:10-13: "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. 11 If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous Mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? 12 And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? 13 No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and Mammon." God's children know that Mammon is the least important of all the things that God entrusts to them, but it does not mean that they can be unfaithful in the administration of it. Every person, ministry and mission to be supported must first be evaluated based on scriptural principles. Christ taught in Luke 16:10-13 that when God's children are faithful in the least, they will be trusted by God to be faithful in the much. The "much" includes the souls of men, women and children and God's spiritual work and Word. These are eternal things, whereas Mammon is temporal, which God will destroy one day!

• According to needs -- Acts 4:35: "And laid them down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need." The help rendered must be based on the needs of the intended beneficiaries or ministries. Guarding against the sin of the lusts of the flesh and the lusts of the eyes is paramount. This objective and biblical principle also protects God's people against the evil of nepotism, where a relationship or friendship is the basis for decision-making and action. Nepotism is a grave sin against God and God's people. Believers must make careful biblical considerations to evaluate the legitimacy of the needs. Once the needs are assessed to be genuine and for the work of God or the spiritual well-being of God's children, then help will be rendered. However, the need is not the only basis.

• To the glory of God -- 1 Corinthians 10:31-33: "Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God. 32 Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God: 33 Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved." If every need of a believer or mission is entirely provided for, then the recipients' faith may not be in God and Christ but in the church. Without faith, it is impossible to please God (cf. Heb 11:6). Anything that is not of faith is sin (cf. Rom 14:23). Therefore, the needs of the believer or mission have to be judiciously met so that his faith and trust in God is not diminished but enhanced. He must see the provision and help rendered as from the Lord, and give God all the glory as he experiences the nearness of God in his life.

Believers have seen and known many examples of God's children and missions being ruined by an abundance of Mammon carelessly given. Every support rendered by the church must be based upon the above principles of needs and faith. This will be done prayerfully and judiciously on a case-by-case basis.

Is it wrong to save our money in banks, or should a believer or a church spend every cent he has and empty or diminish the bank account? To have savings is a good practice for the individual believer and the church. God knows their future. He provides in the present, expecting His children to save for the future that is not known to them. No believer or church leader should put their faith and trust in their savings. The funds must be used when there is a present need and when the funds are there to meet it. Wrong and careless support that destroys faith and is not based on biblical needs does more harm than good.

Like the believer, the church must use the funds given to her by God for the blessings of God's people, the work of the ministry and the preaching of the gospel, and also to save carefully.

By the grace of God, the Lord has blessed Calvary Pandan with sufficient funds (even though the monthly expenditure is well into six figures) in support of both local and foreign missions. God knows every church's present and future needs. He provides for our current needs and expects us to save, after judicial and careful expenditure, for the future. When the time comes, God's people will know why God has provided these savings in the present.