It's Time to Come Up: Part 2
It’s Time to Come UP!
Part 2 || Day 5
Haggai 2:6-9 NKJV
“For thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘Once more (it is a little while) I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land; and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the Desire of All Nations, and I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘The glory of this latter temple shall be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts. ‘And in this place I will give peace,’ says the Lord of hosts.”
Luke 6:38 NKJV
“Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.”
Hebrews 7:1-10 NKJV
For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated “king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,” without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually. Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils. And indeed those who are of the sons of Levi, who receive the priesthood, have a commandment to receive tithes from the people according to the law, that is, from their brethren, though they have come from the loins of Abraham; but he whose genealogy is not derived from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises. Now beyond all contradiction the lesser is blessed by the better. Here mortal men receive tithes, but there he receives them, of whom it is witnessed that he lives. Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, so to speak, for he was still in the loins of his father when Melchizedek met him.
According to the law of first mention, the interpreter first examines the initial place where the term or doctrine is taught in scripture. Then, the initial usage of the term and/or doctrine serves as a guideline for interpreting other subsequent passages that teach on the issue.
Yes preacher, but that was a one-time event and that’s it. I can prove to you that tithing was a principle taught by Abraham and passed down to his descendants.
Genesis 18:16-22, ‘Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!’ Then Jacob rose early in the morning and took the stone that he had put at his head, set it up as a pillar, and poured oil on top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel; but the name of that city had been Luz previously. Then Jacob made a vow, saying, ‘If God will be with me, and keep me in this way that I am going, and give me bread to eat and clothing to put on, so that I come back to my father’s house in peace, then the Lord shall be my God. And this stone which I have set as a pillar shall be God’s house, and of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You.’”
Jacob has this dream and is able to discern that the place where he had the dream is the house of God. Once Jacob discerns that this will be the place where the house of God dwells, he makes a vow to the Lord. He says, “God, if you protect me and provide for me and bring me back to this land, then you will be my God and I will surely give you a tenth of all.”
The question that we must ask is this, if tithing was not taught by Abraham, and passed down to Isaac, and Isaac did not pass it down to Jacob, then, how did Jacob know to tithe once the house of God was revealed? He knew it because it was passed down from his grandfather to his father, and from his father to him. Notice that Jacob says, “You will be my God and I will give you a tenth of all.” In other words, “One thing that I will do to prove that you are my God is tithing to you.”
Leviticus 27:30, “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.”
Matthew 23:23 (NLT), “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law—justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.”
The Bible says that Jesus is the author and finisher of our faith. We are to follow His words, His commands, and His teachings. Jesus commended tithing. Tithing is practiced before the law, it is practiced during the law, and it is commended by Jesus after the law.
Pray with me…