Two Cents Worth

Having proposed an alternative way for the Church's property to be put to good use, and saving a fortune in maintenance costs, I would like to look at one of those fundamental parts of the Church service - the Offering.

Frankly the offering in it's existing form is not serving the original intention and is providing ammunition for the non-believers to fire at the Church. Our media regularly report on churches which have an overemphasis on tithing. In some cases the people giving cannot afford to give as much as they are encouraged to.

The faithful are told that "You cannot out give God". This is based on the fact that Jesus taught "Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full--pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back." Jesus also said that "purity is best demonstrated by generosity" and "blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God". These are all wonderful promises of God! But God is not a pokie machine. He will do exactly what he says but in whichever way he chooses and a money return is one of many options.

Jesus made the observation that it is not the amount of money that is given but in relation to how much the person has. In the case of the widow who gave two copper coins, it was all she had. Jesus commended her for her devotion to God.

Being human our giving can also be selfishly motivated and a poor excuse for not helping when encountering someone in immediate need. The Pharisees came under heavy fire from Jesus many times for this, for example in the Parable of the Good Samaritan. The Samaritan was the unexpected hero in the story because he showed love and generosity towards someone who by race was his enemy.

The offering is meant to be a joyful time in the Church service. God loves to see people giving generously with a joyful heart.

I would like to suggest that it is the system that we are using that is in error. It puts unfair pressure on the poorest in our congregations, leads to false motives, joylessness, pride and even stinginess. Like that, it brings no pleasure to God at all, is upside down and needs to be overturned like the tables in the Temple for the exact same reason.

Please read Deuteronomy 14:22-29 and compare it to the current way we do the offering in Church i.e.

1. The offering plate being passed around and/or
2. Something resembling a piggy bank located near the entrance/exit so you feel bad or proud twice or even three times in one service (if 1. is also applicable).

The only similarity is the frequently touted "10%" as the law on how much to give. I remember someone asking me once "Is that 10% of your Gross Income or Net?" and then he followed it up with "Do you want Gross or Net Blessings Brother?". Pack your bags, we're going on a Guilt Trip!

Part of the error seems to be that we have mixed up the tithe and the offering. The tithe was from the harvest so an annual event. If the land was shared, everyone contributed and so the poor still got a fair share of the remaining 90%. In the case of a single wealthy landowner, the responsibility of tithing would fall on them and not on the poor at all. 

If we followed the Lord's original instruction on the tithe, we would have;

1. A full banquet once per year in Summer or Early Autumn
2. The absolute best quality food and drink including the finest wines
3. Far too much food for the regular congregation so we would have to invite our neighbours, friends, family and possibly to their great surprise and God's delight - our enemies.
4. Leftovers to distribute : )
5. Every third year a distribution of the entire tithe to the wider community and particularly those on the fringe of society like the foreigners, widows and the orphans. 
6. A Community event for everyone to get really excited about.

Do you think the Media would criticise the Church for that? Well probably but... do you think the Public would be interested in the message of a Church like that? I think so!

All of this would practically demonstrate to them that the Lord is, despite what they've heard, extremely loving and generous towards everyone. This prepares people to receive the Gospel which has the true riches, liberty and love that they are thirsting for the Church to show them : )

PS

I'm not saying to abandon the offering completely. That is still necessary because the church workers (usually the pastor) need an income to do their work and it is right for the congregation to support them. In fact the Bible says a worker is worthy of their wage! 

I'm also not saying to get rid of all Church buildings because some of them are very beautiful and the result of hundreds of years of devoted construction and as with art, can inspire people to recognise there is a greater world to hope for. I'm just asking, do we need all of them, can they be put to better use in these end times we are living in?

In a smaller church gathering in a home, the expenses would be a lot less, especially if everyone uses the gifts that God has given them : )