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The Acts of the Apostles
Lord as His own, and to withhold the tithe was regarded by Him as
robbery.
It was to this plan for the support of the ministry that Paul referred
when he said, “Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach
the gospel should live of the gospel.” And later, in writing to Timothy,
the apostle said, “The laborer is worthy of his reward.”
1 Timothy
5:18
.
The payment of the tithe was but a part of God’s plan for the support
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of His service. Numerous gifts and offerings were divinely specified.
Under the Jewish system the people were taught to cherish a spirit
of liberality both in sustaining the cause of God and in supplying the
wants of the needy. For special occasions there were freewill offerings.
At the harvest and the vintage, the first fruits of the field—corn, wine,
and oil—were consecrated as an offering to the Lord. The gleanings
and the corners of the field were reserved for the poor. The first fruits
of the wool when the sheep were shorn, of the grain when the wheat
was threshed, were set apart for God. So also were the first-born of all
animals, and a redemption price was paid for the first-born son. The
first fruits were to be presented before the Lord at the sanctuary and
were then devoted to the use of the priests.
By this system of benevolence the Lord sought to teach Israel that
in everything He must be first. Thus they were reminded that God was
the proprietor of their fields, their flocks, and their herds; that it was
He who sent them the sunshine and the rain that developed and ripened
the harvest. Everything that they possessed was His; they were but the
stewards of His goods.
It is not God’s purpose that Christians, whose privileges far exceed
those of the Jewish nation, shall give less freely than they gave. “Unto
whomsoever much is given,” the Saviour declared, “of him shall be
much required.”
Luke 12:48
. The liberality required of the Hebrews
was largely to benefit their own nation; today the work of God extends
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over all the earth. In the hands of His followers, Christ has placed the
treasures of the gospel, and upon them He has laid the responsibility of
giving the glad tidings of salvation to the world. Surely our obligations
are much greater than were those of ancient Israel.
As God’s work extends, calls for help will come more and more
frequently. That these calls may be answered, Christians should heed
the command, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there