Did Jesus talk against paying of tithes?
Let’s begin by reading Leviticus 27:30-34, “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 unto the LORD. And if a man will at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the LORD. He shall not search whether it be good or bad, neither shall he change it: and if he change it at all, then both it and the change thereof shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed. THESE ARE THE COMMANDMENTS, WHICH THE LORD COMMANDED MOSES FOR THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL IN MOUNT SINAI.”
We see that the Lord’s commandment to tithe was given to the ‘children of Israel’. As a commandment, it was part of the Jewish Law. Was the Lord Jesus subject to Jewish Law? Was He required to keep the Law? Yes, He was! We read in Galatians 4:4, “But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, MADE UNDER THE LAW.” Christ, in His life on earth, was subject to the Law. To disobey would be to sin, and we read of Christ in 1 Peter 2:22, that He “did no sin.”
Once, when the Pharisees tempted the Lord concerning giving tribute money to Caesar, He replied to them in Matthew 22:21, “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.” If Caesar, their political leader should require them to pay tribute money, they should do it. But, they should also be mindful to give to the Lord that which He required of them. Tithing was one thing that the Lord commanded them to do, so they should tithe, in addition to paying the tribute money to Caesar. It was proper for the Lord Jesus to teach and practice the edicts of the Law, including the giving of tithes.
How should this apply to us today? Should we pay tithes also? While we have examples of a voluntary giving of tithes before the giving of the Law, tithing was made part of the Law and the Lord’s people were COMMANDED to tithe. As we read in Leviticus 27:34, the Law was given to “THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL.” Are we under the Law today? NO, we are not! Romans 6:14 tells us, “ye are not under the law, but under grace.” It is important to see that the Law was never given to the nations. It was for the children of Israel, the Jews. The Apostle Paul makes it very clear in Galatians 3:23-25, “But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.” The Law, which was given to convict men of their sins, has no control or rule over those who are justified by faith in Christ.
If we are not commanded to tithe today, does that mean we are not obligated to give to the Lord? NO, the Lord still allows us the PRIVILEGE of giving to Him. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 says, “But this I say, He which soweth sparingly shall reap also sparingly; and he which soweth bountifully shall reap also bountifully. Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” Notice that it is not the amount given that concerns the Lord, it is the condition of the heart. The Lord does not want us to give resentfully or to give because we feel we are obligated. He LOVES a cheerful giver. He wants us to want to give! Under the Law, the amount to give was stated, but nothing is mentioned about giving cheerfully. In this day of grace we live in, the amount we should give is not stated, but the state of the heart is important. We’re told in 1 Corinthians 16:2, “Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, AS GOD HATH PROSPERED HIM, that there be no gatherings when I come.” On the first day of the week, when the church is gathered together, we are privileged to give to the Lord as He has prospered us, and as we purpose in our hearts. We should also give sacrificially as we read in Hebrews 13:15-16, “By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name. But to do good and to communicate (give) forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.” For more on the subject of tithing, please click on this link: https://answersfromthebook.net/what-does-the-bible-say-about-tithing-should-we-tithe-10-of-our-gross-or-of-our-net-income/ (228.8)