Will
a Man Rob God?
In searching our soul in regard to what is fair
to give to the Church, let us keep in mind the Word of God. Thus, in the book
of prophet Malachi, 3, we find some remarkable insights about how the Lord
looks to our giving to the Church. Please read it!
The prophet reveals to us that the Lord sees
how his people are estranged from God and calls them back:
"Return to Me and I will return to you
says the Lord of hosts" (3:7). We are the "new Israel"! When we
disobey Him, we are estranged people.
Then He says: "Will a man rob God? Yet you
have not robbed Me. But you say, Wherein have we robbed You? In tithes and
offerings "(3:8). In other words, when we do not give our regular
offerings to the Lord (which by divine justice belong to the Him, as the giver
of all, that we have), we are robbing Him.
Further, the prophet tells us that: "You
are cursed with a curse - for you have robbed me, even this whole nation"
(3:9). Therefore, in as much as we do not offer our share from the blessings
received from God, we rob Him and according to the prophet, we are also robbing
the whole Christian nation (the Church).
Further, Malachi tells us that when we give
with generosity (Tithing means a tenth of our income), God will bless us with
abundance, in such ways that there will be no room to receive it:
"Bring ye all the tithes in the storehouse
that there may be meat in, my house and prove me now herewith, says the Lord of
hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour you out a blessing,
that there shall be not room enough to receive it".
In our parish we practice the "dues"
system. The Bible, however, never mentions annual dues. Our giving should come
out as an expression of our deep gratitude to God; it should be unconditionally
generous and proportional with the blessings we received from God. He who
receives much shall give much, and he who receives little shall give less. No
matter in what income bracket we may be, St. Paul reminds us to give with joy,
not out of obligation, for "God loves the cheerful giver ".
If our giving is an imitation of God's gift to
us, which is His Son - who gave His life that we might have life abundant -
then we should never be accused of robbing God. The Book of Acts quotes a
saying of our Lord who teaches us that
"It is happier to give than to receive".
May God bless all those who hear His Word and
follow it ! (borrowed from St. Mary’s Romanian Orthodox Cathedral Weekly
Bulletin, Cleveland, OH, March 7, 2004)
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