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October 2004 |
From the bishop:
Why we tithe
My early weeks back in Indiana have been filled with meetings, warm welcomes and many people sharing their concerns, hopes and dreams with me. It seems that one topic that keeps recurring is stewardship. Everyone is faced with rising budgets, concerns about future costs and fears that our United Methodist level of stewardship is slipping. In the midst of these issues, several people have asked me to share my own view of stewardship, and I am glad to do so under the simple title of "Why we tithe."
Marsha and I tithe (give at least 10 percent of our income) to churches, charities and other worthy causes every year. We have done that virtually our whole married life, and for us it is simply a pattern of stewardship that is a part of our Christian discipleship. Oftentimes when we total our year-end giving, we find that we have exceeded the 10 percent level, but that basic concept of tithe is the beginning of our stewardship.
Why do we tithe? Not for some of the reasons you might expect. We don't tithe because it is good for the church or conference budget; we don't tithe because of feelings of guilt about "paying our dues" to the church; and we don't tithe because it is a biblical standard or rule to obey. Those reasons might be important to others, but that is not our motivation.
We tithe because we want to be givers. We believe that giving is the secret to living, in all aspects of life, including our money. God has revealed this secret of giving by the giving/sending of God's own Son for the world. We, who are recipients of God's giving, are called to live our lives in this same style of giving.
The biblical model of tithing is not so much a rule, as it is a revelation. It is part of God's design to teach us that giving is the secret to a full and complete life. God teaches us to give friendship to the stranger, to give love to our enemies, to give our lives away for the sake of the Gospel. The giving of our money and possessions is an important part of this discipleship, because giving frees us from being possessed by our possessions. Giving is never just a financial issue; giving is a spiritual issue. Giving is more than just a budgetary concern. Giving is one of the ways we express our faith.
The secret to living is giving, and we want to be givers. That is why we tithe.
I ask you to join Marsha and me this fall as we commit a portion of our income, God's tithe and our gifts, to the furtherance of God's reign in our lives and the life of the church. If 10 percent seems too much for you to give, increase what you give by one percent per year until you reach the tithe.
Bishop Mike Coyner
Last updated on 25 Apr 2008