THOSE WHO SOW ABUNDANTLY WILL ALSO REAP ABUNDANTLY.
Sakkie Parsons
Translated from Afrikaans: Wie volop saai sal ook volop maai
Translator: Robin Barker
I am regularly criticized about mainly two of my opinions in my promulgation of the Gospel.
The first is about my opinion of charity and who are my neighbours and the other is about the Law of Moses and giving of tithes.
Oops and I almost forgot the people who regularly disagree with my opinion about the Sabbath and which day the Sabbath should be.
I was again addressed about my opinion regarding the giving of tithes and I share with you in this piece my answer to the person, because I think our Lord has given me here something else which I have not previously written.
The following is my answer, with some changes, to that person.
You quoted MALACHI 3:8-10.
We read amongst other things:
MALACHI 3:9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing Me.
Some preaches and those who preach the “you must give your tithes” , just the money portion, like to quote this section, but a person must be careful when and how you quote the Word, that you do not attribute words to our Lord, which He has never said.
For example if you say, that those words are applicable to the Christian people of today, you are saying that our Lord, either does not know of the people who do actually for one or other reason give tithes, not even to speak of those people and how wonderful, who give more than a tenth and if He does actually know of them, He unfairly places them in the same group as those who rob Him. Because that is what is written:
MALACHI 3:9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing Me.
I myself naturally understand that our Lord speaks here to the Israelites and not to you and me.
Then you write:
“You see, I was brought up through the teaching of Dr Gert Horak, and one of his favourite opinion was: "God says what He means in His Word, and He means what He says". God is not ambiguous.“
Now, I can agree with that. So come let us look at what our Lord says about the Law of Moses.
Firstly I read:
JAMES 2:10 For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it.
JAMES 2:11 For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.
You see:
According to the Law of Moses, to put it that way, it was everything or nothing.
So, if someone preaches that according to the law you must give a tenth, even if it is only the money portion that you would like the person to give, you must also preach that you must apply the whole Law of Moses to yourself and there will be many who will conveniently forget this.
Also if someone thinks that the whole law does not include everything which was meant for Israel, that person does not agree with my great hero Paul and also not with me.
He writes:
GAL 5:3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised (or that pays tithes) that he is obligated to obey the whole law.
GAL 5:4 You who are trying to be justified by the law (to pay a tenth and want to apply some of the other laws of Moses to yourselves) have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.
I am sure that you will agree with me, that concerning the tenth and other laws of Moses, that I understand correctly the section we have just read.
Also then, as with GALATIANS 5:3-4 which you have just read, keep in mind –
Giving a tenth is also a part of the Law of Moses, just as circumcision is part of it.
In other words, if I correctly understand the Word, while you do one part you may not ignore the other parts.
Then you write:
“And if a person wants to argue that in the Old Testament people lived by the Law, then I can also argue that the ten commandments are also no longer relevant anymore?“
A person can argue thus, if you do not remember, that Jesus gave us His ‘love law’.
MATTHEW 22:36-40
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
38 This is the first and greatest commandment.
39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’
40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
If you comply with these two laws, you will find that you – through wonderful love and not due to any enforcement – will not disobey any one of the 10 commandments according to our Lord, as He gave us the Christians, His children.
.
Therefore that is also why my great hero Paul could write:
ROM 13:9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbour as yourself.”
ROM 13:10 Love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilment of the law.
The New King James Version (NKJV) reads as follows:
ROM 13:10 Love does no harm to a neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilment of the law.
Jesus says the following concerning the fulfilment of the Law of Moses:
MATT 5:17 “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfil them.
The New King James Version (NKJV):
MATT 5:17 “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfil.
How did He fulfil?
I give an example of and remember as you read what your statement was that you wrote to me:
"God says what He means in the Word, and He means what He says". God is never ambiguous.“
We read in the Law of Moses, about giving tithes, even though you want it to be just the money portion, (Giving tithes, naturally in the Law of Moses implies many things, not just money), we read the following:
EXO 21:22-25
22 “If people are fighting and hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman’s husband demands and the court allows.
23 But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life,
24 eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,
25 burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.
Then our Lord Jesus came, the Fulfiller of the law, and He says:
Do not take affront – be accommodating
MATT 5:38 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’
MATT 5:39 But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also.
We read further in the law, what everyone must completely comply with which is a part which you want to keep – like giving tithes – even though you mean ‘giving tithes’ just the money portion, we read the following:
EXO 20:8-10
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
9 Six days you shall labour and do all your work,
10 but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns.
I think how some must have such a guilty conscience, some policemen and as an example nurses must feel when they go to work on a Sunday, because they have been taught incorrectly.
I know, when I still worked, during my time when I was not so knowledgeable, I wondered if I should not resign from my work, because I sometimes had to work on a Sunday.
Luckily for those, the Christians who have to work on a Sunday, like me who sits for long hours in front of my computer on a Sunday, the actions of Jesus, the Fulfiller of the law in our heart must remember:
People are much more important than the Sabbath law.
MARK 2:23 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and as his disciples walked along, they began to pick some heads of grain.
MARK 2:24 The Pharisees said to him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”
After His explanation to them, Jesus the Fulfiller of the law, says to them about the law:
MARK 2:27 Then he said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.
MARK 2:28 So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath.”
Why do I speak, in my opinion, so much about this evil, which is preached from some Pulpits, that you are obliged to give tithes and then they speak of course only of the money portion?
I found it in the past and I find it still today, that wonderful children of our Lord contact me and then in one or other variation with immense guilty emotions let me know:
“Our Lord wants nothing to do with me, maybe because I do not pay my tithes, because I do not even have money for food.”
Or:
“My life is in a mess. I think this is because I do not pay tithes and because I do not have money for tithes, my life will remain in the mess it is.”
How nasty is the kind of gospel that is preached for people to come to that conclusion.
Then I know through experience, that there are people who pay tithes, so that our Lord will just leave them alone, so that they can continue their lives in the way they want to live them.
Others give, what they call tithes, so that our Lord can bless them.
In other words, to put it that way, they pay actually a bribe and they get this from some Pulpits, because the man on the pulpit, instead of him preaching the true gospel, he uses the privilege of standing there, to preach a lie to the benefit of money.
I say again –
What a nasty gospel to preach.
I am of the opinion that most of them who preach this kind of gospel, do not have enough belief in our Lord to believe, as we do – and I use my great hero Paul as an example – of what our vision should be about our work for the Lord.
PHIL 1:6 being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.
For those of us who cannot give tithes, I want to say:
Give to our Lord of whatever you want to give Him, for example, of your money, time, etc. in glorious love you want to give Him
Give it with love, because you see all what you have, in the end all belongs to Him, but your love belongs to you – and only you can give that to Him.
Give to Him and His church etc., because it is right for a child of God to give gloriously but give in the way which our Lord expects of us to give –
2COR 9:7 Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Then, I want to say something about one statement you made, because I believe you found this somewhere or heard it from someone that you now quote it.
The little I know of you, I simply do not believe, that it could have come spontaneously from your heart.
You write:
‘There is a saying which says; “Money makes the world go round” and this is true for the church.’
Wow! That sounds very much like Mammon worship.
Do you know what I believe and preach?
“God makes the World go round” and this is also true of the church! Praise the Lord! It is especially true of the church!
In closing:
I say, give tithes if you want to and so want to believe, even if it is just the money portion,
I do not believe that our loving Lord will, as a result thereof, condemn you to hell but do not preach that it is part of the Gospel of Jesus. Because as I understand the Word, it is a lie and it is part of the gospel of satan.
I and many other Christians, as I understand the Word, according to the Gospel of Christ, are covered by grace and not under the law.
ROM 6:14 For sin shall no longer be your master, because you are not under the law, but under grace.
GAL 2:21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”
We who are covered by grace and are not under the law, remember if we give – and how lovely to know this:
2COR 9:6 Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.
The New King James Version (NKJV) puts it this way:
2COR 9:6 But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.
Listen to this:
In the Law of Moses in the Old Testament it was compulsory for Israel under the Old Covenant to give tithes.
In the Love Law from Jesus in the New Testament, the Christians who are under the New covenant it becomes a privilege to give:
2COR 9:7 … give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion…
Then, while the Christians give in that way, how lovely to remember:
2COR 9:7 … for God loves a cheerful giver.
Remember child of God, while lovingly you give with a happy heart, that nowhere in the Word is there a text or part of a text, which anyone with a clear conscience can come before our Lord can even slightly use to say:
According to this section it is clear, that a Christian is obliged to give our Lord a tenth of his income.
We as Christians, who no longer live for ourselves, but who live for Jesus Christ, must not just be bound to a tenth. We also do not just give the money portion for Him.
We give generously to Him and to our neighbours with love and we remember:
“Those who sow abundantly shall also reap abundantly”
The following daily thoughts which I have written may help you to better understand my opinion and I will kindly send them to you on your request.
• Hoe heerlik! Jy en ek is vry – Kom ons Wandel met hierdie vryheid in die weë van ons Here. – How lovely you and I are free – Come let us walk in the way of our Lord.
• Die wet deur Moses en die genade en waarheid deur Jesus. – The Law of Moses and the grace and truth through Jesus.
• Die liefde – Die vervulling van die wet. – Love – The fulfilment of the law.
• God het ‘n blymoedige gewer lief. – God loves a cheerful giver.
Greetings,
Sakkie