Leaders and Tithing
March 9, 2022
One of the biblical stories that baffled me for a long time was the story of Ananias and Sapphira.
The Book of Acts records this episode. The early church was thriving, and the people were being very generous. Ananias and Sapphira sold a lot and pretended to give the offering that represented what they earned on the lot. They lied and kept back part of the money for themselves. This resulted in the loss of their lives (see Acts 5:1-10). I have read this story over and over throughout the years and it had been very difficult for me to fathom, until I started my journey in church planting.
I strongly believe that Tithing and Offering are part of our New Testament Covenant. I also believe as it relates to church growth, that giving is a key sign of a healthy perspective and self-initiative of the congregation/members. It demonstrates partnership and the willingness to sacrifice in carrying forth the kingdom agenda. But as those that are called to appoint leaders, we must remain aware that giving may be a struggle for some, even well-meaning Spirit filled people.
Lying to The Holy Spirit
My main question when reading this story was, “why was the consequence so heavy.” It seemed a little extreme. Peter accused them of lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3). Their lying to the Apostles was clear but lying to the Holy Spirit is not so evident. Some Theologians believe that Ananias went back on his word that he likely made to God in private. The scandal is that he and Sapphira perpetrated that lie by insisting that the money they donated was the full amount. They posed to be partakers in every way, they pretended to be “all in.” As a leader of leaders, you must be keen to when a person is truly committed or just committed in part, when they are all in or in as long as the level of sacrifice is comfortable.
The strange thing is that the money was theirs to begin with (Acts 5:4). They wanted to be part of the great things that were happening in the church without giving to the same extent as others. They were saying with their lips I am with you, they even said it with their presence, but their hearts lacked true commitment of covenant. What the contemporary church is missing in its teaching today, is that when a person gets saved, they enter into covenant, not only with Jesus, but they also into covenant with His Kingdom Agenda. When we sit at a church and tithe, partake in Holy Communion and fellowship, we are saying “I am in covenant with this church.”
In the process of time, believers learn that free-will offerings and tithing are both ultimately an act of the will. Are we willing to give our free-will offerings with a heart of joy and are we willing to partake in the covenant act of tithing as a continuous act of obedience? These questions may take a matter of time for the new believer to say yes and amen to. However, for the Kingdom Leader it is part of the litmus test of character and competence. The prospective leader should have learned and agreed to the principle of giving before taking the exemplary role of leadership.
The Leader’s Heart
My former pastor and spiritual father shared with me, “be careful with your leaders that do not tithe” … I never gave it much thought, but it has kept ringing in my ear throughout the years. I met with him recently to ask what he meant by that, what it is that I am supposed to understand. There are obvious reasons that I could derive at, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, but I wanted to hear from him. His explanation was clear and consistent with what I had perceived. If a person is willing to defer even neglect their covenant with God. What will they do in ministry?
In the event that a person is elected to leadership but has never been consistent in their covenant giving or has not matured to that revelation, this is the responsibility of the senior leadership. The senior leadership must both teach covenant giving and monitor it in a healthy and tactful manner. Giving reveals the state of the leader’s heart in many ways. If a person is at one point giving, then refrains, this can mean many things. They may be making the statement:
· I don’t care if the church is effective
· I don’t trust God in my finances
· Poor stewardship
The first reveals apathy and indifference towards the church’s success in fulfilling the great commission and daily operations. Second, it discloses wavering faith, they are proving that they do not actually have what it takes to lead a people of faith. Finally, it demonstrates
incompetence in leadership. The prescription for leadership in 1 Timothy 3, is the ability of managing one’s home, this includes money management. I am afraid that mismanagement is perhaps the biggest culprit that drives leaders to a place that falls short in their giving.
Let me clarify, I do not believe that if leaders fail to give, that they are not born again. I am saying that they are probably not fit to be leaders.
Treating the Sacred as Common
As senior leaders, the way that we treat and minister the tithe and offering will set the pattern in our churches. Neither your leaders or your congregation will not do more than you. They are looking to imitate you as you imitate Christ. We must be careful not to treat covenant giving as something “common” and be very careful not to refrain from teaching it based on pity.
A few years back, Pastor Juan Pablo and I went to canvas the territory in North Carolina. As it is customary for me, we visited churches in the city we were in. We sat in the service, worshiped, and listened to the sermon. I was eager to culminate my worship experience with my offering. An invitation to participate in this level of worship was not given to us, but at the closing announcement, the person closing the service, very nonchalantly mentioned, “if you would like to give an offering there is an offering box at the back of the church. I was puzzled to say the least. It was my first experience witnessing something so sacred (giving to God) as something so common.
In a different instance an alleged pastor who was visiting our church for a few weeks suggested that we stop having people come to the front to deposit their offering, because it was potentially embarrassing for those who did not have an offering to give (he was referring to himself). His appeal was on the premise of pity. Pity is a thief. To refrain from teaching and making appeals to give because of pity is to practically rob the church. What if our pity is what brings people to a place of more pain, lack or struggle? Jesus did not demonstrate pity but praise to the widow with two mites (Mark 12:41-43). In this age we would say that the account of Elijah and the widow of Sarapeth was heartless, and selfish (1 Kings 17:8-15), until we see the alternative. It was clear that they were going to die. But the audacity of Elijah kept the widow and her son alive.
As we lead, teach the church, and appoint leaders, we must never resist the Biblical call of covenant giving, especially among the leadership. It is the leadership that helps mold the pattern and attitude of the church (congregation). We cannot assume they know to give or that they know that part of their covenant with Jesus involves giving. We must both teach it and practice it. It is natural to get to a place of reluctance, because of what we see, but keep this in your arsenal “My thought are higher than your thoughts and my ways are higher than your ways (Isaiah 55:9)”
The Book of Acts records this episode. The early church was thriving, and the people were being very generous. Ananias and Sapphira sold a lot and pretended to give the offering that represented what they earned on the lot. They lied and kept back part of the money for themselves. This resulted in the loss of their lives (see Acts 5:1-10). I have read this story over and over throughout the years and it had been very difficult for me to fathom, until I started my journey in church planting.
I strongly believe that Tithing and Offering are part of our New Testament Covenant. I also believe as it relates to church growth, that giving is a key sign of a healthy perspective and self-initiative of the congregation/members. It demonstrates partnership and the willingness to sacrifice in carrying forth the kingdom agenda. But as those that are called to appoint leaders, we must remain aware that giving may be a struggle for some, even well-meaning Spirit filled people.
Lying to The Holy Spirit
My main question when reading this story was, “why was the consequence so heavy.” It seemed a little extreme. Peter accused them of lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3). Their lying to the Apostles was clear but lying to the Holy Spirit is not so evident. Some Theologians believe that Ananias went back on his word that he likely made to God in private. The scandal is that he and Sapphira perpetrated that lie by insisting that the money they donated was the full amount. They posed to be partakers in every way, they pretended to be “all in.” As a leader of leaders, you must be keen to when a person is truly committed or just committed in part, when they are all in or in as long as the level of sacrifice is comfortable.
The strange thing is that the money was theirs to begin with (Acts 5:4). They wanted to be part of the great things that were happening in the church without giving to the same extent as others. They were saying with their lips I am with you, they even said it with their presence, but their hearts lacked true commitment of covenant. What the contemporary church is missing in its teaching today, is that when a person gets saved, they enter into covenant, not only with Jesus, but they also into covenant with His Kingdom Agenda. When we sit at a church and tithe, partake in Holy Communion and fellowship, we are saying “I am in covenant with this church.”
In the process of time, believers learn that free-will offerings and tithing are both ultimately an act of the will. Are we willing to give our free-will offerings with a heart of joy and are we willing to partake in the covenant act of tithing as a continuous act of obedience? These questions may take a matter of time for the new believer to say yes and amen to. However, for the Kingdom Leader it is part of the litmus test of character and competence. The prospective leader should have learned and agreed to the principle of giving before taking the exemplary role of leadership.
The Leader’s Heart
My former pastor and spiritual father shared with me, “be careful with your leaders that do not tithe” … I never gave it much thought, but it has kept ringing in my ear throughout the years. I met with him recently to ask what he meant by that, what it is that I am supposed to understand. There are obvious reasons that I could derive at, by the guidance of the Holy Spirit, but I wanted to hear from him. His explanation was clear and consistent with what I had perceived. If a person is willing to defer even neglect their covenant with God. What will they do in ministry?
In the event that a person is elected to leadership but has never been consistent in their covenant giving or has not matured to that revelation, this is the responsibility of the senior leadership. The senior leadership must both teach covenant giving and monitor it in a healthy and tactful manner. Giving reveals the state of the leader’s heart in many ways. If a person is at one point giving, then refrains, this can mean many things. They may be making the statement:
· I don’t care if the church is effective
· I don’t trust God in my finances
· Poor stewardship
The first reveals apathy and indifference towards the church’s success in fulfilling the great commission and daily operations. Second, it discloses wavering faith, they are proving that they do not actually have what it takes to lead a people of faith. Finally, it demonstrates
incompetence in leadership. The prescription for leadership in 1 Timothy 3, is the ability of managing one’s home, this includes money management. I am afraid that mismanagement is perhaps the biggest culprit that drives leaders to a place that falls short in their giving.
Let me clarify, I do not believe that if leaders fail to give, that they are not born again. I am saying that they are probably not fit to be leaders.
Treating the Sacred as Common
As senior leaders, the way that we treat and minister the tithe and offering will set the pattern in our churches. Neither your leaders or your congregation will not do more than you. They are looking to imitate you as you imitate Christ. We must be careful not to treat covenant giving as something “common” and be very careful not to refrain from teaching it based on pity.
A few years back, Pastor Juan Pablo and I went to canvas the territory in North Carolina. As it is customary for me, we visited churches in the city we were in. We sat in the service, worshiped, and listened to the sermon. I was eager to culminate my worship experience with my offering. An invitation to participate in this level of worship was not given to us, but at the closing announcement, the person closing the service, very nonchalantly mentioned, “if you would like to give an offering there is an offering box at the back of the church. I was puzzled to say the least. It was my first experience witnessing something so sacred (giving to God) as something so common.
In a different instance an alleged pastor who was visiting our church for a few weeks suggested that we stop having people come to the front to deposit their offering, because it was potentially embarrassing for those who did not have an offering to give (he was referring to himself). His appeal was on the premise of pity. Pity is a thief. To refrain from teaching and making appeals to give because of pity is to practically rob the church. What if our pity is what brings people to a place of more pain, lack or struggle? Jesus did not demonstrate pity but praise to the widow with two mites (Mark 12:41-43). In this age we would say that the account of Elijah and the widow of Sarapeth was heartless, and selfish (1 Kings 17:8-15), until we see the alternative. It was clear that they were going to die. But the audacity of Elijah kept the widow and her son alive.
As we lead, teach the church, and appoint leaders, we must never resist the Biblical call of covenant giving, especially among the leadership. It is the leadership that helps mold the pattern and attitude of the church (congregation). We cannot assume they know to give or that they know that part of their covenant with Jesus involves giving. We must both teach it and practice it. It is natural to get to a place of reluctance, because of what we see, but keep this in your arsenal “My thought are higher than your thoughts and my ways are higher than your ways (Isaiah 55:9)”