"And praise be to God Most High, who delivered your enemies into your hand.’ Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.” Genesis 14: 20
Against overwhelming odds, Abraham pulled off a rescue mission to free his nephew, Lot. Immediately, he recognized God’s hand in this extraordinary victory, offering Him a percentage of all he had as a gift of thanksgiving. This was the first tithe.
What is a tithe? A tithe is 10% of what you earn. For Abraham, it would be 10% of what he claimed from his victory in battle.
At a time when any man or warrior might arrogantly boast about his significant military accomplishment, Abraham demonstrates a spirit of gratitude and worship. He sets an example for us. Abraham doesn’t give out of obligation, a sense of ‘ought to.’ Abraham brings his tithe before God in a spirit of worship, completely overwhelmed by God’s greatness.
In the same way, followers of Christ should faithfully give out of gratitude and worship for Christ’s blessings in our lives. Look at Abraham. Abraham demonstrates the humility in which we are to worship Jesus - clearly recognizing all He has done and the salvation that He brings. We are to be grateful followers of the Lord in giving our tithes and offerings as thanksgiving for the blessings in our lives.
Abraham’s tithe is all about worship. It is a reminder of what it means to worship God in faith; not because he felt he had to, but as an act of worship. Take an inventory of your life. In spite of the ups and downs, begin to identify the blessings in your life. Are you giving back to God in faith, in worship and in gratitude? If not – why not? Giving a tithe of what we earn shows God our hearts are with Him – our hearts really trust Him. Our hearts say “thank you” for His blessings.
