Part 8 Check Your Foundations Matthew 7:26

Part 8 Check Your Foundations

Matthew 7:26	And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
Matthew 7:27	And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

In Matthew 7 Jesus is talking about the importance of foundations
This analogy Jesus used on building on sand or rock is related to the end times when the storms come, will your house, stand?

Matthew 7:21

Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

Today I want to address a foundation which is being challenged today, even by Pentecostals.
To Tithe or Not to Tithe
I have been amazed at how many Christians who used to believe in the truth of tithing, no longer practice this command of scripture.
It was always God's intention that previous generation would pass on their spiritual inheritance to the next generation.

Deuteronomy 29:29

The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

God is saying here that the things which are not yet revealed belong to God, but that which has come to previous generations by way of revelation belongs to those who received it, and to all following generations.
For instance; many writers of the 1948 move of God wrote excellent books on healing as God brought fresh revelation to the church on this subject. T L Osborn wrote books on healing that were classics on this subject. They left this generation a legacy of truth that should be part of our belief and practice today.
It has always been God's intention that truth passed down from a former generation should be taken incorporated into our lives, and taken to an even higher level in the next generation. This rarely the case.
We in this generation should not have to re-dig these wells; they should be part of our foundations and taken to even greater heights.

Genesis 26:18

And Isaac digged again the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them.

I am aware that this with some is a contentious subject; however I make no apology for bring this before you. I believe tithing is a vital end-time requirement for all of God's people.
Let's look at this truth with an open heart.
Firstly; Tithing is a Kingdom Requirement. Two important passages of scripture are found in Haggai chapter 1 and Malachi chapter 3.
We use the book of Haggai as prophetic insight into the Kingdom of God. The building of Gods house in Haggai is a prophetic picture of building the Kingdom of God in these last days.
Likewise the book of Malachi is a prophetic fore view of the New Testament Church and the Kingdom of God. We need to bear this in mind.
We need to carefully read the following scriptures.

Haggai 1:2	Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, This people say, The time is not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be built.
3	Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying,
4	Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your ceiled houses, and this house lie waste?
5	Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.
6	Ye have sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.

This is the situation with many Christians today

Haggai 1:7	Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.
8	Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD.
9	Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.
10	Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit.
11	And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands.

Haggai is addressing a situation where God's house was neglected as everyone was building into their own interests and neglecting the commandments of God to give what was due to Him.
This brought poverty into their lives.
The Book of Malachi gets down to the specific reasons for this poverty and dearth.

Malachi 3:7	Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?
8	ill a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
9	Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
10	Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

First we see that the Prophesies of Malachi were primarily directed to the end-time Church.
Note Chap 1 verse 11

Malachi 1:11

For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts.

This verse is talking about the great harvest under the New Covenant end time church.
Chap 3.

Malachi 3:1	Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
2	But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
3	And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.

Again this is speaking of the new covenant church, the coming of Johns the Baptist and purifying power of the Holy Spirit.
God is clearly saying to us, the end-time church, if you don't tithe you rob God and bring yourself under a curse
God throws out a challenge; He says prove me now; start tithing and see if I will not open the windows of heaven in blessings upon you.
This is the only place in scripture that I know where God issues you to challenge the authenticity of a truth.
Tithing was not instituted under the Law
Tithing came into existence as a universal everlasting truth, long before Moses and the law.

Genesis 14:18	And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19	And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
20	And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.

If you profess to be a part of the Melchizedek priesthood, tithing was a part of that priesthood.
Abram the father of our faith paid tithes, he who was considered a clear picture of the new covenant dispensation.
After this God came to Abram and said this to him.

Genesis 15:1

After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

God said I am your exceeding great reward, He was saying, all that I am and have is yours. Abram became one of the wealthiest men on in the known earth at that time, and was known as a friend of God.
Jacob promised to tithe to God see Gen 14:20 and 28:22
Tithing is a New Covenant discipline that will become a great blessing to you.

Galatians 3:14

That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.

Jesus through His death and resurrection establish the New Covenant of which it is said the blessings of Abraham will come upon us
God still honors what He promised in Malachi. Tithing is not living by the law, it is living by faith in what God promised, He would open the windows of heaven upon you.
Finally a Word from Jesus

Luke 11:42

But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

The words "these ought ye to have done" in the Greek are not in the past tense but are in the past and present tense.
1163. dei, die; third pers. sing. act. pres. of G1210; also deon, deh-on'; neut. act. part. of the same; both used impers.; it is necessary (as binding):--behoved, be meet, must (needs), (be) need (-ful), should.
Jesus whose words are truth and eternal, stands as the representative of the New Covenant and says it is right that you tithe.
You can give your tithes under the spirit of the law as a compulsion, or under the spirit of faith as a joyful offering as unto the Lord.
Practical Pointers
When should you tithe and where should you tithe?
1st Tithing is the biblical term for giving the first fruits of our labors to God and was specifically used in giving 10% to the Lord.
I know Christians who store up their tithes waiting for an opportunity to come along in which they feel is a good cause. If your tithes are still in your bank account or hidden in a drawer, you have not given them, and they have not been sown as seed. Don't horde, give them away and keep sowing regularly, and prove God.
The bible is clear on where to place your tithes; namely where you receive food from.

Malachi 3:10

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse

Some say I don't tithe because everything I own is the Lords that is a delusion and contradicts what God requires of us, most people who take that stand never ever give even 10% of their income to the Lord.
Tithing is very much linked with end-time prophesies and end-time survival. Remember you reap what you sow.
Look at what God promises.

Proverbs 11:24	There is one who scatters, yet increases all the more, And there is one who withholds what is justly due, but it results only in want.
25	The generous man will be prosperous, And he who waters will himself be watered.

Luke 6:38	"Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, they will pour into your lap. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return."
Proverbs 28:27	He who gives to the poor will never want, But he who shuts his eyes will have many curses.
Malachi 3:9	Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

Say it 7 times: Tithe, Tithe, Tithe, Tithe, Tithe, Tithe, Tithe
Break the curse over your life, Give God His due

Malachi 3:10

"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and prove Me now in this," says the LORD of hosts, "if I will not open for you the windows of heaven, and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.

James N Johnson © 2005
God Bless You