PASTOR SAM ADEYEMI'S TEACHING ON TITHING

Nothing so wrong if a church or ministry tells its members, "look these are our needs and our targets we need everyone to key in and partner with us... if we all commit to giving 10% or any other percent) of what we earn, we will do very well and achieve a lot". Members who are able will even give more than 10% because they buy the vision of the ministry and they love God. It may be a church's tradition for members to tithe, I won't judge them. But once you begin to preach and insist on Malachi 3; how those who don't pay tithes are under a curse and you threaten them with devourers and calamity, you are perverting the gospel and you need to stop.

When I opposed pastors who were placing curses on their members because of tithes, some called me agent of Satan. But they are the ones who knowingly and unknowingly are working against Christ and perverting the gospel. We cannot do anything against the truth. I make bold to say that any doctrine that says Tithing is compulsory for a Christian and defaulters are cursed is heresy and satanic. It stands against what Christ has done for the believer. And we should not be ashamed or afraid to call out any doctrine that belittles or insults the finished work of Christ and the core of the Gospel handed down to us by the Apostles. I say this with all sense of responsibility.

If you are reading this and you have been under so much guilt because you missed some months and they are telling you you are cursed-  and that is why things are going badly in your life, receive the truth today. The enemy has been capitalising on the ignorance of Christians for too long. Enough of the manipulation! Christ sets you free today. He has redeemed you from the curse of the Law. You don't need to pay any penalties to be free. Christ has paid it all. Embrace it! Confess it!.There is now therefore NO CONDEMNATION to those in Christ Jesus. Hey celebrate your freedom in Christ and be not entangled with the burden again. When you receive income, your first impulse should not be 10% (that is bondage of the law mentality), but "Holy Spirit how would you have me deploy these that you have given me." Be led, not forced by fear of curses. Some months you might even be led to give up ALL your salary to meet a particular need. It happens.

I used to promote the tithe gospel or should I say error, and I queried those around me who were not tithers. I threatened them with the curses of Malachi 3. It was what I was thought and what I read from the big GOs. But as I grew in knowledge and began to discover who I am in Christ, what Christ has done for me, my rights, inheritance, privileges as a child of God, I discovered that the curses of Malachi 3 can not stand with the price paid by Christ. I read Malachi 3 and I read Galatians 3 and Colossians 2: 14 and I knew something was wrong with the doctrine.

Then again I saw how tithe promoters were listing out benefits of paying tithes and I am like, wait...these benefits are the same benefits derived by being in Christ, so should we promote tithe or Christ and His finished works. For example, someone will say my tithes open the heavens for me, and yet Bible says Blessed be God the Father of our Lord Jesus who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in heavenly places IN CHRIST. someone will say, Tithes secures my future, protects me from devourers, promotes me, brings me abundance, etc and I am like, so what do we say about the Blood of Jesus, the Holy Ghost, the work of grace and mercy, etc. Listen, ALL things are yours. God has already blessed us. Even Abraham's blessings are ours, not by tithing, but by faith in Christ. God has given us all things, freely, we don't pay him 10% to activate it. No, we believe and we speak. Through knowledge of those things that have being given, we are able to appropriate them. We are Children, we do not pay God to get, we ASK by faith in Christ's name. How can you tell me it is because of your tithes that you are healed? So what then happened to 'by His stripes we are healed'? Can you see? You say you achieve this and that because of tithes. So what happened to grace? What happened to "through Christ who strengthens me"? Paul said "By the grace of God I am what I am". This is also my testimony..

As Christians 100% belongs to God, not 10%. So what do we do, we submit to the leading of the Spirit on what and where to give. Most importantly we apply our resources where it matters most to Christ. When he returns in His glory, no tithers book will be seen. He will say "I was hungry, or thirsty, or naked, etc ...and if you didn't do it to the least of my brethren, you didn't do it unto me.

Those who think the church will be impoverished if compulsory tithing is stopped, don't know the work of the Holy Spirit in the church and in the life of a believer. Where the Holy Spirit is the people are willing. It is the Holy Spirit that stirs our hearts to give joyfully and bountifully, not fear of curses and devourers as we have been taught. That is why Paul said give as you have decided in your heart. If the Spirit is in your heart you will give right. What is 10% when there is a stiring in your heart. Besides, giving is an evidence that you Love God.

May God cause the scales to fall off the eyes of His children.

We must note that truth and knowledge of the things of God does not lie in the Bossom of the crowd pulling GOs alone. In some matters of doctrine, big renowned GOs can be in fatal error. So we must study. That it is working for you doesn't make it the truth of the gospel. That you have practiced it since you believed doesn't make it truth.

Some have promoted this tithe doctrine out of ignorance and some out of greed. We need humility in the church to correct some of these damming errors.