Give God His Tithe (2)

'...I will give you a tenth.' Genesis 28:22 NIV

The story of Jacob is much different than Abraham's. Jacob wasn’t a giver by nature. Quite the opposite, in fact! He cheated his brother Esau out of his birthright, which entitled him to twice as much of their father’s inheritance. And when he worked for his father–in–law, Laban took advantage of him too. But one night Jacob met God in a life–changing dream, and when he woke the next morning he told God, ‘…of all that You give me, I will give You a tenth.’ Note, this was hundreds of years before the Law of Moses was instituted, which said, ‘A tithe of everything…belongs to the Lord…’ (Leviticus 27:30 NIV) Jacob wasn’t motivated by law, he was motivated by love for God. You can give without loving; some folks give under pressure, or to impress others or to get an income tax deduction. But you can’t love without giving! The Bible says, ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son…’ (John 3:16 KJV) You’re never more like God than when you’re in the act of giving. Jesus said, ‘…seek first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you.’ (Matthew 6:33 NKJV) Tithing is about putting God and His Kingdom first. When self, home, business and pleasure come first in your life, your priorities are out of whack. Tithing reverses that order and puts God where He rightfully belongs—in first place. When God instructs you to tithe, He’s telling you to establish the habit of putting Him in the number one slot as a life principle. When you do, Jesus said ‘all these things’ you’re so concerned about will be ‘added to you’.