Trend setters lead the way in actions, fashion or ideas. This individual may be laughed at, mocked or teased initially, but if this movement catches on, a trend setter is born. While visiting Egypt in the middle of a severe famine, God moved Pharaoh to bless Abram with many servants. Although Moses doesn’t provide a timeline of specific dates, these men would become the core of Abram’s Army who rescued Lot and other prisoners of war taken from Sodom.
Melchizedek king of Salem [later called Jerusalem] brought out bread and wine [for their nourishment]; he was the priest of God Most High, 19 And he blessed him and said, Blessed (favored with blessings, made blissful, joyful) be Abram by God Most High, Possessor and Maker of heaven and earth, 20 And blessed, praised, and glorified be God Most High, Who has given your foes into your hand! And [Abram] gave him a tenth of all [he had taken], Genesis 14:18-20.
In the back of Abram’s mind, he put two and two together, giving God the credit for these 318 men and the Lord’s favor. Subsequently, as the King of Salem Melchizedek greeted Abram following his victory, this priest of the God Most High prompted Abram to give something back. This is the context which conceived the biblical principle of tithing. This makes Abram a true trend setter and the godfather of tithing to the Lord.
Will a man rob or defraud God? Yet you rob and defraud Me. But you say, In what way do we rob or defraud You? [You have withheld your] tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with the curse, for you are robbing Me, even this whole nation. 10 Bring all the tithes (the whole tenth of your income) into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and prove Me now by it, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it, Malachi 3:8-10.
One of the most famous passages on tithing comes from an Old Testament prophet. Malachi peels back the storehouses in heaven to reveal a powerful reality for those who faithfully give back to God. This life lesson is simple: you can’t out give God. Unfortunately, when Christians fail to tithe, this reveals a lack of trust in God, Proverbs 3:5-6. If the words of James 1:17-18, all God things in life come from heaven above. Therefore, don’t be afraid to follow Abram’s lead, by giving 1/10 of what you receive back to the Lord.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 