Tithing: What does the Bible Teach (Often used to 'fleece the flock')

The first Church Council

In the early church, there were those who tried to force the Gentile Christians to live under the Law. A dispute arose which quickly lead to the first ever church council.

And some men came down from Judea and began teaching the brethren, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

And when Paul and Barnabas had great dissension and debate with them, the brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders concerning this issue.

And when they arrived at Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them.

But certain ones of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed, stood up, saying, “It is necessary to circumcise them, and to direct them to observe the Law of Moses”.

And after they had stopped speaking, James answered, saying, “Brethren, listen to me. It is my judgment that we do not trouble these who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood” (Acts 15:1-2, 4-5, 13, 19-20).

The question being answered by this council (v.5) is:

Do Christians have to observe the Law of Moses (which, of course, includes tithing)?

What was the answer?

They were given four instructions:

Abstain from

—things contaminated with idols,

—fornication,

—what is strangled, and

—blood.

Where does tithing come on the list?

Nowhere! The first ever Church Council decided that Christians are not required to tithe.