Tithing a Way of Life...(Part 4)

Tithing connects you to the promise.

Genesis 12:1-3 ¹Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee: ²And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: ³And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

God is taking the initiative toward Abram and announcing the PROMISES of the covenant.  Notice that God does not do anything until He first makes the promise or covenant to do it.  God lays out His terms to Abram. 

• I'm going to make you a great nation.
• I'm going to bless you.
• I'm going to make your name great.
• I'm going to bless them that bless you and curse them that curse you and all the families of the earth will be blessed through you.

In verses 9-10, a famine takes place in the land causing Abram to journey down to Egypt.  In verses 14-20 an unusual thing happens.  His wife, Sarai, who is very beautiful, captures the attention of Pharaoh.  So Abram, fearing for his life, gives Sarai to Pharaoh, claiming her as his sister in return for sheep, oxen, asses, servants and camels.

Abram receives so many goods from Pharaoh that he now is considered wealthy.  After Sarai settles in the palace, God begins to plague Pharaoh's house.  When Pharaoh realizes that Abram has lied to him, he banishes Abram from Egypt, but does not take back all the goods given to him.

• Genesis 13:2 reads "and Abram was very rich in cattle, in silver and in gold."

In chapter 13 God is dealing with Abram.  Then strife breaks out between Abram's herdsmen and Lot's herdsmen. 

• Anytime you allow offense, bitterness, a wounded spirit, or hatred in your life, the covenant between you and God shuts down.
• The bible says "a house divided cannot stand."  Abram begins to deal with the strife in verse 8 and separates from Lot.

Genesis 13:14-17 ¹⁴And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: ¹⁵For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. ¹⁶And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. ¹⁷Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.

Again, God is taking the initiative to make a covenant with Abram.  In chapter 14:16, Lot and his household are taken captive as prisoners of war.  When Abram learns of Lot's captivity, he declares war.  "And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people."

• As Abram's 300 men defeat the armies of these four cities, he is entitled to the spoils of those he defeated. (custom)
• It is interesting what Abram plans to do with his increase.

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

• After the battle, Abram meets the high priest Melchizedek and they share bread and wine.
• Melchizedek begins blessing Abram and Abram gives tithes on his increase.
• Melchizedek blesses Abram again; thus, we see the reality of the covenant he made with God.
• In chapter 12, the covenant was a PROMISE but in chapter 14 it becomes REALITY!

It is wonderful to know all the promises of God in the Bible, but there comes a time when we need more than just a promise.  We need to go from the realm of promise to the realm of reality.  We need to experience it, wear it, be hungry to taste it and see that the Lord is GOOD!

We must hear the promise and then
we must experience the promise!

Abram's promise became reality in chapter 14 but notice this:  If Abram had gone home with his increase and kept his tithe, then Melchizedek would have stayed home and kept his blessing.  The reason Abram got his blessing was because he want to "church" to give his tithe.

The tithe, in essence, becomes the covenant connector to the promises.  If there had been no tithe, there would have been no blessing.  If there had been no blessing, there would have been no receiving of the promise.

More to come...