tithing | Steve's Bible Meditations

“Now who will volunteer to consecrate himself to the Lord today? Then the leaders of the households, the leaders of the tribes of Israel, the commanders of thousands and of hundreds, and the officials in charge of the king’s work gave willingly…Then the people rejoiced because of their leaders’ willingness to give, for they had given to the Lord with a whole heart. King David also rejoiced greatly” (1 Chronicles 29:5-6,9, HCSB).

In preparation for building the temple, King David accumulated precious metals and stones and wood for its construction. In addition to all the materials he accumulated as King, he gave a substantial amount of gold and silver from his personal wealth.

Then he asked the leaders of Israel what they would give! And what’s interesting is the way King David asked them to give.

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“But the people continued to bring additional gifts each morning. Finally the craftsmen who were working on the sanctuary left their work. They went to Moses and reported: The people have given more than enough materials to complete the job the Lord has commanded us to do! So Moses gave the command, and this message was sent throughout the camp: Men and women, don’t prepare any more gifts for the sanctuary. We have enough! So the people stopped bringing their sacred offerings. Their contributions were more than enough to complete the whole project.”

Suppose you went to church one Sunday morning and when it came to the end of the service the pastor announced no offering would be received because people had given so much the church had more than enough money!

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