JACOB'S LADDER

The Tithe Is Not Money!

I believe it is about time for the truth to set all of us free from the lie that we must give ten percent of our money to whatever church we attend. I also believe once you see what the TITHE really is, it will not only excite you but it may indeed inspire you to finally live your life right.

Now, if you go to any church, the word tithe is probably something you are familiar with.

It is explained by religious leaders as a tenth of all your earnings. The religious leaders will say, before you pay any bills, before you buy anything for yourself or your loved ones, you must PAY GOD. And by “Pay God” the religious leaders mean, PAY THEM.

Let’s reason together shall we… when you TITHE (the way the Religious declare) where is your money really going? Is your money going to God? Is your money going to further charitable deeds? … Or is your money going to further the religious leaders kingdom on earth?

Recently, NPR exposed a large Christian Television Network for fraudulent claims as to where “Church” tithes, offerings, and donations, were going. Despite the mountains of evidence that the only donations this Network made was to self-interest groups, people continue to buy the TITHE lie, that they must GIVE THEIR HARD EARNED MONEY TO GOD. Despite, the many stories we read about, or hear about, where pastors and evangelists are wearing ten thousand dollar suits, driving more than one expensive automobiles like Bentley’s and the like, flying around in multi-million dollar jets or helicopters that take off from their plush multi-million dollar estates, we must ask ourselves why are people so quick to part with their money? When it is clear this money, in most cases is used for filthy selfish greedy religious gain?

Well, I have an answer. It is called manipulation. For thousands of years ignorant people have been lied to by the so-called religious church. Convinced that they MUST give their money or be damned. Today, it is the spiritual lottery, they dangle the carrot of riches in front of the ignorant poor and say, YOU DON’T HAVE BECAUSE YOU DON’T GIVE… and then the people give to get more, and the only ones profiting are those who lied to them to begin with.

So, I would like to put an end to this TITHE LIE once and for all. I would like to show you the true beauty that waits for those who have eyes to see and ears to hear what the TITHE really is.

So, let us ask the question… What is the TITHE? Is it money? Or is it something else completely?

I would like to begin and end with this verse from Deut 14.

Deuteronomy 14:22
Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year.

We are meant to TITHE all the increase of our SEED… that the FIELD brings forth each year.

I want to begin here, because I need all of you to clearly see that the INCREASE OF OUR SEED is more than money.

Scripture tells us the SEED is the WORD OF GOD. Which scripture goes on to explain, “Your WORD oh Lord is TRUTH”

Luke 8:11
Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God.

AND AGAIN…

1 Peter 1:23
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

And what is the INCREASE of this SEED (WORD OF GOD)? The ANSWER IS FRUIT!

Matthew 13:23
But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth FRUIT, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

We will find out later that the TITHE is the FRUIT of the SEED indeed.

Let us look at that scripture again…

Deuteronomy 14:22
Thou shalt truly tithe all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year.

Understanding, the SEED is the TRUTH of God… we are meant to TITHE THE INCREASE of this TRUTH… to SHARE THE FRUIT that comes from understanding the truth of who we are and what we are capable of. And so we shall truly TITHE whatever comes out of the TRUTH that is revealed to us… which makes sense when you understand the “FIELD” mentioned is actually HEART OF MAN.

Matthew 13:31
Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of heaven is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field:

The KINGDOM OF HEAVEN is WITHIN YOU! The SEED is the TRUTH within the HEART of MAN … when it is revealed, it will bring forth FRUIT… IT IS THIS FRUIT WE ARE MEANT TO TITHE.

But wait, there is much, much more…

To save time, I will say without a shadow of a doubt that “THE TITHE” is not money!

Honestly, what need does God have for money? The sacrifice, offering, and fast that God is said to want in scripture is to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke…

Rarely, if ever, do we find God stating… GIVE MONEY TO YOUR RELIGIOUS LEADERS.

Now, the reason religious leaders everywhere claim money is the tithe is so they can have your money. They will give you a list of reasons for the tithe, that it is for bills, to keep the lights on, outreach and more, but the truth is the TITHE that is written about in scripture has nothing to do with money at all.

The sad thing is many will twist the scriptures and sort of convince you that the reason you are NOT financially blessed is because you don’t tithe. They will use scriptures like the one found in Luke and liken it to giving lots of money and receiving lots of money in return.

Luke 6:38
Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.

When all along this has to do with reaping and sowing your words, thoughts and deeds, and has nothing to do with money at all. This is why the prior verse has to do with how we deal with judgment.

It is truly sad how the scriptures are twisted for selfish gain.

Another example is the below scripture. They claim this scripture, and others like it, prove that if you give your money you will get MORE MONEY in return. As I stated early… it’s the spiritually lottery… You gotta be in it to win it.

Putting that aside, let us read this scripture below and dissect it to find out what this TITHE really is.

Malachi 3:10
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be MEAT in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

We are told we should bring ALL THE TITHES into the STOREHOUSE… Notice, the scripture does not say into the church bank account. Bring ALL THE TITHES into the storehouse, it states.

Now, a STOREHOUSE is usually where things like wheat, corn, etc is stored. It is where provisions are stored away for when they are needed.

Joseph’s claim to fame in the Old testament was storing up provision for the people of Egypt, and surrounding areas. He knew a famine was coming after interpreting the Pharaoh’s dream. Joseph knew there would be years of plenty followed by years of famine. In addition, Joseph knew the storehouses needed to be filled for what was to come. So… pay attention to this part… when PEOPLE WERE HUNGRY they had no other choice but to go to Joseph to be fed.

Jesus had people following him around to be FED as well. You will see that this is also an ALLEGORY for sharing the TRUTH, or FEEDING others the truth. Jesus told Peter FEED MY FLOCK.

1 Corinthians 3:2
I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able

The MILK here is not literal Milk… and neither is the MEAT. Which, by the way, is meant to be FOUND IN THE STOREHOUSE after you bring your tithe in. 😉 But more on that later.

Joseph’s beautiful story in the Old Testament, on one level speaks of wheat and literal provision, but spiritually it speaks of storing up the TRUTH OF GOD, gathering every bit of insight and revelation one can and STORING IT AWAY over the years so when people are HUNGRY they can COME AND EAT!

My website for example, this resource of over two hundred essays, videos, poetry, and more, is a STOREHOUSE OF SORTS.

Over the years, I have been storing the provision away, so when the RELIGIONS OF THE WORLD dry up, and they will dry up, people will have a place where they can be fed… without having to spend a dime.

You see, the TITHE is NOT about MONEY, it has NEVER been about money. It is about the thing that matters most… the FRUIT that increases when the TRUTH is revealed within a person’s heart.

Sure money is important in today’s world. However, it is not MONEY that sets a person free… IT IS THE TRUTH!

I do want to be clear however, this essay is NOT about convincing people they should not support their local churches, or about telling all of you that the OX IS NOT WORTHY OF HIS HIRE, or the Prophet is not without reward… we should support those that support us, and we should lift up those who sacrifice for us all… But NOT because we will get something out of it, NOT because we are afraid of what will happen if we don’t, but because IT IS GOOD to support something that matters to you and the world at large. So, please understand that if there is an organization that you want to support because it has value and because it is doing a great service for the world… SUPPORT IT!

This essay is not about making people feel better about NOT being charitable, it is about opening people’s eyes to what charity really is.

So let us look at the TITHE with new eyes. Let us allow scripture to interpret its meaning. Let us start with scriptures earliest definition of such.

TITHE= Tenth Part

The Tithe is the TENTH PART… This is where religious leaders have gotten their “Give Ten Percent” idea. But is that what the TENTH PART, or the TENTH really is?

A tenth is defined as = each of ten equal parts into which something is or may be divided.

Now why is a TENTH of something so important? We find the number TEN many times in scripture. Ten seems to be an important number for sure. TEN COMMANDMENTS, TEN PLAGUES, God said he would spare Sodom if TEN righteous were found, it is said TEN completes a cycle, TEN is the first number that needs separation 1 0 … Ten is said also to be symbolic of heaven, earth and creation… For Pythagoras, 10 was the symbol of the universe and it also expressed the whole of human knowledge… God wants a TENTH?

You may find it coincidental that the Brain is divided up into TEN MAJOR PARTS. But it is the TENTH we are after, right? So what would the TENTH part of the BRAIN be… if the TITHE of ALL you have is actually YOUR BRAIN (which ultimately is ALL you are within… your thoughts).

So what is the TENTH PART?

The TEN MAJOR PARTS of the BRAIN are as follows: Brain Stem, Medulla, Cerebellum, Limbic system, Thalamus, Hypothalamus, Amygdala, Cerebral Cortex, Four Lobes, and the TENTH is almost always categorized as the RIGHT AND LEFT HEMISPHERE.

Ironically, all but the Right and Left Hemisphere run almost completely on auto pilot… but the RIGHT AND LEFT HEMISPHERE we actively engage. Isn’t that something?

Could the Right and Left Hemisphere be the TENTH of ALL we must give to God… OUR creativity, big picture ideas, faith (Right Side) as well as our academic, mathematical and logical side (Left Side)

I dare say, OUR THOUGHTS/HEART is the TENTH that we must give to GOD. And by God, I mean love, truth, unity, creativity, inspiration, spirit and all that God is and can be, in us, as us, through us, surrounding us, seen and unseen.)

Digging deeper into the physiology of the brain, we find the TENTH cranial nerve, the VAGUS nerve, ironically deals with your HEART and DIGESTIVE TRACT.. this just blooms with deeper meaning as it is a person’s heart and belly that the God of scripture is after.

Could it be that OUR THOUGHTS, DEEDS, AND ACTIONS are the TITHE we must present? I say yes.

The scriptures state that the LOVE OF MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL… And YET it seems like it is MONEY that makes every church go around.

The prophet Micah had some pretty strong words for those who used God’s name to get money.

Micah 3:11
The heads thereof judge for reward, and the priests thereof teach for hire, and the prophets thereof divine for money:

Yet, today that is all we see.

When Jesus was asked to give tribute he said… I DON’T HAVE TO GIVE ANYONE ANYTHING for the right to know God.

Matthew 17
25 He saith, Yes. And when he was come into the house, Jesus prevented him, saying, What thinkest thou, Simon? of whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? of their own children, or of strangers?
26 Peter saith unto him, Of strangers. Jesus saith unto him, Then are the children free.

So what is the TITHE? Well, let us look at that quote in Malachi again and see if MONEY lines up with what is being shared.

Malachi 3:10
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be MEAT in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

Bring all the TITHES into the STORE HOUSE… THAT THERE MAY BE MEAT IN MINE HOUSE…

It seems the STOREHOUSE and GOD’S HOUSE are one in the same.

Malachi 3:10
Bring ye all the tithes into the STOREHOUSE that there may be MEAT in MINE HOUSE…

Here it seems the TITHE is MEAT. And that the MEAT is to be brought INTO THE STOREHOUSE … which is GOD’S HOUSE … WHICH IS YOU!

Follow me now…

If you have ever read something of mine, then you know not everything that you find in scripture is meant to be taken literally. In fact, we are told that Jesus ONLY spoke in parable to those who did not know the truth.

Matthew 13:34
All these things spake Jesus unto the multitude in parables; and without a parable spake he not unto them:

I point this out, because the STOREHOUSE is a symbol of YOU AND I… our HEARTS and SOULS if you will. And we are told in the above scripture that IF we BRING OUR TITHES (the tenth) into the STOREHOUSE, there will be MEAT.

And WHAT is the MEAT? YOU ASK? Is it roast beef? Or is there more to it? 😉

John 4:34
Jesus saith unto them, My MEAT is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.

Jesus taught us that the MEAT for him… is to DO THE WILL OF GOD… and to FINISH THE WORK (salvation).

Here we can deduce that if we give the TITHE that God wants… that MEAT IS to DO THE WILL OF THE FATHER and NOT the will of your carnal ego.

REMEMBER the TENTH part — the Right and Left Hemisphere of the BRAIN — Our THOUGHTS are ALL THAT WE ARE… Our MIND IS our ALL…

The TITHE that GOD wants is the FRUIT of what comes when one lays down their egotistical life AFTER the TRUTH is revealed. This MEAT is to do the WILL OF THE FATHER.

Jesus said, Not MY will but Thine… I have said similar long ago… I understand that the TITHE I must bring into the STOREHOUSE (my identity) is my complete obedience to LOVE.

Let us once again read Malachi’s verse…

Malachi 3:10
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be MEAT in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

Could it be that the TITHE has NOTHING to do with money, but everything to do with SACRIFICING our CARNAL EGO or ID/devil so that there may be MEAT in the FATHER’S HOUSE… which is US (Father’s House) and the MEAT which we now know is the desire to do the will of the Father.

The TITHES in the STOREHOUSE, so there is MEAT in the FATHER’S HOUSE — is actually a clever way of saying… Let the FRUIT OF TRUTH be brought into your HEART so the desire to do the will of God is present in your hearts.

And what is the WILL OF GOD?

It is GOD’S WILL THAT ALL BE SAVED! It is God’s will that we are sanctified. It is God’s will that we LOVE OTHERS, do unto others as we would like done to ourselves. It is God’s will that we do not condemn, cast out, but that we are patient, kind, compassionate, encouraging, and peaceful. It is God’s will that we put all enmity between each other out of our hearts. It is God’s will that every tear be wiped away from our eyes. It is God’s will that we LAY DOWN THE EGOTISTICAL LIFE we have been living and take up our cross into truth and a land of milk (understanding) and honey (enlightenment).

It is GOD’S WILL that we no longer live after the ways of the world, greed, lust, hate, prejudice, condemnation, fear, shame, etc… but that we follow after the SPIRIT OF TRUTH AND LOVE.

1 Peter 4:2
That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the WILL OF GOD.

And what happens when we TITHE this “TENTH” part of ourselves? Well, according to Malachi the windows of heaven will open and blessings will be poured out upon us. And it is no coincidence that is exactly what happens when we also DO THE WILL OF GOD.

Hebrews 10:36
For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the WILL OF GOD, ye might RECEIVE THE PROMISE.

The PROMISE of God is to open up the windows of Heaven (right thinking, peace and joy) and I know that if you TITHE the TRUTH, if you STORE UP THIS TREASURE in HEAVEN as opposed to storing up literal treasure (money) on earth, YOU WILL INHERIT THE PROMISE of ETERNAL LIFE!

What is ETERNAL LIFE?

John 17:3
And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God and… whom thou hast sent.

To have ETERNAL LIFE one must know God and the one God sent into the world… this is a mystery… Because the one God sent into the world is WHO YOU THINK YOU ARE… as Jesus said, As I am so are you in this world.

It is to know the truth, that you are more than a simple human being, that you are the offspring of the most high… who you think you are is simply the MASK that the “God of many faces” wears… while the incomprehensible truth of who and what God really is hides and waits to be manifested within us all.

But I digress…

The reason I chose this topic, or the reason this topic was chosen for me (whichever you prefer) was because recently I was on a radio broadcast and the host was expressing that the TITHE, which he believed was money, was meant for more than just the pastor, priest etc… Now, to him this was quite a revelation. I sadly, wished I could express to them adequately enough the bigger picture. That the TITHE has NOTHING to do with finance… which is something I hope by now you see for yourself.

The scripture he began with was from Deuteronomy.

DEUT 26
12 When thou hast made an end of tithing all the tithes of thine increase the third year, which is the year of tithing, and hast given it unto the Levite, the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, that they may eat within thy gates, and be filled; 13 Then thou shalt say before the Lord thy God, I have brought away the hallowed things out of mine house, and also have given them unto the Levite, and unto the stranger, to the fatherless, and to the widow, according to all thy commandments which thou hast commanded me: I have not transgressed thy commandments, neither have I forgotten them.

It is easy for me to see here that the TITHE that must be given to the Levite, stranger, fatherless, and widow, is not MONEY, but it is LOVE, absolute love… which is why it is written, that in doing so (giving the tithe) the COMMANDMENTS (love others, love God) have not been transgressed. Not to MENTION if you love it is impossible to break one of the TEN commandments found in the law. The LAW OF LOVE trumps all.

And yes, if we Love, sometimes the way we show that love is by helping people out financially… but the TITHE that we are to GIVE is the FRUIT OF AN OBEDIENT HEART not ten percent of our check every two weeks.

THE TITHE is the FIRST FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT — And what is the first fruit of the spirit you ask?

Galatians 5:22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

And look again at this next definition of the fruit of the spirit.

Ephesians 5:9
(For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;)

THIS IS THE TITHE — this is what is meant to be brought into the STOREHOUSE/TEMPLE/YOU — Goodness, Righteousness/Right thinking, Truth, peace, Joy, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, temperance, and of course LOVE! — This is what we are meant to TITHE TO GOD, by TITHING it to others.

Don’t believe me yet?

Well let us look at Deut 26 – which clearly explains the TITHE and how we are to come by it. Read carefully, and remember to look deeper at what is being shared, because it may be an allegory of something beautiful you may have missed.

Deuteronomy 26
26 And it shall be, when thou art come in unto the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance, and possessest it, and dwellest therein; 2 That thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name there.

To TRULY TITHE we must first come to the “LAND” God gave us for an inheritance… and what would that LAND BE?

It is OURSELVES!

Luke 21:19 In your patience possess ye your souls.

We are MEANT TO INHERIT OURSELVES — Psalm 25:13 His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth.

The EARTH is an allegory of the idea of who we are… our identity for example. The 1st MAN is of the EARTH — the first idea of who we are is very ignorant of the depths of where we came from and where we are going… but the 2nd man is from heaven above.

1 Corinthians 15:47 The first man is of the earth, earthy; the second man is the Lord from heaven.

Think of the EARTH as Temporal AND Heaven as Spiritual. There is the NATURAL MAN (EARTH) and there is the SPIRIT MAN (Heaven)

Now, let us look at it like this… the SPIRIT OF GOD was placed into the HEART OF NATURAL MAN and NATURAL MAN was the land to be inherited. This means, the TWO MUST BECOME ONE… And to have this happen, God brings us into the LAND OF PROMISE which is also called the Kingdom of God. Which we know is Righteousness, Peace and Joy… We are meant to INHERIT eternal LIFE, to know the TRUTH and to be set free from the lies of the world.

We are to be set free to love and to live at peace with others in this world and the world to come.

And WHEN God brings us into this land, when the TRUTH is revealed to us and we begin to lay down our egotistical life for the WILL OF GOD then, and only then, are we meant to take the FIRST FRUIT (peace, joy, love, hope, etc) and GIVE THAT TO THE WORLD.

Yet, the religious will have you to believe it is the TENTH of your literal wages… Jesus clearly tore that idea down when he said…

Matthew 23:23
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

WOE UNTO YOU… FOR WHAT? Why did Jesus say, woe unto you scribes and Pharisees? Well, the reason was simple… that thought the tithe had to do with their wallets too… and like most Christians today, they tithe that temporal ten percent and LEAVE OUT the TITHE THAT MATTERS TRULY… judgment, mercy, and faith!

Notice Jesus said… THESE YOU SHOULD HAVE DONE AND NOT LEFT THEM UNDONE!

The TITHE IS NOT MONEY PEOPLE! In the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican praying… the Pharisee bragged about all his Tithes, and all the things he did… while the Publican gave GOD HIS HEART and all of it.

You tell me, which walked away justified and sanctified that day?

I hope this essay cleared somethings up for you. And I pray that you too bring all your TITHES into the storehouse, so the will of God, which is love, peace, and salvation for all can be found within your heart… so the WINDOWS OF HEAVEN will open up for you and pour blessings upon you.

Much love to you and yours,
Jacob Israel
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