Here I am presenting simple steps for how to do your daily quiet time.

Time: Quiet time should be about 10-15 minutes long. You can choose time according to you schedule. For some, morning works better, for others, night may work well. While, I recommend the morning time as you are much calmer and fresh, any time can work fine. It is also important to set fixed time everyday, as it brings discipline and consistency.
What do you need?

Your bible, note and pen. You can occasionally refer to bible commentary or dictionary for difficult passages of bible (Free bible study resources). But I would recommend studying bible as it is and ask God for his guidance to understand the passage. It is a very good practice to take notes in your quiet time. You will be amazed when you will see your quiet time notes years later!
How To do Quiet Time?

* Start with prayer:
o Spend just few minutes in worship and thanksgiving.
o Spend some time in asking God for forgiveness for our sins.
o Ask for his guidance in today’s quiet time
* Passage for Quiet time: It is good to select any book of bible and read it continuously. It will help you to get the whole picture and can enjoy your quiet time more. Select about 8-10 verses, don’t select whole chapter, as you may not be able to cover it all. Select small paragraph according to passage.
* Read the paragraph for 2-3 times. This bible study method is also called ASPECT method. From the paragraph, ask following questions.
o A – About God – What can you learn about God through this passage?
o S – Sin – Does it talk about any sin?
o P – Promise – Is there any promise in the word?
o E – Example – Is there any example, I can follow?
o C –Command – Which command I need to obey?
o T – Teaching – What can I learn from this passage?
* Concluding Prayer:
o Thank God for his guidance in quiet time
o Worship God for his characteristic
o Pray for deliverance from any sin
o Ask for strength for the day.

In the beginning the Sabbath was the symbolic emblem of the Mosaic Covenant. For as long as the covenant was in effect the Sabbath law was mandatory. However the Pharisees developed a large body of law in addition to the mosaic commandments, know as the Mishner. In fact throughout history they have elaborated on each of the 613 commandments, and added hundreds of new laws to each existing law. For example to the mosaic law that said ‘Remember the Sabbath to keep it Holy’ the Pharisees added 1500 new laws on how to keep it.

I have to say to you now that there is no New Testament teaching expressing mandatory Sabbath keeping as mandatory Sabbath keeping is exclusively an Old Testament principle. Further more this is just as true for Jews as it is for gentiles.

THE SABBATH CONTROVERSY

If we look in our bibles to Luke 6:1:-”Now it happened on the second Sabbath after the first that He went through the grain fields and his disciples plucked the heads of grain and ate them. rubbing them in their hands.”

Now according to the 1500 laws which where binding concerning the Sabbath. this scripture shows a violation of four of them:

FIRST:-By plucking the wheat they where guilty of reaping.

SECOND:-By rubbing the wheat in their hands they where guilty of threshing.

THIRD:-By mowing the chaff they where guilty of winnowing.

FOURTH:-When they ate the wheat they where guilty of storing.

It was precisely for these reasons that Jesus rebuked the Pharisees time and time again throughout the gospels. That is not to say He didn’t love the Pharisees, their zeal was commendable they simply went to far. They wouldn’t even walk on the grass on a Sabbath in case they stepped on a wheat-stalk and committed these same violations of the law.

What we have to understand is that the Sabbath to the Jew is known as Queen Sabbath, the most important thing in their calendar. It’s sometimes looked upon as the bride of Israel they are taught that Israel was created for the purpose of the Sabbath.

Now if we take a look at Luke 6:3 again we will see that Jesus dealt with the Pharisees firmly but lovingly by pointing out 6 things;

I) He first showed them what king David did { Sam:2 1 :3-6}when he ate the shewbread.

{ He then went on to show that the Mosaic law did not forbid a none Levite to eat shewbread. Pharisees taught the complete opposite. So by their reckoning, King David should have been stoned.}

2)He next showed how they do not permit work of any kind on the Sabbath, and yet the priests in the temple did certain works on Sabbath , in fact they did more sacrifices on this day than any other.

3) The third point Jesus makes is that He is greater than the temple and as such can say what is and is not allowed.

4)His fourth point of reference is a quote from Hosea 6:6 which taught in prophecy that works of necessity where permitted on Sabbath {For instance. healing was a work of mercy-.and eating was a work of necessity}

5)The fifth thing He points out is that He alone is the Mashiach. and as such could decide what was right and what was not. so long as He did not break the law of His Father {mosaic law}

6)His sixth and final point was “The Sabbath was made for man. not man for the Sabbath” This was the main point they failed to grasp. The Sabbath was made to give Israel a rest from their labours and not to bind them up.

The Church in part has developed this type of Pharisaism, it is often taught that Sunday is the new Sabbath and for many it is chiselled in stone showing no mercy for those who break it. However nowhere in scripture is this taught as Sunday always was and always will be in Jewish reckoning the first day of the week. Sabbath started at sundown on Friday {approx 6 o’clock} evening and ends {approx 6 o’clock} Saturday evening on the 7th day of the week.

However, in the New Testament we are not obligated to keep a Sabbath as such – in point of fact it is well documented that the early Church had meetings after synagogue.

We must as those who believe in the truth turn away from all things that will cause new believers to stumble especially things that are un-biblical, kept simply because of tradition.

The Gospel message is supposed to be a releasing message- not one that binds up. Some people won’t drive on Sunday – won’t spend money on Sunday they say it’s wrong for others to work on Sunday. If this was the persuasion of us all we would have no doctors, nurses, bus drivers not to mention bakers, farmers, ambulance drivers, or any of the emergency services – The country would come to a stop. Pharisaism in the Church is an unacceptable and very sad thing. The most important thing is that we meet and often not which day so long as we rest one day in seven.

THE ARGUMENTS USED FOR SABBATH KEEPING

One argument that is often used in favour of mandatory Sabbath keeping is that Sabbath is a creation ordinance. The scripture they use is found in Genesis:2:2-3

“And on the seventh day God finished His work which he had made: and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it because that in it He rested from all His work which God had created and made”

If this was a creation ordinance it would be mandatory on both Jews and Gentiles alike. However in the New Testament the Gentiles are grafted into the Jewish root making the one new man and there is no mandatory, ruling that this ordinance should be obeyed. Furthermore if it is accepted as a creation ordinance it would still not be obligatory to all in the same wave

Dr Arnold Fruchtenbaum puts the case best when he says “Marriage is a creation ordinance {Genesis 2:18-25}but this does not make it obligatory for all “. In fact celibacy or singleness is considered to be an equal option. even superior{1 Cor:7: 1-7}.

This passage is proclaiming God’s creative power as well as His triumphant rest. Therefore mandatory Sabbath keeping in the Biblical sense as in Exodus 31:15-I 7. is best kept when like the LORD we rest, especially in the New Testament for we are not under law but under grace. This is where we can find scriptures in the New Testament such as Mark 2:27 and Col. 2:16 also Heb.4: I – 16 Furthermore, I would make this point that appears to cause many to stumble from Exodus 31:17

“It is a sign between Me and the children of Israel forever”

This word “forever” is the word “olam” in Hebrew transliteration, and it means “Till the end of a period of time”. and does not mean for eternity. Therefore what period of time would the writer Moses have in mind when he was putting together the book of Exodus simply the time of which the mosaic law was to last. For the LORD had made it known to him that he was going to raise up a Prophet. like himself from among his brethren {Deut..l8:l8-l9}and this is what is meant in Heb .11:39 when it. states “All these. having obtained a good testimony through faith – did not receive the promise” what promise – the promise of HIS rest that only Y’SHUA could bring. The law of Moses has been fulfilled by the death of Y’SHUA. that we can now enter HIS rest. I would further endorse my argument by saying why should we persist in trying to keep a Sabbath from the Mosaic law when more weightier matters have been left out such as the sacrificial system. There is simply no Biblical sense in keeping some Mosaic Laws and not others.

SUNDAY OBSERVANCE

It is generally believed that Sunday worship began universally with the law of Constantine in 32 I or possibly AD 364 with the council of Laodicea. However it has been already established that Sunday worship was a universal practice outside the land of Israel by the beginning of the second century.

While Sunday was a day of worship it was never viewed as a Sabbath. What happened later was that successive church councils began to ratify the practice already common and then apply Sabbath rules to it from the Old Testament till we have what remains today.

This can be seen in the writing of Barnabas {C.AD 100} Ignatius {AD70} Justin Martyr {AD 145-150 } and Iraneas {AD 155-202 } plus what can be found in the edict of Laodicea {4′th century AD}.

It is noted that they did not change the day of worship from the seventh day to the first day of the week rather they endorsed what was already being taught from the early church in Jerusalem.

This is further seen in Acts 20:7 which proves a Sunday worship is incorrect as the scripture says

“Now on the first day of the week when the disciples came together to break bread.”

In the Jewish culture the first day of the week begins on Saturday evening after the Shabbat {6.pm} so the believers in some cases met together Saturday evening, others would meet on Sunday. However this is no grounds for enforcing Sunday worship . It simply means one in seven.

Even the Talmud implies that first day observance began with Jewish believers so as not to offend the Nazarenes {B.Tanit 27B} it is not wrong to meet on Sunday neither is it wrong to meet on Saturday; it’s merely whatever is convenient.

THE COMMUNION

Scholars generally agree that the communion came from the Passover seder and that the communion comes from the third cup. the cup of Redemption or as the apostle Paul called it the cup of Blessing (1.Cor: 10:16}. There are other thoughts on the matter, some have alluded that it came from the Kiddush . There is however no connection between the two, as the Kiddush uses challah bread which is leavened and the Passover and subsequently the LORD’s supper uses unleavened bread

Another well known scholar from Jerusalem Joseph Shulam, has suggested that it may not have come from the seder at all but from the se’udat-mitzvah or banquet of completion which is a kind of graduation set by a rabbi for his students when they have finished their studies.

This was quite common at the time of Jesus since HE would have known he was about to die on the cross. Certainly in rabbinical terms it would make sense as both these events happened on the 14th of Nisan. This would appear to also solve the discrepancy between the gospel of John and the other synoptics on the timing of the last supper {John: 13.29& 18+28}.

There is no doubt that Jesus was in this most blessed of ceremonies which is seen through the Passover meal displaying himself as the Pascal or Kapparah Lamb. a continual offering for sin.

The Rabbis tell us that the lamb as an offering was first required in the book of Genesis 3:20-21 after GOD had asked Adam to name the animals and he had his favourite of them all which was the lamb. After he and Eve had sinned GOD had told them that they must pay a price for their disobedience and this price was their most treasured possession the lamb it had to be sacrificed and GOD clothed them with its skin {Gen:3.21 } or tunics as it says in the Bible. so they would learn not to sin.

The pattern was continued in the Tabernacle where the LORD gave orders to the priests to offer the lamb {Exodus 29:38-46}. In verse 40 of this same scripture we see it was to be offered with a hin of wine {one gallon} as a drink offering. This was to be the first proto-type seen for the communion.

The scripture shows there was a lamb offered at either end of the day. This was for a continual sacrifice to GOD. It also sanctified both Aaron and all the priests as well as the Temple continually and set apart this period of time unto GOD. After the second Temple period the lamb was no longer used as the Jews no longer had a temple. However in the days of Jesus they were still being offered and the period of time as with today was set apart by the two giant candlesticks which were found in the outer court of the Temple which when they were lit, illuminated the whole of Jerusalem.

There are candlesticks used in the Passover seder on either side of the table . Later on in the Temple about 950BC the lambs were brought by all the people on the l4th& 15th of Nisan. They were first inspected by the priests for any blemishes as only a spotless lamb was acceptable . They then had their throats cut and the blood was drained and then sprinkled round the alter as the required offering. It is noteworthy that Jesus was slaughtered at the same time as the lambs where being killed for the feast.

The people would then take the remains of the lamb home and eat it. There was at any one time in the Temple as many as 30.000 sheep slaughtered by approximately 500 priests .This provided a lamb for a house. And Jesus said “Take this and divide it among yourselves” for the bread; “This is my body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of me” and for the wine; said “This is the new covenant in my blood , which is shed for you “{LUKE 22; 17) Here Yeshua was and is the eternal lamb of GOD sacrificed once for all to permanently remove all sin.

Some general teaching about friendship. In the first place, the Bible says, “A man that hath friends must show himself friendly” (Prov. 18: 24). Some are too distant to form friendships. There is great value in friendship. “Two are better than one,” wrote the wise man (Eccl. 4: 9). A true friend will stand by, even in times of trouble. “A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity,” the Bible says (Prov. 17: 17). To the converse, the Bible speaks of false friends when it warns, “Confidence in an unfaithful man in time of trouble is like a broken tooth, and a foot out of joint” (Prov. 25: 19). There are some people that are not desired to be friends. For instance, “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go” (Prov. 22: 24). A true friend will tell us when we are wrong. Hear the Bible, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful” (Prov. 27: 6). Genuine friends must be cherished and not forsaken (Prov. 27: 10).

Jesus and friendship. Jesus is the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (Jn. 3: 16; 1: 14). Yet, Jesus offers man his friendship. Jesus said, “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” (Jn. 15: 14). Jesus is the ultimate friend of man. “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (Jn. 15: 13). Jesus tasted death for every man and shed his blood for the remission of man’s sins (Heb. 2: 9; Matt. 26: 28).

In closing, true friendship is one of the great gifts of life. As we saw, man in his friendship with Jesus, must obey Jesus (Jn. 15: 14). We must believe, repent, confess Christ’s deity, and be baptized (Jn. 8: 24; Lk. 13: 3, 5; Rom. 10: 9, 10, Matt. 10: 32; Mk. 16: 16). Jesus’ friendship is unequalled!

We just begin to live when we die the first death. “It is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment”
(Hebrews 9:27). You have an appointment with God and you are going to
keep that appointment.

The Bible describes Hell (and I found this to be true) as a place of future punishment for sinners and unbelievers. Hell is a
Lake of Fire, a place of torment, a place where lost souls never die and the
fire is not quenched, a place of weeping, wailing, gnashing of teeth, a place
where sinners drink of the wine of the wrath of God, a place where the
smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever. The rich man’s soul is
still screaming and crying out, just trying to die; but there is no death to the soul. It lives on forever.

The fire of Hell consumes the flesh, but it cannot
consume the soul. I am a living witness that Hell is real. Hell is enlarging
because people refuse to believe. You must make the greatest decision
you’ll ever have to make. Where are you going to spend eternity, in Heaven
or Hell?
You may say, “I do not believe in Hell!” But my friend, two minutes in Hell
amidst the weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth will change your mind,
when you realize then, as everyone in Hell realizes today, that the Bible is
the Word of God, that you are a sinner, that Christ died for you and that you
could have been saved if you had believed and accepted Him as your
personal Savior. As you weep, wail, and gnash your teeth, you will be crying
aloud in agony, “What a fool I was! Too late! Too late! Too late!”
There are no unbelievers in Hell; but they believed too late! Every soul in
Hell would give anything in this world to be me or you, back in this life, with
one more chance to cry out, “God forgive me!” If we come to that dark
Valley of Death with unrepented sin in our life, it will be too late. You may
not have a praying mother and sister that will pray for your soul until they
die.

Yes, God’s love should be unconditional for those who are his children, who choose to follow his way. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28) Those who choose not to be in his family should not expect unconditional love, although he does love them and would rather they choose to be part of his family. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)

Does a creator have a duty to look after his creation? We don’t think so in human matters, so why would we expect that to be true of God? I know of no automobile manufacturer, for instance, that offers free body work for any accident any of their products may be involved in. That is why we have to buy insurance. “What shall we say then? Is there unrighteousness with God? God forbid. For he saith to Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy. For the scripture saith unto Pharaoh, Even for this same purpose have I raised thee up, that I might shew my power in thee, and that my name might be declared throughout all the earth. Therefore hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth. Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find fault? For who hath resisted his will? Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus? Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour? What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory, Even us, whom he hath called, not of the Jews only, but also of the Gentiles?” (Romans 9:14-24)

As far as eternal punishment goes, there are really only two options as I see it: God punishes those who are not his children, who choose not to be part of his family; or God punishes nobody. The latter also brings up two options. The first would be that God says everyone can do whatever they want, even if it hurts themselves or someone else, because without punishment for wrong it doesn’t matter. The second is that God sets forth laws and requirements and does not love his children. It would be unloving to establish limits, and then treat everyone the same whether or not they stayed within those limits. It is not love for a parent to set a curfew, and then expect some children to abide by it but not punish the one that violates it. That shows a lack of love for those who choose to obey, at the expense of a greater love for the one who chooses to be disobedient. As a human being I can recognize that such an action on the part of another human is unloving; why would I expect a loving God to be different?

I also disagree, from a merely human standpoint, with your definition of free will. Free will says I allow you to make an informed choice of what to do. You have an equal ability to choose between two or more options. If one of those options brings about negative consequences and another brings positive ones, you still have the free will to choose between the two. Some people willingly choose the negative. That is true under human law. People have the choice to break the law, knowing there is a possibility (or even a certainty) of punishment, or to obey the law. Every day many people choose to violate the law regardless of the potential consequences. This is true whether the law is murder or speeding. All you have to do is drive on any freeway in the United States to know that free will has nothing to do with the possibility of punishment.

Using that argument, God does not condemn us for using free will. He offers the choices between good and evil, between reward and punishment. The punishment is not for exercising free will. The punishment is a previously stated consequence that one may use his free will to choose. If someone offers to sell you a car and you choose not to buy it, his withholding the title to the car from you is not punishment for choosing, it is an anticipated consequence of the choice.

What I would find perplexing is a god who set limitations and then refused to enforce them. We are perplexed by governments that refuse to enforce their own laws. Why should we be perplexed by one that enforces the law?

One of the most devastating problems that has ensnared many good people is the sin of pornography. Many of these same people will testify that they were ensnared with just a “peek.” This one “little fox” led to their downfall. Many, out of curiosity, just went to a site to see what was there. This is one of the devil’s tricks to get people ensnared. Satan, is the power behind this attraction to forbidden sexual images. People that are trapped today can tell you there is an evil “drawing” that compels them to return again and again. Many are desiring to be free, but seem hopelessly gripped by this evil desire. We want to share the good news — there is a way out through Jesus Christ.

In the U.S.A., as well as many other nations of the world, our societies have become the most sexually saturated societies in human history. Sodom and Gomorrah might be the only exceptions. America’s pornography industry is not only pervasive, but powerful as well. It generates more than $12 billion in revenue annually. In 1997, more than 665 million pornographic videos were sold. On the Internet, there are more than 72,000 pornographic sites. Sexually explicit “900 number” phone calls are a $2.4 billion-a-year industry. ¹

From the Internet to video stores to magazines and “900 numbers,” pornography can be easily accessed nearly anywhere in America. This involvement is not limited to world at large, as surveys reveal the Christian community is highly involved in this evil snare of perversion too. How did this happen? What can be done to help people get free from this bondage? What does the Bible offer as hope to those ensnared in sin?

God has called the church to be the answer to the problems facing those addicted to pornography. God hates this sin, but He loves the sinner and wants to set them free. Many marriages are being destroyed by this evil, as after the addiction of pornography has set in, then the normal marital relationship with their spouses is no longer satisfying. Many husbands then want their wives to partake in bizarre sexual behavior with them or use sexual toys as stimulants. Some couples even watch erotic videos together to arouse each other before they engage in sex. These abnormal approaches to what God intended to be a wonderful relationship, defiles them. Instead of finding satisfaction… guilt, shame, and dissatisfaction set in. True love and intimate sharing is replaced with raw lust. What God meant to be the most beautiful experience between two people becomes a hellish depravity. God can, and will restore this relationship if they will call on Him. There is absolutely nothing that is outside of God’s ability to forgive, deliver, heal and restore.

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

How did our world arrive at a time in history that has so much emphasis on sexual perversions? This did not happen overnight. When the church failed to maintain a holy standard and example to the world, the world’s evil influence gained momentum and now has saturated our society. Little by little, the church lowered her standards. Instead of the church influencing the world, the opposite happened, the world influenced the church. The church began to watch movies that each year became a little more dirty, a little more violent, a little more immoral, a little more deviant, a little more crazy and a little more erotic. Now today, there are unspeakable things on film that come directly from hell. They were inspired by the devil himself. These “little foxes” are now raging wolves. Sin and evil are progressive. Several layers of gray have now become black.

An example of how this happened in the area of women’s dress, would be to observe the progression of women’s styles. Women’s hem lines have gone up while the necklines have gone down. It didn’t start by going from ankle length to above the knees overnight. It took years for the ladies in the church to gradually adopt this revealing attire that others were wearing. Most Christian women on stage look no different than those in Hollywood. I am not saying that we should wear our hair in buns with no make-up. However we don’t have to look like the women of the world. We can be stylish and attractive without being immodest and lustful in our dress. Today young girls come to prayer meetings in shorts and crop tops and never think any thing about it. Before you call me prudish ( I will admit I am old fashioned, yet in my school days we didn’t experience the sexual violence that is happening today), let me share where I am going with this.

My husband and I, while pastoring the church, prayed with many young and not-so-young men, who were deeply disturbed as they were having problems keeping their minds on the Lord. The distraction —- pretty young girls who would attend services in shorts, ultra tight jeans, short skirts, or low cut dresses. The men did not want these lustful feelings and were sincerely fighting to keep their thoughts pure. Most of the young girls were totally oblivious to the fact that they could be contributing to a man’s temptation toward lust. I remember an incident when several people were gathered around a man to pray for him for healing. One of the young girls who wore a sleeveless and low cut top kneeled down at his feet while others stood in a circle around him to pray. I happened to be standing over her and looking down as we started to bow our heads and pray I could see her breasts above her low cut bra. The thought came to me how these young men must struggle to pray when they could see the same view as I saw.

WHAT CAN WOMEN DO TO HELP MEN GET FREE FROM THIS BONDAGE?

Most of the indulgence in porno is done by men, although some women come under its power too. However, since this affects everyone in the family, it is a family problem. It must be addressed as a family issue. One of the things that I believe women are doing today, that is adding to this problem, is the way in which they dress. The goal of many young girls today is not dressing to be well groomed and attractive, but rather to be sexy. Sex crimes and rapes have soared in numbers and women’s dress habits have contributed to this problem. I believe because we have not taught our daughters to dress modestly it has contributed to these crimes. We must teach our sons and daughters morality and return to Bible standards if we are to see this problem reversed.

Men no longer have to go to houses of prostitution to see women’s unclad bodies. They can go to any beach or public swimming pool in the world or just watch the ads on T.V. It is really a disgrace to the church when our young daughters are allowed to wear bikini swimsuits and many of the mothers wear them too. I am not excusing men and their porno habits but we women must also change if we expect the men to get free from their sin. The Bible speaks about how women should be attired:

Proverbs 11:22, “As a jewel of gold in a swine’s snout, so is a fair woman which is without discretion.”

1 Peter 3:1-5, “Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands.”

How To Be Free From Pornography

(1.) You need to first of all repent of your sin and ask Jesus to come into your heart and cleanse you and deliver you from this evil. No sin is too black or wicked that the blood of Jesus cannot cleanse you from it. The Bible says in:

1 John 1:9-10, 2:1-2: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation (the atoning sacrifice) for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.”

(2.) Because pornography is a spiritual problem you will need spiritual help in getting free from it. By partaking of this evil you have opened yourself up to demonic control. You may need someone who has the gift of the Holy Spirit to pray deliverance over you. You should seek out a Bible believing church that believes in deliverance and knows how to deal with demons. The Lord will lead you in this matter if you ask Him. Do not allow pride to prevent you from getting help and getting free if you need it.

James 4:7-8, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.”

(3.) As you commit your life to Christ and obey Him you can get the victory because you are not fighting this battle alone, but you have access to the power of Christ and what He did for you.

Romans 6:12-18:

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God.
14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
15 What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid.
16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
17 But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you.
18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

(4.) Today men and women must war in this culture to maintain their sexual purity. This battle is a battle in the mind. You must cast down imaginations that do not agree with the Bible and quote the Word of God over your body and mind.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”

(5.) You must stay away from the area of temptation and destroy all videos, games, magazines, etc. that are pornographic. If you must use the computer in your work environment, you should employ a filter service for your ISP or software that filters out those evil invitations so they do not enter your e-mail and cannot be accessed by your browser.

1 Corinthians 6:18-20: “Flee fornication. Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth fornication sinneth against his own body. What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

(6.) Should you stumble or fall, do not stay down. Just ask the Lord to forgive you and start again in your walk with Him. Ask Him to empower you to overcome. You cannot do it in your strength. Just remember that in Him you can do all things.

Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”

(7.) If you need prayer we will stand with you for your victory. You can write us through the prayer room. You need not give your name. The Lord will know who you are. Remember, the Lord loves you and so do we. Blessings! Contact us through the PRAYER ROOM.

(8.) If your life or marriage has been devastated by sexual addiction we highly recommend a book that has been helpful to many called An Affair of the Mind by Laurie Hall. This amazing book is published by Focus On The Family and written from the first-hand perspective of a wife whose husband was addicted to pornography for over 20 years. This powerful book delves deep into many facets of sexual addiction. The principles in this book, if applied, can save many marriages and restore even those who are most bound to sexual addiction.

In summation, many are snared by just a “peek” or just a little curiosity in regard to pornography. Don’t allow any little things that could lead to a pornography addiction. Calendars or pictures of naked women, Playboy magazines or movies with erotic sexual scenes are just a few of the things that can open the door for a greater entanglement into the pornography trap.

Isa 65:25 5 The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, but dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,” says the LORD. NIV

I have no doubt that our loving heavenly Father can resurrect our pets and make them part of our happiness in heaven. However, the Bible does not give any references to this, as the Bible was written for the salvation of mankind. (After all, something written for animals wouldn’t do a lot of good when the animals can’t read!!)

Sin came on this earth through man, not through animals. The animals are but innocent by-standers. Rom 5:12: Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned NIV

This brought heavy consequences on all of earth’s creation.

Gen 3:17: Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. NIV

Rom 8:22: We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. NIV

Salvation was brought through Jesus to mankind. He made it possible for men to be reconciled with God!

Rom 5:15-16: For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many! NIV

Wow! What an awesome God we have! If He didn’t spare His son in order for us to experience eternal happiness, you can be rest assured that He knows what He is doing. God cares for all His creation!

Rom 8:38-39: For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. NIV

He is coming back soon! Are you ready for Him? Have you accepted Him in your life? It is still not too late. One day it may be too late. You never know what tomorrow will bring. Accept Him now in your life and join the apostle John in His response to Jesus’ return on our planet:

Rev 22:20 “He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. NIV

Mathew 4:17 “From that time Jesus began to preach and to say REPENT: for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.”

Who is Repentance for?

ACTS 5:31 “Him (Jesus Christ) hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.”

Repentance and forgiveness of sins is referring to Christ coming as the Savior for the Israelites. He was sacrificed on the cross for their SINS, the breaking of the laws contained in the first covenant given to them by Moses. Therefore, Israelites must repent by following Christ, the mediator of the new and better covenant.

What is Repentance? … And How to Accomplish it.

In order for the Israelites to understand repentance, they must know their history! The Israelites (the people listed below) are Gods chosen people. God chose the Israelites before they were a nation in the earth. He made covenants with there for fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob that they would be his people forever. You can read about these covenants in the book of Genesis, Genesis 17:7-8, Genesis 26:4, and Genesis 35:12 are just a few.

Genesis 15:12-21, foretold of Israel’s captivity and deliverance from the Egyptians. The Most High delivered the Israelites from Egypt by the hand of Moses. While in the wilderness the Israelites entered into an agreement/ covenant with God, read Deuteronomy 27:14-26. They broke that agreement! They did not keep God’s Commandments, his Laws, Statutes and Judgments. Consequently for breaking that covenant, we became CURSED, read Deuteronomy 28:15-68 and Leviticus 26:14-39. The Israelites needed a Savior; a way out from the curses found throughout the Old Testament, that Savior was and is Christ.

JEREMIAH 31:31 “Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:”

JEREMIAH 31:32 “Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the Lord:” Also written in Hebrews 8:8-10.

God made a new covenant with us, thus fulfilling his promises to our forefathers,

Leviticus 26:42 “Then will I remember my covenant with Jacob, and also my covenant with Isaac, and also my covenant with Abraham will I remember the land.”

In order to be saves from the curses/ punishments and enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, we must repent for breaking our agreement with God (not keeping his Laws, which we received under Moses) by following the New Covenant, Christ and his teachings.

Deuteronomy 18:18 “I will raise them up a Prophet from among their bretheren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him.”

Deuteronomy 18:19 “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.”

In order to inherit eternal life in the kingdom of Yahawah established by Yahawashi one must first repent. Despite how righteous you may claim to be you must repent to be accepted into the glorious kingdom.

Luke 13:[3] “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish”.

The word perish is defined as:

1. To die or be destroyed, especially in a violent or untimely manner:
2. To pass from existence; disappear gradually.

Since all have sinned we must all repentant of our former ways and never return to them and we must put on the full armor of Yahawah to avoid sinning. In the book of Ephesians 6:11 the scripture reads “Put on the whole armor of Yah that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” What is the scripture speaking about? What does the word armor mean? Armor is all of the tools used to wage a battle or to defend ones self when in battle. The battle spoken of in these next verses is a type of spiritual battle, which has been waged against the people of Yah in this wicked corrupt world. One of the very first things that Yahawashi spoke of when he began to teach was repentance, Matthew 4: [17] “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”.

The reason that it is essential to repent is because we are all guilty of breaking the laws, of Yahawah for to sin is braking of the law. In other words if we do not obey or disobey that which Yahawah has commanded we brake the law and we are sinning.

1 John 3:[4] “Whosoever committeth sin transgresseth also the law: for sin is the transgression of the law”.

If you do not study the laws of the old testaments then how will you know what sin is? You can not. It is therefore essential that we know the laws. We know that the scriptures are clear to all of those priest blessed by Yahawah. Before anyone suggest that Christ came to change the law let me refer you to Matthew 5:17 where Yahawashi( Jesus Christ) provides his confirmation that laws are still in affect,

Matthew 5:17-18
[17] “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill.
[18] For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled”.

When you sin you begin to kill yourself spiritually and mentally for when you sin you separate yourself from Yahawah this spiritual death is then follow by a physical death.

Romans 6: [23] “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”.

For the sins that we commit we are rewarded with death in this life and the one that follow if we do not repent.

Proverbs 28:4-5:
[4] “They that forsake the law praise the wicked (when you disobey the laws of Yahawah, you may praise filthy R& B singers, Gangster rappers, women that model semi nude on bill boards signs and TV) but such as keep the law contend with them. ( Yet those of us that keep Yah’s laws are content with keeping the laws for we understand the importance thereof) [5] Evil men understand not judgment ( if you follow this world you do not truly understand or perhaps disbelieve the judgement of Yahawah) but they that seek the LORD understand all things”.

In order to escape condemnation one must acknowledge his\her sins, ask for forgiveness and sin no more.

Psalms 51:3-4:
[3] “For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. [4] Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest”.

Job 33:27-28:
[27] “He looketh upon men, and if any say, I have sinned, and perverted that which was right, and it profited me not;
[28] He will deliver his soul from going into the pit, and his life shall see the light”.

The mistake that many people make is to assume that treating people nice will get them into heaven. Or they feel that they can change on their own without obeying the law. One cannot change and live in accord with the laws unless one knows the laws. You have to know it to live but it for this is the sort of change that Yahawah requires of us,

Psalms 119: [9] “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word”.

It is the laws of Yahawah that change us into the Christ like being of which he intends us to be.

Psalms 19: [7] “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple”.

Only if Israelites repent in these lands that we were brought to as slaves will Yahawah forgive us and raise us back up to power. It is following the law that makes one perfect.

2nd Chronicles 6:36-38:
[36] “If they sin against thee, (for there is no man which sinneth not,) and thou be angry with them, and deliver them over before their enemies, and they carry them away captives unto a land far off or near;
[37] Yet if they bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn and pray unto thee in the land of their captivity, saying, We have sinned, we have done amiss, and have dealt wickedly;
[38] If they return to thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their captivity, whither they have carried them captives, and pray toward their land, which thou gavest unto their fathers, and toward the city which thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for thy name”.

Once we repent our sins are forgiven and washed away,

Acts 3:[19] “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord”; If you return to that same sin you are worthy of death,

Romans 1: [32] “Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them”.

Romans 6: [23] “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord”

The price that you will pay for your sexually wickedness, stealing, cheating, lying, backbiting, mistreating the poor, disobeying parents is death unless you repent and not return to those ways. Yet if you repent and accept Yahawashi you can be saved,

Acts 16: [31] “And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house”.

Yet you, must, you must first repent,

Acts 26: [20] “But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance”.

Although the laws were only given to the nation of Israel we have failed to keep them which explain our being enslaved throughout the world today. We are still under Satan’s authority.

Romans 9: [31] “But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness”.

To all Israelites that received this message from the spirit of which it was written I say shalam.

Today we live in a world that cries out for spiritual direction and answers to deep-seated and often intractable problems. But ours is also a selfish and materialistic age. For most people nearly all of their physical resources are earmarked for material goods and services to make life better for themselves and their offspring.

Yet God asks for something additional from those He is calling. He asks us to recognize the importance of spiritual needs and values as well as physical needs. God wants us to communicate priceless spiritual knowledge to a darkened and deceived world.

The purpose of the Church today

God is working out His glorious plan in which all humanity will have the opportunity to receive eternal life beyond the grave. An aching spiritual and emotional void exists that only the teachings and spiritual values of God can fill.

The Church still has an enormous work to do. Jesus Christ commissioned His people to take the gospel to the whole world, to reach every nation with the wonderful truths He has revealed and to instruct those God calls in His way of life (Matthew 24:14; 28:18-20).

Throughout the 20th century the information and entertainment media—publications, radio and television—have played important roles in this mission of preaching the gospel. So, as before, the Church has been faced with the question of how God wants this work to be financed. By carefully and conscientiously examining the Bible as a whole, we see ample evidence that a consistent financial method is addressed in the pages of Holy Scripture, and that method is tithing.

What do we mean by tithing? The word tithe comes from an Old English word meaning “tenth.” Tithing, then, means merely the practice of “tenthing,” or simply giving back to God 10 percent of one’s increase (see Leviticus 27:32). Tithing is simply a form of giving, which is a godly practice (Matthew 19:21).

It is in fact a form of worship in which we show God respect: “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of your increase; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9-10).

We need to understand this important facet of our relationship with God. We need to ask ourselves whether our actions say, “I will give Him my heart, I will give Him my praise, I will give Him thanksgiving, but I will not support His work financially.”

Tithing in biblical history

Before the Israelites entered the land God promised to give them, He told them: “All the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s. It is holy to the Lord” (Leviticus 27:30, emphasis added throughout).

What gave God the right to claim 10 percent of everything they produced from the land? His claim is based on a simple and an often-overlooked truth: He owns everything!

This fundamental premise is repeated in the Bible. “The earth is the Lord’s and all its fullness, the world and those who dwell therein” (Psalm 24:1; compare Exodus 19:5; Job 41:11). The tithe is simply the divinely ordained degree to which He expects us to give back to honor Him and to acknowledge that He gives everything to us.

The first account in the Bible of this ancient practice of giving is found in Genesis 14:18-22. Abraham, after his defeat of four kings, tithed on the spoils of the war to Melchizedek, the priest of God Most High. Abraham obviously understood that tithing was an appropriate way of honoring God with one’s physical possessions.

This example shows several important principles we can apply today. Abraham, whose exemplary life of service and obedience to God caused God to describe him as the father of the faithful (Romans 4:11), was not compelled to tithe. He gave willingly and voluntarily as an act of great humility. He showed respect and reverence for God, and to Melchizedek, who was both “king of Salem” and “priest of the Most High God” (Hebrews 7:1). Jesus Christ, the King of all the universe, serves in this royal and priestly office today (Hebrews 6:20), and to tithe is to show Him appropriate honor.

This example also demonstrates Abraham’s enormous personal integrity and character. He chose to keep his promise to God rather than give in to the temptation to use the spoils of his victory for himself (Genesis 14:22-23). Abraham understood the premise for giving a tithe to God: He is Possessor of heaven and earth (verse 19). Abraham recognized that he was blessed by God Most High, who made his victory and all his blessings possible.

Human short-sightedness

We humans tend to think that what we possess is because of our human efforts. God recognizes this tendency in us and told Moses to warn the Israelites not to think to themselves, “My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth.” Instead they were to “remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you power to get wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:17-18). They were to serve God “with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything” (Deuteronomy 28:47).

Tithing is, first and foremost, an act of worshipful recognition of God as the source of our existence and all blessings and providence. Jacob, in following the example of his grandfather Abraham, recognized this. When God reconfirmed to him the promises He had made to Abraham, Jacob promised God that “of all that You give me I will surely give a tenth to You” (Genesis 28:20-22).

The practice of tithing was later incorporated into the covenant with Israel as a written and codified law. The tribe of Levi, which was not given an inheritance of land from which the Levites could derive increase (Numbers 18:23), was to receive God’s tithe of the agricultural produce in return for their ecclesiastical service to the nation. The Levites, based on what they had received in tithes from the people, in turn tithed to the priestly family of Aaron (Numbers 18:26-28).

Over the years that followed, payment of the tithe was carelessly neglected, with devastating consequences. By Nehemiah’s day the whole system of godly worship had crumbled and decayed. Temple worship and observance of the Sabbath were seriously compromised (Nehemiah 13). Because there was no financial support for the Levites, they had returned to their fields to support themselves (verse 10). God’s system of worship was all but abandoned.

Nehemiah recognized that restoring the tithe was crucial to restoring godly worship. He strongly corrected the nation for its failure to tithe (verses 11-12) and restored the practice of tithing (Nehemiah 10:37-38; 12:44), which in turn enabled the Levites to carry out the work of God that they had originally been designated to perform (Numbers 18:21).

Today the practice of tithing plays a vital role in the overall system of godly worship within the Church. It encourages reliance on God. It encourages us to properly evaluate the use of all our physical resources and thus ensures a more balanced and proper approach in our relationship with God. Neglecting to practice tithing will negatively impact a proper, biblical system of worship with far-reaching consequences both for ourselves and the Church.

Malachi 3:8-10 provides another example of how God views a failure to tithe diligently. Written near the time of Nehemiah’s struggle to set the nation of Judah aright, the context shows this also has an end-time application. In this passage, God corrects the nation in the strongest terms. Failure to tithe, the people are told, is tantamount to robbing God, and the disobedient are in danger of serious consequences. Yet God also promises that renewed obedience in tithing will result in blessings from Him, so abundant that “there will not be room enough to receive it.” God is serious about His laws and His commitments to us and, of course, about our commitments to Him.

Tithing in the New Testament

When we come to the New Testament and the experience of the early Church, we should consider several important points. First, the emergence of the Church did not herald a radical departure from the practices of the nation of Israel. Not until several decades after the founding of the New Testament Church does the book of Hebrews record a clarification of the impact the new spiritual administration of Christ had for the Church and the existing priesthood. Even here it is apparent that most laws relating to Israel were not annulled, but were sometimes different in their application.

For decades the Church was regarded by the gentiles as merely another sect of the Jews, but one that believed in the divinity of Jesus Christ. The Church is the spiritual equivalent of physical Israel and is even called “the Israel of God” (Galatians 6:16). Because of lack of obedience, the opportunity for salvation for that time was extended beyond the nation of Israel and offered to others—those who would be called into the Church from all nations (Matthew 21:43; 1 Peter 2:9-10). This new spiritual nation would provide the obedience God desired, through a converted heart.

No sharp break in application of laws and principles from the Old Testament came about. Indeed, the New Testament had not yet been written, and it is acknowledged that the Church was “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20).

The teachings and specific examples from the Old Testament, we are told, were written for the benefit of the New Testament Church (Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 10:11), therefore we should pay close attention to them. In a prophecy of the time setting of Christ’s second coming, we are admonished to “remember the law of Moses, My servant” (Malachi 4:4). It was God Himself who gave His law for Israel through Moses. That law and the proper application of its principles have continuing relevance for members of God’s Church.

Instruction from Jesus Christ and the apostles

Jesus Himself clearly upheld the practice of tithing. “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the other things undone” (Matthew 23:23).

As recorded here, only days before His death Christ plainly confirmed that tithing should indeed be practiced, along with sincere adherence to the “weightier” spiritual matters the scribes and Pharisees were obviously neglecting.

The Israelites supported the tribe of Levi for its service at the temple by giving the Levites God’s tithe. This support provided the means for Israel to worship God and be taught according to His will. Since for all practical purposes God’s message of salvation was no longer preached by the Levitical priesthood, this responsibility now fell to the New Testament Church. The followers of the gospel message gave monetary and other aid to Jesus, to His disciples and, later, to other laborers in the Church to support them in doing the work Christ had given His Church to do.

Examples of such giving, and principles relating to it, are found in New Testament passages such as Luke 8:3; 10:7-8; 2 Corinthians 11:7-9; and Philippians 4:14-18.

The book of Hebrews describes a change in administration as the New Testament Church—the spiritual temple of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; Ephesians 2:19-22)—replaced the physical temple in importance. Monies were now paid to the New Testament apostles (see Acts 4:35-37).

Tithing abolished in Hebrews?

Hebrews 7 first relates how Abraham gave tithes to Melchizedek, king of Salem and God’s priest. Melchizedek and the offices he held are used in this passage as a type of Jesus Christ Himself. With the later establishment of Israel as His nation, God established a different priesthood, and tithes were given to the descendants of Levi, who served as this new priesthood (verse 5). As the administration changed, the recipients of the tithes also changed. The book of Hebrews demonstrates how the practices and principles relating to the physical temple, sacrifices and priesthood now apply to the new High Priest, Jesus Christ (verses 22-28).

Far from this section of Scripture stating that tithing is abolished, its thrust is primarily to support the return to a priesthood “according to the order of Melchizedek” (verses 15-17). This new priesthood of Jesus Christ is vastly superior to the priesthood of Levi in every way. It necessitated a “change of the law” (verse 12) relating to the priesthood, because the law God gave by Moses to Israel included no instruction regarding a High Priest coming from Judah (verses 13-14).

This change of the law had to do with a change in administration. It meant that the administration of tithing would change with this new priesthood—from that of Levi to that of Melchizedek (Christ). Thus members of the Church today continue to tithe even though the Levitical priesthood has ended, just as Abraham tithed to Melchizedek before the priesthood of Levi was established.

Paul drew on an analogy to demonstrate that, as those ministering in the temple were supported by the offerings given at the temple, so those ministering in the Church should receive support from the Church. “Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel,” he wrote (1 Corinthians 9:13-14).

A matter of faith

When you tithe you are aligning your attitude and actions with universal principles originating with God, the great Giver (Matthew 10:8; 19:21; 20:28; Luke 6:38; 12:32; Acts 20:35). Tithing reflects the unselfish, giving nature of our Creator and Provider. Through willing and cheerful giving (2 Corinthians 9:6-8), we honor God while supporting the physical means of preaching the gospel. Jesus Christ said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

So it should be noted that anyone who gives a tithe should do so willingly. Although God equates withholding tithes with robbing Him (Malachi 3:8-10), He does not force anyone to tithe. Tithing is giving. Voluntarily (from Latin) and willingly (from Anglo-Saxon) are identical in meaning and refer to actions made by our own decisions.

As with all obedience to God’s laws, whether we tithe or not will always be based on our own decision. The Church today is not under the Levitical administration of Israel. Under that administration tithing related to a physical nation. Today the Church is a spiritual organism, a borderless community of believers scattered throughout many nations. Today, as was the case with Abraham, no humanly legislated penalty is imposed if we do not tithe. Rather, failure to tithe incurs its own penalty on each of us and diminishes our potential for effective service and responsible stewardship in God’s eyes (Luke 16:10).

Making a decision to tithe is a matter of faith. For most of us just the necessities of life consume almost all of our income. Stepping out in faith to tithe—and in this way supporting the work of God of preaching the gospel and nourishing the Church —is a scriptural obligation none of those called by God can afford to neglect. But God will surely bless those whose faith is actively backed up by good works. And they will be active participants in the most important enterprise on earth, that of proclaiming the wonderful news of the Kingdom of God to this chaotic and war-weary world.

Tithing is a universal principle not restricted to a particular covenant, one that relates to each of the major administrations of God as He has worked with people through the centuries. Tithing applies to all people today. God defines the basics of how we are to worship Him, and honoring Him with a portion of the increase He gives us is clearly a part of the worship He commands.

Deepening our relationship with God

Our faith to tithe is founded in the realization that God owns everything, including ourselves, and that we recognize Him as both our Creator and the great Giver of all good things.

In giving back to God a tenth of our income, we enter into a special relationship with our Creator and owner. We dedicate ourselves to serving Him and financially supporting Christ’s commission to preach the gospel and nourish the Church. In return He promises to bless us. Tithing, then, is an intensely personal matter between you and God—a way of demonstrating the depth of your commitment to, and relationship with, God.

God devised the practice of tithing so we can learn to give of our possessions to further His interests on earth. By tithing we express appreciation to God in a small but tangible way for the abundance of His possessions that He allows us to use for our material benefit. Finally, we learn to become, as He is, a giver of what we own for the benefit of others.

We see tithing, then, as the opposite of a selfish approach to life. God stands prepared to support this generous approach by, in turn, blessing us in a variety of ways. He invites all to take Him up on His promise: “‘Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it’” (Malachi 3:10).