(Deut 14:22\u201323)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Stop and really see it. God didn\u2019t tell them to\u00a0give it away. He told them to\u00a0use it,\u00a0enjoy it, and\u00a0eat it and He wanted them to do it\u00a0with Him. This wasn’t a bill, donation or a spiritual tax. It was a sacred meal and a yearly celebration of God’s goodness. The tithe was about worship through joy, nourishment, gratitude, and shared presence of the Lord.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The passage continues with even more clarity:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIf the place of worship is too far\u2026 sell your tithe\u2026 take the money\u2026 and buy whatever you want \u2014 cattle, sheep, wine, or other alcoholic drink. Then feast in the presence of the Lord your God and celebrate with your household.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n (Deut 14:24\u201326)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n This is god asking you to turn it in to money, which in this modern age, we do not do currency as grains and livestock anymore so, money is what we have to use. He is asking you to travel freely, buy whatever food and drink you desire and he wants you and your family to feast before him. <\/p>\n\n\n\n God commands us to celebrate him and enjoy his provisions. This is the language of a Father who delights in seeing His children joyful and well nourished. Not the language of demanding deity. It’s actually worship in its purest form.<\/p>\n\n\n Because God knew the human heart in which he created. He knows we can forget to rest, forget to celebrate, slow down and enjoy our blessings. He knows we can forget to acknowledge His goodness, so he said \u201cEvery year, take 10% of what I blessed you with and celebrate with Me.\u201d This was about remembrance and protection of God\u2019s people from burnout, scarcity thinking, and spiritual forgetfulness. It was a rhythm of gratitude woven into their year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To understand the weight of this, we need to be clear. The biblical tithe was not applied to wages, salaries, business income, savings etc. They really only applied to grain, wine, oil and livestock. In an agricultural society, those were the forms of increase.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tithing on your income and earnings does not appear in Scripture. Modern churches have transformed an Old Covenant agricultural practice into a New Covenant financial obligation which is something the Bible never commands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When Jesus fulfilled the Old Covenant, the system of mandatory tithing ended. The New Testament has a new way of giving. One which is rooted in love, not law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Paul lays out the heart of Christian generosity:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cEach of you must give what you have decided in your heart \u2014 not reluctantly or under pressure, for God loves a cheerful giver.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n (2 Cor 9:7)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Giving now is voluntary, joyful, generous, and spirit-led. There is\u00a0no 10% rule for Christians. The early church didn\u2019t tithe. They gave freely and radically when needs arose. Under Jesus, giving is no longer an invoice. It\u2019s an overflow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now that we understand tithing isn\u2019t a Christian requirement, it\u2019s important to affirm that giving is still sacred.\u00a0But God never wanted giving that came from fear, guilt, or pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He desires generosity that flows from love, compassion, gratitude and obedience to His whisper.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When the Holy Spirit nudges you to help someone to give quietly too without needing thanks, when you bless someone simply because you love to, THAT is the giving God celebrates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And THAT is the giving Scripture teaches. God doesn\u2019t need your money, he only wants your\u00a0willingness and a heart that says \u201cUse me to bless someone today\u201d, \u201cPut generosity in my hands\u201d, \u201cLet me give with joy, not obligation\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When giving flows from love, it becomes holy. When it flows from pressure, it becomes religion and God has never been in the business of religion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We honour Him the same way He instructed Israel too- with gratitude and presence, not pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n And when you do these few simple things is when you are fulfilling the\u00a0heart\u00a0of the tithe because God delights when His children enjoy what He provides. He delights when we remember Him in our joy. He delights when generosity flows from love. This is worship.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019ve ever felt fear, guilt, or confusion around tithing, let Deuteronomy 14 set you free. God commanded joy, not anxiety. Nourishment, not deprivation. Rest, not religious pressure. Celebration, not obligation. Presence, not performance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The tithe was never a tax, never a curse, never a bill. It was an invitation. An invitation to enjoy Him, to celebrate His goodness, to live in gratitude, and to practice generosity led by love. That is the true heart of the tithe, and that is the heart of your Father.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" For many believers, tithing has been taught as a spiritual bill, a non-negotiable 10% fee you pay or God won\u2019t bless you. We\u2019ve been warned about curses, withheld abundance, and \u201crobbing God\u201d if we didn\u2019t give financial income to a church building or institution. Some of us tithed while skipping meals, drowning in debt, and…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":178,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-171","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles"],"yoast_head":"\nGod Literally Commanded His People to Enjoy It<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/lumadaily.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/3EB1F212-436D-49A1-8FCE-A8B9F439EA88.png\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\nWhy Did God Command a Feast Instead of a Payment?<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
What Tithing Was NOT<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Does God Require 10% Today? (New Covenant Truth)<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
Giving Is Still Holy But It Must Flow From Love, Not Law<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
So How Do We Honour God Now?<\/h5>\n\n\n\n
\n
God Never Wanted Your Money. He Wanted Your Heart.<\/h5>\n\n\n\n