“What is the tithe for? As the church receives the gifts from members, the elders should keep in mind the three basic functions of the tithe . . . support ministers of the gospel, the relief of the poor, and celebration before the Lord. We have already seen Paul’s requirement of the first category. Christian ministers are heirs of the Levites, and so the tithe can be given to them (Is. 66:21). But the tithe also supports the work of the diaconate. This work of relieving the poor begins within the household of faith (Acts 6:1-2), but as the church grows in maturity and wealth, thought should immediately turn to the relief of those who do not know Christ, as a divinely appointed means of bringing them in (Lk. 16:9). And last, a wonderful boon to uptight modern Christians, the tithe should be used to buy beer for the great ecclesiastical Thanksgiving bash . . . (Deut. 14:22-26) . . . Done right, it would be the talk of the community, as we try to put the fun back into fundamentalism” (Mother Kirk, pp. 233-234).
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