"Test Me"

Read Malachi 3:8-12
 
Malachi 3:8-10 “Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, “How do we rob you?” “In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse,  the whole nation of you,  because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.
 
ONE of the rarest sermon topics, I believe, is the preaching on tithing. Oh, how we hate to be told how to spend our money. The god of wealth suffocates us as we believe all we have belongs to us. We’ll give to God what we decide, not what some preacher tells us to give. “All the church wants is my money,” is a common litany of the church. Statistics show only 2% of people who say, “I am a Christian. I believe the Bible is God’s Word.” tithe their money to God.
   Some will try to justify themselves by saying, “I tithe my time for God.” I’d like to ask, “Really? You spend an average of 2.4 hours each day serving God?” 
   Here’s the point of tithing: It tells God, “I trust you. I believe your promise that tithing is a foundation of financial security. This is money you have given to me, and I give only 10% back to you. Thank you, LORD God Almighty, caretaker of all aspects of my life.” 
   This is what God wanted to hear from Israel. He is so adamant to reveal his blessings to Israel, he says, “Test me in this.” At a critical point in Judah’s economic recovery from the exile, God, the Father, is telling his people, “I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” All of their needs and more will come to bless them. They will be able to fill the temple storehouses to feed the poor and prepare for festivals. This will be a sign to God’s “family” their Father in heaven will care abundantly for them if they are willing to believe him.
   Then he continues in verses 11-12: “I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,” says the Lord Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the Lord Almighty. Crops will not be ravaged. Other nations will see Judah’s prosperity and learn of God’s providence to bless this tiny group of people.
   This is true for you, too. Tithe and see how God will bless you. You will have food for your family, and you will bless others. God’s name will be known as you tell the ways God keeps his promises.
 
Luke 21:2 He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins.  3 “I tell you the truth,” he said, “this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.”