[Darris McNeely] Watching the recent Republican presidential debates here in the United States, we had ten candidates on the stage – only one of them even referred to anything regarding the Bible, and it was Dr. Ben Carson who, actually in a discussion about the economic problems in the tax structure of the United States tax code, he mentioned his solution would be tithing, the Biblical form of tithing – about his remarkable statement made by a man who is seeking the highest office in the United States. But as he said that, I thought, how many people even know what Dr. Carson was talking about? Now, he was talking about tithing – one-tenth being a fair taxation code for the United States.

Now, when you look at what the Bible does say about tithing, it is a very important teaching and doctrine of God’s word. We find it mentioned beginning in the book of Genesis and goes all the way through the Bible. Jesus Christ talked about tithing. It was a matter – it was something that Abraham did all the way back in the book of Genesis. Tithing is a basic form of economic structure within the Bible, as God dealt with His people and as Christ Himself shows is still important in the New Testament, and is for the Church of God today in funding the matters.

The word “tithing” as we have it today and as Dr. Carson referred to it comes from an Old English word which means “ten percent”. That’s all it means. We look at the Bible, Number 18:21 is just one representative scripture that talks about this – it says here, Number 18:21, “Behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work which they perform, the work of the tabernacle of meeting.” One of the purposes for tithing in the Bible was to fund the work of God – in this case, the tabernacle, the priesthood, as it operated in Israel, described in the Old Testament. It also funds the work of God today. And so, tithing is a very important financial mechanism to fund God’s work. It is also a very important part of faith and our relationship with God, shown through other matters in the Bible today.

Applied to an economic structure in a modern world, to replace the very heavy tax code that we have in the United States – that would be a very complicated process. That would be a challenging matter. It is workable, and frankly, God’s system is better than any system designed by man. In fact, Dr. Carson’s not the first person on the presidential platform to ever suggest it. More than thirty years ago, President Ronald Reagan even referenced tithing as a better system than what has been devised by mankind.

We’re a long way from what God had determined what He gave to Israel and what He gives to the church, and frankly, what He gives to mankind in terms of a fair approach toward funding the work of the church, the work of government, and also defining our relationship with God. We’re not there yet. We still have to deal with what man has operated here. But if you want to understand more about what tithing is, then go on our website, ucg.org, and you will find much information about tithing. Study into it. Look into it. You will find that it is a better basis of developing a relationship with God and funding than anything that has ever been designed by mankind.

That’s BT Daily. Join us next time.