A Few Theological Reflections
From an Editorial Columnist's Point of View
by
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A Biblical Theology of Tithing I've found, much to my surprise, that a discussion of the subject of financial tithing is one of a few select subjects that is capable of almost instantly generating a lot of emotional heat, especially among ministers of the gospel. Perhaps it's because the subject of money is so dear to us -- it affects our wallets and purses! Most of the churches I have attended over the years believed that tithing was commanded to Christians -- to argue differently would put oneself out from underneath the umbrella of God's blessings. Some churches make it a requirement for church membership; others will simply disbar you from teaching in their church if you take a contrary position. Some churches believe that tithing is an Old Testament concept not relevant to New Testament Christians -- prevalent in churches that sprang out of the Restorationist movement. Since this particular subject has impacted me personally in my Christian walk in regard to my relationship to pastors, it is the one subject that I decided to study extensively over a few years. The following is the result of that study. I found that one's view on tithing is predicated upon prior views of the relationship between the Old Testament and the New Testament in relation to our present Christian living. The concept of "The Law" in the OT, exactly what it is defined to be, and what influence it has in present Christian living (if any) is also critical to the discussion. For that reason I will discuss the relationship between the OT and the NT first; the Law next; and then tithing. Far Right Extreme Position: "I'm a NT Christian. I live under the new covenant, not the old covenant, therefore my preaching and teaching is going to come from the NT, not the OT. I'm going to preach nothing more than what Paul did - Jesus Christ and Him crucified (I Cor. 2:2). Paul made it very clear in the book of Galatians that Christians are not under the old covenant OT law so I will not be preaching anything out of the OT for Christians to do or not do today. If you try to convince me of any doctrine that is based on OT scriptures I won't listen - it has to be based on NT scriptures." Far Left Extreme Position: "I'm a Bible Christian. I believe all of God's Word is inspired and I won't be cutting out the OT with my scissors anytime soon. Paul said that "All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching" (2 Tim. 3:16) so therefore my teaching and preaching will come from both the OT and NT. If you ignore the OT as being relevant for us today then you are ignoring a major part of God's Word" (My church preached more out of OT than NT!!) How to you bring both extremes towards a Biblically justified middle ground? Is the OT still relevant to us today as Christians? Why is it important?
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About the Book
Written on a variety of topics originally in The Daily Herald, Stephen Rowland explores theological issues in his usual concise and pithy manner as an editorialist. A few notable topics include biblical genocide, situational ethics, socialism, resisting tyrants, Christian counseling, positive confession, counterfeit Christianity, pull-theplug life decisions, and the origin of evil. A lengthier, indepth analysis of “prosperity theology” and the doctrine of biblical tithing are included in the appendices.
About the Author
Stephen Rowland earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree in biblical literature from Global University in 2012. He was the commencement speaker at Global in 2012. He is an editorialist for e Daily Herald of Columbia, Tennessee. Rowland works for General Motors in Spring Hill, TN, and lives with his wife Susan in Columbia, TN.