Who gets your tithe?
The
orphan, the widow, the priest, and the foreigner among us. This would
be the rabbi or pastor, the poor family needing assistance, the
homeless man who hangs out on Falkenburg and Causeway, the family whose
house burnt down, hosting a meal for congregation members, baking for
the elderly couple. I am all for taking care of those who are
trying, but unable to meet their own needs, but consider this to be a
love gift rather than a tithe since no fixed percentage is involved.
As for the rabbi and the preacher, neither qualify as a go between
between God and myself and I am not obligated to provide them with my
earnings. Jesus is our high priest, and I am a priest just as surely
as any doctor of divinity, so their services are unneeded and
unnecessary.
Why offer an ox or a dove when Jesus paid it all?
There
is no temple. There was no sacrifice for intentional sin. Jesus paid
that. That is one of the points I have been trying to make. No
temple, no priests, no way to keep any law that required that location
or those middle men.
What does wearing a beard have to do with the inside of the cup?
Has to
do with obedience. I'll buy that, but it seems sort of silly to me
to keep one rule when you cannot keep them all, and breaking one makes
you guilty of breaking all.
I can show you in the Bible where the law was for Jews. Can you show
me where it is for me, today?
Yep.
Look up "foreigner". Also look up Romans and the grafting in principle.
Speaking of Romans, I like 10:4 Christ is the end of the law.
Example:
Num 15:15 '{As for} the assembly, there shall be one statute for
you and for the alien who sojourns {with you,} a perpetual statute
throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the alien be before
the LORD.
Num 19:10 'The one who gathers the
ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes and be unclean until
evening; and it shall be a perpetual statute to the sons of Israel and
to the alien who sojourns among them. Since I am not now, nor have
I ever been a foriegner among the Jews, these are not a valid
arguements. I would suspect that the vast majority of Christians would
be in the same position.
And that's just two of them. There are a bunch more,
including "perpetual statute, throughout all your generations", forever
commandment, etc.
If breaking one law made you guilty of breaking the whole law, and if
it is impossible to keep the whole law today, is the old covenant
void? If not, how can you possibly please God?
That's
simple....it's called Grace. Then since we are under grace, we are
not under law?
Kay
Thanks again Kay. Likely we will never agree, but I appreciate
your response none the less.
Terry
