October Gathering: Tithing

Is tithing expected or encouraged? And what does it mean to tithe? Is the New Testament church required to give 10% on a monthly basis to a local church?

First, allow me to share several quotes that I found to be particularly thought provoking.

1) The purpose of tithing is to secure not the tithe but the tither, not the gift but the giver, not the possession but the possessor, not your money but you for God. Anonymous
2) What makes the Dead Sea dead? It is all the time receiving and never giving out. Anonymous
3) Givers can be divided into three types: the flint, the sponge and the honeycomb. Some givers are like a piece of flint - to get anything out of it you must hammer it, and even then you only get chips and sparks. Other are like a sponge - to get anything out of a sponge you must squeeze it and squeeze it hard, because the more you squeeze a sponge, the more you get. But others are like a honeycomb - which just overflows with its own sweetness. That is how God gives to us, and it is how we should give in turn. Anonymous
4) Grace binds you with far stronger cords than the cords of duty or obligation can bind you. Grace is free, but when once you take it you are bound forever to the Giver, and bound to catch the spirit of the Giver. Like produces like, Grace makes you gracious, the Giver makes you give. Eli E. Stanley Jones
 
Tithing is expected AND encouraged. We are emissaries and emulators of a God who gave His own Son. He is the creator of all. It all belongs to Him. Therefore, we should also be givers. Not only should we be givers, but we should give freely, sacrificially, and with purpose. While giving initially had percentages attached to it, we are to give as we purpose in our heart. God doesn't need our money. He doesn't want us to give begrudgingly. He wants us to give cheerfully. The reason God loves a cheerful giver is because He knows He has the heart of that giver. As far as how we divvy up our giving, and this is only my opinion, it seems that our giving should probably loosely follow the manner in which God blesses us. If God is blessing us through a local church, radio broadcasts, or other Christian organizations, then it seems reasonable for us to give to all of them. However, the majority of our giving will probably be to the local church to provide for the many ministries that are in motion and also for the pastor and his family.