Leviticus 27.
Vows and Tithes to Offer to the Lord (Leviticus 27:30-34)
Verse 34: “These are the commands the LORD gave Moses at Mount Sinai for the Israelites."
Leviticus deals with regulations regarding the five sacrifices and seven feasts. In a word, it can be said to be a textbook
for Old Testament worship. The theme of chapter 27, the last chapter of Leviticus, is ‘vows and tithes.’
After God brought them out of Egypt through Moses and before entering the promised land of Canaan,
He told them the sacrifices, regulations, commands, and feasts that they, as the chosen people and the saved people of God,
should keep. The last command He gave was the Word about the tithe to be offered to God.
1. The key to vows lies in voluntariness.
1) Voluntariness is the very essence of law and ordinance.
2) The vow regulations in Leviticus 27 are unique.
3) Humans were created to be most free when they act voluntarily.
4) The Lord delights in the gifts we offer from our hearts.
2. The ordinance of tithing is given as a channel of blessing.
1) God commands us to tithe at the end of Leviticus.
2) Everything I have and obtain comes from God.
3) Material things are usually what people value the most in life.
4) "Offering tithes to God" is confessing that God is the Creator.
3. The origin of the tithe can be said to be the covenant of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
1) All the blessings of God the Creator are unfolded through the covenant of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
2) The moment the covenant of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil was violated, the order of creation was distorted.
3) In Genesis 14:20, Abram gave a tithe to Melchizedek.
4) The practice of tithing all income was a commandment that had been observed since before the time of Moses.
Conclusion: We must acknowledge that all things in the universe belong to God.
1) Tithing is a confession of the truth: "It is not mine, but God's."
2) After Adam's sin, the blood sacrifice and tithing were a confession of faith in the covenant of Christ.
3) God rebukes those who do not tithe with Malachi 3:8.
4) Tithing is received by God and given to each local church.
God does not require tithes because He lacks money. The number one-tenth contains the confession of faith that everything
we have belongs to God. Through that confession of faith, we come to participate in God's work.
Although the book of Leviticus concludes in chapter 27, God desires that we live a holy life that continues beyond,
as if living out a chapter 28. That heart of God is contained in the system of vows and tithes. He wants us to participate
in God's work with voluntary devotion and service, according to our circumstances, but with joy.
In the name of Jesus, I bless you that you may continuously enjoy the grace of God's expanding kingdom through living out
this 'Leviticus 28' life in the days to come.