Many church plants are relying solely upon the tithes of the attendees and members to sustain the ministry. Most churches pray that their members will give in order to keep the church rolling along. We have heard often the statement, ‘You can’t out give God’. I believe that statement. When I stepped out to plant the church in New Jersey, I had just had a revival of sorts in my own heart. That revival came in the form of a mission’s vision that blasted across my heart by the Holy Spirit. I was given some books on missiology and found that there were 1.4 billion people who were still considered unreached (without a self propagating congregation that was engaging the culture directly). I was shocked and horrified. Here I was, with a library full of great books and access to thousands of solid Bible teachings via the Internet and mp3, and there were people in the world that couldn’t even read John chapter 3 in their own language. I learned that most of these unreached people lived in an area called the 10/40 window, which exists between 10 degrees and 40 degrees latitude. This area covers Northern Africa, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Asia. 1.4 billion people! That is nearly five times the population of the United States. Then I learned that out of all the missions spending of the Western Church, less than 1% of that money is devoted to work amongst this 1.4 billion people. At that point, I knew that the Lord wanted something to change.
As I began to pray about this whole situation, the Lord ministered to me that we should tithe on the tithe. Just as we hoped that people would give 10% to the work of the ministry, we figured that we would lead by example. From the first day of now two church plants, we have tithed on the tithe. Tithing on our tithe has been one of the greatest blessings that I have known as a pastor. Now I’m not saying that ‘legalistically’ speaking, everyone should do this. I am only offering it up as something to seek the Lord about. Imagine your congregation with an annual budget of $100,000 putting $10,000 into the Lord’s global cause. Imagine your congregation with an annual budget of $1,000,000 putting $100,000 into the 10/40 window. I will be giving you some of the fruit that has come from this spiritual discipline.
1. It furthers along the Lord’s plan as outlined in Matthew 28:18-20.
This is a simple yet profound fruit. Jesus told His disciples to go and make disciples. That costs money (especially in our day and age where hospitality is not a strength). Money is an outlet of spiritual power. When someone goes into another country, oftentimes it is illegal for him or her to get a job there. So there support must come from the outside. Paul was often supported by local congregations, as well as by his own tent making. In order to see Saudi Arabian’s won for the kingdom, it is going to take money. The Great Commission is clear. We are told to make disciples (the only imperative verb in the Greek) and we do that by going, teaching and baptizing. When a local church tithes on their tithe, they are actively involved in seeing the unreached peoples of world won for the kingdom of God.
2. It helps the church have a Global Vision and Impact.
Oftentimes people say, ‘But there are so many unsaved people in my area.’ No doubt this is the truth. There are unsaved people everywhere. The needs are great. But stereotypically speaking, most churches devote the bulk of their budget, not to evangelism and outreach for the lost, but simply to maintain all their things. The apostle Paul, all throughout the epistles, was encouraging believers to have a global vision and impact. These small churches were funding his missionary endeavors. To the church in Philippi he encouraged them that in their giving, Paul was excited about the fruit that was to be attributed to their account. Just as Jesus told His disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the earth, that should be our vision. Jerusalem is the communities that we live in. Judea is maybe our county or region. Samaria is maybe our state of nation. The uttermost parts of the earth is, well, the uttermost parts of the earth. Are we seeking to have an impact beyond our Jerusalem? Now don’t get me wrong, we are called to devote our very lives to our own Jerusalems, but let us not neglect to have the Lord’s heart for the other parts of this vast globe.
3. It will cast vision for the young missionaries in your congregation.
In every seat of every congregation, there is a vital part of the body of Christ. Part of the function of meeting together corporately is for the identification, nurturing, and expression of God’s gracious giftings. Before a person is called and set apart for missionary service, they are a person sitting in a pew, being ministered to by the Lord. When a church has God’s heart for the globe and it is discussed, it will be the catalyst for those who God is calling to missionary service to identify and nurture their calling. In New Jersey, we would talk about missions all the time. I would purposefully find examples of the concepts that I was teaching on in the lives of missionaries. This would give me an opportunity to tell the congregation about their stories. Oftentimes after the service, folks would come up and ask about these people and I would point them to missionary biographies. We would often share emails and letters that we received from our missionaries that we supported on the field. People would weep and pray for these folks. Before I knew it, we had a number of young people praying about going on the mission field. As we entered our third year as a church, we send three recent college graduates onto the mission field!
4. It will keep the church from getting to insulated in its thinking.
Finally, and maybe most importantly, it keeps the church from getting too insulated in its thinking. The body of Christ is gloriously huge and diverse. Oftentimes, people forget this because we are so focused on the needs and situations within the church walls that we forget that there are believers everywhere. We are part of the body of Christ and she is multi ethnic, multi linguistic and vaster than we can fathom. Jesus wants us to have His view of His church. As a local church tithes on its tithe, we help the congregation see that it is a very special part of the body, which is infinitely greater.
Fellow laborer for the glory of God, won’t you consider to tithe on your tithe? Won’t you consider allowing the church that you have been given stewardship of to have a global impact? Let us join to together and ask the Lord for His heart for the unreached peoples of the earth. And let us link of hands with Him in seeing those people
