Question:  Dear Greg,

            I am a devout Christian who believes tithes and offerings should be given to the Lord.  Nonetheless, I have a problem with my church’s appropriation of the Lord’s chief means of meetings its members’ and the community’s needs. 

            Recently our pastor announced that he agreed to use our church’s finances to support a church in Tennessee.  Now, I’m for supporting any mission doing the Lord’s will/work, but he says that the rent for a building in Tennessee is $8000 a month!  And this for one year!  I’m from the South myself and know that any building you’re paying $8000 a month for should be in a country club!  In the first two weeks of Christianity (in the book of Acts), there were more than 20,000 converts and they didn’t even have a building program.

            I’m not on a crusade against funding Christian ministries, neither am I trying to micro-manage my church’s finances.  Nonetheless, my church has more than 5000 members and this is one of many instances where the pastor has taken the liberty of spending the church’s finances without consulting the congregation.

            Is withholding tithes justifiable in this instance?  Also, can I pay/contribute my tithes to another organization or church?  Would that be acceptable in the Lord’s sight?

            Stephen

Answer:  Dear Stephen,

            PTM believes that the new covenant teaches that Christians should be more than willing to give of their time, talents and treasures for the support of the kingdom and its work.  We do not believe that any specific percentage is required, but that each of us must determine in our own hearts what we will give based, among other things, upon how we have been blessed and upon the needs we perceive.

            We believe that Christians should give to those churches and ministries where they are being fed and nourished and to those churches and ministries that they believe are doing kingdom work they identify with, for a variety of reasons.

            Thus, if a Christian is a member and/or attending a specific church and benefiting from its ministry and programs, then contributions are appropriate.  Of course, if there is any question about the church and how the church spends its money, individual members should feel very much within their rights to ask for clarification.  If membership/attendance continues, even if there are unanswered questions while clarification is being sought, it is appropriate to give at some level.  Again, the church is providing spiritual nourishment.  On the one hand, withholding funds from a church or ministry as a form of spiritual blackmail does not seem biblical, but determining to give donations to other churches or ministries is very much within a Christian’s responsibility.

            Financial support does not need to be given to any church or ministry that the individual determines to be outside of the gospel, teaching an unbiblical message, using funds in unethical or inappropriate ways, etc.  Individual members are very much within their rights as members of the universal body of Christ to support the work of the kingdom wherever they see it being done and in whatever way they both identify with that work and receive spiritual direction and nourishment from it.

            In Christ,

            Greg Albrecht