\nNoun<\/i><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| 2. any levy, esp of one tenth<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n3.\u00a0a tenth or very small part of anything<\/strong>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nFrom the above definitions:\u00a0Tithe\u00a0is a tenth [10%] BUT\u00a0it can mean less than a tenth\u00a0via it\u2019s \u201cindefinitely \/ very small part\u201d meaning.<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nSo now let us look at the early churches: <\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nVolume 6 Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary: pages 17-95.<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| By reading the above pages, which cover \u2018The Early Christian Church\u2019 and \u2018Roman History in New Testament Times\u2019, there is\u00a0no\u00a0mention of a requirement to tithe.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Extract from page 24:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe Common Purse.\u00a0\u2013\u00a0<\/b>While in fellowship with their Lord\u00a0before the ascension the disciples had subsisted from a common purse<\/strong><\/span>, maintained by contributions (Luke 8:2, 3) and drawn upon for food and alms (John 4:8; 6:5-7), with Judas as the treasurer (ch. 13:29).<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nThe same economy was used\u00a0in the infant church. There was a common treasury, contributed to by all who wished, in any amount they desired<\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0Fellowship among these early Christians was spiritual, theological, fraternal, and economic. It was effective throughout all the relationships of the believers with one another.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| This ability of the church to find, under God, its own means of supporting itself, put Christ\u2019s followers in the position of being no longer dependant upon the Jewish economy. The church became self-sufficient.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe above\u00a0underlined text<\/span>\u00a0confirms how the early church functioned.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nNow consider the 1840\u2019s and onwards:<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| What happened in the early Seventh-day Adventist Church?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| 1859 \u201cSystematic Benevolence\u201d plan of giving adopted.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| 1860 Name \u201cSeventh-day Adventist\u201d adopted.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nIn the extracts that follow, the salient areas of the research have been\u00a0underlined; also text has been put in\u00a0bold<\/strong>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nExtracts from Chapter 25 [Financial Support for The Cause of God] of Ellen G. White: The Early Years Volume 1 (1827-1862):<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nNB:<\/b>\u00a0\u2018The Early Years\u2019 was written after October 1966 by Arthur L. White \u2013 a grandson of Ellen G. White and a secretary of the Ellen G. White Estate.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nThe Support of the Ministers<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nThe church was growing; as it spread to the West,\u00a0families<\/span>\u00a0of means accepted the message. For some it was difficult to grasp their responsibility in giving\u00a0financial support to the cause they loved<\/span>. During the years 1857 and 1858, the situation became desperate. There was\u00a0no church organization<\/span>; there was\u00a0no church treasury.\u00a0Those who felt called to enter the ministry faced great sacrifices, for they were dependent upon the gifts placed in their hands as they moved from place to place heralding the message<\/span>. Dedication and sacrifice were called for.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| [text omitted as irrelevant to this tithing study]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe Promise of a Way Out<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nThings had reached a state where a permanent plan had to be found to provide financial resources for the growing church<\/span>. It was in these circumstances (according to J. N. Loughborough, who was to become known somewhat as a historian among the pioneers, and at the time was very closely associated with James and Ellen White) that\u00a0\u201cSister White stated to her husband, \u2018The Lord has shown me that, if you will call the ministers together, and have J. N. Andrews come down from Waukon, and hold a Bible class, you will find that in the Scriptures there is a complete plan to sustaining the work of the ministry.<\/span>‘\u201d\u2013PUR, Oct. 6, 1910. [Pacific Union Recorder]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| James White did call for Andrews to come to Battle Creek for such a study, which took place in mid-January, 1859.[* DEPENDING ON HIS MEMORY FOR THE DATES OF THIS CIRCUMSTANCE, LOUGHBOROUGH FIXED IT EARLY IN 1858. CONTEMPORARY RECORDS PLACE IT EARLY IN 1859.] White, who had planned to spend most of January on a trip north, stayed by in Battle Creek. Loughborough wrote concerning the conclusions of the study:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe Bible class was held in Battle Creek for two days, and at the end of it our brethren said, \u201cThe tithing system is just as binding as it ever was.<\/span>\u201d\u00a0They said, however, in first introducing it, \u201cLet us call it\u00a0Systematic Benevolence<\/span>\u00a0on the tithing principle.\u201d\u2013Ibid.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe Address<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| The address carried a heading giving the proper setting of the matter: \u201cFrom the Church of God at Battle Creek, to the Churches and Brethren and Sisters in Michigan.\u201d It opened with the words:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nDear Brethren and Sisters: We wish to call your attention to a plan of Systematic Benevolence to support the proclamation of the third angel\u2019s message, which may be in harmony with the plain declarations of Holy Scripture.<\/span>\u2013Ibid.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nWith the citing of New Testament support, a scriptural framework was assembled for the projected procedures, and it was suggested that \u201cwe gather from these facts some instruction relative to our own duty.\u201d\u00a0The pioneers of the Seventh-day Adventist Church could have gone more easily to the Old Testament and brought in the obligation of the tithe, but at this juncture, regardless of the attractiveness of the tithe, they were not sure that it was not one of those\u00a0ceremonial\u00a0obligations that ceased at the cross.<\/span> In the occasional mention of organization they were looking to the New Testament with its seven deacons, not to the Old Testament with the appointment by Moses of the seventy.\u00a0In finance they were looking to the New Testament and Paul\u2019s counsel in\u00a01 Corinthians 16:2<\/strong>\u00a0that \u201cupon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, \u201crather than to\u00a0Malachi\u2019s\u00a0direction to \u201cbring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house\u201d (Mal. 3:10<\/strong>).<\/span> They conceded that the tithing system was a good plan, and it did have a strong bearing on the conclusions reached and set before the church. Here is the argument set forth in the address:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| If Paul found it essential to complete success that method should be observed in raising means for benevolent purposes, it is certainly not unreasonable to conclude that we should find the same thing beneficial in promoting a similar object. As Paul wrote by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, we may rest assured that his suggestions were not only safe to follow, and calculated to ensure success, but also that they were in exact accordance with the will of God. We shall not therefore displease Him by adopting the suggestions of His servant Paul.\u2013Ibid.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe next paragraph delineated the points supported by Scripture, which it was thought should form the basis for the plan Sabbathkeeping Adventists ought to follow:<\/u><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| \u201cUpon the first day of the week let everyone of you lay by him in store as God hath prospered him.\u201d This implies: 1. A stated time for the business, viz., the first day of the week. 2. The concurrent action of each individual, for he adds, \u201cLet every\u00a0one\u00a0of you\u201d lay by him in store. 3. This is not a public collection, but a private act of setting apart for the Lord a portion of what one possesses. 4. The amount to be given is brought home to the conscience of each individual by the language, \u201cas God hath prospered him.\u201d\u2013Ibid.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe next point made was \u201cHow may we reduce to practice these excellent suggestions?\u201d\u00a0It was thought that with few exceptions the following plan could be adopted<\/span>:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n1. Let each brother from 18 to 60 years of age lay by him in store on the first day of each week from 5 to 25 cents<\/span>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n2. Each sister from 18 to 60 years of age lay by her in store on the first day of each week from 2 to 10 cents<\/span>.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n3. Also, let each brother and sister lay by him or her in store on the first day of each week from 1 to 5 cents on each and every $100 of property they possess<\/span>. . . .<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nThe lowest sums stated are so very small that those in the poorest circumstances (with very few exceptions of some widows, infirm, and aged) can act upon this plan;\u00a0while those in better circumstances are left to act in the fear of God<\/strong>\u00a0in the performance of their stewardship,\u00a0to give all the way up to the highest sums stated, or even more<\/strong>, as they see it their duty to do.<\/span>\u2013Ibid.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nExtracts from Chapter 25 [The Call for a School] of Ellen G. White: Volume 2 The Progressive Years (1862-1876):<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nNB:<\/strong>\u00a0\u2018The Progressive Years\u2019 was written after October 1966 by Arthur L. White\u00a0\u2013 a grandson of Ellen G. White and a secretary of the Ellen G. White Estate.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nOur system of supporting the cause by means of\u00a0Systematic Benevolence<\/strong>\u00a0appears to be the best that could be devised. It\u00a0bears very lightly upon the poor man, drawing only about 1 percent annually of the little which he possesses.<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0And when this system is applied to the wealthy\u2013when we consider that they profess to believe that the end of all things is at hand; and that they have but a little time to use their means, and when we consider that the system calls for only about one tenth of their increase\u2013they should be the very last to complain of the system.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe last merciful message is intrusted to God\u2019s humble, faithful servants of this time.\u00a0God has<\/strong>\u00a0led along those who would not shun responsibility, and has laid burdens upon them, and has through them\u00a0presented to his people a plan of systematic benevolence in which all can engage, and work in harmony. This system has been carried out, and has worked like magic.<\/strong>\u00a0It liberally sustains the preachers and the cause. As soon as the preachers ceased their opposition, and stood out of the way, the people heartily responded to the call, and prized the system. Everything is made convenient and easy for the preachers, that they may work, free from embarrassment. Our people have taken hold with a will and an interest which is not to be found among any other class. And God is displeased with preachers who now complain, and fail to throw their whole energies into this all-important work. They are without excuse, yet some are deceived, and think that they are sacrificing much, and are having a hard time, when they really know nothing about suffering, self-denial, or want. They may often be weary, so would they be if they were dependent on manual labor for a support. [Gospel Workers 92 61.3 (1892)]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe Biblical basis of Systematic Benevolence:<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| 1 Corinthians 16:2: Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Upon the first day of the week \u2013 Frequency & timing<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| let every one of you \u2013 Participates<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| lay by him in store \u2013 Payment of tithe and offerings criteria<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| as God hath prospered him \u2013 Proportion to be paid.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nWhy God originated Systematic Benevolence [Tithe] for mankind:<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe special system of tithing was founded upon a principle which was as enduring as the law of God.<\/strong>\u00a0This system of tithing was a blessing to the Jews, else God would not have given it them. So also\u00a0will<\/strong>\u00a0it\u00a0be a blessing to those who carry it out to the end of time.<\/strong>\u00a0Our Heavenly Father did not originate the plan of systematic benevolence to enrich himself, but to be a great blessing to man. He saw that this system of beneficence was just what man needed.<\/strong> [Review & Herald, December 15, 1874 par. 25]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nSystematic benevolence<\/strong>\u00a0looks to you as needless; you overlook the fact that it\u00a0originated with God<\/strong>, whose wisdom is unerring.\u00a0This plan He ordained to save confusion, to correct covetousness, avarice, selfishness, and idolatry.\u00a0This system was to cause the burden to rest lightly, yet with due weight, upon all.<\/strong> The salvation of man cost a dear price, even the life of the Lord of glory, which He freely gave to lift man from degradation and to exalt him to become heir of the world. God has so ordained that man shall aid his fellow man in the great work of redemption. He who excuses himself from this, who is unwilling to deny himself that others may become partakers with him of the heavenly benefit, proves himself unworthy of the life to come, unworthy of the heavenly treasure which cost so great a sacrifice. God wants no unwilling offering, no pressed sacrifice. Those who are thoroughly converted and who appreciate the work of God will give cheerfully the little required of them, considering it a privilege to bestow. [1T 545.3 (1855-1868)]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nNB:<\/b>\u00a0Avarice means extreme greed for wealth or material gain.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe system of benevolence was arranged to prevent that great evil, covetousness. Christ saw that in the prosecution of business the love of riches would be the greatest cause of rooting true godliness out of the heart. He saw that the love of money would freeze deep and hard into men\u2019s souls, stopping the flow of generous impulses and closing their senses to the wants of the suffering and the afflicted.\u00a0<\/b>\u201cTake heed,\u201d was His oft-repeated warning, \u201cand beware of covetousness.\u201d \u201cYe cannot serve God and mammon.\u201d The oft-repeated and striking warnings of our Redeemer are in marked contrast with the actions of His professed followers who evidence in their lives so great eagerness to be rich and who show that the words of Christ are lost upon them. Covetousness is one of the most common and popular sins of the last days, and has a paralyzing influence upon the soul. [Testimonies for the Church Volume 3 page 547.2 (1872-1875)]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nConstant, self-denying benevolence is God\u2019s remedy for the cankering sins of selfishness and covetousness. God has arranged systematic benevolence to sustain His cause and relieve the necessities of the suffering and needy.<\/strong> He has ordained that giving should become a habit, that it may counteract the dangerous and deceitful sin of covetousness. Continual giving starves covetousness to death. Systematic benevolence is designed in the order of God to tear away treasures from the covetous as fast as they are gained and to consecrate them to the Lord, to whom they belong.\u00a0[3T 548.1]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nThis system is so arranged that men may give something from their wages every day and lay by for their Lord a portion of the profits of every investment. The constant practice of God\u2019s plan of systematic benevolence weakens covetousness and strengthens benevolence.\u00a0If riches increase, men, even those professing godliness, set their hearts upon them; and the more they have, the less they give to the treasury of the Lord. Thus riches make men selfish, and hoarding feeds covetousness; and these evils strengthen by active exercise.<\/strong>\u00a0God knows our danger and has hedged us about with means to prevent our own ruin. He requires the constant exercise of benevolence, that the force of habit in good works may break the force of habit in an opposite direction. [3T 548.2]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe offerings of little children may be acceptable and pleasing to God. In accordance with the spirit that prompts the gifts will be the value of the offering. The poor, by following the rule of the apostle and laying by a small sum every week, help to swell the treasury, and their gifts are wholly acceptable to God; for they make just as great, and even greater, sacrifices than their more wealthy brethren. The plan of systematic benevolence will prove a safeguard to every family against temptations to spend means for needless things, and especially will it prove a blessing to the rich by guarding them from indulging in extravagances.<\/strong> [3T 412.1]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nHave you confessed Christ by faithfully tithing the mint, the anise, and the rue? When we give the Lord the tithe, we are only giving Him that which is His own, to withhold which is theft and robbery. When we withhold the tithe we keep back that which God designs shall sustain His work on the earth. For this work of redemption God gave the richest gift of heaven; can we not give one tenth of what we have? Many have forgotten God, and have kept back the tithe. Does your account book reveal that you have dealt faithfully with your Lord?\u00a0Are you poor? Then give your little. Have you been blessed with abundance? Then be sure to lay aside that which the Lord registers as His own.<\/strong>\u00a0[Manuscript Releases Volume 12 page 228.2 (1990)]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nCollating the above\u00a0bold\u00a0text<\/strong> statements<\/span>:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nThe special system of tithing was founded upon a principle which was as enduring as the law of God.<\/strong>\u00a0This system of tithing was a blessing to the Jews, else God would not have given it them. So also\u00a0will<\/strong>\u00a0it\u00a0be a blessing to those who carry it out to the end of time.<\/strong>\u00a0Our Heavenly Father did not originate the plan of systematic benevolence to enrich himself, but to be a great blessing to man. He saw that this system of beneficence was just what man needed.<\/strong> [Review & Herald, December 15, 1874 par. 25]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nSelfishness is the strongest and most general of human impulses,<\/b> the struggle of the soul between sympathy and covetousness is an unequal contest; for while selfishness is the strongest passion, love and benevolence are too often the weakest, and as a rule the evil gains the victory.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nSystematic benevolence\u00a0…\u00a0originated with God \u2026 .\u00a0This plan He ordained to save confusion, to correct covetousness, avarice, selfishness, and idolatry.\u00a0This system was to cause the burden to rest lightly, yet with due weight, upon all. …<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\nConstant, self-denying benevolence is God\u2019s remedy for the cankering sins of selfishness and covetousness.\u00a0God has arranged systematic benevolence to sustain His cause and relieve the necessities of the suffering and needy.<\/strong>\u00a0\u2026 Continual giving starves covetousness to death. Systematic benevolence is designed in the order of God to tear away treasures from the covetous as fast as they are gained \u2026<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n\u2026 The plan of\u00a0systematic benevolence will prove a safeguard to every family against temptations to spend means for needless things<\/strong>, and especially will it prove a\u00a0blessing to the rich by guarding them from indulging in extravagances.<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n \u2026 If riches increase, men, even those professing godliness, set their hearts upon them; and the more they have, the less they give to the treasury of the Lord. Thus riches make men selfish, and hoarding feeds covetousness; and these evils strengthen by active exercise.\u00a0God knows our danger and has hedged us about with means to prevent our own ruin. \u2026 <\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n \u2026 Are you poor? Then give your little. Have you been blessed with abundance? Then be sure to lay aside that which the Lord registers as His own.<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nSummary of above<\/span>:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| The special system of tithing \/ the plan of systematic benevolence is enduring as the law of God and will be a blessing to those who carry it out to the end of time.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| God ordained systematic benevolence to save confusion, to correct covetousness, avarice, selfishness, and idolatry.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Selfishness is the strongest and most general of human impulses.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Systematic benevolence will prove a safeguard to every family against temptations to spend means for needless things.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Systematic benevolence blesses the rich by guarding them from indulging in extravagances.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Riches make men selfish, and hoarding feeds covetousness; and these evils strengthen by active exercise.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| God has arranged systematic benevolence to sustain His cause and relieve the necessities of the suffering and needy.<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nAre you poor? Then give your little. Have you been blessed with abundance? Then be sure to lay aside that which the Lord registers as His own.<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nComment:\u00a0The way the last statement is worded proves that God\u00a0<\/b>wants a 10% tithe from those who He has financially blessed but<\/span>\u00a0accepts that the poor are unable to return this amount to Him.<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nWhat happened to Systematic Benevolence in the Seventh-day Adventist Church?<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Testimonies for The Church Volume 4 and Chapter 41 [Sacredness of Vows] page 469 (1876-1881)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nGod provided bread for His people in the wilderness by a miracle of mercy, and He could have provided everything necessary for religious service; but He did not, because in His infinite wisdom He saw that the moral discipline of His people depended upon their co-operating with Him, every one of them doing something.\u00a0As long as the truth is progressive, the claims of God rest upon men to give of that which He has entrusted to them for this very purpose.\u00a0God, the Creator of man, by instituting the plan of systematic benevolence, has made the work bear equally upon all according to their several abilities. Everyone is to be his own assessor and is left to give as he purposes in his heart<\/strong><\/span>.<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| <\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Extracts from Second Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, January 1,1875:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \nIf systematic benevolence was universally adopted, according to God\u2019s plan, and the tithing system carried out as faithfully by the wealthy as it is by the poorer classes, there would be no need of repeated and urgent calls for means at our large religious gatherings.\u00a0There has been a neglect, in the several churches, of keeping up the plan of systematic benevolence, and the result has been an impoverished treasury and a backslidden church.<\/b><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n\n| [text omitted as irrelevant to this tithing study]<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n | \n| Systematic action in giving in accordance with the plan keeps open the channel of the heart in liberal gifts. We place ourselves in connection with God, that he may use us as channels that his gifts may flow through us to others.\u00a0 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |