How has obeying the law of tithing affected your view of money?
"18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
21 And the king of Sodom said unto Abram, Give me the persons, and take the goods to thyself.
22 And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto the Lord, the most high God, the possessor of heaven and earth,
23 That I will not take from a thread even to a shoelatchet, and that I will not take any thing that is thine, lest thou shouldest say, I have made Abram rich:
24 Save only that which the young men have eaten, and the portion of the men which went with me, Aner, Eshcol, and Mamre; let them take their portion." (Genesis 14:18–24)
"36 And this Melchizedek, having thus established righteousness, was called the king of heaven by his people, or, in other words, the King of peace.
37 And he lifted up his voice, and he blessed Abram, being the high priest, and the keeper of the storehouse of God;
38 Him whom God had appointed to receive tithes for the poor.
39 Wherefore, Abram paid unto him tithes of all that he had, of all the riches which he possessed, which God had given him more than that which he had need.
40 And it came to pass, that God blessed Abram, and gave unto him riches, and honor, and lands for an everlasting possession; according to the covenant which he had made, and according to the blessing wherewith Melchizedek had blessed him." (Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:36–40)
And here's the commentary entitled: "Abraham paid tithing." :
"What do you learn about Abraham’s attitude toward wealth from Genesis 14:18–24 and Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:36–40 (in the Bible appendix)? For example, note his response to the king of Sodom in Genesis 14:23. How has obeying the law of tithing affected your view of money?"
Abraham paid unto Melchizedek tithes of all that he had, of all the riches that he possessed, which God had given him more than that which he had need. When the king of Sodom told Abraham he would give him riches, Abraham declined by saying to him that he would not take anything that belonged to him, lest the king of Sodom should say, 'He has made Abraham rich. I learn here that Abraham's attitude toward wealth is an ideal one. His focus is not on becoming richer and richer in terms of material possessions. He already got more than he needed. He was not distracted by the riches being offered by the king of Sodom. Accumulating wealth was never on his mind. He's always aligned with the Lord's will and remained focused on doing what the Lord wanted him to do.
Obeying the law of tithing has indeed affected my view of money. Money is a medium of exchange. We can purchase the things that we need and want with it. We're earning money through our work. When we obey the law of tithing, we are returning to God a portion of the 100% that we have, which He has blessed or is continually blessing us with. He has given and continually giving us our lives--our physical bodies and every breath that we take. He's also giving us our good health, our energy, and our ability to do the work of our own choice according to our talents and skill set. He has given us our family members, friends, co-workers, and others who provide us with the emotional support that we need. And He has given us a lot more blessings--big or small, easily seen or subtle. Because God has given us everything, it just makes so much sense that we give Him back a portion of what He has given us by paying our tithing.
"But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God.
And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good—to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and the afflicted." (Jacob 2: 18-19)
Paying tithing sets our priorities straight. Whether we have very little or we have a lot more money, when we pay our tithing first of all, we are seeking the kingdom of God first. And when we seek the kingdom of God first before seeking riches, God enables us so we are able to do a lot more to bless the lives of many more of God's children. God is a God of miracles, and when we are faithful in obeying His laws, He blesses us with many miracles to see in our lives.
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