God and Money

The article is an updated version of an article published in the magazine WIND of the German Hanseatic Conference in 2024.

God and money—the combination sounds dubious and even incompatible. Bankers, accountants, and entrepreneurs deal with finances. Pastors, counselors, and theologians care about salvation, spiritual comfort, and God in our world. Where is the overlap?

Those interested in history can quickly list unfortunate connections between money and religion. In the ancient Near East, offerings were considered the basis of life for the gods and were used to finance powerful priestly castes—in Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Rome. Religion was big business and funded large temple economies.

Expensive letters of indulgence, requiem masses, and the trade in relics were a decisive factor in the economic life of the early and later Middle Ages, and ultimately led to the Protestant Reformation. God’s approval and forgiveness could not be bought. They were not the result of an accounting transaction, according to the motto: I give God a monetary offering—and God blesses me spiritually and materially.

The problematic relationship between God and money is not limited to ancient or medieval history. Millionaire pastors of large megachurches, whether in the United States, Asia, or Africa, remain a visible reminder of the lucrative business of salvation.

What About Us?

After more than 30 years of service in the Seventh-day Adventist Church, I still can’t afford a Porsche, and my bank account isn’t exactly overflowing. As a lecturer at the Adventist university in Lima, Peru, I earned under US$400 a month—and lived quite well on it. The church paid into my retirement fund in Germany, but a luxury lifestyle was not on the agenda. But most people in Peru earned significantly less than that. So wealth is about one’s perspective.

During our 30 years of missionary service in South America, Asia, and North America, we learned a fundamental lesson as a family, no matter where we lived: The Adventist Church’s solidarity-based tithing system, which finances pastors, teachers, missionaries, administrative staff, and much more, is unparalleled and deeply rooted in the tithing and offering system of the Bible. Of course, in the time of Solomon or Hezekiah, there were no structures and entities like those we have today, but tithing was the basis of life for the priests, Levites, temple singers, and temple servants who served God and the people in the temple in Jerusalem or as spiritual ground staff in the towns and villages of Israel and Judah. Tithing is a fundamental biblical principle. We find tithing in texts prior to Israel’s calling as God’s people (Gen. 14:20; 28:22). We find it in legal texts (Lev. 27:30-33; Num. 18:25-32), in historical texts (Neh. 10:38, 39; 12:44; etc.), in prophetic sayings (Amos 4:4), and of course in the New Testament (Matt. 23:23; Luke 11:42).

Why 10 Percent?

The tithe, i.e., 10 percent of a year’s profit or income, seemed to play an important role in God’s plan to save this world and humanity. This raises the question: To what extent does God really need our money? And why exactly 10 percent?

Psalm 50:9-12 provides an answer to the first question: “I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds. For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine.If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine” (ESV).

The Adventist Church’s solidarity-based tithing system, which finances pastors, teachers, missionaries, administrative staff, and much more, is unparalleled and deeply rooted in the tithing and offering system of the Bible.

The psalmist tells us that God owns the whole world and everything in it. “I don’t need your money and your gifts,” God tells us in His Word, “because everything belongs to Me anyway. But you need the tithe and offering system so that you can learn to trust Me every day.”

At first glance, the answer to the second question is unsatisfactory. It’s 10 percent—because God said so!

A Test

God seems to take tithing seriously. After returning from exile, God spoke directly to His people through the prophet Malachi about tithing: “Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. . . . Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need” (Mal. 3:8-10, ESV).

These are drastic words that show us important principles beyond the specific historical situation following the return from exile. First, we cheat God when we do not give back 10 percent of the blessings we experience 100 percent of every day. Cheating is a criminal offense, and the reference to the curse shows us the seriousness of the situation. This is not a trivial infraction.

Second, there is a great deal of irony in the idea of wanting to cheat the Almighty. What kind of picture of God did those who hatched such a plan have? How does my picture of God influence my giving behavior? Am I trying to manipulate God—or do I find God too petty and pedantic in this regard?

Third, the tithe was to be brought to God’s house (or temple) to accumulate enough food there. In the biblical context, tithe was usually given in kind and really served as food for priests, Levites, and their families. Today we use banking apps, online transfers, checks, or, quite “old-fashioned,” bills in small envelopes to return our tithes—because we don’t ‘pay’ tithes. We “give” back something to the Giver of all good gifts that doesn’t even belong to us, but to Him who has given us the strength, health, and abilities to earn money. Our tithes do not go to the temple, either; they end up in accounts, where they are recorded, then passed on and used according to the criteria and principles we have established as a worldwide faith community.

Passing on is an important principle of giving because it helps us see others’ needs. In this way a portion of our tithes flows proportionally through the various administrative units to regions of the world that are in a more precarious financial position than we are, either because they are unable to reach their surrounding communities or because they struggle financially. This principle of solidarity distinguishes us from many other denominations and is an important value.

Just Give It a Try

But back to Malachi. Many of us learn best when we try something practically, not just read about it. God invites us to test His blessings in a very practical way. When we give back to God with a joyful heart what belongs to Him anyway, we too can experience spiritual growth, abundance, and blessings. We learn that a living relationship with Jesus not only has spiritual dimensions but also permeates every aspect of my life—including my wallet and bank account. My unreserved and confident giving helps me to trust God more in all areas of my life. I learn not to rely on my bank account. I don’t use money as a crutch for security or as a weapon to enforce my ideas. I give—and then I can turn away with confidence, knowing that now it’s God’s turn and those who use this money responsibly to continue building God’s kingdom.

Then I can experience miracles. My family and I have witnessed this not only in times of financial crisis—something that happened often in our worldwide ministry on five different continents—but also in moments of surprising blessing. God and money—they actually go together really well and are part of God’s good plan to bless us and our world, and to change it in a lasting way.

Where Does My Tithe Money Go?

The use of tithe is regulated by the General Conference’s working policy. In line with biblical principles, the Seventh-day Adventist Church has determined that tithe money is always to be used to support all aspects of gospel ministry, including personnel (pastors, evangelists, administrative leadership, Bible teachers or professors at Adventist schools, etc.) and their living expenses (rent/mortgage, retirement funds, health-care costs, etc.).

Specific tithe allocations may vary slightly from division to division, depending on the number of institutions and entities that support the mission of the church. Here is an example from my perspective in the Hanseatic Conference in Germany, which belongs to the Northern German Union and is located in the territory of the Inter-European Division. The percentage numbers are from the total tithe income in our local conference.

After nearly three years of service as a conference CFO, I am thoroughly convinced that our financial policies governing the use of tithes and offerings are solid. A yearly audit by the General Conference Auditing Service (GCAS) is an important element that involves the careful handling of sacred tithe funds. It offers transparency to our faithful giving members and control to our supervising boards.

God and money do go together. No, we can’t use money to buy blessings, but tithes and offerings are part of a divine plan that helps us develop faithfulness, practice trust in the Giver of all good things, and offer growth to all those who are ready to start a faith journey with Him, who owns “the cattle on a thousand hills.”