Comments for Free To Give http://freetogive.net A free online e-book answering the question, "Should Christians tithe?" Fri, 06 Feb 2009 08:03:13 -0500 hourly 1 Comment on Question on Abraham and Melchizedek by BDP http://freetogive.net/question-on-abraham-and-melchizedek/comment-page-1/#comment-5 BDP Fri, 06 Feb 2009 08:03:13 +0000 http://freetogive.net/?p=81#comment-5 Kenneth, Thank you for your interest in the book and your kind words. I'll try to answer your questions. I looked in three different English dictionaries and "plunder" was always defined using a form of the word "steal". However, I see your point. I'm sorry if my particular choice of words tripped you up. The second question you have is harder to answer because I had not intended to convey that the priesthood that changed was the one of Melchizedek going to the one of Jesus. I re-read that chapter and I could not find where you might have gotten the wrong impression. Again, I apologize for the confusion. As I see it, we have 2 recorded changes in the priesthood. The first change was going from the priesthood of Melchizedek to the priesthood of Aaron. The second change was going from the priesthood of Aaron back to the priesthood of Melchizedek and of Jesus. I regard Jesus as being High Priest in the order of Melchizedek, so there cannot be a change from the priesthood of Melchizedek to the priesthood of Jesus. They are one and the same. I hope this clarifies things. If you give me more precise quotations, I'll look again and see if a revision is necessary. Keep the faith, Spread the word! BDP Kenneth,

Thank you for your interest in the book and your kind words.

I’ll try to answer your questions. I looked in three different English dictionaries and “plunder” was always defined using a form of the word “steal”. However, I see your point. I’m sorry if my particular choice of words tripped you up.

The second question you have is harder to answer because I had not intended to convey that the priesthood that changed was the one of Melchizedek going to the one of Jesus. I re-read that chapter and I could not find where you might have gotten the wrong impression. Again, I apologize for the confusion. As I see it, we have 2 recorded changes in the priesthood. The first change was going from the priesthood of Melchizedek to the priesthood of Aaron. The second change was going from the priesthood of Aaron back to the priesthood of Melchizedek and of Jesus. I regard Jesus as being High Priest in the order of Melchizedek, so there cannot be a change from the priesthood of Melchizedek to the priesthood of Jesus. They are one and the same.

I hope this clarifies things. If you give me more precise quotations, I’ll look again and see if a revision is necessary.

Keep the faith, Spread the word!

BDP

]]> Comment on Question About the Tithe Being Food by BDP http://freetogive.net/question-about-the-tithe-being-food/comment-page-1/#comment-4 BDP Fri, 06 Feb 2009 08:00:26 +0000 http://freetogive.net/?p=75#comment-4 <strong>Here was my response to Talitha's questions:</strong> Talitha, Thanks for the feedback. You know, I had trouble letting point #2 go as I was making my final edits. I really thought about making a bigger deal about the tithe being food. But instead, I figured that at least in principle, the tithe being ancient food vs. present-day money was an argument I would leave alone. That said, I agree with everything you wrote. And you would be correct to argue along those lines to someone else. I guess I kind of picked which battles I would fight, and that really wasn't one of them. I had SO MUCH ammunition against tithing I was willing to concede point #2 to a skeptic. I don't know if you noticed, but in chapter 7 on pages 48-49 I make a big deal about the tithe being food in connection with Hebrews 13:10. In the book, I tried to assemble the "best of the best" arguments against tithing. Many other books against tithing are much longer than mine, because (as you noticed) just about everything about tithing preached today is wrong. I dropped whole chapters from earlier editions to keep the book "short and sweet". However, if I get others who give me similar feedback, I'll probably go ahead and make a revision where I don't concede tenet #2. Again, though, thanks for the note. Let me know if you get pastors to reconsider their position on tithing. I have yet to come across an established ministry that actually changes their minds. Until then, let's keep spreading the word! Sincerely, BDP Here was my response to Talitha’s questions:

Talitha,
Thanks for the feedback. You know, I had trouble letting point #2 go as I was making my final edits. I really thought about making a bigger deal about the tithe being food. But instead, I figured that at least in principle, the tithe being ancient food vs. present-day money was an argument I would leave alone. That said, I agree with everything you wrote. And you would be correct to argue along those lines to someone else. I guess I kind of picked which battles I would fight, and that really wasn’t one of them. I had SO MUCH ammunition against
tithing I was willing to concede point #2 to a skeptic. I don’t know if you noticed, but in chapter 7 on pages 48-49 I make a big deal about the tithe being food in connection with Hebrews 13:10. In the book, I tried to assemble the “best of the best” arguments against tithing. Many other books against tithing are much longer than mine, because (as you noticed) just about everything about tithing preached today is wrong. I dropped whole chapters from earlier editions to keep the book “short and sweet”. However, if I get others who give me
similar feedback, I’ll probably go ahead and make a revision where I don’t concede tenet #2. Again, though, thanks for the note.

Let me know if you get pastors to reconsider their position on tithing. I have yet to come across an established ministry that actually changes their minds. Until then, let’s keep spreading the word!

Sincerely,
BDP

]]> Comment on Kicked Out of Church Over Tithing by BDP http://freetogive.net/kicked-out-of-church/comment-page-1/#comment-3 BDP Fri, 06 Feb 2009 07:15:06 +0000 http://freetogive.net/?p=66#comment-3 <strong>These kinds of stories break my heart. It's hard for me not to get angry when I hear of these abuses. This is what I wrote to Brenda in reply:</strong> Brenda, Don't be afraid to follow the Lord, wherever that leads you. There will be catcalls and naysayers along the way. There will be those who throw more scripture at you saying you've now committed two sins: 1. not tithing, 2. breaking fellowship. However, it is hard for me to see what you've done wrong. I see that you are following in the footsteps of radical prophets and apostles and even the Lord himself. Your dedication to Truth is righteousness unto God, for He is Truth. And sometimes following Truth means breaking ties with Man. God is your guide, not me. However, I have counseled several people with stories like yours to find new church homes. To me, it comes down to Malachi 3:10 versus Galatians 3:10. I don't want to be under a curse. I don't want to be under the authority of a pastor who is preaching and teaching curses upon his flock (through tithing). God's opinion is the only one that counts, so for what it is worth (which is nothing) I would say that you have every right to find a new congregation or even stay out of church for awhile until God makes it clear what He wants you to do. Thank you very much for your letter. It reminds me why I began this whole project in the first place. Sincerely, BDP These kinds of stories break my heart. It’s hard for me not to get angry when I hear of these abuses. This is what I wrote to Brenda in reply:

Brenda,
Don’t be afraid to follow the Lord, wherever that leads you. There will be catcalls and naysayers along the way. There will be those who throw more scripture at you saying you’ve now committed two sins: 1. not tithing, 2. breaking fellowship. However, it is hard for me to see what you’ve done wrong. I see that you are following in the footsteps of radical prophets and apostles and even the Lord himself. Your dedication to Truth is righteousness unto God, for He is Truth. And sometimes following Truth means breaking ties with Man. God is your guide, not me. However, I have counseled several people with stories like yours to find new church homes. To me, it comes down to Malachi 3:10 versus Galatians 3:10. I don’t want to be under a curse. I don’t want to be under the authority of a pastor who is preaching and teaching curses upon his flock (through tithing). God’s opinion is the only one that counts, so for what it is worth (which is nothing) I would say that you have every right to find a new congregation or even stay out of church for awhile until God makes it clear what He wants
you to do.

Thank you very much for your letter. It reminds me why I began this whole project in the first place.

Sincerely,
BDP

]]> Comment on Arminian or Calvinist? by BDP http://freetogive.net/arminian-or-calvinist/comment-page-1/#comment-2 BDP Thu, 05 Feb 2009 10:10:01 +0000 http://freetogive.net/?p=62#comment-2 Thank you for your interest in the book. It's been a labor of love for 6 years now and I'm really excited to finally be able to put it out there for people to use. I come from a Protestant background, and I consider myself a Pentecostal (although true Pentecostals are hard to come by these days). I really like the praise and worship of Pentecostals and their emphasis on the immediacy of the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, I felt it necessary to leave several Pentecostal churches over the issue of tithing. The doctrine of tithing is completely embedded in Pentecostalism, and it is from this tradition that I got most of my material to argue against in favor tithing. If you are also Pentecostal, you'll appreciate some of the examples from church I give in the book. I don't get asked the other questions very often so I had to do my homework just to give you an answer. I guess I lean toward Dispensationalism by about a 70-30 margin. Maybe the right word for me is Christocentric. However, you'll get a good view of my beliefs in Chapter 7. I know for sure that I am strongly anti-Calvinist. You'll see how prevalent the idea of freedom is within the latter chapters of the book. As for my appreciation of the historical views on tithing, I am admittedly weak. I intentionally did not use any source other than the Bible for the research of this book. I wanted to start at square one -- just me, God, and the Bible -- to see for myself what the truth was. It was very much a rewarding journey of discovery that only later did I realize had been embarked on by others before me. Because it was my own journey, I believe there are several points in the book that are novel. To my knowledge, chapter 10 is a fresh discussion in the long-standing tithe debate. I hope this background info helps. If you happen to be Calvinist or non-Pentecostal, don't hold it against me. You can see from Chapter 1 that I try hard to let Scripture speak for itself. This book literally changed my life. To realize that God was being misrepresented by people I trusted was almost another conversion experience -- one that brought me closer to God as He really is. Let me know what the outcome of your membership experience is. I have yet to find an established ministry change their official position on tithing. May God be with you. Sincerely, BDP Thank you for your interest in the book. It’s been a labor of love for 6 years now and I’m really excited to finally be able to put it out there for people to use. I come from a Protestant background, and I consider myself a Pentecostal (although true Pentecostals are hard to come by these days). I really like the praise and worship of
Pentecostals and their emphasis on the immediacy of the Holy Spirit. Unfortunately, I felt it necessary to leave several Pentecostal churches over the issue of tithing. The doctrine of tithing is completely embedded in Pentecostalism, and it is from this tradition that I got most of my material to argue against in favor tithing. If
you are also Pentecostal, you’ll appreciate some of the examples from church I give in the book.

I don’t get asked the other questions very often so I had to do my homework just to give you an answer. I guess I lean toward Dispensationalism by about a 70-30 margin. Maybe the right word for me
is Christocentric. However, you’ll get a good view of my beliefs in Chapter 7.

I know for sure that I am strongly anti-Calvinist. You’ll see how prevalent the idea of freedom is within the latter chapters of the book.

As for my appreciation of the historical views on tithing, I am admittedly weak. I intentionally did not use any source other than the Bible for the research of this book. I wanted to start at square one — just me, God, and the Bible — to see for myself what the truth was. It was very much a rewarding journey of discovery that only later did I realize had been embarked on by others before me. Because it was my own journey, I believe there are several points in the book that are novel. To my knowledge, chapter 10 is a fresh discussion in the long-standing tithe debate.

I hope this background info helps. If you happen to be Calvinist or non-Pentecostal, don’t hold it against me. You can see from Chapter 1 that I try hard to let Scripture speak for itself. This book literally changed my life. To realize that God was being misrepresented by people I trusted was almost another conversion experience — one that brought me closer to God as He really is.

Let me know what the outcome of your membership experience is. I have yet to find an established ministry change their official position on tithing. May God be with you.

Sincerely,
BDP

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