God Said “Put Me to the Test”

As Christians we are called to give. In Malachi 3:10 (CEV) God has promised to bless those who give. “I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I challenge you to put me to the test. Bring the entire ten percent into the storehouse, so there will be food in my house. Then I will open the windows of heaven and flood you with blessing after blessing.” There are many instances in the Bible stating that we should not test God. This passage is unique as it is the only time God tells us to test Him. Unfortunately, the average Christian has not put God to this test. 

Coupled with the unique opportunity to test God is the promise of his blessings. We may feel that God has shortchanged us on this but recall that blessings come in many forms, not just monetary. To me, this says volumes. Are we willing to trust God to keep His promises?

A Lot of Debt. According to CNBC, Americans collectively owe $1.21 trillion (that’s with ten zeroes).  on credit card debt alone. The delinquency rate of credit cards is almost 7%. If all debt is included, personal debt soars to $18.39 trillion. Of that amount, approximately $12.94 trillion is mortgage debt. With prices increasing along with interest rates, the amount of debt continues to rise. I am not opposed to debt, the issue is excessive debt, as this can indicate serious spiritual issues. There are several signs you have excessive debt.  One, if your total monthly debt payments exceed 35 percent of your gross income. Two, you only pay the minimum each month. Three, you have trouble even making minimum payments.

The Bible and Money. The Bible has much to say about money. In Matthew 6:24 Jesus said  “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Money can remove God as our source.

In Proverbs 22:7 Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived, wrote “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.” Debt is bondage.

In Hebrews 13:5 it is written “Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever abandon you,” Money may change our focus away from God.

1 Timothy 6:10 tells us “For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” Loving money leads to evil. Read these verses again, focusing on the consequences.

God Wants to Develop Us. There are four qualities that God wants us to possess. Each of these has an opposite from the world’s perspective. Our attitude toward money can help us develop these qualities.

1. Freedom as opposed to bondage.
2. Integrity as opposed to dishonesty.
3. Faithfulness as opposed to unfaithfulness.
4. Generosity as opposed to selfishness.

Let’s look at each of these and how they can impact our relationship with God. God wants us to have freedom. In John 8:32. Jesus stated “And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.” I use the AMPC version of the Bible as it capitalizes the word “Truth.” Jesus is The Truth and releases us to be free from bondage. Bondage to debt has spiritual consequences as we are not totally free.

Jesus was a man of perfect integrity. In Romans 8:29 Paul wrote that we are “to become conformed to the image of His Son” Although there are many aspects to integrity, I like the Merriam-Webster definition that reads “an unimpaired condition – soundness.” That describes God’s desire for us. Most relevant in this context is paying our debts. We sometimes get in so deep, can’t or won’t pay our debts. Our integrity has suffered.

A definition of faithfulness is “steadfast in affection or allegiance. possessing loyalty.” Steve Green sang of faithfulness “Oh, may all who come behind us find us faithful, may the fire of our devotion light their way, may the footprints that we leave lead them to believe and the lives we live inspire them to obey.” If we are indebted, we may compromise our faithfulness to God and others.

Finally, we are to be generous. “This has been defined as a willingness to give help or support, more than is usual or expected.  The world says “I’ve got mine. Get your own.” God says “give.” Recall how Jesus praised the widow giving her last mite. We give to our kids, our family, those we love. Shouldn’t we be generous with God?

Deeply in Debt. In the 1950’s Tennessee Ernie Ford sang Sixteen Tons, a song about a Kentucky coal miner. The lyrics express a feeling many people may have today.  “You load sixteen tons and what do you get? You get another day older and deeper in debt.” 

Let’s go back to the credit card debt of $1.21 trillion. Some of this debt was incurred to spur-of-the-moment purchases, motivated by an “I deserve it” mentality. In 2024 Americans donated $484.85 billion to charities. Of that amount 16.8% was given to religious organizations. That represents $56.63 billion. 

We all know that borrowing incurs interest charges. Although it is difficult to get exact numbers it is estimated that we paid $254 billion in 2024 for credit card interest. That is over half of the amount we gave to charities and about 450 percent more that was given to religious organizations.

God Has a Plan. God’s stewardship plan is not borne out of obligation but a relationship.  Leviticus 27:30 records when God established the tithe. “Now all the tithe of the land, of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s; it is holy to the Lord.” Note He is saying the tithe is the Lord’s. Give Him His due. The tithe is ten percent of our income. In Malachi 3:8 the prophet wrote “Would anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, ‘How have we robbed You?’ In tithes and offerings.” He continues, assuring that God will be generous to those who tithe. Malachi 3:8 says “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse.” The storehouse is your church. Support of other organizations should be above the tithe and are offerings.

Does God Lack? God obviously doesn’t need our tithe. In Psalm 50:10-12 we read “For every animal of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird of the mountains, and everything that moves in the field is Mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you,  for the world is Mine, and everything it contains.” Tithing is God’s way of teaching us that He must be our first priority, and that generousity will develop Godly qualities in us. 

Even though everything is God’s, he has chosen to support His work on earth through gifts from the faithful. He could miraculously drop an amount of money into the offering plate of any church or organization He chose, but that is not His plan. It’s not about the money – it’s about developing us into mature Christians. Giving is an act of worship.

I am reminded of a dear saint I knew fifty years ago. His wife had passed away and her illness brought about a financial struggle. In a Deacons’ meeting one night, we individually decided to take up a collection among us to help Mr. Nelson. As I recall, we raised about $500, which was a lot in the 1970’s. At our next meeting the Chairman read a letter from Mr. Nelson in which he expressed his gratitude for the gift. Then he wrote “While my wife was ill, I had to reduce my tithe to 5%. Your gift has enabled me to restore to God the 5% that I withheld.” My prayer is that each of us develop that faithfulness.  

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All scripture is from the NASB unless otherwise indicated.

Photo credit to rilsonav, alancleaver, and bad public domain pictures on Pixabay.