{"id":3291,"date":"2024-10-01T04:49:06","date_gmt":"2024-10-01T11:49:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/?p=3291"},"modified":"2024-10-04T14:06:44","modified_gmt":"2024-10-04T21:06:44","slug":"conversation-with-a-lutheran-pastor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/2024\/10\/01\/conversation-with-a-lutheran-pastor\/","title":{"rendered":"Conversation With A Lutheran Pastor"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Jane:<\/strong> Pastor, do Lutherans believe in tithing?<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor:<\/strong> Jane, that is good question. Tithing is of course biblical. In Leviticus 27:30-33, God is speaking to Moses.<\/p>\n

30 One-tenth of everything the land produces\u2014seeds from the ground and fruits from the trees\u2014belongs to Me and is sacred to Me. 31 If a man desires to buy back a portion of My1\u204410, he must pay its value plus 1\u20445. 32 Regarding your livestock, 1\u204410 of the herd or flock must be set apart for Me as holy. As you count them, every tenth animal that passes beneath the shepherd\u2019s rod belongs to Me. 33 It does not matter whether the animals are good or bad, and one must not think about switching or replacing one for another. If he does, then the original and the replacement are both sacred and cannot be redeemed.(The Voice)<\/p>\n

Jane<\/strong>: That sounds like law, and I am Christian.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor<\/strong>: Particularly good point Jane. As a Lutheran, we see that Jesus fulfilled all the laws and commandments. The laws were not abolished but fulfilled by His actions on our behalf. The law points to our need for the Gospel, Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jane<\/strong>: \u00a0Giving ten percent of what I make sounds great, but let\u2019s be honest, I\u2019m nowhere near that. I have a family and bills to pay. I guess I\u2019m doing it wrong.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor<\/strong>: \u00a0This isn\u2019t a story of shame. We proclaim a God of grace, Jane! Think of it as a journey of generosity. God meets you where you are and invites you to consider the next step on the journey.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jane<\/strong>: Seriously? God will meet me where I am on that journey of generosity?<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor<\/strong>: Exactly. If you\u2019ve never made a gift before, consider that first one. If you\u2019ve given one, try to give more regularly. If you give regularly, consider what it might mean to take the next step forward in generosity. While some people give well beyond 10% of what they make, many others<\/span><\/p>\n

Jane:<\/strong> \u00a0I think I can do that. But how much is enough?<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor:<\/strong> \u00a0Generosity isn\u2019t about \u2018doing it right.\u2019 A journey of generosity has no end. Often we grow in giving. Sometimes, due to changes in our circumstances, the dollar amount of our gifts goes down. We simply prayerfully keep on the journey.<\/span><\/p>\n

Jane:<\/strong> Why do you give?<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor:<\/strong> \u00a0I respond God\u2019s love for me by sharing what God has given. As we share that with the church, you get to be a part of changing people\u2019s lives. The Apostle Paul tells us, as followers of Christ, \u201c6Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 7Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver,\u201d (NIV 2 Co 9:6\u20137)<\/span><\/p>\n

Jane:<\/strong> \u00a0Thank you, Pastor, for taking the time to help me understand and supporting me in my giving, so that our congregation can reach out to all of God\u2019s people.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pastor:<\/strong> \u00a0No, thank you Jane, for being willing to reach outand learn more. Go in peace!<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jane: Pastor, do Lutherans believe in tithing? Pastor: Jane, that is good question. Tithing is of course biblical. In Leviticus 27:30-33, God is speaking to Moses. 30 One-tenth of everything the land produces\u2014seeds from the ground and fruits from the trees\u2014belongs to Me and is sacred to Me. 31 If a man desires to buy … [Read more…]<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[76,235,198,64,102,304,257,10,5,14,58,305],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"entry","1":"post","2":"publish","3":"author-dougd","4":"post-3291","6":"format-standard","7":"category-commandment","8":"category-free-will","9":"category-gift","10":"category-giving","11":"category-god","12":"category-heart","13":"category-invest","14":"category-jesus","15":"category-law","16":"category-love","17":"category-response","18":"category-tithe"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2m6h5-R5","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":2123,"url":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/2018\/11\/29\/6-marks-of-discipleshipgiving\/","url_meta":{"origin":3291,"position":0},"title":"6 Marks of discipleship:Giving","author":"Douglas Dill","date":"November 29, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"November 25th, 20182 Chronicles 31:2-7Hebrews 7:1-10Matthew 6:19-24 https:\/\/youtu.be\/MLg7781mwHk Giving for a disciple is out of gratitude, not obligation. Giving for a disciple is an attitude of gratitude of response to God for what God has first given. The attitude of response for a disciple, is to give in a free\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Discipleship"","block_context":{"text":"Discipleship","link":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/category\/discipleship\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/MLg7781mwHk\/0.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":612,"url":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/2013\/11\/02\/stewardship-seminary-campus-ministry\/","url_meta":{"origin":3291,"position":1},"title":"Stewardship – Seminary & Campus Ministry","author":"Douglas Dill","date":"November 2, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"Luke 19:1-11 I thought it might be helpful to have some background on me, to help you understand the perspectives I bring to the text today. I grew up un-churched.\u00a0 In fact I would say I was an atheist.\u00a0 I would get infuriated when I would see or hear things\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Campus Ministry"","block_context":{"text":"Campus Ministry","link":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/category\/campus-ministry\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":71,"url":"https:\/\/www.messy-spirituality.com\/wordpress\/2012\/03\/27\/works-and-law\/","url_meta":{"origin":3291,"position":2},"title":"Works and Law","author":"Douglas Dill","date":"March 27, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Jacob:\u00a0 Pastor, I heard from someone today, that Jesus has freed us from the law and thus we can live as we please. 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