The Temple Tax

186 - Today's Prime Time Devo comes from 1Ti 6:17 Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. 18 Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, Some pastors don't like to talk about money, I relish it, except when I find myself in a position of begging for it. I don't like finding myself in a position of asking the congregation to give because the church finds itself up against the wall and is having difficulty meeting financial obligations. God loves cheerful givers, not squeezed turnips! The time to talk about money is when it comes up in the text, and it does so quite frequently, as it has shown up here in Timothy. I want to continue talking about readiness for giving, the idea of planned benevolence. I have already talked about the blessings of the second tithe. (Which, by the way, is the tithe mentioned in that part of Malachi where God says, “try Me now in this," Says the LORD of hosts, "If I will not open for you the windows of heaven And pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it.” (Mal 3:10) Today, I want to talk about the Temple Tax. Let me remind you that none of this is to be taken in a legalistic sense, it's just a biblical based suggestion to help you along in the arena of planned benevolence. The Temple Tax was an annual tax levied on every male 20 years of age and older in Israel and was used for the physical upkeep of the Temple. When Peter was confronted with the demand to pay the Temple Tax, Jesus told him, it wasn't necessary, but lest any be offended He paid it. The temple tax was the equivalent of two days wages. Let's try to apply this guideline for the church today. As an example, let's say that you earn 36,500 dollars a year. One days wage would be 36,500 divided by the number of days in a year (365) or 100 dollars. Therefore 2 days wages would be 200 dollars. That's a big chunk up front, but what if you broke it down to a monthly offering? 200/12 = 16.67! With every adult member of the household contributing, this would go a long way in keeping the lights on at your place of worship. It's called planned benevolence and it worked to keep the lights on in the most magnificent temple ever built. Where do you worship? Do they need help keeping the lights on? This guideline for giving over and above the offering might be a useful tool for meeting those day to day expenses of your place of worship!