Tithing has been one of the most frustrating and misunderstood concepts in my walk with Christ. This article is my effort to provide Biblical interpretation of the tithe and how it applies to us today.
What Is a Tithe?
Throughout the Bible, tithing is mentioned as a 10% gift given to God. In a non-profit charity, our gifts are considered a donation. Tithing is more than that, it is a way of using what we have been given to establish His kingdom on earth.
In the original Hebrew, “Ma’aser” when was used discussing what we now call the tithe. It literally meant “tenth part”. There are several places in the Bible that call it out as 10%. In our current language, the original Old English word used was “teogotha”, which means tenth. Teogotha was modified into the current word “Tithe” which still means tenth.
Biblical Guidance for Tithe
Pre-Moses Both Abraham (Gen 14:17-20) and Jacob (Gen 28:10-22) practiced the tithe. Abraham’s example was given from spoils of war and Jacob’s was given from “all that you give me.” There wasn’t any written command that guided them, the tithe seems to have been an expression of their hearts.
Torah (Law given through Moses) Moses provided written instruction on tithing as the basis of giving under Judaic law. He spelled out the detail in Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. He distinguished between three unique and separate types of tithing (more to follow on those).
New Testament In Christ, we are no longer held under the law (Gal 5:16-18). Our salvation is not based on adherence to Torah law. However, tithing is not obsolete . Jesus did not come to make the Torah irrelevant, but to fulfill it (Matt 5:17-20). He even encouraged the Pharisees to adhere to the tithe (Matt 23:23).
Paul’s later guidance focused more on giving in general (1 Cor 16:1-4) but he never replaced tithing with another teaching (such as Jesus did with eating unclean food or Paul did with circumcision).
What Are the Three Different Tithes?
First Tithe (Ma’aser Rishon) – Tithe for the Levites
When God set apart the Levites apart to serve Him (Num 8:5-19), they lost their inheritance of property in the Promised Land. To ensure they were provided for, He established the First Tithe (Num 18:21-24) to meet their needs. The people of Israel paid these tithes to their local synagogues (Neh 10:34-39) who in turn carried their portion of that tithe to the Temple in Jerusalem.
As their economy was predominantly agrarian, many of the tithes were grain, oil, and other food products. These tithes were delivered after the harvest and consumed by the Levites over the course of the year. They were held in storehouses (see previous link from Nehemiah). References about bringing tithes to the storehouse indicate the First Tithe.
Second Tithe (Ma’aser Sheni) – Tithe for Rejoicing
Before Moses surrendered leadership of Israel to Joshua and they crossed the Jordan to take their inheritance, he delivered a series of teachings that are captured in Deuteronomy. He reminded them of their identity in God, the law they were to follow, and to serve God with a fierce passion that exceeded all others (Deut 6:4).
Jesus later reinforced that passion for God as the greatest of all the commandments (Matt 22:34-40). The second tithe is a celebration of that love (Deut 14:22-27). The people of Israel were instructed to set aside a tenth of what was left after the First Tithe to use to travel to Jerusalem for the three annual holy festivals.
They could spend it any way they chose – food, drink, clothing, or just fun. They were encouraged to share it with others who did not have the means to do the same otherwise. There were no real restrictions other than it was to be used during the festivals, not at other times or places (Deut 16:16-17)
The Second Tithe differed from the First Tithe because it was not applied to every year. Of the seven year cycle they observed, the Second Tithe was only to be collected in Years 1 and 2, then again in Years 3 and 4.
This tithe has shifted in form since the destruction of the Temple and the great distance many people of faith live from Jerusalem. In Jewish faith the form may have varied, but the income is still considered sacred and not to be used for other purpose.
Third Tithe (Ma’aser Ani) – Tithe for the Poor
After he laid out instruction for the second tithe, Moses immediately pivoted to lay out the Third Tithe (Deut 14:28-29). This gift was to be shared with others – the foreigners, fatherless, widows, Levites, etc. People were free to use this however they chose.
The third tithe was not given to the synagogue as the First Tithe or used in Jerusalem as the Second Tithe. It was a personal choice to be shared in each local community when and how they saw fit to help the poor to “eat and be satisfied”.
The Third Tithe was also not due every year. It was to be collected from income every third year of the seven year cycle – Years 3 and 6.
Second Tithe – The Three Holy Festivals
The Second Tithe was specifically to be used when travelling to Jerusalem for the three holy festivals.
Passover – Pesach Celebrates the Israelites liberation from slavery in Egypt with a special meal called Seder. Bread made with yeast was forbidden, a reminder to the Israelites that they had to be ready to leave Egypt at a moment’s notice, without time for bread to rise. They ate bitter herbs to remind them their ancestors experienced oppression as slaves.
Their food was dipped twice before being eaten – once in saltwater representative of their tears and once in sweet haroset to remind them there is sweetness in bitter times.
Last, the Seder was eaten from a reclining position (most meals were eaten seated). This represented the transformation from slaves to royalty.
Passover typically precedes Easter by a week.
Festival of Weeks – Shavout This holiday celebrated God revealing the Torah at Mt Sinai. It was held at harvest time fifty days after Passover. Dairy foods were popular as a parallel to the Promised Land that would flow with milk and honey.
The Festival of Weeks coincides with Pentecost whose name originated from the Greek “pentekoste” meaning “fiftieth”. It is the seventh Sunday after Easter.
Feast of Tabernacles – Sukkot Commemorates the Israelites 40-year journey through the wilderness living in temporary shelters. Tents or other temporary shelters were erected to sleep in at night while celebratory meals filled the days.
Sukkot falls in September/October.
Relevance
Each of the individual types of tithes speaks to a different part of our spiritual walk.
The first tithe represents adherence to our faith and belief – our regular walk with God and embracing the truths He has given to us.
The second tithe represents the spirit with which we worship. A carefree release of our treasure while we passionately pursue Him and celebrate everything He has done for us and promises to do for us.
The third tithe represents the authority He has given us on this earth to provide for each other. We are to share what He has given to us to meet our own needs and to do the same for others in an outreach of love.
What Do We Do With This?
Each form of tithe is more than a simple 10% gift to God. It is a three-faceted expression of our faith. None of the individual tithes are complete without the others. We need all of them for completeness in our walk with Him – unshakeable faith, boundless passion, and consuming love.
The Israelites built their budgets, schedules, and priorities around the three tithes, setting aside 20% of their income and the time to attend three festivals.
Rather than an obligation, the tithe is a chance to lean into the embrace of a God who loves us.
If you read my last post, this picks up where it ended. If you didn’t, click here to read it.
Back to the Beginning.
Admitting that I had failed Him in my participation in our group brought a sting. However once I began to move past that a level of excitement started building inside me. The cloud of confusion dissipated and a vision came into focus. If we were to go back to the beginning, I knew what needed to happen.
God has given me an ability to envision new things and then bring them into reality. Without effort, images of a new future emerge and I can see structure form around it. Actions to build those structures follow and names that meet the required skills burst into my mind at a rapid pace. Prioritizing the actions and seeing the first requisite steps immediately follows. My thoughts become obsessed with laying the initial groundwork and my hands busy themselves with the task.
My passions are ignited and I am able to accomplish a lot in a short time.
Kim has learned to recognize the signs that I am moving into this mental space and knows that I will be consumed while I bring the new future into the present. The world around me disappears and all I can think about is my new labor of love. I don’t care if I eat, my brain races during my waking hours as well as my dreams, and the people in my life accept that I have disappeared for a time.
It is a part of who I am.
So when I realized it was time to go Back to the Beginning, the whole process started automatically – what needed to happen, who was going to do what, and how I should lead.
I was ready to scorch the earth and begin rebuilding. Nothing was exempt as I prepared to clear the landscape.
That is when I could almost hear God chuckle as He said “Whoa there, Son of Thunder. My plans for you have not changed.”
This is a conversation we’ve had several times before. It is a reference to John, the brother of James and disciple of Jesus.
More importantly, it is how God sets my boundary lines when I race headlong into a new thing. This time, he clearly laid out what He is asking of me and where I am beyond my authority.
Here is the backstory to help understand His direction.
John had a fiery passion and impatience in bringing new things to life. He famously asked Jesus if He wanted him to destroy a village who did not embrace the Christ. John was ready to wipe out the old and begin building the new Kingdom on that spot. Right then. No waiting.
John didn’t see himself merely as an “idea guy”. He also requested that Jesus seat him at His right- or left-hand when he began His reign. He wasn’t seeking fame. He wanted the authority that came with the position. He was ready to make things happen.
Time and again Jesus described what was to come, and he had to contain John. Peter may have been the rock he would build his church on, and Paul may have articulated theology of the New Testament, but John was ready to begin the construction.
For reasons only He could know, Jesus had plans to transition John from a Son of Thunder into the Apostle of Love. It would be a difficult adjustment.
Throughout Jesus’ life on this earth, John was a firebrand. He is the only disciple who had the moxy to stand at Jesus’ feet while he was being crucified. He was the first to enter Jesus’ tomb while others hid in a locked room. These were acts of open defiance against the Jewish leaders and the entire Roman Empire, challenging them to take action. He was ready for a single word from Jesus to wipe everything away and he was first in line to help him rebuild.
Instead of unleashing the beast inside his disciple, Jesus used some of his final breaths to ask John to become a son to His mother, Mary, and to protect and care for her in his own home (John 19:24-27).
John must have known that he would spend decades on the sidelines, watching others establish the church and transform the world while he patiently cared for an aging lady.
Sometimes the boundaries that God sets for us are hard to accept.
For countless quiet evenings he sorted out his feelings while he sat at home with his surrogate mother, watching her knit for her grandchildren. He heard about other disciples traveling throughout the world spreading the Gospel while he patiently walked with her in the market, helping her to select the best figs because he knew her eyes were failing and her balance was unsteady.
During this long period of time, his heart was changing. The conversion was difficult and slow, but allowed him to emerge as the Apostle of Love.
He is called the Apostle of Love because he wrote more about love than any other New Testament author. The world learned how Jesus loved us from a fiery, defiant disciple who was taken off the field.
It was John who recorded Jesus as he said:
A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. (John 13:34)
It was John who preserved His next words:
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. (John 13:35)
And it was John who penned one of the most famous verses in the Bible.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (John 3:16)
In His perfect wisdom, God used a man who was ready to tear down the world and rebuild it to teach us that we would reflect the Savior if we simply learned to love people like He does.
I can imagine more than most what John felt like when Jesus asked him to stand down and serve Mary.
I wanted to build a nationwide ministry, teaching a different way to share Jesus by meeting physical needs.
Instead He told me to Build Neighbors and let anyone follow if they chose.
I made plans to market my books and blogs and teach countless people how they could improve their relationship with Him.
Instead He told me I could only write about my own experiences and what I learned.
Over the years our group has had several leaders step down, and I have wanted to jump at each new chance to nominate myself.
Instead he told me to print discussion guides for the one he chose to lead and to set the table for the group.
Now I stand ready to take charge at The New Beginning, to create a new group who raises Him high. I have a clear vision, strong passion, and high energy to take charge.
Instead He asked me to meet a friend for breakfast.
When I ask him to let me call down thunder, he tells me to stand down and love each one. When I have asked him to let me lead, he has asked me to serve.
Like He said, His plans for me have not changed and neither have my boundary lines.
What He has asked me to do seems impossible- meet with a group of guys who lost their focus on Jesus because they overvalued relationships and then show them how to focus on Jesus through brotherly love. It seems contradictory. May God grant me patience while I learn to do what He asks.
I have received my assignment and He reminded me of my boundaries. I was allowed to highlight our need to repent. I can walk with them and pick up any who fall down. I can be a full participant in the things that are to come, but I have not been granted authority to lead the change.
The old things have now passed away. We are ready to take our first steps into the New Beginning.
That leaves me with a lot of questions like these.
Who will take the first step?
Who will be called to lead our group?
What will our gatherings look like?
When should we start?
I don’t know any of these answers, but have faith that He will raise up someone for each of these.
If this post isn’t what you expected after the last one, then I can appreciate that. I had already completed my follow-up post laying out my vision, the timing and the responsibilities. It was difficult for me to delete it and accept His direction.
We are ready to enter something new. It is a time for change.
Please listen for His voice. Hear what He has planned for you to do in this season. Maybe He is asking you to step forward as the next leader. Maybe He is calling you to schedule our Beginning. Maybe He is giving you dreams of what we are to become.
He might be giving you a recurring task or maybe it is a one-time thing.
Possibly you haven’t heard anything from Him. You could schedule a prayer gathering to seek His direction.
Whatever the message is, and however large or small it may seem, you are part of His plan.
If He is calling you, it is possible that you are too busy right now. You may be afraid to lead into unknown territory. The timing might not work. You might not be ready. Maybe you just aren’t interested.
It is OK. The greatest beginnings seem to come from reluctant people.
I am part of a men’s group that is an extension of our church. We’ve been meeting since, wow I don’t even know, probably a decade now. But lately, something hasn’t been right.
This band of brothers has been a rock for me over the years. We have collectively been through a lot in our lives together. I am a stronger, better man than I used to be and believe each of them feels the same way.
We have navigated relationship challenges, unemployment, job stress, illnesses, deaths in the family, taking our next steps in faith, and much more. We have persevered through advsersity and grown in our faith in God.
But recently something has been undeniably “off”. I’ve been increasingly frustrated over the past months. My patience has been short. I’ve questioned the return on my investment in our time together. I’ve even questioned what value that I and others are taking away from our gatherings. That’s not normal. I’m pretty sure others have shared those questions.
With the passing of time, there are fewer and fewer people at the table each night. One at a time and for various reasons, people have drifted off to other pursuits. New people have come to “try things out” only to disappear afterward or politely explain later that they would be following a different direction.
The truth has been staring me in the face but I haven’t wanted to accept it.
Our group is dying.
A once thriving circle that filled a large room to overflowing has contracted and its existence is in jeopardy. A precious thing is about to vanish.
What went wrong?
These are all godly men who are leaning into their relationship with Jesus. We have all devoted ourselves to our time together. We prioritize being in attendance.
Sometimes we bring in food and eat together to put everyone at peace. We share our own circumstances and those of the communities and countries we live in. We talk about how the goings-on of our extended families are impacting us. We tell the stories of what Jesus has done in our lives. We laugh and enjoy each other.
But somehow, it seems slightly wrong. Not because something bad happens during our time together, but it is…incomplete. Something is missing. Why was I leaving our meetings with an itch that I couldn’t scratch?
I needed to take time away and figure things out, but doubts crept into my mind – “Will they abandon me altogether if I am not there?” and “What if God calls me to a different path? Would I be able to leave them?”
I was unsatisfied with my status but afraid of change so I remained silent and took no action.
In our most recent gathering, things went along like they frequently did. We spent time talking about a particularly difficult time one of the guys was going through and another shared what was on his mind. For reasons I couldn’t understand, my stress level began to rise and my feelings eventually boiled to the surface.
Something was missing and I couldn’t avoid dealing with it any longer. Pretending it wasn’t happening made it worse. I sent a message notifying eveyone that I would be stepping back for an undefined time.
At first, I couldn’t gather my thoughts. Doubts swirled in my mind. Fear of an unknown future taunted me. Thoughts of blame and inadequacy arose inside me.
The first thing I had to do was sort out the complicated emotions that were dancing around in my mind. It is hard to silence a voice that tells you to protect yourself and shouts that others are creating the problem. Ignoring those spirits empowers them further and it became clear that no truth would reveal itself until there was silence.
My first prayer was for God to quieten the voices. The more I focused on unity with him, the quieter the voices became. Eventually they dissipated enough that I could hear His whisper. He said that I wasn’t the first person to struggle with this. To find an answer, he pointed me to 1st Corinthian, Chapter 11 (2nd half).
In Paul’s first letter to the young church at Corinth, he chastised its members for abusing the Lord’s Supper. In place of a reverent reminder of what Jesus did for us, they had created an event where people ate full meals and drank wine freely. A moment that had been holy had become something common. Their gatherings had devolved into some eating while others went hungry. Word spread of people becoming intoxicated.
Paul warned them that they were inviting God’s judgement.
This young, thriving church was seeing people leave, argue with each other, and their flame began to fade.
Unless something happened, it appeared that Jesus would blow out the candle he worked so hard to light.
My prayers shifted away from me and toward asking God how this dedicated, all-in church lost its way.
Here is what I believe happened.
The early church in Corinth was introduced to the Lord’s Supper by Paul. He led them through it, and they practiced the sacrament regularly. They could feel God’s presence move as they leaned into Him. As the number of times they completed it increased, they began to ask questions about the original Last Supper when Jesus spoke to His disciples. The young church studied His words, memorizing them and let their hearts be transformed.
It seemed a logical next step to grow their faith by examining the setting in detail – what foods were served, how people sat together, what they wore, etc. The more they learned, they chose to integrate pieces into this sacrament. It became more elaborate as it brought a story into life that they had only heard before.
People coordinated and carefully prepared each dish. They studied and brought the same type of wine that Jesus probably shared with his disciples and served food in the same sequence. They sat in groups of about a dozen each.
Gradually, they made plans with each other to share the meal with specific people they cared most about. As the church grew larger it became impossible to schedule everyone eating at the same time. The single unified voice of prayer was cascaded down into the different groups.
Eventually, a family ran late. By the time they arrived, everyone was already eating and there were no seats left. A mother told her hungry children they could eat when they got home. Another man worked hard all day with no time for breakfast or lunch. Already faint with hunger when he arrived, the first glass of wine went straight to his head.
By the time one of the elders arrived, the event had deteriorated so far it did not resemble the original. This elder reached out to Paul for advice.
Their “group” had lost its way.
In their pursuit of a perfect event, they lost sight of their singular purpose. With the best of intentions, Jesus had moved from the only focus to a shared focus, and a group of passionate believers stumbled down a bad path.
I closed my Bible and sat in silence. If a few of the words were changed, this was a stark description of my recent men’s gatherings.
We had also lost our way.
I prayed again, “God, what do we do? How do we get back on path?”
His response?
“Read it again.”
The second time through I studied Paul’s response. After he warned them of the dire consequences of the path they were on, he reminded them what was special about sharing in the Lord’s Supper. He repeated the same thing he had told them the first time they sat down to share it together.
He took them back to the beginning.
I closed my Bible again and asked God to forgive me for failing him.
Without intention, we had also taken Jesus off of center stage and invited him to take a seat at the table with us. Once he was seated there, the gradually increasing background noise made it difficult to hear him and we had begun to talk to the people closest to us. Eventually, we didn’t notice that he had fallen largely silent.
The absence (or infrequency) of His voice was obvious to “first-timers” who came once and moved on. For the faithful rest of us, it was so gradual we hadn’t perceived it happening.
We had taken something holy and allowed it to become common.
I like to think that I am a mature believer who has gained a share of wisdom over the years. I want to believe that my life shines as an example to others and demonstrates who Jesus is. I see my circle of friends as a pillar of support.
It is embarassing to admit that I allowed this to happen in a gathering I value, while meeting in my home, and in a setting where I can influence the outcome.
The harsh reality is that I am a weak person. I show strength by sharing with others what He first shared with me. I seem wise when I repeat what He says. Unless Jesus has my full attention, I will always feel like something is missing.
It may be painful to admit but I surrendered something sacred to become ordinary. I took my eyes off the Creator and turned them toward something else. I allowed noise to drown out the sound of his voice.
What comes next?
There are still important questions that need answers. There is more humility that I must gain.
I need to seek him out, sit at His feet, and listen to what He has to say. He will lead us back onto the path without judgement or shame.
He is the author of life and He wants our group to be full of that life. He can heal something that is dying and resurrect something that is dead.
I’ll pause for a moment while you say “Hi, Jimmy.”
A neophobe is someone who is afraid of anything new. I have a mild form of this disorder, where I avoid trying new things or breaking from routine.
My life is full of examples. One of them is hummus. You know, the pasty foodstuff. I don’t like hummus. It is weird and looks funny. I’ve never really eaten it, but I’m pretty sure I don’t like it and I will take great efforts to make sure it never sits on our dinner table. That’s neophobia.
I like Colgate, the old kind with the white goo that comes in a red tube and has a harsh taste. I don’t like the colored toothpastes even if they taste better. I have asked Kim to scour the city looking for the mid-size tubes of Colgate that I can carry through airport security because I also don’t like those tiny travel tubes. It is very soothing to get my kind of toothpaste in the perfect tube so I fuss when anything else shows up in the cup on our bathroom counter. Classic neophobia.
Sometimes the examples aren’t as harmless. Whenever Kim asks if she can invite new people for dinner, I always say “no.” She inevitably ignores me and moves forward anyway and I have a good time. Just the idea makes me squirm though and I probably miss out on some great people. That’s the price of neophobia.
My son, James, insisted we play pickleball on Sunday. I am also not excited about that. You know why? Neophobia.
I have lived with neophobia for so long and it is such an ingrained part of my life that it’s almost like a separate personality. I think I’ll call it Neo.
Despite Neo’s protests, this weekend I am going to use Crest toothpaste, probably connect with somebody Kim coordinates, and get super sweaty playing pickleball even though I resist each of those things. Neo will be on center stage.
Three years ago, I had a face-off with my old nemesis, Neo. I made a decision to sell a certain amount of money worth of woodworking projects. The idea of selling makes me so uncomfortable that I want to hide in the closet.
I have avoided Sales all of my life starting with mandatory Little League fundraisers and extending through kids’ track. I do not ask people for money. Neo screamed and shouted about how I should avoid these nasty situations.
You may wonder why I chose to spend three years selling my own woodwork if it was going to cause me so much stress.
The idea was to become more empathetic towards my children as they navigate careers, relationships, and adulthood for the first time. The only way for me to truly understand what they are going through was to do something I don’t know anything about and risk total failure. I chose Sales.
The idea has worked. Instead of lecturing them on what I think they should do, I am walking alongside them while we figure out how to succeed. They probably have no idea how uncomfortable it has made me, but that’s OK. At some level, we are sharing the same insecurities.
After three years, I have finally achieved my milestone and am collecting the last few dollars to hit my original goal. That phase of my life is coming to a close. Sales is no longer part of my neophobia, it’s just something I don’t like to do.
As a side note, I don’t plan to abandon woodworking. However, I am free to settle back into my previous poor business practices and enjoy it as a hobby.
Now I am faced with another crossroads in life. A world of new opportunities lie in front of me. I can reimagine myself or stick with the status quo.
I’ve encountered several of those decision points these past few years – after becoming an empty nester, turning over a ministry, publishing a book, and now abandoning a business pursuit.
It may seem weird to you that I self-identify as a neophobe. After all, I seem to try new things all the time. You may see my actions, but if you haven’t felt my discomfort then you don’t know the real me yet.
I was scared to move the kids out and close a chapter in my life. I was anxious about leading the First Fruits team and then reluctant to release it when the time came. Writing a book carried more stress than I want to talk about. Every time someone asked the cost of a Shalom sign, I stared at my feet and mumbled.
Whatever awaits me in the next chapter of life will probably frighten me more than any of these previous things did. But despite Neo’s inevitable protests, I plan to embrace this next chapter anyway.
Why would anyone do something that makes them feel uncomfortable over and over again?
My answer – I am pursuing something that is bigger than my discomfort.
God has big plans for my life. He has big plans for yours too. The downside is that getting closer to him always requires being uncomfortable – taking a bigger risk. No risk? Then get cozy where you are but know that your kingdom will begin shrinking.
Not sure if you believe me? Then how about these examples?
in Mark 10, Jesus offered a rich young rules a chance to walk with him as a disciple. Neo dissuaded him from change. He missed his chance. Do you imagine his lifestyle ever seemed as sweet afterwards?
In the book of Acts, King Agrippa told Paul, “Almost you persuade me to be a Christian.” He also listened to Neo’s counsel. Wouldn’t his throneroom have become a lonely place afterwards?
King Saul quit waiting on Samuel because Neo told him he would lose the war. He eventually lost his kingdom.
It is ironic that each of these people chose to prize the things that God gave them more than they treasured the One who made the gift. Without him, the good life would quickly lose its alure.
On the other hand, God asked Noah to spend years building a boat. He asked Abraham to leave his family and native country to pursue him. God asked a tongue-tied Moses to become the greatest prophet in the Old Testament. He asked Gideon to lead 300 men against more than a hundred thousand. He asked David to face a giant. He asked Esther, Daniel, and three friends to challenge their kings.
All of them ignored their inner Neo and chose God. Great things followed. God asks us to risk what he has given us for something better with him.
If these guys had declined God’s offer, then he would not have abandoned them. He can’t. He promised that he will never leave us or forsake us. No matter what we do, he will always be there for us. Neo doesn’t have the power to take that away.
But when we choose our comfort over pursuing him, we lose an opportunity for a greater intimacy with him.
Do you want to get closer to God? What are you willing to risk? Get ready, because he will ask. You can’t have something better and still have the same thing as before.
So here I stand at my crossroads. My last chapter has closed. The next chapter is a blank page. What will I choose to fill it with?
One thing is certain. God will offer me something I don’t want to do. Something that makes me scared. He will ask me to sacrifice something that I’m afraid to lose. When He holds out his hand and invites me to hold it, I will have to choose to set aside my neophobia. To choose him over everything that I have.
It is ironic that I struggle to let go of trivial, temporary things when opportunities for eternal greatness present themselves. That is the constant struggle between our spirit and our flesh. It won’t go away this side of Heaven.
While I wait for God’s next offer, I’ll keep trying different things just to see which ones make me nervous. I want to force Neo into action. As I familiarize myself with him, then I will recognize my fear and see it coming from a long way off. I want to know his face, voice, smell, and to recognize his touch. I want to know my fear as well as I know myself because it is the enemy that holds me back.
When God asks me to follow him, Neo will whisper in my ear. He will tell me that I am happy and remind me of everything that I could lose.
But by then hopefully I will recognize both the voices of my tempter and my Shepherd. I will tell Neo that he is right, that I might lose everything. But I will gain the only thing that matters, the only thing that will last forever, the only thing that will bring my heart peace and salvation for my soul.
I will grasp God’s hand and continue my journey with him.
Neo is welcome to come along, he’s just not calling the shots any more.
Christmas is just around the corner, and Santa is everywhere – television, store-front ads, tree ornaments, and even ugly sweaters. The only place you can generally expect NOT to hear him HO-HO-HO-ing is at church.
So who is this character really, and where did he come from?
Santa Claus became popularized in North America in the 1800s. Although references to him became fairly common in the first part of that century, his legend wasn’t fully entrenched until Clement Clark Moore penned “A Visit from St Nicholas”. Everyone can faithfully recite part if not all of his famous poem that begins “‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all thro’ the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.”
Of course, it was modified over time so the version I grew up with had a slightly different “feel”.
Images of St. Nick abounded, but there was no official “look”. Sometimes he was thin, sometimes he was heavy and his clothing changed. Although images began to target a jolly, portly fellow with a heavy beard, it wasn’t until Coca-Cola launched an advertising campaign in the 1930s that Santa’s appearance standardized. Of course, they drew him with the same red and white colors that graced their soda bottles.
Then in the 1970s, “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” aired in the famous stop-motion style of that era. Fred Astaire narrated the story and Mickey Rooney voiced Kris Kringle. All of the background details were eternally rooted in our culture and Santa remains generally unchanged from that time.
But do you know the original story of jolly old St. Nick?
Nicholas was born around 280 A.D. in what is modern-day Turkey. He was the only child of a wealthy couple and grew up in a life of privilege. He attended church regularly and from all records had a normal childhood until tragedy struck. Both of his parents died, whether from a plague or an accident, leaving him without family and only a fortune to keep him company.
As he emerged from mourning, he commited to use what God had given to him to make a difference in his city. He watched people and thought about how he could have an impact.
He spotted a father with three daughters who had lost his job and his savings soon followed. As severe poverty and hunger began to set in, he begrudgingly allowed them to be used as prostitutes in an effort to survive. While this gave them food to eat, it left a large hole in their hearts and created a life they did not know how to escape.
The poor father could not raise a dowry to attract worthy suitors, and began to lose hope that their futures would hold anything but sadness.
The young adult Nicholas, however had other plans. He gathered enough gold coins to represent a proper dowry and under cloak of darkness snuck up to the poor family’s window and threw the bag of coins inside. He retreated quickly before anyone could see him, leaving a gracious father and one sister with hope of something better.
One night at a time, he repeated his action. On the third and final night the father waited up to discover the secretive, benevolent person. When the bag of coins hit the floor, he bounded out the front door and chased poor Nicholas down the street, eventually catching him.
Nicholas swore the man to secrecy (which obviously did not work). He wanted favor from God, not recognition from the people of the city. In this way, he began his path into the clergy and became a priest.
His reputation for generosity and concern for others preceded him, and people in need approached him when they had nowhere else to turn. They knew they could count on the new Bishop Nicholas to represent them, even if helping them meant placing himself in danger.
Nicholas is said to have approached the Emperor Constantine at least two times – once in a dream, and once in person. In these cases he advocated for wrongfully imprisoned people and to lower taxes. He relied on God to protect him in the presence of powerful men, and his fame spread.
When Christians were persecuted, Nicholas was imprisoned. He was told he would be released if he renounced his faith. Unable to abandon the God that had remained with him, he stayed in prison for five long years.
Ultimately released from his chains, his passion for Jesus was stronger than ever. He attended the Council of Nicea and helped to author the Nicene Creed that states Jesus’ place as part of The Trinity and his relationship to the Church. The Creed is still recited in churches today (click here to read the full statement of faith).
In that Council, he forcefully challenged Bishop Arian’s heretical teaching that Jesus was not part of the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). Fueled by anger that someone within the church would seek to reduce the authority of his Savior, Nicholas stepped forward and slapped BIshop Arian, infuriating Emperor Constantine, who revoked Nicholas’ title as Bishop.
Nicholas’ unflinching resolve and commitment to Christ only endeared him further to the people of the church. Legends of miracles worked at his hand spread throughout the region and people in need sought out this dedicated priest who had the favor of God on his side.
In recognition of his faith, suffering, and miracles the Catholic Church canonized Nicholas in 1446 and the priest became known as Saint Nicholas. With this recognition, his name spread across the Christian world.
Each country modified his name to suit their dialect, and the name Saint Nicholas took on many forms. In the Germanic tongue, Saint was spoken as “Santa”and Claus was their derivation of Nicholas. Santa Claus was born.
The world embraces the jolly soul with cherry cheeks and places him at the North Pole with a team of reindeer and elves. That is OK. I think Nicholas would be humbled that his name is known as a herald of the newborn King.
Nicholas lived a life devoted to sharing, faithful devotion to God, and fearless defense of people in need. God smiled on him and performed mighty works through him. Although born into wealth, he regarded it as nothing in pursuit of something greater.
The world needs Santa Claus. He is a hero of our faith whose story deserves to be told. Believing in him awakens a feeling that we can have the same impact that he did. Jesus loved him and so do I.
That is the real story of Santa Claus. Now you can share his story too.
