Stop using the word “tithe.” Use this instead…

…see that you also excel in this grace of giving. I am not commanding you, but I want to test the sincerity of your love by comparing it with the earnestness of others. For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich. (2 Corinthians 8:7-9)

I wince whenever I hear pastors urge their congregations to “tithe.” Why? Because we Christians aren’t under the Mosaic Law that instituted the tithe (more here if you’re interested). Believers under Jesus’s New Covenant are not given a rule for giving. We are given an example: Christ himself.

That’s what Paul is getting at in today’s passage. He encourages us to “excel in this grace of giving,” and roots that call in “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,” who “for your sake…became poor.” 

That brings us to the third biblical principle for stewarding the income we earn at work: We are called to give out of what Christ has given us. And because Christ has given us everything, a “tithe” of ten-percent should be the absolute floor of what percentage of our income we long to give.

Christians are not called to give out of guilt, compulsion, or duty, but gratitude, compassion, and delight rooted in the cross. We give generously because Christ has given all. And when we do, we will pique the curiosity of a lost and watching world.

In his book Don’t Waste Your Life, John Piper asks, “Why don’t people ask us about our hope? The answer is probably that we look as if we hope in the same things they do.” That stings because it’s true. And because it’s true, we have an excellent opportunity to present a ravishing vision of Jesus in how we steward the income we earn Monday through Friday, witnessing with our wallets about where our hope truly lies.

With that in mind, let me encourage you to commit to one way you will steward your income this month that might cause non-believers to ask you about your hope.

That could look like driving a beat-up car even when you have cash for a new one or skipping a smartphone upgrade and donating that line item of your budget. If you’re an entrepreneur, this could look like offering to fund 100% of your employee’s adoptions, forgiving the debt of a vendor, or voluntarily capping your income like my friend Dave Hataj.

Whatever works for you works. But be sure not to flaunt what you’re doing. You’re not giving to prove yourself holy but to prove your hope. In response to what Christ has given you, give generously today, and see what gospel conversations come up as a result.