Nehemiah 10:37, “And that we should bring the firstfruits of our dough, and our offerings, and the fruit of all manner of trees, of wine and of oil, unto the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God; and the tithes of our ground unto the Levites, that the same Levites might have the tithes in all the cities of our tillage.”
When it comes to giving back to God, He deserves our firstfruits. Everything we have comes from God, so it would only be reasonable that He gets the first part. Proverbs 3:9 says, “Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:” Our tithes would be considered our firstfruits. Ten percent of our gross income belongs to the Lord, and we ought to give it to Him first.
Malachi 3:8-10 says, “Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”
Notice that the Bible says that we rob (not steal from) God. There is a difference between a robber and a thief. A thief steals be stealth trying not to be seen, but a robber steals by violence usually causing harm to the one he steals from. When we steal from God, it hurts Him, and the Bible says He curses us. However, when we give of our tithes and do what we are supposed to do, the Bible says that God will pour us out a blessing. Tithe or no tithe? Blessing or cursing? Seems like an easy choice to me. What will your choice be?
A Lamp unto my Feet 
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