My wife accuses me of being extremely country.  That could be true but it comes mainly from some of the analogies that I use such as “That went over like a skunk at a church picnic”.  I think that is pretty clear unless you are at that church picnic and then it might seem a bit chaotic.  Every once in a while I slip one in that she has never heard before like (got to put on your best Texas accent on for this one) “I thought I was mistaken once but I was wrong”.  She almost spit her coffee out when she heard it.  That one takes some deeper thinking….  Going to church is like that.  I thought I didn’t need to go to church once but I was wrong.  A lot of people say that they believe in God but they don’t need to go to church.  A church is a function facilitator and in simple terms they are right IF they are doing EVERYTHING that a church is supposed to do.  It seems common in the US today to go to church on Sunday to worship God.  That is an important function of church but that is like looking in the pie pan and seeing one piece of pie and there is supposed to be an entire pie.  Worship is important, but don’t confuse church with religion.  Church is just one piece of the pie.  There are other pieces.  The Bible points out all of them.  Do you pray before every meal at home but skip it when you are out in public?  Why?  Jesus said to love your neighbor.  Do you love everyone at church but start cussing them when they won’t let you out in the parking lot.  Do you disrespect your neighbors and throw trash out the window on their yard?  Do you not turn on your blinker when driving to make it safer for those driving around you?  It is little things but they are all part of loving your neighbor.  Religion is every day, all day and in the tiniest details such being polite and joyful with everyone.  Church is not religion.  Religion is following and doing.  We belong to a religion – not a church.  The church, if it is doing it right, should look the same.  It is not just worship on Sunday.  It is being polite, praying and following what Jesus asks us to do.  The Bible talks about we should and should not do.  In Exodus 20, our Bible has a short form of what to do called the ten commandments. 

If you love your neighbor, you will not murder him, covet his goods, lie to him, lust after his wife, steal etcetera.   It is simple but read it carefully.  Jesus simplified it even more.  He said he was bringing a New Covenant and in Matthew 22: 36-40 Jesus was asked ³⁶ “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” ³⁷ Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^[c] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. ³⁹ And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^[d] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

A church can do all the things that religion requires, but it is not the entire pie.  It can help the homeless.  It can pray for those needing healing.  But it cannot make YOU do it.  The church can give all their funds to support the church’s programs such as homeless or children’s programs, but it cannot make you donate to the church.  It cannot make you follow the ten commandments. 

Another thing that the church cannot do is immerse you in scripture.  The 3-4 verses on Sunday are not the entire week.  There are thousands of verses in the Bible.  The bible also goes on and talks even more about a lot of do and do nots in Leviticus.  For example, in Leviticus 27:30, it says: ³⁰ “‘A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord. ³¹ Whoever would redeem any of their tithe must add a fifth of the value to it. ³² Every tithe of the herd and flock—every tenth animal that passes under the shepherd’s rod—will be holy to the Lord.

Tithing is often a very misunderstood spiritual concept. There are more opinions than Carter has little liver pills.  A church is not about raising money.  A church is about passing the money to those who are in need.  Some people say that tithing is just an Old Testament principle that doesn’t apply to us today in the New Covenant.  We still have people in need under the New Covenant.  Sort of like I don’t need to donate money or go to Church, I believe in God.  On the other extreme there are people that say God punishes or doesn’t bless people who don’t tithe.  I’ve actually heard preachers say that you will only prosper if you plant seeds in the church.  None of these extreme views line up with scripture. There are over 100 times that Jesus talks about money in the New Testament or New Covenant.  It is mainly to say that you don’t need money.  In the Old Covenant of Leviticus, tithing was required. That’s no longer the case for us as part of the New Covenant.  God wants us to give with open hands and hearts, to be as generous as we can within our circumstances. In fact, 2 Corinthians 9:7 (NIV) says, “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” There is no punishment associated with not tithing. Just like attending worship, on the street, church, or in your home, when we choose to tithe from our own free will, it follows what scripture says about helping our neighbors.  It can then open up additional heavenly blessings into our lives and our finances. And by giving, it can act to prevent the evil one from tricking us into wasting away our finances.  You absolutely do not have to tithe.  You do need to do as God asks you to do.  That sounds “as confused as a monkey in a banana factory trying to decide which banana to take”.  Our Bible tells what is good.  Always take the good banana.  Don’t forget God will still love you just as much whether you tithe or not.  Your part in that is to do what God asks you to do in and outside church.  Our church is not bound by the walls.  We don’t go to “Church”. We go to be with the Trinity and do as God and Jesus told us to do.  We are God centered – not a specific branch of religion or building centered. We only gather there at the church building to worship and to go out to be Christians.