The Law of Tithing and the Law of the Fast

D&C 59, 119,120

Isaiah 58

Malachi 3

Learned over time

1831

Law of Consecration

D&C 42

BISHOP

RESIDUEKept in Bishop’s Storehouse D&C 42:34

STEWARD

We give surplusD&C 42:33

Needs and wants amply supplied. D&C 42:33

Help poor and needyD&C 42:34

Finance church and establish ZionD&C 42:35

How the early saints applied

the Law of consecration

D&C 42

Brigham Young on “Surplus”

"I found the people said they were willing to do about as they were counseled, but upon asking them about their surplus property, most of the men who owned land and cattle would say, 'I have got so many hundred acres of land, and I have got so many boys, and I want each of them to have eighty acres, therefore this is not surplus property.' Again, 'I have got so many girls, and I do not believe I shall be able to give them more than forty acres each.' 'Well, you have got two or three hundred acres left.' 'Yes, but I have a brother-in-law coming on, and he will depend on me for a living; my wife's nephew is also coming on, he is poor, and I shall have to furnish him a farm after he arrives here.' . . . .

Brigham Young on “Surplus”

"Some were disposed to do right with their surplus property, and once in a while you would find a man who had a cow which he considered surplus, but generally she was of the class that would kick a person's hat off, or eyes out,... You would once in a while find a man who had a horse that he considered surplus, but at the same time he had the ringbone, was broken-winded, spavined in both legs, and had the pole evil at one end of the neck and a fistula at the other, and both knees sprung." BY(JD, 2:306-307) , 1855

Learned over time

1831

Law of Consecration

D&C 42

1837

Desperate Financial

Conditions

Kirtland and Missouri bishops suggest tithing

1838

Joseph moves to Missouri

Prays:

O! Lord, show unto thy servants how much thou requirest of the

properties of thy people for a tithing?

Answer: D&C 119

The Lord’s definition of tithingD&C 119:3-4

“The simplest statement we know of is the statement of the Lord himself, namely, that the members of the Church should pay ‘one-tenth of all their interest annually,’ which is understood to mean income. No one is justified in making any other statement than this” (First Presidency letter, 19 Mar. 1970).

“It is remarkable how many excuses can be made and interpretations given as to what constitutes the tenth. … It is written, however, that as we measure it shall be measured to us again. If we are stingy with the Lord, he may be stingy with us, or in other words, withhold his blessings”

Joseph Fielding Smith, (Church History and Modern Revelation, 2 vols. [1953], 2:92).

Who decides how tithing funds are used? D&C 120

Council on the Disposition of the Tithes

First Presidency First Presidency

The bishop The Presiding Bishopric

High council The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles

How are tithing funds used?

“I keep on the credenza behind my desk a widow’s mite that was given me in Jerusalem many years ago as a reminder, a constant reminder, of the sanctity of the funds with which we have to deal. They come from the widow; they are her offering as well as the tithe of the rich man, and they are to be used with care and discretion for the purposes of the Lord. We treat them carefully and safeguard them and try in every way that we can to see that they are used as we feel the Lord would have them used for the upbuilding of His work and the betterment of people”

Gordon B Hinckley, Ensign, Nov. 1996, 50

How are tithing funds used?

“[Tithing] funds are spent to build and maintain temples and

houses of worship,

to conduct our worldwide missionary work,

to translate and publish scriptures,

to provide resources to redeem the dead,

to fund religious education, and

to support other Church purposes selected by the designated servants of the Lord”

Dallin H Oaks, Ensign, May 1994, 35

Tithing Faithful 40 Years later in

1876?

Ned Desaules was “donated” to the St. George Temple as a carpenter to work off the labor assessed to his United Order community. He wrote to his aunt in Salt Lake on April 25, 1876:

“I work without pay, and I depend on the good Saints for my support and the means to clothe myself. At present my board is not of the best, and my clothes will soon be all worn out. But I am patient.

Tithing Faithful 40 years later in

1876?

Although it seems to me that when you work for the good Lord you work for a poor payer, seeing that he receives nothing for tithing except a little flour, some bad butter and a little meat. There are so few Saints who pay their tithing as they ought to. I have had to sell all my things for practically nothing in order to have lamp oil and envelopes. But after all, I need to have patience and keep up hope for better times when he will stir the hearts of the Saints and cause them to be more generous toward those who work for the glory of the Lord.”

Keepapitchinin, web site, Ardis E. Parshall — May 4, 2009

How are we doing today?

1831

Law of Consecration

D&C 42

1837

Desperate Financial

Conditions

Kirtland and Missouri bishops suggest tithing

1838

Joseph moves to Missouri

Prays:

O! Lord, show unto thy servants how much thou requirest of the

properties of thy people for a tithing?

Answer: D&C 119

1899

Desperate Financial

Conditions

Lorenzo Snow renewed

emphasis on Law of Tithing

Learned over time

Five reasons why all of us, rich or poor, longtime member or newest convert, should faithfully pay our tithes and offerings

Jeffrey R. Holland, “Like a Watered Garden,” Ensign, Nov. 2001, 33

Why pay tithing?Children

First, do so for the sake of your children and grandchildren, the rising generation, who could now, if we are not careful, grow up in the Church with absolutely no understanding as to how their temples, chapels, seminaries, and socials are provided. Teach your children that many of the blessings of the Church are available to them because you and they give tithes and offerings to the Church. Teach them that those blessings could come virtually no other way.

Story of Jay’s bishop at tithing settlement

Why pay tithing?Blessings

Second, pay your tithing to rightfully claim the blessings promised those who do so.

Why pay tithing?Blessings

"During World War II, my widowed mother supported her three young children on a schoolteacher's salary that was meager. When I became conscious that we went without some desirable things because we didn't have enough money, I asked my mother why she paid so much of her salary as tithing. I have never forgotten her explanation:

Dallin H Oaks, Ensign, May 1994, p33Dorothea Lange’s ,“Migrant Mother”

"Dallin, there might be some people who can get along without paying tithing, but we can't. The Lord has chosen to take your father and leave me to raise you children. I cannot do that without the blessings of the Lord, and I obtain those blessings by paying an honest tithing. When I pay my tithing, I have the Lord's promise that he will bless us, and we must have those blessings if we are to get along."

Dallin H Oaks, Ensign, May 1994, p33

President Kimball

“Some time ago a sister said to me, ‘Why is it, Brother Kimball, that those who do the least in the building of the kingdom seem to prosper most? We drive a Ford; our neighbors drive a Cadillac. We observe the Sabbath and attend our meetings; they play golf, hunt, fish, and play….

Malachi 4:1-2

But for many rewards you need not wait until the judgment day. You have many blessings today. You have your family of lovely righteous children. What a rich reward for the so-called sacrifices! The blessings that you enjoy cannot be purchased with all your neighbor’s wealth.

Spencer W Kimball, Faith Precedes the miracle, 221-222

What should be our motivation for paying tithes and offerings?

President Gordon B. Hinckley said:“Now, do not get me wrong. I am not here to say

that if you pay an honest tithing you will realize your dream of a fine house, a Rolls Royce, and a condominium in Hawaii. The Lord will open the windows of heaven according to our need, and not according to our greed. If we are paying tithing to get rich, we are doing it for the wrong reason. The basic purpose for tithing is to provide the Church with the means needed to carry on His work” (in Conference Report, Apr. 1982, 60; or Ensign, May 1982, 40).

Why pay tithing?Declare what is first in your life

Third, pay your tithing as a declaration that possession of material goods and the accumulation of worldly wealth are not the uppermost goals of your existence.

BudgetIncome:

Salary

Interest

Gifts

Investment returns

Expenses:

Housing

Food

Utilities

Clothing

Education

Transportation

Medical

Tithing

Expenses:

Tithing

Housing

Food

Utilities

Clothing

Education

Transportation

Medical

Story, Sean Brotherson, Meridian Magazine

Why pay tithing?Don’t rob God

Fourth, pay your tithes and offerings out of honesty and integrity because they are God’s rightful due.

Why pay tithing?Love and Gratitude

Fifth,…We should pay them as a personal expression of love to a generous and merciful Father in Heaven.

Tithing – a Commandment Even for the Destitute

Lynn Robbins, CR April 2005

Mary Ellen Edmunds 11 step program for

Skip a mealSuffering

Skipping two meals

Suffering even more

Going without food and drink for twenty-four hours

Murmuring

Paying the equivalent of food I didn’t eat

Being increasingly generous

Praying along with fasting

Fasting and Praying with a purpose

Consecration

Mary Ellen Edmunds You can Never Get Enough of What you Don’t need,, 192

Reasons for fasting found in the scriptures

• a general obligation imposed by revelation upon church members in good standing. (D. & C. 59:13-14; 88:76; Luke 5:33-35; 2 Cor. 6:5; 11: 27.)

• a form of the true worship of God. (Luke 2:37;

Acts 9:9; Alma 45:1; 4 Ne. 12.)

• for the sick (2 Sam. 12:16); • for special blessings (Mosiah 27:22-23);

• to gain a testimony (Alma 5:46);

Reasons for fasting found in the scriptures

• to gain revelation (Alma 17:3; 3 Ne. 27:1; Ex. 34:28; Deut. 9:9, 18);

• for the conversion of nonmembers to the truth, (Alma 6:6; 17:9);

• for guidance in the choice of church officers (Acts 13: 3);

• as an accompaniment of righteous mourning and sorrow (Alma 28:2-6; 30:2; Hela. 9:10);

• as a means of sanctifying one's soul (Hela. 3: 35);

• for guidance along the path leading to salvation. (Omni 26.)

Isaiah 58Problems with their fasting

1. They made no spiritual preparations for fasting but continued with all of their pleasures and labors. (Verse 3)

2. Their fasting made them irritable and filled them with animosity toward others. (Verse 4)

3. They were only going through the motions of fasting by bowing their heads and spreading sackcloth and ashes under themselves as a sign of mourning and humility. (Verse 5)

4. They were finding fault with others and speaking vanity. (Verse 9)

Isaiah 58Items to add to the fast

1. Repent of sins during a fast and help others with their yoke of burdens. (Verse 6)

2. Give money to help feed the hungry and cloth the naked including those who may be in need within their own family. (Verse 7)

3. Help satisfy and comfort the afflicted soul. (Verse 9)

Isaiah 58Blessings for a true fast

1. Become the light to the world as commanded in the sermon on the mount. (Verses 8 & 10)

2. Health will increase. (Verse 8)3. Gain a reputation of being righteous. (Verse 8)4. The Lord will protect and be a guard for their most

vulnerable areas. (Verse 8)5. The Lord will answer prayers quickly. (Verse 9)6. The Lord will guide their lives continually. (Verse 11)7. The Lord will bless their lives and feed them as in the

Garden of Eden even in times of drought. (Verse 11)8. Their posterity will have the reputation of building and

repairing the Kingdom of God. (Verse 12)

The Law of the Fast

4:15min, L Tom Perry

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