Hilltop WesleyanChurch

Supporting Ministers With Tithes Honors God

Supporting Ministers With Tithes Honors God

Pastor Scott Uselman

Numbers 18:8-32 · January 25, 2026

Chapters

Scripture

⁸ Then the Lord said to Aaron, “I myself have put you in charge of the offerings presented to me; all the holy offerings the Israelites give me I give to you and your sons as your portion, your perpetual share. ⁹ You are to have the part of the most holy offerings that is kept from the fire. From all the gifts they bring me as most holy offerings, whether grain or sin or guilt offerings, that part belongs to you and your sons. ¹⁰ Eat it as something most holy; every male shall eat it. You must regard it as holy. ¹¹ “This also is yours: whatever is set aside from the gifts of all the wave offerings of the Israelites. I give this to you and your sons and daughters as your perpetual share. Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it. ¹² “I give you all the finest olive oil and all the finest new wine and grain they give the Lord as the firstfruits of their harvest. ¹³ All the land’s firstfruits that they bring to the Lord will be yours. Everyone in your household who is ceremonially clean may eat it. ¹⁴ “Everything in Israel that is devoted to the Lord is yours. ¹⁵ The first offspring of every womb, both human and animal, that is offered to the Lord is yours. But you must redeem every firstborn son and every firstborn male of unclean animals. ¹⁶ When they are a month old, you must redeem them at the redemption price set at five shekels of silver, according to the sanctuary shekel, which weighs twenty gerahs. ¹⁷ “But you must not redeem the firstborn of a cow, a sheep or a goat; they are holy. Splash their blood against the altar and burn their fat as a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁸ Their meat is to be yours, just as the breast of the wave offering and the right thigh are yours. ¹⁹ Whatever is set aside from the holy offerings the Israelites present to the Lord I give to you and your sons and daughters as your perpetual share. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the Lord for both you and your offspring.” ²⁰ The Lord said to Aaron, “You will have no inheritance in their land, nor will you have any share among them; I am your share and your inheritance among the Israelites. ²¹ “I give to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as their inheritance in return for the work they do while serving at the tent of meeting. ²² From now on the Israelites must not go near the tent of meeting, or they will bear the consequences of their sin and will die. ²³ It is the Levites who are to do the work at the tent of meeting and bear the responsibility for any offenses they commit against it. This is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. They will receive no inheritance among the Israelites. ²⁴ Instead, I give to the Levites as their inheritance the tithes that the Israelites present as an offering to the Lord. That is why I said concerning them: ‘They will have no inheritance among the Israelites.’ ” ²⁵ The Lord said to Moses, ²⁶ “Speak to the Levites and say to them: ‘When you receive from the Israelites the tithe I give you as your inheritance, you must present a tenth of that tithe as the Lord’s offering. ²⁷ Your offering will be reckoned to you as grain from the threshing floor or juice from the winepress. ²⁸ In this way you also will present an offering to the Lord from all the tithes you receive from the Israelites. From these tithes you must give the Lord’s portion to Aaron the priest. ²⁹ You must present as the Lord’s portion the best and holiest part of everything given to you.’ ³⁰ “Say to the Levites: ‘When you present the best part, it will be reckoned to you as the product of the threshing floor or the winepress. ³¹ You and your households may eat the rest of it anywhere, for it is your wages for your work at the tent of meeting. ³² By presenting the best part of it you will not be guilty in this matter; then you will not defile the holy offerings of the Israelites, and you will not die.’ ”

The Holy Bible, New International Version® NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by Permission of Biblica, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide.

We honor God when we support ministers with our tithes, trusting Him to use what we bring for His purposes and for the care of those He calls to ministry.

Where the Lord Places the Levites

Pastor Scott began with Numbers 18:8-32, reading the passage closely: God tells Aaron that He is giving all the holy offerings the Israelites bring as a perpetual provision for Aaron, his sons, and his household. The Levites are to have no land inheritance, but God Himself will be their share. The people bring their first fruits and tithes to God, and God gives them to the Levites for their service.

Pastor Scott paused to name the hard reality that, in the real world, some ministers misuse what they receive. He did not deny this or make excuses:

"I'm aware there are ministers who do what is wrong with the tithes that they receive. I'm not going to deny that. But here's what I'm telling you this morning. You allow the Lord to deal with them. Your responsibility is to honor the Lord through your giving of your tithes."

He named Eli's sons as an example of priests who misused the offerings, and said that God Himself handled their wrongdoing. The call he pressed on us was to bring the tithe honestly, trusting God to sort out what is not right. With humility, he framed obedience not as blind following but as trust that God is just.

What God Receives, He Gives to Ministers

The heart of the passage, and of the sermon, was that supporting ministers with tithes is a way of honoring God, because what God receives from the people, He gives as provision to those called to ministry. This isn't about God needing the offering, but about His way of caring for the ones who serve:

"God doesn't need the people's money. I mean, what are we supposed to do to give to God? We take it up and then we burn it because God doesn't need it. No, we're giving it to the ministers to live off of."

Pastor Scott drew a connection from the Old Testament Levitical system to New Testament teaching, showing how Paul instructed churches to care for their ministers, using images like the ox not being muzzled while it treads grain. He described the mutual, communal nature of what's taking place: obedience brings blessing, and the ministers receive from what is offered because God appoints it that way.

He shared his own questions: as a younger Christian, he misunderstood the 'aroma pleasing to the Lord' and thought God just liked the smell. Over years, he came to see that what pleases God is the obedience, not the stuff:

"What He's enjoying is the fact that His people have been obedient. God loves His creation, but He understands that they have followed Him."

He lingered on the image of eating together, the sacrificial meal, and pointed to the mystery of community in the Lord’s presence when His people bring in their offerings and share in sustenance.

The Work of Ministry and Why God Provides for It

From there, Pastor Scott addressed a real-world objection: friends and even his younger self questioning whether ministers 'really work.' He shared:

"Every time I'd see a preacher, they always just, you know, they looked just like they don't do anything. I know I shouldn't be saying that. And they just looked so, you know, timid and I thought, well, it's a nice play, you know, good thing he's a minister. He's not strong enough to do anything."

Instead of sidestepping the criticism, he answered seriously, explaining that ministers’ work is spiritual and communal and that God names it as work. He described the visits, prayers, study, teaching, caring for the sick, and the unseen labor that builds up the body. God gives everyone gifts, some to lead, some to work, and some to serve as ministers. Each role receives provision appropriate to its labor, but all are needed for God’s community to be built up:

"When they minister to the people, that is God's work. When they minister to God on behalf of the people, that is what God sees as work."

He acknowledged hard truths: the church does not exist because the government supports it. Everything for the church, the bills, the ministries, the staff, comes from the people of God bringing their tithes. While he stated the church here isn’t struggling financially, he emphasized that giving is about spiritual growth, not fundraising.

Ministers Also Honor God by Tithing

A significant portion of the sermon focused on how ministers themselves are called to tithe from what they receive, demonstrating with their lives what it means to honor God. He showed this from Numbers 18, where the Levites were to present a tenth of what they received as their own offering:

"We tithe with what we receive from the tithes so that we can demonstrate how to honor God."

Pastor Scott admitted that not all pastors do this, saying plainly, "If a pastor is not tithing, he's wrong." Yet he returned the matter to God’s justice rather than finger-pointing. Ministers, like everyone else, are to give their best back to the Lord, and their visible obedience is meant to lead the church in faithfulness:

"If I don't honor the Lord, then odds are you're not going to honor the Lord. And if me and you don't honor the Lord, the Lord isn't going to say, 'Congratulations to you, Hilltop Wesleyan Church.' That's not what He's going to do."

He linked this to Jesus' words: we cannot serve two masters, and if we bury what we have received rather than offering it, we miss the purpose and joy of honoring God. Keeping ten percent for God means we feel its absence, and that is part of what makes it a true act of obedience, not just words.

A Warning from Israel's Past: Honor Leads to Life

Pastor Scott was honest about the consequences: Israel’s failure to honor God with tithes and obedience led to their removal from the land. Churches today, he warned, can wither spiritually and practically when dishonor becomes the norm. He described seeing small churches absorbed into others and pastors burning out, even downloading sermons because they must work secular jobs, missing their ministry call.

He cautioned against an overreliance on government or anyone besides Jesus and the community He calls together. He painted a picture of what could happen if churches everywhere returned to honoring God this way, a wave of ministry, need met, and hearts turning back from elsewhere to trust Christ for provision and hope:

"People would stop relying upon the government and start relying upon Jesus Christ again. This is what would happen. Jesus does not expect the government to do or to pretend like the government can do what only He can do."

Every member has gifts and a role; giving from what God gives is how we build up the family and keep its work strong.

Living It Out This Week

We bring our tithes not just to support a budget, but as a way of honoring God, trusting His wisdom, and supporting those who serve on our behalf. We all have gifts, and none can build the family of God alone. When we bring the best of what we have, we honor the Lord and help the work continue for others.

Discussion Questions

Where have you seen or experienced the difference it makes when a community honors God with their first and best?
What has shaped your own trust or hesitation about tithing and provision?
How can we, as a church family, make the practice and purpose of giving more visible and meaningful to each other and the next generation?

This Week’s Devotional

Trusting God With What We Bring

4 min read · Pastor Scott

The Image: The Tithe Leaving Your Hands

There is a quiet, real moment every time you give: money that feels needed, the best of what you managed to earn or receive, leaves your hands and becomes something you cannot trace. Maybe you write a check, maybe you give online, but the release is the same. You have to trust someone: God sees, God knows, and God cares enough to use what you give well.

Pastor Scott lingered here this week. He named what many of us wonder, what if my giving is misused, what if those responsible don't honor God? The Scriptures are honest about that risk, yet they also say our responsibility is to honor God with what He has given us, not to manage other people's hearts or outcomes. This is an act of faith as much as it is an act of obedience.

Can you remember a time you gave and worried if it mattered? Or a time when you saw, sometimes years later, that God used what you let go of in ways you never could have planned?

Meditation Focus

Let your heart rest: When you bring your best to God, it is not lost, even when you do not see the result.

Practical Step

This week, before you give (or if you already gave), pause long enough to pray over your gift. Name any fears or disappointments, but also ask God to multiply what leaves your hand for the sake of others, and give you peace about letting go.

Closing Prayer

Father, you are worthy of honor beyond anything I can offer. All that I have comes from you, and I admit I am slow to trust that you will care for me when I let go of what feels like mine. Help me to want your will, even when it means surrender, and to see how my giving is part of your story in the world. Provide what our church and its people need, food, shelter, wisdom, courage, and steady hearts. Forgive my reluctance to give, the fears that grip me, and any envy of what others have. Teach me to forgive those who misuse or misunderstand, and create a community where we carry each other with gentleness. Keep me, and those I love, from temptation to hold back, from bitterness, from distrust, and from pride when I give. Deliver all of us into deeper trust, deeper joy, and fuller faithfulness, so that your name is honored beyond our walls. Amen.

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