How Much Should I Give to Church? Tithing, Explained

Ten percent is the number everyone has heard and almost nobody has been walked through. It comes from somewhere real, it is older than the church, and the New Testament does something surprising with it.

Below: where the number comes from, whether the New Testament still commands it, gross versus net, what to do if the number is out of reach, and what the giving actually funds.

What is tithing?

Tithing is the practice of giving the first ten percent of your income back to God, and the word itself simply means a tenth.

It predates the law. Abraham gives a tenth to Melchizedek in Genesis 14, long before Moses. Jacob promises a tenth at Bethel. By the time of Leviticus and Deuteronomy it is formalized, and it funds the priesthood, the festivals, and a recurring provision for widows, orphans and foreigners.

That last detail matters. Tithing was never only a religious fee. Part of it was the ancient equivalent of a social safety net.

Does the New Testament command tithing?

The New Testament never repeats the ten percent command, and what it puts in its place asks more of you rather than less.

Jesus mentions tithing once in passing, criticizing religious leaders for measuring out their herbs while neglecting justice and mercy. Paul never gives a percentage. He tells the Corinthians to decide in their own hearts what to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion.

People sometimes hear that as a loophole. It is the opposite. A fixed percentage lets you settle the question once a year. Deciding in your own heart means revisiting it every time your situation changes.

How much should I give to church?

Give an amount you decided on in advance, that you can sustain, and that you would notice.

Ten percent remains a good anchor precisely because it is not arbitrary and because it scales. If that number is reachable, start there. If it is not, start where you are and move toward it rather than waiting until you can do it perfectly.

The test in scripture is never the size of the gift. The widow with two coins gave more than everyone ahead of her in line, because the question was what the gift cost her.

Should I tithe on gross or net income?

Scripture does not answer the gross or net question, because the economies it was written in had no payroll withholding.

Most people who ask this are really asking whether they are allowed to count taxes. A reasonable approach: if you are starting out, give on net and build the habit. If giving is already established and you want to stretch, give on gross.

What is worth avoiding is letting the question become the project. People spend months resolving gross versus net and give nothing in the meantime.

What if I cannot afford to tithe?

Then give what you can, and do not let anyone tell you that you have failed a test.

Paul tells the Corinthians that a gift is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what they do not have. That sentence exists because this exact worry is old.

If you are carrying debt, in a lean season, or genuinely unable to cover the basics, the honest move is to give something small and consistent and to tell someone at your church where you actually are. Churches handle that conversation far better than most people expect.

What is tithing actually for?

Giving funds the work, and it also does something to the giver that nothing else does.

On the practical side, it pays for the people and the programs: staff, children's ministry, the music, the building, and the money that goes back out to the neighborhood. At UAMEZ Church our year-end campaign, Open Hands, funds exactly that kind of reach.

On the other side, giving is the most direct way to find out whether you own your money or it owns you. You discover it the moment the transfer goes through and something in you objects.

Where do I start?

Pick a number, set it to recur, and leave it alone for three months.

Automatic giving removes the monthly negotiation with yourself, which is where most generosity dies. After three months you will know whether the number is right.

UAMEZ Church is at 3549 Middlefield Rd., Palo Alto, CA. If you want to ask any of this out loud rather than read about it, come and ask.

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