What do I mean by “overly spiritual”?

I am talking about those people who cannot make conversation without speaking in spiritual terms which the average person cannot relate to.

I am talking about those people who cannot talk to you without pronouncing that they love you, even though they have no idea who you are.

I am talking about those people who tell you that Jesus is the way and the truth and the light, when all you did was ask them for directions to someplace.

If you prefer to watch a video, click on this link: Watch the video

Now, I am not trying to insult these people, or deny that they are wonderful examples of how joyful one can be when you have the indwelling Ruach HaKodesh (the Holy Spirit), but…if people are so spiritually oriented that they cannot have a “normal” conversation, then they will not be able to do what we are supposed to do, which is effectively spread the word of God.

“But wait a minute, Steve! People who are constantly talking about God are spreading the word, aren’t they? “

Maybe, but there is a difference between spreading the word of God and throwing pearls before swine. And what determines that is how effectively you can get your point across to your audience.

The double-edged sword of spirituality is that on one side, you are able to understand God’s word better; but, the other side is that without the Holy Spirit, people can’t understand God’s word as well, if at all!

Overly spiritual people can speak all they want, but their problem is that they are speaking the way they want to, in a way they are able to understand, and that is NOT how to reach people who are still in the dark.

Let me put it to you this way: if I cannot communicate with my audience in a way that they can understand what I am saying, then I might as well be speaking in a foreign language.

That is why overly spiritual people are useless to God, in that they are not able to help those in the dark to understand what they are talking about.

Shaul (Paul) is a perfect example of “working your audience”, and he tells us that in 1 Corinthians 9:19, where he says he will be all things to all people. He is spreading the word of God in an effective way because he relates to his audience, and makes sure they can relate to him.

Yeshua was the most spiritually filled person that ever existed, yet he was able to get people to understand what he was saying.

Yes, he often talked in parables (which fulfilled the Messianic prophecy in Isaiah 6:9), which did confuse many people, but those who had ears to hear, heard; and those who had eyes to see, saw.

That is what we need to do when we are trying to spread the word of God- we need to speak in a way that the person we are talking to can understand.

You don’t need to learn different languages, you need to simply observe the type of person you are talking to and speak in a way they can understand, i.e., using terms and references that they are comfortable with.

When I was a salesman, going to people’s homes and selling them siding, windows, and kitchen replacements, I learned very quickly that I needed to ask them about themselves (people will always be willing to talk about themselves or their children) in order to determine the best way to communicate with them. I found that by using terms and mental images they are comfortable with, that allowed me to bond with them quickly, resulting in both gaining their trust and, even more important, getting them to not just listen but understand me.

When we talk about God to people, those who cannot get their heads out of the clouds make no headway- they are speaking God’s truth to a wall.

That is why no matter how “into” the Lord you are, you need to step it down when speaking to people who are not that way so they can understand and relate to what you are saying.

And NEVER! NEVER! NEVER! tell anyone what they must do or what they must believe- the best way to get people to listen to you is first to ask them what they feel they are missing in their life. Then you can tell them why YOU don’t have those problems because you accepted Yeshua, and then let them decide for themself if they want to be better off, too.

I confess I am somewhat envious of people who are continually happy and spirit-filled, but when it comes down to helping those who are not believers, if they can’t come down out of the clouds and walk the same earth those people do, speak their language and relate to them, then whatever they say or do or teach will be useless to spreading God’s word.

And, in the long run, they are more likely to turn people away from God than turn them to God, and that would be a sin.

Thank you for being here, and please share these messages with everyone you know, subscribe to my website and YouTube channel, buy my books and after reading them, leave them in your church or synagogue for others to read, and next time you’re on Facebook, join my group called “Just God’s Word” (please make sure you read and agree to the rules, first).

And remember this: I always welcome your comments.

That’s it for now, so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!

One of the topics that preachers in all religions seem to bypass more often than any other biblical topic is the requirement to tithe.

If you prefer to watch a video, click on this link: Watch the video.

What is really interesting is that many Christian religions believe that because Yeshua referred to the tithe regarding the Pharisees and Mosaic Law, now under the “law of Christ” Christians do not have to tithe.

I always wondered what Christ’s law was: after all, isn’t he supposed to be the son of God? Wasn’t he supposed to live a sinless life? And wasn’t the only law when he lived the Mosaic Law?

So, if all those statements are true, then the law of Christ had to be the same Law of Moses, right? I mean, if Christ had done or taught or even implied people should not do what his father said they should, which is the same as teaching to reject God’s commandments, then wouldn’t that mean he sinned? Wouldn’t having those who followed him do differently than what God said to do be rebellion against God?

Well, that’s not really relevant to today’s topic, so let’s get back to tithing.

The Torah has many more forms of tithing than just the 10%, which (for the record) existing long before Moses wrote it down in the Torah. If you recall, Abraham gave a tenth of all he recovered when he saved Lot to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:20), and Jacob promised God 10% of all he would give him on his way to Laban’s house (Gen 28:22).

There are, in fact, taxes, redemption fees, and a three-year collection of tithes for the Levite, foreigner, widow, and orphan (Deuteronomy 26:12-13).

In fact, the Torah has many different forms of taxes, tithes, and mandatory contributions, all of which really amount to the same thing- a required return of one’s income to God.

There is a tithe levied to the Levites which can be a 40th, 50th or sixtieth of one’s income, depending on your personal generosity; there is an annual 10% tithe on the produce; there is the requirement to leave gleanings for the poor; and there was a half-shekel tax to the temple for upkeep.

Not to mention there was a 5 shekel tax on the first born male, whether of human or animal, which God required as redemption for all the first-born he killed in Egypt.

In all, the Torah required about 25% of ones total income to be given back to God in any number of ways, such as tithes, temple tax, leaving produce in the fields (not harvesting the outer 10% of the crops and not going back to reap the harvest twice), first fruits, and voluntary offerings.

But Christians are told that because there is no specific requirement in the New Covenant to pay tithes, then Christians don’t have to tithe.

Some of the justifications they give for not having to tithe are as follows:

• Believers are not under the Mosaic Covenant (the old lie that Jesus did away with the law)
• What Abraham and Jacob did was not the norm
• Tithes were for the Levites and priests and there are none of those in the New Covenant (I guess that since Yeshua is our High Priest, he doesn’t need any other priests to help him?)
• The New Covenant doesn’t mention tithing when talking about giving generously

For the record, the Gospels and the Epistles and all the other stuff in the New Covenant are eye witness accounts written by human beings, not dictation from God. God doesn’t say anything in the New Covenant, except at the transformation on the mountain when he told the three disciples that Yeshua is his son and to listen to him.

The only place where God, himself, tells us what he wants us to do is in the Torah.

There are other excuses for not tithing, but they are just as unfounded as the ones I have listed here.

Why do I say they are unfounded? Simple: Yeshua lived the way God said to live, and so if we are to live as Yeshua lived, then we should also live the way God said to live, and that is in the Torah, and the Torah tells us to tithe.

As I explained above, there is no way that Yeshua could have ever, in any way, told people not to obey the Torah; otherwise, he would have been rejecting God, thereby a sinner, teaching others to sin, and his sacrifice could not be accepted.

Once people agree that some form of a tithe is required by God, then we start to argue is the 10% off the gross, net after taxes (to the government), or from disposable income?

The Torah says every 10th animal under the hook, but it also says to leave the outskirts of your field unharvested and do not gather the gleanings (Leviticus 23:22). So, if I do not gather those amounts, are they my tithe?

But, if I never gather them, then I never gathered that produce, then it was never income I received, so then should I tithe 10% from what I actually harvested and took for myself?

If I do that, then is what I took considered my gross or my net? After all, gross is everything produced, whether I end up with it or not, and net is what I end up with, so which is the one I tithe from: everything in my field, which is my gross, or only what I harvest, which is my net?

Confusing, isn’t it?

And now for the kicker: In Malachi 3:6-10, God says that when we do not bring the tithe to the temple we are stealing from him. And then he says if we do bring it in, he will open the floodgates of heaven and pour more blessings on us than we can imagine.

So, if I am a Christian and I happen to open that Jewish part of the Bible- you know, the part my pastor says I don’t have to worry about, and see that by tithing God will hand out a ton of blessings, since Christians are not subject to that Jewish stuff, does that mean only Jews can be blessed if they tithe?

Look, I won’t tell you what to do. After all, if someone refuses to do as God says they should, why would they listen to me?

Then again, maybe they would, if I told them what they wanted to hear. Isn’t that why so many religions are popular?

So choose the way you will serve God: as God says you should, or as some religion says you should.

Thank you for being here and please subscribe to my website and YouTube channel; buy my books and join my Facebook group called “Just God’s Word” (please read and agree to the rules).

And remember that I always welcome your comments.

That’s it for today, so l’hitraot and Baruch HaShem!