Today I would like to share the grace of God under the title, “The Matter of Reaping What One Sows.“ Our giving tithes to God is like a farmer who is sowing seeds in the fields. Just as we can expect fruits when we sow seeds, we must give our whole tithes to God so that He will give us abundant blessings. Some people insist that tithing belonged to the era of the Old Testament and that it fell away in the era of the New Testament but this is a wrong teaching because Jesus Himself teaches us to tithe. Luke 11:42 says, "Woe to you Pharisees, because you give God a tenth of your mint, rue and all other kinds of garden herbs, but you neglect justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.” Jesus said that we must not neglect giving God our tithes along with maintaining justice and the love of God. Some people insist that tithing belongs to the Old Testament so it has nothing to do with the era of the New Testament. It is not true. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Furthermore, Jesus said, “You should have practiced the latter without leaving the former undone.” We should give thanks and praises to God along with material tithes. 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 says, “Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” When we offer our tithes and offerings to God with thanksgiving and love, He is very pleased to receive them. Abraham, the father of our faith, also gave tithes to God. Whenever we trace back to the fundamentals of our faith, we always come to Abraham. God chose Abraham to be the father of faith for God’s chosen people. He was greatly loved by God, who teaches us His precious truth through him. Most of all, God gives us a lesson through Abraham that we should offer tithes to God. In Genesis chapter 14:17-20, there were always wars to maintain the balance of power in the Middle East. A big country brings a big war, but at that time, a country could consist of only 1,000 people, while 2,000 or 3,000 people would establish a country with their own leader. Abraham settled down there and had his own business there so he raised his own armies in his house. About 300 trained soldiers were in his household and a war broke out in the Middle East. After Lot left Abraham, he and his family were taken captive in the midst of the war of the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah. When Abraham heard that his relative was taken captive, he called out his trained men and pursued the enemies and won a great victory as God was with him. After he returned from defeating the enemies, there was a special country of God in the Middle East and its king was Melchizedek. He blessed Abraham and then Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. He gave Melchizedek a tenth of all that he took from his enemies. As our father of faith offered a tenth of his possessions to God, we must also offer our tithes to God. God promised that He will give blessings to those who give tithes. Deuteronomy 14:22-23 says, “Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year. Eat the tithe of your grain, new wine and oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the presence of the LORD your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name, so that you may learn to revere the LORD your God always.” Deuteronomy 14:28-29 says, “At the end of every three years, bring all the tithes of that year's produce and store it in your towns, so that the Levites (who have no allotment or inheritance of their own) and the aliens, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns may come and eat and be satisfied, and so that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.” Some may ask why God requires us to offer tithes while He has all things in the Universe as His own. However, tithes clearly define the relationship of giving and taking between God and us. God requires us to offer tithes to Him. He promises that He will throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that we will not have room enough for it if we bring the whole tithe to God. What will happen if God opens the floodgates of heaven? We can’t handle overflowing blessing from heaven. Even in these tough economic times, if God opens the floodgates of heaven and pours out so much blessing, we can live a life without any lack. At present, our society is insecure and fluctuates so the economic situation is very tough in Korea. However, as ten million Korean Christians begin to pray to God, He will open the floodgates of heaven to pour out His blessing on us. God will decide which blessing He will give, but He will pour out mighty blessing like mannah. Deuteronomy 28:12 says, “The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none.” When God opens the floodgates of heaven, He will pour out so much blessing and prosperous life on us. In God’s blessing, He says, “I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit." When locusts and caterpillars cover the whole field, they ate up every green thing in their land, they ate up the produce of their soil. Thus the disaster of locusts is very terrifying. However, if God removes the disaster of locusts in our life, all crops will not fail but grow well and we will be rich and prosperous. Psalm 127:1 says, “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchmen stand guard in vain.” Only when God builds the house, it will be firmly established and if He watches over our country, it will be securely kept. Therefore, we should follow Him all the time to live with His abundant blessing. Proverbs 3:9-10 says, “Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” When we read the Word of God, it is evident He does not want us to live in poverty, nakedness, or hunger. He never desires a poverty-stricken life with nakedness and starvation for us. Rather God wants that a good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into our laps. We Christians first receive blessings and grace and share them with our neighbors; then God’s love will be delivered to them. Through our tithes our faith will be tested. If we do not offer tithes, we steal God’s money! Haggai 2:8 says, “'The silver is mine and the gold is mine,' declares the LORD Almighty.” 1 Chronicles 29:12 says, “Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things. In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.” Leviticus 27:30 says, "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.” Our life itself belongs to God, doesn’t it? As our life is His, how can we say that all our possessions belong to us only? God takes good care of us by His mighty power so we should know that we ourselves belong to God. The Lord says that our whole country is being cursed due to our theft of God’s things. We are cursed as we steal what belongs to God. Malachi 3:7-9 says, “‘Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,’ says the LORD Almighty. But you ask, 'How are we to return?' ‘Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' ‘In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse--the whole nation of you--because you are robbing me.’” If we refuse to offer tithes to God, it means that we are robbing Him. Then God will put us under a curse. We can test God to know how important our whole tithes are. If we offer tithes willingly, God will pour out so much blessing that we will not have room enough for it. Malachi 3:10-12 says, “‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,’ says the LORD Almighty.” Some may say that our faith is spiritual, not material. You know, heavens and earth are all material. As every visible thing comes out of all invisible things in this world, it is very foolish to say that the visible do not belong to God. We can test whether God gives us blessing or not when we offer our whole tithes to Him. God never allows us to test Him except concerning tithes. However, He permits us to test Him through tithes. You know, to offer tithes is not easy for us. We may be reluctant to offer it as we think that we offer our own material things to God. However, if we overcome our stinginess and offer tithes willingly, God will recognize it and reward us. When Abraham got his son Isaac at the age of 100. He really took good care of him. “Oh, my precious son, where are you from?” He dearly loved his son. Then God said to Abraham, “Abraham! Abraham! Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about." Any ordinary father might strongly resist, saying, “I can’t do this. I don’t know about this. It is totally beyond my ability. Over my dead body!” Abraham had to face an enormous trial. God tested Abraham to know whether he would be qualified to be called the father of faith. Abraham kept this silent from his wife because she would not have allowed him to take their precious son as a sacrifice. Abraham said to Isaac, “As God wants us to offer sacrifice, let’s go together.” Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering and placed it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife and walked for three days to the mountain of Moriah. He determined to serve God whether it meant life or death, prosperity or destruction. He asked his servants to stay there and he took his son to the mountain top. As the two of them went on together, Isaac said to his father Abraham, "Father? The fire and wood are here, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?" Abraham answered, "God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son." When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there with his son. Then he said to his son, “Today I have to kill you. God said to me that you would be the sacrifice He wanted.” What might his son say at that time? “Oh my, my father surely has dementia as I was born to him at the age of 100.” Abraham might have been 110 years old at this point. Isaac could have said, “I think my father is sane, but he is now trying to slay me due to dementia. What are you doing now? You have lived a long life so why don’t you become a sacrifice instead of me?” However, Isaac had great faith. As he had lived under the great parents of faith, their faith was grained into him. He said, “As God commanded you to do this, you should obey Him. I will become a sacrifice.” Isaac lay himself down on the altar. He closed his eyes. You know, to offer a burnt offering, one must first cut the animal’s throat. Abraham took the knife to slay his son, but the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham! Do not lay a hand on the boy. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son." Abraham must receive God’s praise as he willingly tried to sacrifice his only son to God. He deserved it. However, we tend to serve God without any sacrifice. Nevertheless, God is always with us and grants good things to us without reserve. We must give thanks to Him. Through the life of Abraham, God manifests His kingdom on earth; we must imitate his faith. Matthew 6:24 says, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” When we seek something from God, if we have robbed God, we can’t pray with faith. If we pray to God while robbing Him of our tithes and offerings and being possessed by our greed and evil desires, faith never happens. We plant the visible to God and expect to harvest from Him. People who try to only reap without sowing will be led to the path of destruction in the end because of greed. Tithing is confession of faith that acknowledges that everything is God’s. In addition, it is the way that people of God position themselves to receive blessings given by God. Through “the law of sowing and reaping,” I hope that all of you will enjoy blessings where you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well this year. Since I have believed in Jesus Christ and heard about tithes, I have never robbed God of tithes until now as long as I know. I have offered tithes faithfully. Therefore, as I have traveled around the world more than 100 times to preach the gospel, God has always sent materials more than enough. When I test God’s promises in the Bible, I can prove that He is able to do immeasurably more than all I ask or imagine. When you listen to this message and begin to live a life of faith that has no lie and that God recognizes your faithful love for Him, your prayer will be answered!