Jesus talked about money more than almost any other topic. Not to make you feel guilty. Not because He wanted your wallet. He talked about it because He knew that money has a way of sitting in the exact spot in our hearts where God is supposed to live. Where trust in God is supposed to live.

So let’s talk about it.

This is a controversial topic and I know it. A lot of churches have got this SO wrong. A lot of people have been manipulated by bad theology around money, and I don’t take that lightly. So before we go any further, I want to be clear about what this post is and what it isn’t.

This isn’t a prosperity gospel message. If that’s what you’re looking for, this isn’t your post. It also isn’t a guilt trip. This is an honest look at what scripture says and what surrender in the area of money actually costs us.

Take everything I say back to the Word. I’m fallible. I can get it wrong. Study this for yourself and ask God to give you discernment.

Okay. Let’s dive in.

What Is Tithing and Where Does It Come From?

Tithing is not a New Testament invention. It’s not a church fundraising scheme. The idea goes all the way back to the beginning of scripture.

The first recorded tithe is Abraham giving a tenth to Melchizedek in Genesis 14:20, before the Mosaic law existed, before Israel was even a nation. This was a man responding to God’s provision with an act of first-fruit giving.

“And Abraham gave him a tenth of everything.” — Genesis 14:20 (ESV)

The law of Moses later formalized tithing as part of Israel’s covenant obligations. Leviticus 27:30 establishes the tithe as holy to the Lord. Deuteronomy 14:22-23 connects it to learning to fear God.

Then there’s Malachi 3:10, the passage where God essentially says, test me on this one.

“Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.” — Malachi 3:10 (ESV)

This is the only place in all of scripture where God invites us to test Him. That’s not casual language. He’s saying, get serious about this. Go try to prove me wrong and see what happens.

I’ve tested God in this area. A lot. And I can tell you, He has never failed to show up. God gives us a hundred percent of what’s His. All He’s asking is for ten percent back, trusting Him to do more with it than we could do with the whole thing.

What Did Jesus Actually Say About Tithing?

The debate for New Testament believers is whether tithing is still required. Here’s what Jesus said directly.

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.” — Matthew 23:23 (ESV)

Jesus is not telling the Pharisees to stop tithing. He’s rebuking them for using tithing as a substitute for justice, mercy, and faithfulness. The phrase He uses is “without neglecting the others.” He expects both. The heart matters and the tithe matters.

This is the only place in the Gospels where Jesus speaks directly to tithing. He doesn’t abolish it. He reframes it. Tithing isn’t a box to check. It’s a practice that belongs inside a life of genuine trust.

The word tithe literally means tenth. Ten percent of your income given to your local church is the traditional understanding, and it’s a reasonable benchmark even for New Testament believers. But the New Testament doesn’t lower the bar. Paul’s instruction in 2 Corinthians 9 actually calls us higher.

“The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” — 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 (ESV)

The posture Paul is calling us to is generosity, not minimum compliance.

If you’re in a season where tithing ten percent feels impossible right now, start with one percent. It’s not full obedience, but it’s a starting point. Watch what God does when you begin to loosen your grip, even just a little. That’s between you and God. But go study this in scripture and ask yourself honestly how much you trust Him.

Generosity Beyond the Tithe

The tithe is the floor, not the ceiling.

In Luke 21:1-4, Jesus watches people bring offerings to the temple treasury. Rich people are throwing in large amounts. Then a poor widow drops in two small coins. Jesus says she gave more than all of them, not because the amount was larger, but because it cost her everything.

She gave from scarcity while they gave from surplus. She trusted God with what she had. That’s the posture Jesus honors. Not performance. Not optics. The honest, surrendered act of giving what you actually have.

In 2 Corinthians 8, Paul describes a church in extreme poverty that somehow gave beyond what anyone expected. He says they gave themselves first to the Lord, and the offering followed the surrender. That sequence matters.

Generosity that flows from a surrendered heart is an act of worship. Generosity that’s trying to earn something is a transaction. They look the same from the outside but they’re completely different on the inside.

The goal isn’t a specific number. The goal is a heart that holds money loosely enough to give freely.

One more thing on this. When you give, it’s not your job to police what happens to the money. That’s between the leaders and God. Your job is obedience. I know that’s easier said than done, especially if you’ve been burned by a church before. But once I understood that my obedience and someone else’s faithfulness with that money are two separate things, it shifted everything for me.

Contentment and Breaking the Fear of Lack

Jesus said in Matthew 6:21 that where your treasure is, your heart is also. This works in reverse too. Where your heart is, your money follows. Your spending and giving habits are a pretty honest map of what you actually believe.

Fear of lack is one of the most powerful forces that keeps people from generous living. What if I give this and something goes wrong? Or what if I need it? What if it’s not enough?

Proverbs 3:9-10 doesn’t start with a command. It starts with an invitation.

“Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty.” — Proverbs 3:9-10 (ESV)

Honor the Lord with your wealth. That’s a posture, not a transaction.

Paul writes in Philippians 4:11 that contentment is something he learned. It’s not a personality trait. It’s a practiced discipline.

“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” — Philippians 4:11-13 (ESV)

That last verse gets pulled out of context constantly. Paul isn’t talking about achievement or athletic performance. He’s talking about contentment in poverty. The strength he’s drawing on is the strength to be at peace when there isn’t enough by the world’s standard. That is where we need to operate from.

Contentment is easy when everything is stable. The real test is when all the bills hit at the same time, when income drops, when unexpected expenses show up. This is where trust becomes visible.

Contentment doesn’t mean pretending everything is fine. It means: I don’t have everything I want, but I trust God with what I have.

And please, please remember this. Comparison is the enemy of contentment. Social media has made discontent feel completely normal. You see someone else’s house, income, lifestyle, and suddenly what God has given you feels small. But comparison will always make provision feel like lack. Contentment restores perspective. And contentment is what frees your hands to give.

You cannot be generous if you believe you never have enough.

Financial Faithfulness and Eternal Purpose

Jesus draws a direct line in Luke 16:10-11 between how we handle money and what we can be trusted with spiritually.

“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?” — Luke 16:10-11 (ESV)

True riches. That’s the language Jesus uses. Money is practice ground for something bigger.

The person who tithes faithfully when they’re broke is building something in their spirit that cannot be built any other way. They’re learning that God is enough. That He is in charge. And that practice doesn’t stop mattering when the income grows. It becomes the foundation for everything else.

Your money is already building something. The question isn’t whether it’s shaping you. It’s what it’s shaping. Comfort? Status? Security? Or the kingdom of God? Every dollar is a vote for what matters most to you.

And to be clear, there’s nothing wrong with enjoying what God gives you. Having material wealth and using it isn’t a sin. As long as it isn’t an idol. You were likely given resources to help expand the kingdom. That’s a good thing. But stewardship asks: am I investing in things that last, or only things that fade?

How to Actually Steward Your Finances Day to Day

Stewardship isn’t just about what leaves your hands. It’s also about what stays. You can tithe and still be financially chaotic. That isn’t stewardship. That’s partial obedience. And I say that as someone who lived that way for a very long time and is just now really starting to climb out of it.

Here’s what financial stewardship actually looks like in practice.

Give first, not last.

Tithing isn’t what you do with what’s left over. It’s what you do first. My husband and I both have inconsistent income from our businesses, so we don’t tithe weekly or monthly. We tithe every single time money hits our account. It’s the first thing. That means we’re not accidentally spending what belongs to God, and it keeps our trust in the right place before anything else gets paid.

Live below your means.

This is hard. But contentment shows up in your lifestyle choices. Not everything you can afford is something you’re called to have.

Build structure to eliminate financial anxiety.

Budgets aren’t restrictive, they’re clarity. You don’t need a complicated system, you just need awareness. My husband and I have a weekly money meeting even though we’re in two different countries. We talk through what’s coming up, write down anything we forgot about, and make sure we’re on the same page. It feels restrictive at first. It has actually been incredibly freeing because we’re not constantly stressed about what’s coming.

Avoid debt that owns you.

Scripture speaks clearly about debt being a form of bondage. I’m not here to judge you on this. I’m in quite a bit of debt myself, some of it sitting in collections from choices I made when I didn’t know better. The goal isn’t perfection. It’s movement toward freedom.

Practice everyday generosity.

Generosity isn’t a one-time thing. It’s a pattern, a way of living. It can look like paying for someone’s meal, giving when it’s inconvenient, meeting needs quietly, supporting people consistently. It can also look like giving your time or skills instead of money. I used to charge two to three thousand dollars for social media management packages. Now I volunteer that skill for causes I care about. That’s how I live generously right now. You work with what you have.

Every time you give, you remind your heart: God is my source. Not this money. Not this income. Him.

Questions to Sit With

Pull out a journal and actually answer these. Don’t just read them and move on.

1. Do I trust God with my money, or just with my words?
2. Am I giving first, or giving what’s left?
3. Does my spending reflect my actual priorities?
4. Am I living in fear of lack?
5. Where am I holding on too tightly?

A 30-Day Stewardship Challenge

This isn’t a requirement. But if you want to actually move on this stuff, here’s a practical starting point.

Step 1: Start giving. If you’re not tithing, pick a percentage and begin. Even if it’s one percent. If you feel convicted to go straight to ten, be obedient to God. The point is to start.

Step 2: Track your money for 30 days. Not to judge yourself. Just to see clearly. You cannot steward what you won’t look at.

Step 3: Practice intentional generosity every week for 30 days. Even if it’s small. Build the habit.

Money isn’t the enemy, the love of money is. And the antidote to the love of money isn’t poverty. It’s generosity. It’s a practiced, regular, intentional giving back to God of the first portion of what He gave you.

Stewardship doesn’t live in a spreadsheet. It lives in surrender.

A Prayer to Close

Heavenly Father, thank You for this time in Your Word on a topic that’s hard for a lot of us. I pray that You would set our hearts on fire for You and bring clarity on what You’re calling each of us to do. Whether we agree with everything here or not, I pray that You would reach out and release us from past pain, guilt, and shame around money. Help us to trust You regardless of our circumstances. Thank You for all You’ve done, all You’re doing, and all You will do. In Jesus’ name, amen.

If you want to work through financial stewardship in community with other women who are figuring this out in real time, come join us in the STWRD Collective. This is where we do the actual work together.

Find me on Instagram at @karleighwalkswithjesus or reach out at karleighwalkswithjesus@gmail.com.

I love you. God loves you. Now go check your bank account and have a conversation with God about what you find.

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