New believers usually meet this question early, and often in an uncomfortable form. It is worth separating what Scripture says, what churches practise, and what should make you cautious.

Where the ten percent comes from

The tithe was part of the law given to Israel, and it functioned partly as taxation: it supported the priesthood, the festivals and the poor in a society without a state welfare system. It appears before the law as well, in the accounts of Abraham and Jacob.

Does it bind Christians

Churches differ, and honest teachers on both sides exist.

Some hold the tithe as a continuing standard and a useful baseline. Others hold that the New Testament nowhere repeats it as a command and instead teaches proportional, deliberate, cheerful giving, which for some people will be far more than a tenth and for others, at some seasons, much less.

What is not in dispute is the direction. The New Testament assumes believers give, give regularly, and give in a way that costs something.

How it works in practice

Most congregations pass a plate or offer a bank transfer, and treat giving as something members do rather than something visitors are asked for. Nobody should be checking what you put in, and a church that publishes individual giving amounts has crossed a line.

If you are in debt, supporting family, or out of work, give what you can and say so to a leader if you are troubled by it. No healthy church wants members impoverishing themselves or their dependants.

Questions worth asking

Who sees the accounts. Whether the person who preaches also controls the money. Whether there is an annual report members can read. Whether more than one signature is needed to spend.

These are ordinary governance questions, and a congregation that finds them offensive has answered you.

Warning signs

Teaching that giving guarantees financial return. Pressure applied publicly or repeatedly. Leaders with a standard of living the congregation cannot account for. Amounts recorded and compared. Any suggestion that giving affects your standing with God rather than the work of the church.

Generous giving is a genuine and joyful part of Christian life. Anything that turns it into a transaction has changed it into something else. If you are still choosing a church, the directory is a place to start and the questions section is where to ask.