Generational Transfer of Finance
God is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He reveals Himself as the God of three generations, because He is interested in the continuity of generations who know Him and His ways.
Abraham was a wealthy man. Wealth was God’s intended purpose for inheritance (wealth) to provide a blessing for subsequent generations (Deuteronomy 8:18). But in order for this to take place, it is important that we follow God’s ways.
In Haggai 1:6 (Amplified translation), the prophet writes, “You have sown much but you reap little; you eat, but you do not have enough; you drink, but you do not have your fill; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; you earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.“ This situation is not unlike our situation today, especially in the area of earning wages just to put them in a bag with holes in it! Many people live from paycheque to paycheque, and some accumulate debt in between.
What was the prophet’s response? Verse 7: “Thus says the Lord of Hosts: ‘Consider your ways!‘“ God wants us to know His ways, because our ways and His ways can be quite different – especially when it pertains to finances. Isaiah 53:6 states that we all like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way. When we go our own way in any area of our lives, we are headed for disaster.
Now, God’s ways of finance require us to know something. God has given us His Word for instruction in finances. When His word is put into practice, there will be results.
Now, God’s ways of finance require us to know something. God has given us His Word for instruction in finances. When His word is put into practice, there will be results. He has given us Life, which gives us Time, which we exchange for Money in the form of wages. God’s desire is for us to use money in a way that it will work for us to produce Riches. These riches can be used to create Wealth. Physical wealth is to be part of an “inheritance for our children’s children” (Proverbs 13:22). In order for this to take place, God’s ownership has to be established in our lives. Following His ways of finance places Him as our source, and tithing is His first way.
In Malachi 3:6-11, the prophet is calling the people back to God’s ways. God had not changed (verse 6), the people had! They were robbing God by withholding their tithes and offerings, so God was robbed of the opportunity to protect their finances and bless them. They were choosing death, along with lack of finances. Verse 9 states that they were cursed, which means to “invoke evil upon.“ God is not in the business of cursing people. When we look at the literal Hebrew text, it reads, “You yourself have cursed yourself!“ When they got outside of God’s ways, they were consigned to the world’s system which was designed by the devil so that we could get our needs met without God. It is a system driven by greed that brings recession, inflation and all manner of conditions that consign people to poverty and a “not enough” mentality.
The return of our tithe is a celebration of our covenant with God. He wants to stop the financial destruction that is taking place in people’s lives, but He requires us to walk in His ways.
In Malachi’s day, the children of Israel had departed from God’s ways. “‘Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house. And try Me now in this,‘ says the Lord of hosts, ‘If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes’” (Malachi 3:10-11). The return of our tithe is a celebration of our covenant with God. He wants to stop the financial destruction that is taking place in people’s lives, but He requires us to walk in His ways.
God doesn’t need our money, He needs our hearts! When we return the tithe to Him, it becomes ‘treasures’ to us, and in Matthew 6:21 it states that “where our treasure is, there our heart will be also.“ Money wants to become a god and replace the living God as our source. We are trying to serve two masters, but Matthew 6:24 says we cannot serve God and mammon (money). Operating in God’s ways of finances puts a hedge of protection around us so that the world’s system does not control them.
As we learn to operate in God’s ways of finances, we can teach our children by demonstrating our trust in God’s faithfulness and provision. Then our children will also understand God’s ways and choose to walk in them, and generational transfer will start to take place.
Earl is the author of Wealth, Riches & Money. With over 25 years of teaching God’s principles of finance around the world, Earl has helped thousands of people understand how to walk in financial freedom.
