Sunday keeping Churches and Tithing?

[Sojourner]

Someone I know learnt that I joined the Seventh-day Adventist Church and decided that it might be appropriate to warn me that SDA's are "Sabbath Keeping Legalists" He went on to a diatribe on how the SDA are focused on law keeping and that they do not fully understand the Grace element of the New Testament and so forth. I am guessing this is probably not new to you as you may well have had people make similar comments to yourself. 

 

I attempted to go through a small pamphlet I had ironically from the Seventh Day Baptist church on the Sabbath and why its still for today to no avail, so I went on to ask him this question. "How is it that your own church fellowship requires people to tithe 10% of their gross wage to the local church? Can you show me where God calls for Gentiles to do this in the New Testament? - Why does your main proof text and authority to do that seem to be Malachi 3:10 'bring the whole tithe into the storehouse?' What is the difference between the laws of the Old Testament on Tithing that make them still valid today to your church as opposed to God's commandment in the Old Testament to keep the sabbath?" 

 

I did not get a response to my question, I tried not to come across as rude or condescending with it, yet thought that its fair enough response when people want to make these types of accusations against the SDA. My observation of the SDA is that its not even remotely "legalist" in that sense of the word. I have visited some Sunday keeping churches over the years where I did get that impression, but have not even remotely experienced that here. 

 

[rudywoofs (Pam)]

tithing isn't *required*; rather, it is *encouraged* in order to support the church...