Of course Ray addresses this very well and Gena you made an excellent point about money not being a tithable commodity, here is a bit of Ray's "Tithing is Unscriptural" paper; MONEY AND THE BELIEVER
There is not one example of anyone tithing MONEY to anyone in the entirety of the Bible! The only reference to "money" with regards to tithing has absolutely nothing to do with paying tithes ON money. It is found in Deut. 14:24-26, which we shall now read in it’s entirety:
"And if the way be too long for thee [to the place where God placed His name to be worshipped, especially during the fall feast harvest of tabernacles] so that you are not able to carry it [the tithe of their farm produce] or if the place be too far from you, which the Lord your God shall choose to set His name there, when the Lord your God has blessed you: Then shall you turn it [the tithe of their farm produce] into money, and bind up the money in your hand, and shall go unto the place which the Lord your God shall choose: And you shall bestow that money [to the preachers? to the church? NO…] …for whatsoever thy soul lusts after [Heb: ‘for whatsoever your heart desires’], for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong drink, or for whatsoever your soul desires: and you shall eat there before the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice, you, and your household."
Farm products could be sold and turned into money when long travel was necessary. But at the destination where God placed His name, the money was spent on food for the Levite, stranger, fatherless, poor, etc. It was not presented to the Levites as a monetary gift.
Here is an easy to understand Scripture explaining what the purpose of the tithe was:
"And the Levite, (because he has no part nor inheritance with you), and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, which are within your gates, shall come, and shall EAT [food from the land] and be satisfied; that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hand which you do" (Deut. 14:29).
The Church would prefer you not know the following:
The tradesmen who made the baskets for harvesting, did not tithe.
The cobblers, who made the shoes for the servants of the field, did not tithe.
The carpenters, who made the wagons used for harvesting the fields, did not tithe.
The potters, who made the jugs for carrying water to the servants in the fields, did not tithe.
The women, who made the garments for the field-workers, did not tithe.
And certainly, the servants who worked in the fields for wages, did not tithe.
Here are the simple facts regarding the Biblical teaching of tithing:
ONLY LANDOWNERS TITHED
ONLY PRODUCTS OF THE LAND WERE TITHED
ONLY LEVITES COULD RECEIVE THE TITHES
TITHING WAS A LAW OF MOSES
CHRISTIANS ARE NOT UNDER THE LAW OF MOSES!
Does anyone have a Scripture that contradicts what I have just said?
By the way, Jesus Christ was a carpenter by trade, and as such, JESUS DID NOT TITHE!
http://www.bible-truths.com/tithing.htmlAnd we all know there is no Temple or Levitical priesthood serving this Old Covenant Temple, it has been destroyed and replaced with a better Covenant. Our Lord and Saviour.