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Question 4

Irenaeus is quoted saying that instead of tithes, “Jesus taught us to share all our possessions with the poor,” and Bercot says this creates “no minimum” and “no limit”; how does that way of thinking confront the modern instinct to ask, “What’s the least I must give and still be okay with God?”

Another way to ask: Irenaeus says Jesus taught sharing all we have with the poor, with no minimum or maximum amount. How does that challenge the idea of giving “the least I can” and still feeling okay with God?

Direct Answer According to Bercot, the early Christian/New Testament mindset replaces “minimum requirements” with a much larger obligation: to share generously, especially with the poor, based on love and real need. That confronts the “least I must give” instinct by saying the question itself is backward—Jesus points us toward open-handed sharing, not a finished quota.

Support from Transcript:

Irenaeus: “Instead of the law commanding the giving of tithes, Jesus taught us to share all our possessions with the poor.”
Bercot says this doesn’t mean giving less than Jews, but “there is no limit of what we are to give other than what we have.”
He states: “In Christ, there is no minimum,” so “If you give 6%, you’re not robbing God of 4%.”
He also says: giving 10% doesn’t mean “okay, now I’ve met my obligation,” because the obligation is “to help our brother in need.”
He ties it to earlier biblical teaching: 2 Cor. 9:7 (give as purposed, not of necessity) and to the broader emphasis on aiding the needy.

Discussion Follow-ups If the goal is meeting needs rather than meeting a percentage, what new questions should replace “What’s the minimum?” How do we keep that from turning into vague good intentions?

Jumpstarter 4 of 10