I think I have provided enough answers on tithing on the platform than any other question I have had to answer. Always endeavour to read the answers I provide to other questions.

Well, the Bible does not say that when your money is not enough for you and your family, don't pay tithe but pay only when your money is sufficient for you.

If we understand that the tithe is God's own money we are giving back to Him, we'll always give it to Him and we will be afraid to use it.

In Malachi 3:8-11, God calls anyone who does not pay his tithe a robber because tithe is the Lord's money. He assures us that He'll rebuke the devourer if we pay our tithes. And if we don't pay our tithes, we are cursed with a curse.

Consider the following quotes:

HEBREWS CHAPTER SEVEN PART 1, 1957 PARAGRAPH 123

"Why would He ask Abraham to pay tithes? You see what a strict thing it is to pay tithes? Tithing is right. Every Christian is duty bound to pay tithe. That's right. Never has been changed.

GOD BEING MISUNDERSTOOD 1961 COD PARAGRAPH 111 Q.146

"All right, if you will... That is right, that the Bible said in Malachi the 4th chapter, 'Will a man Rob God? And you say, "Where have we robbed Thee?" In tithe and offerings. Bring all your tithe and offerings into My storehouse and prove Me," saith the Lord, "if I will not open up the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing that there'll not be room enough to receive."
That's a challenge to any individual. And if I only had the time, and would not get to this little Scripture that I wish to get to in about the next ten minutes , I would like to give you a personal testimony of how that I was even hungry, and my mother and them hungry, and my daddy sick, but I took my tithes out first and give it to God, and you ought to see what happened. I have never seen in my life, that any man or a woman, that if you only make one dollar a week, will bring the ten cents of that money and put it into your storehouse, your church where you come, if God don't bless that, call me a hypocrite. Yes, Sir. That's a challenge to anybody. And every Christian...That goes to this other question. Every Christian should pay tithes. That's right. It should be done."

Different pastors in the Message draw different inspirations from the Message of the Hour and from the prophet's personal life and end up doing things differently based on their level of their understanding of the Message.

Every pastor is accountable to God for the flock over which God has made him a shepherd. He's not accountable for another church. Every local assembly is independent and sovereign, the prophet said, and therefore should not do things based on what other sister churches do.

I have observed, with keen interest, how the prophet said the Angel that came to him was always clean-shaven.

A brother shaving off his beard should not be based on doctrine but on common decency.

In Genesis 41:14, when Pharaoh sent for Joseph to appear before him, Joseph did not only change his clothes to look presentable before the king, he shaved as well. It's gentlemanly to do that.

Genesis 41:14

"Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they quickly brought him out of ⁶the pit. And when he had shaved himself and changed his clothes, he came in before Pharoah.

61-1015M - Questions And Answers

191 Now, you wasn’t in no battle here, you was just slopping along. See?
But now, you’ve—you’ve cleaned up; you’ve dressed up; you’ve shaved; you’ve combed your hair; you put on a uniform; you’ve got a gun in your hand. “

Let’s go!” See? You’re in battle, not to show off, but to fight, fight! Sure when the temptations rise, with the Spirit, the shield of faith, buck it off, and move on. See? That’s right. Oh, put all the whole armor of God. Why do you put on a armor if you’re not going to fight? All soldiers are dressed to fight, not to show off,

walk out and say, “I’m So-and-so. Now, I’m a Christian. See who I am. I belong to so-and-so. Hallelujah! I got the Holy Ghost the other night. Sure, nothing bothers me anymore.” Huh-uh! Oh, brother, I—I believe you better go back and try again. See?

1st Timothy 5:1 reads "Rebuke not an elder, but entreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren."

All denominational churches and even some Message churches see elders as Officers of the church and not the Pastors/Bishops.

The prophet completely disagrees and gives a detailed explanation in the following quotes:

THE PERGAMEAN CHURCH AGE (An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages from page 197, last sentence, to page 198)

"Though Scripture shows that there are several elders in each church, some began (Ignatius among them) to teach that the idea of a Bishop was one of preeminence or authority and control over the elders. Now the truth of the matter is the Word 'elder' signifies who the person is, while the word 'bishop' signifies the office of the same man. The elder is the man. Bishop is the office of the man. 'Elder' always has and always will refer simply to a man's chronological age in the Lord. He is an elder, not because he is elected or ordained, etcetera, but because he IS OLDER. He is more seasoned, trained, not a novice, reliable because of experience and long standing proof of his Christian experience. But no, the bishops did not stick to the epistle of Paul, but rather they went to Paul's account of the time he called the elders from Ephesus to Miletus in Acts 20. In verse 17 the record states, 'elders' were called and then in verse 28 they are called overseers (bishops)."

In A RESUME OF THE AGES (An Exposition Of The Seven Church Ages page 369, last paragraph to page 370)

"The third age revealed by the Spirit of prophecy that the worldly church would adopt Nicholaitanism as a doctrine. The separation of the clergy from the laity grew from the Biblical truth of the elders (shepherds of local flocks) ruling the flock by the Word..."

HEBREWS CHAPTER 7 PART 2 1957

"But the full and complete authority of the church is the pastor. Read that in the Bible; see if that's not Bible order. That's exactly right. There's no one above the elder."

I hope the above quotes make you now realise that the words elder and pastor/bishop refer to the same person.

I'm glad you are observant and have the church at heart and think of its progress and growth.

Your question actually is not in bad taste because it's the duty of every member of the church to be interested in the growth of the church and in the things of the LORD since one day, the LORD will require from everyone of us, our stewardship.

On a couple of occasions, I have spoken to Officers concerning this very issue of making sure that their wives are always in church, especially, on Wednesday praying meetings, so that when they are encouraging others not to forsake fellowship, it will be leadership by example.

I'll continue to encourage every member of MSCC to always be in church because this is what the LORD expects of us.

Let's not be negatively influenced by the conducts of others. Let's always focus on the WORD and be influenced only by the WORD.

I have also observed that most members are too individualistic and do not have a warm welcoming spirit for visitors who come among us. I have addressed this a couple of times behind the pulpit. Let's get close among people who visit.

The rapture is very near and we can't afford to be disobedient to the WORD, or be lackadaisical about the things of God.

You are always welcome to let me know your concerns in the church. Pray for the ministry, pray for Officers, pray for the church.

Concerning John 20:23 and the question that was asked, I'll say that the Lord Jesus was talking about believers and not any other person. So therefore, He expects us to forgive our offenders, who are also believers, when they repent of their offences. In the likely event of the offender not repenting of his offence, what you will hold against him, will be upheld by the LORD. Heaven will recognise that. I, however, don't believe that if a person repents of his offences and asks for forgiveness, and the offended believer still does not forgive him, the LORD too will not forgive him. That Scripture is not saying that.

If you juxtapose John 20:23 with Mathew 6:14-15, John 20:23 will become clearer to you. We are supposed to forgive. So if we refuse to forgive, though our offenders have repented and have asked for forgiveness, the LORD will not hold that offence against our offenders.

Mathew 6:14-15
"For if ye forgive men their tresspasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."