There’s been a lot of talk about the need for revival in the United States. There has been prayer.

The United States was formed on a Christian foundation, but has left that foundation. What will cause its return?

There have been people who have drawn parallels between the history of the children of Israel and the the United States.

One of the designs for the seal for the United States that had been considered was the children of Israel crossing the Red Sea.

The Apostle Paul admonishes New Testament believers to not forget the Old Testament, but to learn from it.

I Corinthians 10:1 Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea;

2 And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;

3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;

4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.

5 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown in the wilderness.

6 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted.

7 Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.

8 Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand.

9 Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents.

10 Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.

11 Now all these things happened unto them for examples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

In the Old Testament, the Lord warns against forgetting him after the people become prosperous.

Deuteronomy 8:10 When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee.

11 Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day:

12 Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein;

13 And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;

14 Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;

15 Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;

16 Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;

17 And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.

18 But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

19 And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them, and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish.

20 As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of the Lord your God.

The United States earlier on in its history, when it was closer to its Christian roots, became prosperous.  It would be fair to say that overall the nation forgot its history and its God.  This is not referring to individuals, as there are believers in every generation, but if you took an overall snapshot of the country lately, would you call it a Christian nation in an average day’s news and norms and entertainment and ways?

Throughout the Old Testament, similarly, the nation overall would get closer to God, then turn from the Lord, and the Lord would send prophets to call the nation back.  One of the last prophets was Malachi.  The Lord said this through Malachi.

Malachi 3:6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

7 Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?

The people are saying, how do we return to God?

Today we might say, what is a key to revival?

God always has an answer if we read the Word long enough and listen to his voice as he speaks through it.

Malachi 3:7 Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?

8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.

9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.

12 And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the Lord of hosts.

13 Your words have been stout against me, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee?

14 Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept his ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hosts?

15 And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.

16 Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon his name.

17 And they shall be mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.

18 Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.

Tithing is a key to returning.

Our words are also important.  We must speak in line with God’s Word.

But also, the laws of our land must speak according to the principles of God’s Word, they cannot speak contrary to God’s ways if we want to be blessed.

The tithe belongs to the local church.

There is plenty of talent and technology today to spread the gospel. But the cost of spreading it is not free.

Whether it is television air time, a big screen movie production, tracts, missionaries, Mercy Ships, medical missionary trips, local outreaches to the street, Bible events for children or anything, it costs money. And that should come out of the tithes and offerings of the church.

For example, both “The  Jesus Film Project” and “The Chosen” work to share the message of salvation through Jesus Christ in multiple languages.

Samaritan’s Purse has multiple outreaches throughout the world.

Here are some statistics on tithing. Among other things, it states that 5% of churchgoers tithe.

Perhaps the Lord cannot send the revival we ask for because we don’t have the nets and the infrastructure in place because overall, the church is not tithing.

If 1000 people came to your church today, and were born again today, could you send them away with a Bible and a plan to disciple them? Or would the net break?

The United States has prospered in the past. With that prosperity, did the church increase its tithing and giving overall?

And perhaps, as stated in Malachi, if we want to return to God nationally, we should seriously consider following God’s plan of tithes and offerings as the means of funding the work of his kingdom.

There are many churches. Find the one that God wants you to work with and be planted there and serve there and give there. Pray for the Lord to lead you to where that church is. That way you know your tithes are going where the Lord wants them to go.