by John P. Pratt
3 Aug 2021
©2021 by John P. Pratt. All rights reserved.
Introduction to the new revelation on tithing and the law of consecration.
Note: This is a reprint of an article published on Sun 1 Aug 2021 as an official message from the First Presidency of the Reborn LDS Church in The Herald magazine.A new revelation was received beginning on 30 June 2021 which clarifies some important points about the law of tithing and the law of consecration as implemented in the United Order. It also emphasizes the need to immediately begin to live consecration at a higher level because the law is designed to save the saints from the catastrophes which are about to befall the world. The need to build cities of refuge before the calamities befall us is now as important as it was for Noah to build the ark before the waters of the Great Flood came.
In the days of Enoch, his people learned to live together in love. They had all things in common and there were no poor among them. They lived the celestial law of heaven and so they were prepared to go to heaven and were eventually translated some time before the Great Flood.
Noah was called upon to build an ark to save those who would listen to the warnings of the Lord. It was a huge project to build that gigantic ship. It required large sums of materials and labor and took several years to build. The Lord did not build the ark for Noah, but instead great sacrifices were required to construct that ship which would preserve humanity and animals alike.
We live in times similar to Noah, being before the coming of the second great destruction of the proud and the wicked to cleanse the earth in preparation for the glorious Millennial reign of Jesus Christ. Great destructions are predicted in the scriptures, but the Lord has promised that His saints will be preserved in holy places, cities of refuge, built by those who believe His warnings and who also desire to live the celestial law of having all things in common, with no poor among them. The Lord will not build these cities, but, like the ark, they will be built by the sacrifice and hard work of the saints.
The Lord has called Mauricio Artur Berger to be the seer in these last days to initiate the building of cities of refuge and to prepare for the founding of the city of Zion, the New Jerusalem, to be built in Jackson County, Missouri. Much money and many resources are required for these building projects. Those in the city of Enoch will return to join them. They will all rejoice together because both cities will be living the same laws and will have similar experiences to share.
This article explains some of the clarifications given in the recent revelation about both the law of tithing and the law of consecration which need to be implemented in order to build the needed cities of refuge in time to save the saints from the devastating disasters, scourges, and droughts to come.
In the days of the Prophet Joseph Smith, an attempt was made to live the United Order. It failed for various reasons, including that the people did not have sufficient love for each other, but instead were quarreling and polluting the holy ground. Because of that they were driven out of Missouri and given the law of tithing which was easier to live, and a preparatory step to living the law of consecration.
In 1838 the Lord revealed to Joseph Smith the law of tithing for the Church contained in D&C 119 (LDS). It is an everlasting covenant and the minimum required commandment to all worthy members of the Church. That law has two distinct parts.
The first part is that, as a beginning of their tithes, all new members were to give all of their surplus to the church to be used for three purposes: (1) for the building of the temple, (2) for the laying of the foundations of Zion and priesthood, and (3) for the debts of the First Presidency (D&C 119:2). The new revelation explains that these three purposes correspond in detail to tithing paid in the days of Moses, and are indeed part of an eternal law.
This initial part of the law has apparently never been fully implemented in any of the branches of the restoration since the days of Joseph Smith, but in the new revelation the Lord explicitly states that it is indeed still to be required of all those who join this church who have never been a member of any of the branches of the latter-day restoration.
The second portion of the law of tithing is to continually "pay one-tenth of all their interest annually" (D&C 119:4). The revelation goes on to say that this is "a standing law unto them forever" and that those in Zion who fail to keep this law "shall not be found worthy to abide among you" and that if the people in Zion as a whole ignore this law, that "it shall not be a land of Zion unto you" (D&C 119:4-6).
The new revelation emphasizes the importance for all members to pay tithing. It is not optional, but it is a commandment. After quoting the commandment in Malachi to bring the tithes into the treasure house (Mal. 3:10), the Lord explains:
"It is imperative, therefore, to comprehend the essence of my will that ye might receive the full understanding of all things — One of the duties that all saints must unfailingly observe is the law upon which this promise is based, for in the celestial glory there are three heavens, or degrees, and to reach the highest, it is necessary for you to live in favor of something greater, with a corresponding surrender to what is sought in order to reach that end." — v. 12 (emphasis added).
In 1838, immediately after that revelation was given, it was interpreted by Bishop Edward Partridge to mean that tithing should be 10% of the interest that could be earned on one's "net worth", which was understood to mean one's liquid assets. That did not amount to very much tithing at all for most members. He gave the example of a man with the net worth of $1,000 could invest that money at a 6% annual rate to earn $60 interest. On that amount he would only pay $6 tithing for the entire year!
That small amount of tithing would not be at all oppressive to the poor, who, in many cases, would not owe any tithing at all. Moreover, this minimum amount of tithing would not be enough to build the cities of refuge which are needed. This minimum level of tithing is an eternal law among the Church. It was given to the Church only after they had failed to live the higher law of consecration. The name "tithing of surplus" is given to this law in the new revelation to distinguish it from the "tithing of Moses" which was a higher law, described in the law of Moses in the Bible, and which is the entry point for living the law of consecration. This brings us to the higher law of consecration as implemented in the United Order.
The Sealed Book contains explicit instructions about how to implement the United Order according to the method successfully used by the Nephites after they were taught by the Savior after the Resurrection. In particular it states that the entry level to the United Order was the "tithing of Moses":
"it was permitted to be a partial consecration of each family, beginning with the tithing required by the law of Moses, and so progressively to the amount that each agreed to give in his heart, without any resentment ... began by consecrating only the tithe of all that they possessed and continually giving the tithing of all they produced" — Acts of 3 Nephites 9:2-3.
Thus, it is necessary to understand just what is the "tithing of Moses" as described in the law of Moses in the Bible. That is explained in the new revelation:
"... the law of consecration, which law is greater than the law of tithing and which begins with the law of Moses and not the law of surplus. In turn, it requires a progressive tithe of everything and not the excess surplus" — v. 7 (emphasis added).
After reviewing the scriptures about the various parts of the tithing of Moses, verse 19 of the new revelation quotes this very verse from The Sealed Book. It also explains the principle is the basis on which the "one tenth" is calculated. Instead of being one tenth only of one's interest, surplus, or excess, it is one tenth of all possessions:
"However, every member who wants to participate in the law of consecration must begin with the tithe of Moses, coming to contribute with the tithe of everything they have, as taught by my servant Mauricio. And this involves the tithe of everything, houses, cars and goods in general, or 20, 30, 40, 50, and even 100% of everything that they have, who will enter the United Order, as each one shall determine in his heart." — v. 27.
In this scripture, the word "tithe" is synonymous with "one tenth". Once members have joined the United Order, it is hoped that as they feel increased love for others and increased desire to build the kingdom, to relieve the suffering of the poor, and to prepare cities of refuge for the saints to survive the coming tribulation, that they will increase the percentage of their participation until they finally arrive at the 100% goal.
To join the United Order, contact the Presiding Bishop (bishopinzion@gmail.com) if you have not already joined previously. The United Order is open to all those who have been baptized by one of the restoration branches, accept The Sealed Book, Mauricio as the Lord's seer, the Church leaders, and demonstrate this by partaking of the sacrament in this Church's meetings. That is, it is not necessary to have been baptized and confirmed a member of this Church, especially in the case where one is distant from all elders, or for any other reason has not had the opportunity to officially join.
In the revelation, the Lord refers to those who participate in the United Order at the 100% level as having entered into the "United Order of Enoch", or simply, the "Order of Enoch". He states that it has been known in the restoration from the beginning that the city of Zion can only be founded upon the principles of the celestial kingdom:
But behold, they have not learned to be obedient to the things which I required at their hands, but are full of all manner of evil, and do not impart of their substance, as becometh saints, to the poor and afflicted among them; And are not united according to the union required by the law of the celestial kingdom; And Zion cannot be built up unless it is by the principles of the law of the celestial kingdom; otherwise I cannot receive her unto myself. — D&C 105:3-5 (emphasis added).
Concerning finances, that means that the people are to have all things in common, with no poor among them. He emphasizes that His laws are immutable and that such has been required of all his people from the beginning, and is required to qualify for the highest level of the celestial kingdom. The Lord explains that:
"... only on condition of letting go of their possessions altogether, in order to advance the cause of Zion, is it that man exercises in his heart the highest of all gifts, that of promoting my kingdom for the benefit of his fellow men, which, in turn, qualifies them to bear my presence, just as it was among the Enochians and also among the Nephites." — v. 17.
Consider an example of what it would mean to be at the 100% level when the system is entirely in place: imagine a Native American buffalo hunting party. The buffalo may be taken by just one member of the group, or several might have shot arrows or thrown spears. Moreover, other members might have helped head the buffalo in a certain direction to allow others to shoot it. When the buffalo is killed, it is not considered to be for one man, nor even for the group of hunters, but it is considered to be for all of the village to share. If killed by one man, he does not think he owns it, having the first choice of meat, but instead the entire buffalo is delivered to those who will prepare it to be shared according to the needs of each. Thus, in the same manner, all that is produced is for Zion, given because of the love had for each other. All prosper together.
Of course, it is expected that all contribute to producing or helping according to their abilities. The Lord has said, "Thou shalt not be idle; for he that is idle shall not eat the bread nor wear the garments of the laborer" (D&C 42:42). Again, if all love each other, then all will want to contribute what they can.
So what does it mean to be at the 100% level now? The Acts of the Three Nephites explain that in practice, they did not always give all they produced, only to then receive a portion back for themselves. It was more practical to keep for oneself what was necessary to sustain life, such as food, clothing, and shelter:
We understand that the law of Christ does not require us to sacrifice everything, it only requires us to live the basic principles of consecration in which we are required that our riches be available to the Lord, and that, while we retain some part of everything we produce in our own warehouses, yet the Lord expects us to be willing, if need be, to sacrifice our houses, lands, and estates, so that there may be a just distribution of riches. — Acts 3 Nephites 9:8.
The point was that they "consecrated" everything thing they had to the group. Moreover, they considered themselves not as owners of their property, but only as "stewards". Remember, "the earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof" (Psa. 24:1, 1 Cor. 10:26). That is, in reality, we are only stewards of what is usually considered as being "owned". The Order of Enoch is merely a formal recognition that we are indeed only stewards.
As for details concerning exactly what is the basis on which the 10% -100% of what one produces is calculated, the revelation states that such is up to each individual to determine according to the dictates of one's own heart (v. 27). The point is emphasized, however, that the primary foundation is the love one has for others, and the desire to alleviate their suffering, both now and when the great calamities come. The example of Ananias and Sapphira is cited, who stated publicly that they were giving all the proceeds from the sale of some land, whereas actually they were holding some back because they did not fully trust in the promises of the Lord to care for them. They both died on the spot where they lied to the Lord!
As for the poor who need to receive financial aid from the Order, that will be a matter taken up individually in each case following the pattern given in the Acts of the Three Nephites.
It is hoped that all Church members may understand the necessity of joining the United Order at the highest level at which they feel capable. It is also important to remember that the minimum for all members is to pay the tithing of surplus.
This article has only been an introduction and overview of the revelation, which has been published separately. Study it carefully because it contains several pages of detailed information about these laws, and also about both the need to participate in order to be protected from the coming calamities and also the blessings which will come from having helped build the cities of refuge.
The Lord is doing all He can to prepare us for the upcoming catastrophes, but we need to do our part by accepting His revelations and acting accordingly. May we all become of one heart and one mind and prepare ourselves and our children to actually be in the presence of the Lord.