Original Need for Church Organization:

Without centralized funding, the Seventh-day Adventist Church could not have a unified worldwide mission. Initially, church organization was actively opposed by many of the founders of the SDA Church, for fear that it would lead to abuse and the restriction of religious freedom.  John Laughborough, for example, opposed church organization for these very reasons.  However, he soon changed his mind, and detailed the need and basis for church government in his 1907 work, The Church, Its Organization, Order and Discipline. He explained the need for setting up an organized and centralized church government as follows:

     As our numbers increased, it was evident that without some form of organization, there would be great confusion, and the work could not be carried forward successfully. To provide for the support of the ministry, for carrying on the work in new fields, for protecting both the church and ministry from unworthy members, for holding church property, for the publication of the truth through the press, and for other objects, organization was indispensable. (Loughborough, JN. Testimonies for the Church. No. 32, p. 30.)

Of course, this organization has allowed the SDA Church to act in a unified way to spread the Gospel all over the world through various ministries, including the establishment of schools and hospitals worldwide. This would not have been possible without a centralized method of financing, based on the concept of tithing.

There were those who resisted this kind of organization.

“One of the principal claims made by those who warred against organization was that it “abridged their liberty and independence, and that if one stood clear before the Lord that was all the organization needed,” etc… Upon this point, when church order was contested, we read: “Satan well knows that success only attend order and harmonious action. He well knows that everything connected with heaven is in perfect order, that subjection and thorough discipline mark the movements of the angelic host. . . .  He deceives even the professed people of God, and makes them believe that order and discipline are enemies to spirituality; that the only safety for them is to let each pursue his own course. . . .  All the efforts made to establish order are considered dangerous, a restriction of rightful liberty, and hence are feared as popery…

Superficially considered, this might seem to be a blessed state, a heaven indeed; but, as already noted on a preceding page, we read of heaven itself and its leadings that “the god of heaven is a god of order, and he requires all his followers to have rules and regulations to preserve order.” (Loughborough, JN. Testimonies for the Church. No. 32, p. 30.)

Tithe to Support Church Ministers:

Soon, it seemed clear to all that, if the SDA Church wished to move beyond the limitations of congregationalism, a centralized church government must be established and funded by a system of dedicated tithing that would be devoted to supporting the ministers of the church. Ellen White explained:

“The tithe is sacred, reserved by God for Himself. It is to be brought into His treasury to be used to sustain the gospel laborers in their work.” (EGW, Education, p. 44)

Acceptable Uses of the Tithe:

According to Ellen White, Tithe monies were specifically to be dedicated as follows:

• Salaries and expenses of ministers and Bible instructors. (1)

• Salaries and expenses of Bible teachers in our various educational institutions. (2)

• Salaries and expenses of minister-physicians. (3)

• Retirement benefits for gospel workers. (4)

• Needy mission fields, in North America and abroad. (5)

It should be clarified here that, for Ellen White, the “ministers” of the church, in “the generally-accepted sense of the word,” were men/women appointed by the conference as licensed ministers or ordained ministers. Literature evangelists were specifically excluded, by Mrs. White, as eligible for tithe support. (Link)

Unacceptable Uses of the Tithe:

What is quite interesting is that Ellen White explained that other suggested uses of tithe monies, “though good in themselves,” were not to be funded in this way.  According to Ellen White, they include:

• The care of the poor, sick, and aged (6)

• The education of worthy and needy students. (7)

• Operating expenses of schools (8)

• Salaries and expenses of literature evangelists. (9)

• The expenses of a local church. (10)

• Buildings for congregational worship or institutional needs – i.e., schools, hospitals, or publishing houses. (11)

Such charitable causes should be funded by freewill offerings that go above and beyond the giving of tithe money. (Link)

Tithe to be Sent to the “Storehouse”:

Now, what about the “storehouse”? Malachi quotes God as instructing His people to bring all the tithes into the “storehouse” (Malachi 3:10).

A fair reading of Ellen White’s statements leads unquestionably to the conclusion that, in her mind, the centralized church treasury was the storehouse of Malachi 3. She used the words “treasury” and “storehouse” as synonyms when she wrote, “If all the tithes were brought into the storehouse, God’s treasury would not be empty.” (EGW, Special Testimonies, Series A., no. l, p.27). Concerning the church treasury, she stated: “Many presidents of state conferences do not attend to that which is their work—to see that the elders and deacons of the churches do their work in the churches, by seeing that a faithful tithe is brought into the treasury.” (Arthur L. White, Ellen G. White: The Early Elmshaven Years, 1900-1905, pp. 395, 396) Again, she declared: “If our churches will take their stand upon the Lord’s word and be faithful, paying their tithe into His treasury, more laborers will be encouraged to take up ministerial work.” (EGW, Selected Messages, Vol. 1. p. 33, from Review & Herald, July 26, 1906).

Clearly, then, Ellen White strongly supported the conclusion that the Seventh-day Adventist Church should have a centralized government and that the representative ministers of this government should be supported by tithing.

But what happens toward the end of time? Will there ever be a time when church organization is no longer relevant or important?

“Some have advanced the thought that, as we near the close of time, every child of God will act independently of any religious organization. But I have been instructed by the Lord that in this work there is no such thing as every man’s being independent. The stars of heaven are all under law, each influencing the other to do the will of God, yielding their common obedience to the law that controls their action. And, in order that the Lord’s work may advance healthfully and solidly, His people must draw together.” (EGW, “Southern Missionary Society,” Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia, rev. ed., 1976, p. 1396)

Withholding Tithe from those “Unworthy”?

In Mrs. White’s day, some saw the misuse of tithe by “unworthy ministers” as a valid reason to withhold or divert tithe funds to projects of their own choosing.

In an 1890 article entitled “Existing Evils and Their Remedy,” Mrs. White responded to this notion:

“You who have been withholding your means from the cause of God, read the book of Malachi, and see what is spoken there in regard to tithes and offerings. Cannot you see that it is not best under any circumstances to withhold your tithes and offerings because you are not in harmony with everything your brethren do? The tithes and offerings are not the property of any man, but are to be used in doing a certain work for God. Unworthy ministers may receive some of the means thus raised; but dare anyone, because of this, withhold from the treasury, and brave the curse of God? I dare not. I pay my tithes gladly and freely, saying as did David, ‘Of Thine own have we given Thee.’ . . . If the Conference business is not managed according to the order of the Lord, that is the sin of the erring ones. The Lord will not hold you responsible for it, if you do what you can to correct the evil. But do not commit sin yourselves by withholding from God His own property. (EGW, 2SAT p. 74-75)

“If the Conference business is not managed according to the order of the Lord, that is the sin of the erring ones. The Lord will not hold you responsible for it, if you do what you can to correct the evil. But do not commit sin yourselves by withholding from God His own property.” (EGW, Manuscript Releases, Vol. 3, p. 218; Counsels on Stewardship, p. 103).

Nearly two decades later, Ellen White’s convictions were still the same. She wrote, in 1909: “Let none feel at liberty to retain their tithe, to use according to their own judgment. They are not to use it for themselves in an emergency, nor to apply it as they see fit, even in what they may regard as the Lord’s work. (EGW, Manuscript Releases, Vol. 1, 99. 193. 194)

“Some have been dissatisfied, and have said, ‘I will no longer pay my tithe; for I have no confidence in the way things are managed at the heart of the work.’ But will you rob God because you think the management of the work is not right? Make your complaint, plainly and openly, in the right spirit, to the proper ones. Send in your petitions for things to be adjusted and set in order; but do not withdraw from the work of God, and prove unfaithful, because others are not doing right” (EGW, 9T, p. 249).

A Current Controversy with Dr. Vine:

Despite the inspired guidance of Ellen White regarding tithing and church organization, there are those who are forcefully advancing claims contrary to her directives on this topic.  The former director of Adventist Frontier Missions, Dr. Conrad Vine, has recently escalated his claims regarding tithing. Originally, Dr. Vine argued that significant problems in the church should not affect the giving of tithe:

“The fact that there are false preachers does not mean that we shut down preaching ministry in general from Adventist pulpits. The fact that there are charlatans in this world, the fact that there are financial crooks does not mean we shut down every Conference Treasury office.” (Link)

Then, Dr. Vine changed his mind.  This change of heart all started back in September of 2024, during controversies surrounding the pandemic and vaccine mandates, when Dr. Vine suggested the possibility of setting up a “parachurch organization” with the redirection of tithe money to more faithful SDA Church Conferences and organizations (Link), which caused quite a bit of controversy.

Holding Tithe Hostage:

Now, in a recent sermon entitled “Entropy“, Dr. Vine has escalated his rhetoric even further, arguing that the SDA Church, as an organization, has fallen into apostasy, taking on the characteristics of a “daughter of Babylon” to such a degree that tithe monies should no longer be returned to “any church Conference/Mission/Field” until the following conditions are met:

“For the GC to immediately dissolve our union with the UN and revoke all Official Statements so that we can be the Pure Bride of Christ and avoid the characteristics of a harlot daughter of Babylon.” (Link, Link)

Until this time, Dr. Vine claims that tithe monies should be given to faithful ministers and independent ministries, and to the deserving poor.

As previously noted, Ellen White specifically addresses the idea of tithe monies being used to support the poor.

“The tithe is set apart for a special use. It is not to be regarded as a poor fund. It is to be especially devoted to the support of those who are bearing God’s message to the world; and it should not be diverted from this purpose.” (EGW, Counsels on Stewardship, p. 103)

Despite Dr. Vine invoking Ellen White during his talk in an effort to support his position, she does not support him. She directly addresses and undermines the claim of Dr. Vine regarding his accusation that the SDA Church has become like a “daughter of Babylon”.

“Those who assert that the Seventh-day Adventist churches constitute Babylon, or any part of Babylon, might better stay at home… In place of working with divine agencies to prepare a people to stand in the day of the Lord, they have taken their stand with him who is an accuser of the brethren, who accuses them before God day and night… When anyone arises, either among us or outside of us, who is burdened with a message which declares that the people of God are numbered with Babylon, and claims that the loud cry is a call to come out of her, you may know that he is not bearing the message of truth. Receive him not, nor bid him Godspeed; for God has not spoken by him, neither has he given a message to him, but he has run before he was sent. Such messages will come, and it will be claimed for them that they are sent of God, but the claim will be false; for they are not filled with light, but with darkness…  To claim that the Seventh-day Adventist Church is Babylon, is to make the same claim as does Satan, who is an accuser of the brethren, who accuses them before God night and day… The church of Christ on earth will be imperfect, but God does not destroy his church because of its imperfection. There have been and will be those who are filled with zeal not according to knowledge, who would purify the church, and uproot the tares from the midst of the wheat. But Christ has given special light as to how to deal with those who are erring, and with those who are unconverted in the church.  ” (EGW, Review and Herald, 1893; Link)

When presented with statements like this, Dr. Vine either brushes them off without comment or argues that things are far worse in the church today compared to the times in which Ellen White lived. When specifically questioned about this, Dr. Vine responded as follows:

“We love to quote SOP quotes in these circumstances. They are the “comfort blanket” for Adventists. However, we must remember one thing. The SDA Church in EGW’s today would NOT have tolerated any manifestation or promotion of the sexual revolution in their time in their colleges, sanitaria, or pulpits. ALL of EGW’s writings occur in the context of there being NO tolerance for any manifestation of fornication or sexual immorality or perversion among Adventists. All such manifestations would have been summarily removed.

Therefore, to quote the SOP today to justify returning tithe to a system that is filled with persons promoting that which the Gospel and the SOP and the pioneers of Adventism would have condemned and had no place for, does not stand close scrutiny. Her comments about tithe were given in the context of an Advent Movement that would not have allowed any of the gross immorality that our institutions are promoting now. If we want to be true to the counsel given in the SOP, we would first remove all such preachers and teachers, and then we can talk about tithe. (FB Post, July 4, 2026)

Regarding the charge of “weaponizing tithe”, Dr. Vine argues:

On the question of weaponizing tithe. The opposite true. What is the biblical principle we find in the teachings of the Apostles? Paul quotes from Christ Himself, in 1 Cor. 9.14, “So also the Lord ordained that they who preach the Gospel should live by the Gospel.?” That is, financial support is to flow from disciples to those who preach the Gospel. We adopted tithing from Abraham as a recognition of God’s ownership, and tithing was intended to support those who are preaching the Gospel. For tithe to actively flow into a system that no longer defends the Gospel but is promoting a false Gospel, i.e., the Social Justice gospel, is to no longer be in harmony with the teachings of Christ.

I recommended that tithes flow to Gospel workers in the irregular lines who are preaching the true Gospel, as per the principle laid down by Christ and retold by Paul, rather than to support an institutional denomination that is unwilling to rebuke open sin and false gospels within its midst.

This is not the weaponization of tithe. It is allowing tithe to fulfill its proper function – to support those preaching the pure Gospel of Jesus Christ. (FB Post, July 4, 2026)

These arguments are clearly mistaken. The problems within the SDA Church during Ellen White’s day were just as varied and serious as they are today… yet without any support from her regarding the withdrawal of God’s tithe from the organized church.

Tithing not supported by Jesus?:

To support his claim, Dr. Vine argued that 1) Nobody can prove that Christ instituted the “SDA tithing system” and 2) Christ never taught tithing to His disciples.

Tithing compared to Judas:

Dr. Vine went on to claim that the concept of a “centralized treasury” cannot be found anywhere in the New Testament… that the only time that there was a centralized treasury was when Judas was in charge, which, of course, was involved with theft and corruption. (Link)

Opposed to the Bible and the Inspiration of Ellen White:

This ignores the claims of the Bible and essentially the Divine inspiration of Ellen White, as well as the Divine establishment of the order and government of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.

It also simply isn’t true that the concept of tithing wasn’t important to Jesus.  Sure, Jesus pointed out the “weightier matters” of justice, mercy, and faithfulness that were being overlooked by the church leaders of his day, but explained that these should all be practiced without neglecting the practice of tithing (Matthew 23:23).

Clearly, Dr. Vine is out of line with every form of Divine Inspiration that we have on this topic. He has become a law to himself. It’s not that I don’t sympathize with Dr. Vine regarding the existence of unfaithful ministers within the SDA Church and school system.  I myself have gone head-to-head with individuals and organizations within the SDA Church who have seriously digressed from the fundamental goals and ideas of the SDA Church and of the basis for the Gospel itself.  However, as explained above, this is not a valid reason to take tithe monies into our own hands and divert it from the Church Organization that God Himself has clearly established to be His Witness during these Last Days of Earth’s history. It is God’s job to purify that which is His own and established by His own power.  As with David, we should be very fearful to touch that which is the “Lord’s Anointed”. (1 Samuel 24:10)

“There is no need to doubt, to be fearful that the work will not succeed. God is at the head of the work, and He will set everything in order. If matters need adjusting at the head of the work, God will attend to that, and work to right every wrong. Let us have faith that God is going to carry the noble ship which bears the people of God safely into port.” (EGW, Selected Messages, Book 2, p. 390; originally published in the Review and Herald, September 20, 1892)

Splintering the Church:

References:

1. Ellen G. White Letter 136, Aug. 14, 1898. A variant is cited in Spalding-Magan Collection, p. 498
2. Ellen G. White Letter 32, Jan. 6, 1908, p.6; cited in Spalding-Magan Collection, p. 421
3. Testimonies, Vol.9, pp. 245-251
4. Ibid., Vol.5, p. 136
5. See, for example, Robert W. Olson, The Humanity of Christ, Pacific Press Publishing Assn., 1989, 32 pp
6. Testimonies, Vol.9. pp. 248-50
7. Ibid
8. Counsels on Stewardship, p. 103: Testimonies, Vol.9, p. 248: Manuscript Releases, Vol. l, p. 191
9. Manuscript Releases, Vol. 1, pp. 185, 191. For a more complete discussion, see Robert W. Olson, “Ellen G. White Comments on the Use of Tithe Funds,” in “The History and Use of the Tithe,” unpublished manuscript, Ellen G. White Estate, rev. ed., Feb., 1990, pp. 17-25.
10. Ellen G. White Letter 103, April 7, 1905; cited in Manuscript Releases, Vol. 7, p. 139
11. Ibid

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