Within the Seventh-day Adventist Church tithe is received by the local congregation and sent on to the local conference office. From here, the tithe money is distributed according to an agreement by the world church as to how tithe funds will be used. The largest portion of the tithe is used to fund the ministry of local churches through pastoral salaries, as well as evangelism and additional services provided to the local church.
Offerings are collected for designated purposes, which are announced each week before the offering is taken up. The most frequent offering collected in the local church is the Sabbath School Mission Offering. The entire amount of this offering is sent to the General Conference and becomes part of the World Budget. These funds are distributed to support the mission of the church throughout the world: some money is sent to divisions; some is used to support missionaries; and some is used to operate the General Conference, and support General Conference institutions such as Loma Linda and Andrews Universities.
Feel free to talk to your local pastor or conference to find out more about how your offerings are used. There is also a longer document released by the church about the use of tithe funds. You can find that online at: http://www.adventist.org/beliefs/guidelines/main_guide4.html
Do I have to pay tithe in order to be an Adventist?
Our baptismal vow includes a statement regarding one’s willingness to support the church with tithe and offerings. On the other hand, tithing is not a test of membership: the Church Manual clearly states that the failure to pay tithe should not be the reason to remove an individual from membership. It seems important, then, that we understand the true meaning of tithing.
Tithe is an act of loyalty--recognizing God as owner of our material possessions and lives by returning one tenth of what He places in our hands. It is holy and belongs to God. "A tithe of everything from the land, whether grain from the soil or fruit from the trees, belongs to the Lord; it is holy to the Lord" (Leviticus 27:30, NIV).
The primary reason God has given us the tithe system is to help us integrate Him into the material side of our lives. The reason for tithing is to worship. By returning one tenth of our increase to Him, we recognize that God is owner of all He has placed in our hands. Each time we tithe on an income or an increase we remember God is owner of everything He has entrusted into our hands.
We have usually said that the purpose of tithe is to support the gospel ministry of the Church. And it does. But the biblical record helps us understand that the primary purpose for tithe is to worship God. We return our tithe to Him through our church. God then uses it to support His church and fund His ministry.
Since tithing is an act of worship recognizing that God is the Owner, we should follow His direction as to its use. Throughout Scripture, we find the tithe being brought to God’s house and used by the Levites and Priests.
The term "storehouse" is often used even today to describe the place to which we bring our tithes. It comes from God's call in Malachi 3:10, "Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the Lord Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it (NIV).
It's important to support worthwhile causes. As Christians, our charitable giving flows out of our wish to follow Jesus' healing and caring ministry. But tithe is much more than just “charitable giving.” It’s something special. Tithe belongs to God and is His to administer through His church.