Dr John Oakes misinterpreted the Scripture (Timothy 5:20), which he himself provided to me. According to the same Scripture (Timothy 5:20), elders who persist in sin must be reproved publicly:
But those elders who are sinning you are to reprove before everyone, so that the others may take warning. – 1 Timothy 5:20
You should not tolerate false teachers such as John Oakes but you must reprove them publicly for others to beware of them:
I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. – Revelation 2:2
Offering to idols
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. – James 1:27
Tithes and contributions you collect are not going to the poor of this world, all those money do not even go to the needy among you. Instead, you pay salary to organization’s leaders, pastors and priests, you build temples or rent meeting halls. You have erroneously assumed that church leaders, pastors and priests are representatives of God on earth, so that is why you give your tithes to them. They do not represent God but only their religious organizations. They are the Antichrist who are powerful just because some naive people give them their money.
The truth is that possessing a building, renting a meeting space and paying salary to church leaders are all false practices which are ungodly and harmful to disciples of Jesus Christ. God does not dwell in houses made by hands:
Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made by hands, as the prophet says. – Acts 7:48
Giving tithes to God
It is good to give the first fruits of one's labor to God. Even before the law of Moses, Abel already gave 10% of his first fruits to God and Lord accepted it. Jacob also gave 10% to Melchizedek, the priest of the Lord. The act of giving to the Lord is not regulated by any law but a natural act of gratitude to God. If you want to give your offering to the Lord, give your money to the poor of this world or needy disciples of Jesus Christ.
But now as for what is inside you–be generous to the poor, and everything will be clean for you. – Luke 11:41 (NIV)
God will bless you for what you offer, and you will receive many times more of what you have given. When you give, do it with a cheerful heart:
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. – 2 Corinthians 9:7
You must give your tithes to God, not to the Antichrist. Do not give your tithes to church leaders! They are not the representatives of God on earth. They are not the priesthood. Christ is the priest and you all are His royal priesthood:
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. -1 Peter 2:9
This Scripture shows that when you give to the poor, you give to Christ:
"When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.' "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, saying, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, saying, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.' And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life." – Matthew 25:31-46
Contribution
Tithes are given to God by helping the poor, but a contribution is collected for supplying the needs of believers. It is a one-time money collection, a relief rather than a monthly obligation. Paul in his second letter to the church in Corinth spoke about the need of giving. He asked the church in Corinth to contribute money for the needs of believers in Jerusalem:
So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to go on ahead to you and arrange in advance for the gift you have promised, so that it may be ready as a willing gift, not as an exaction. – 2 Corinthians 9:5
Believers also used to sell their possessions and distribute proceeds to those in need:
And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. – Acts 2:45
You must not collect contributions to pay salaries to the Antichrist: church leaders, pastors and priests. Act of paying a salary to a church leader is an attempt to buy a gift of teaching. God gives revelations to disciples of Christ freely. Why would you pay a person for him to teach you? Do you assume that by paying that person, God will speak exclusively through him? You are mistaken, God speaks through whom he wants to speak. In fact, God will never speak through a person who turns teaching God’s word into a fortune.
But Peter said to him, "May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! – Acts 8:20
The people whom you can support with money, food and homestay are evangelists who travel to proclaim the gospel, not the Antichrist among you: church leaders, pastors and priests:
Do you not know that those who are employed in the temple service get their food from the temple, and those who serve at the altar share in the sacrificial offerings? In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel. -1 Corinthians 9:13-14
Neither you must give your money for construction or renting temples. Disciples of Jesus Christ must meet at public places freely, no need to collect money for that purpose. Public places are good for fellowship and homes are good for breaking the bread and prayers. Give your contributions to those in need and God will abundantly bless you.