Firstly, let’s look at what Legalism is? Legalism is the belief that a person can earn God’s approval by keeping rules, traditions, or religious practices instead of relying on God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ.

In simple terms, legalism says, “God loves and accepts you because of what you do.” The gospel says, “God loves and accepts you because of what Jesus has done.”

There is nothing wrong with obeying God. In fact, Christians are called to live holy lives. The problem comes when people believe that following rules makes them more righteous or more accepted by God than others.

An example of legalism in the church today

In the Old Testament God gave rules about giving. That we should give a tithe of 10% of the fruits we produce. Here are examples of Gods instructions through the Old Testament scriptures.

 Leviticus 27:30: “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.”

 Deuteronomy 14:22: “Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year.”

Do we still Tithe today as a rule?

In the New Testament, Christians are never commanded to give exactly 10% of their income, we are not under the Old Testament Mosaic law.

Instead, believers are encouraged to give:

• Willingly.
• Cheerfully.
• Generously.
• According to what they have been blessed with.

2 Corinthians 9:7 says:

“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

This means giving should come from love for God, not because someone feels forced or believes they must earn God’s favour.

Check this picture out.

If you see a pastor boasting about how much they give off the pulpit, or even just congregants saying they give vast sums of money, you must consider whether that is legalistic, or at the very least take it to God and pray for that person.

Prayer can change everything, it can correct people, lead to leaders being changed so the flock is safeguarded, or churches being setup for financial gain and false motives being shut down because they were never meant to be setup in the first place. That is the power of prayer because God is listening to our prayers.

We are to decide in our hearts what to give to the church. It might be we decide to give £1 a week, or give £1000, the point is we are to decide about such things in our heart and have the characteristics of being a generous giver not giving under compulsion.

Did Jesus Talk About Tithing?

Yes, Jesus mentioned tithing when speaking to the Pharisees in Matthew 23v23

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cumin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”

The pharisees were careful to tithe even the smallest herbs but neglected more important matters such as justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

Jesus showed that while they were meticulous about giving a tenth, they had missed the greater purpose of loving God and loving others.

Look at what Jesus said about the widows offering.

Mark 12:41-44

The Widow’s Offering

⁴¹ “Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. ⁴² But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

⁴³ Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. ⁴⁴ They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Jesus said that the widow gave more than the rest with her two very small copper coins, she gave what she had decided in her heart and out of poverty not wealth.”

The Heart Behind Giving

The Bible teaches that God is more interested in the attitude of the heart than the amount of money given.

Giving is an act of worship and gratitude, recognising that everything we have ultimately comes from God.

Lets conclude

Biblically, a tithe means one-tenth. Under the Old Testament Law, Israel was commanded to give a tenth for the support of the priesthood and the needs of the nation.

Under the New Testament, Christians are not commanded to give a fixed 10%. Instead, they are encouraged to give freely, generously, and joyfully, according to what God has placed on their hearts.

The focus is no longer on meeting a percentage but on having a generous heart that honours God.

We have wonderful news to report. A person the church as been praying for has been healed of neck, throat and prostate cancer and is completely free of this terrible disease. The church had prayed for this person for over 18 months. Here is one example of a written prayer from someone who prayer journals.

Here is a Facebook post from the person who has been healed confirming our prayers have been answered.

It was a long road but God has proven to be faithful once again. We rejoice in answered prayers and thank God for the joy this healing has brought.

Visit us here at Canton Community Church

If you are in a situation where a loved one or friend is unwell, we are happy to pray and petition to the Lord for healing. Sometimes healing doesn’t come over night, but we can also pray for comfort and strength for your families and friends as you go through tough trials.

You are also welcome to join us at church being around people ensuring you are not alone. Join us at our family service that takes place every Sunday where doors open from 10.45am serving hot drinks and treats.

We are thanking God for the new people we are seeing come to church at our Sunday family service, men’s group and coffee mornings, but above all his faithfulness. When we write on our blog, we always emphasise how important it is to pray. Prayer is the key that will open the doors to any new initiative. Why? Well, it is simple, God is listening to our prayers.

Let’s look at a scripture that show just how important it is to pray to God. Firstly, let’s look at James 5 v 16.

“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

Whose prayers does God hear? Does He only listen to a select group of people—those who seem especially spiritual, never make mistakes, or live perfect lives? The Bible gives us a reassuring answer.

God hears prayer, but that does not mean every prayer is answered in the way we expect. Scripture teaches that there are principles that shape an effective prayer life and help us understand how God responds.

Let’s read it again James 5 v 16.

“The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.”

James then gives us an example in James 5 v 17 – 18, here is the scripture.

“Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.”

This passage is significant because Elijah was not a perfect man. Anyone familiar with his story can see that he had weaknesses and struggles just like we do. Although God used him powerfully, Elijah also experienced fear, discouragement, and moments of failure.

The effectiveness of Elijah’s prayers was not based on his perfection. It was based on God’s faithfulness.

When we place our faith in Jesus Christ, we are made righteous in God’s sight. Righteousness is not something we earn through our own efforts; it is a gift that comes through Christ. Because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross, we can approach God with confidence, knowing that He hears us and welcomes us into a relationship with Him.

Our confidence in prayer is not rooted in our performance, but in God’s character. He is faithful, and He keeps His promises.

Now let’s look at another important passage in John 15:7, here is the scripture.

“If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”

This verse contains both a clear instruction and a remarkable promise.

The instruction is to remain closely connected to Jesus and allow His words to shape your thoughts, attitudes, and daily life. Abiding in Christ means maintaining a close relationship with Him, trusting Him, and following His teaching.

The promise is that when our hearts are transformed by His Word, our desires begin to unite with God’s will. As our thinking becomes more like His, our prayers become more aligned with His purposes. When we ask according to His will, we can have confidence that He hears us and responds in ways that accomplish His perfect plan.

Prayer is not about convincing God to do what we want. It is about growing so close to Him that our hearts begin to desire what He desires. When that happens, prayer becomes a powerful expression of faith, trust, and partnership with God’s purposes.

The good news is that God is not looking for perfect people. He is looking for people who trust Him, remain in Him, and approach Him with faith. Through Jesus Christ, every believer has the privilege of coming boldly before the Father, knowing that He listens, cares, and answers according to His wisdom and love.

How is Canton Community Church growing?

There are many reasons why Canton Community Church is growing. One very important reason is because much prayer from righteous people are being petitioned to God and what you are seeing is God answering those prayers because He is listening to us.  

Here is a written prayer asking the Lord to grow Canton Community Church back in October 2024.

A prayer written in May 2025 continuing to ask the Lord to grow Canton Community Church.

Another short prayer (Prayers don’t have to be essays either) written in July 2025 asking the Lord to shape Canton Community Church.

Another prayer written later in July 2025.

Here is a video that shows our family service on 21^st of June 2026.

As you can see lots of people turning up and God answering prayers wonderfully, why?

Because a person’s prayer life is not contingent on them being good. It is because it is contingent on God being faithful and God being righteous. If you follow Gods instruction to stay closely connected to Jesus and let His word guide you, your heart will be shaped by His teachings, your desires will begin to match God’s will. As a result, the prayers you bring to Him will be heard and answered according to His purpose.

We have said it once and have said it again. Pray and pray some more. The relationship between you and God is established through intimate prayer. He wants to know about every detail of your life whether good or bad. So, keep praying and enjoy your relationship with your heavenly Father who Jesus as enabled you to have.

We prayed for a person who had thyroid cancer. We can let you know that this person is now healed and healthy. Here is one of many prayers prayed for the lady who had thyroid cancer.

We rejoice in this answered prayer and thank God for the joy this healing has brought.

Visit us here at Canton Community Church

If you are in a situation where a loved one or friend is unwell, we are happy to pray and petition to the Lord for healing. Sometimes healing doesn’t come over night, but we can also pray for comfort and strength for your families and friends as you go through tough trials.

You are also welcome to join us at church being around people ensuring you are not alone. Join us at our family service that takes place every Sunday where doors open from 10.45am serving hot drinks and treats.

On this blog over the years, we have always reported the victories we have seen in prayer. We have another victory to declare in Gods mercy, grace and all for His glory.

We were at a funeral recently and a lady we prayed for who had cervical cancer in 2021 was in attendance. We prayed for this woman back in 2021. Here is the written prayer in a journal of many.

This lady has been completely healed of cervical cancer and is healthy.

The message and inspiration to take from this is to never give up in prayer, the Lord knows every prayer you have prayed, and he is working through them as he did with this lady. Here is Luke 18 v 1 – 8 that encourages us all not to give up in prayer.

Luke 18

The Parable of the Persistent Widow

18 “Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up. 2 He said: “In a certain town there was a judge who neither feared God nor cared what people thought. 3 And there was a widow in that town who kept coming to him with the plea, ‘Grant me justice against my adversary.’

4 “For some time he refused. But finally he said to himself, ‘Even though I don’t fear God or care what people think, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will see that she gets justice, so that she won’t eventually come and attack me!’”

6 And the Lord said, “Listen to what the unjust judge says. 7 And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? 8 I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly. However, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?”

We rejoice in this answered prayer and thank God for the joy this healing has brought.

Visit us here at Canton Community Church

If you are in a situation where a loved one or friend is unwell we are happy to pray and petition to the Lord for healing. Sometimes healing doesn’t come over night but we can also pray for comfort and strength for your families as you go through tough trials.

You are also welcome to join us at church being around people ensuring you are not alone. Join us at our family service that takes place every Sunday where doors open from 10.45am serving hot drinks and treats.