WE GIVE GOD OUR FIRST

Series: First Things First | Pastor Daniel Norris

 What I give first reveals where I perceive the greatest honor.

“Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine”
Proverbs 3:9–10 (ESV)

What I give first matters.

FIRSTFRUITS IS A PRINCIPLE

“In the course of time Cain brought to the LORD an offering of the fruit of the ground, and Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat portions”
Genesis 4:3–4 (ESV)

“By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain”
Hebrews 11:4 (ESV)

“The best of the firstfruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the LORD your God” Exodus 23:19 (ESV)

Firstfruits were defined by three things.

It was the Best.

What we deem WORTHY is communicated by the WEIGHT of what we give.

“And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? Present that to your governor; will he accept you or show you favor?” Malachi 1:8 (ESV)

It was the First.

“Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine” Exodus 13:2 (ESV)

This touches more than finances.
– Time
– Talent
– Treasure

What we give and when we give reveals who is first in our lives.

It was Holy.

What we do with the first, determines what rests on what remains.

“If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump” Romans 11:16 (ESV)

FIRSTFRUITS IS A POSTURE

Deuteronomy 26:1–11 (ESV)

26 “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance and have taken possession of it and live in it, 2 you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from your land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket, and you shall go to the place that the Lord your God will choose, to make his name to dwell there. 3 And you shall go to the priest who is in office at that time and say to him, ‘I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come into the land that the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.’ … 9 And he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. 10 And behold, now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground, which you, O Lord, have given me.’ And you shall set it down before the Lord your God and worship before the Lord your God. 11 And you shall rejoice in all the good that the Lord your God has given to you and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the sojourner who is among you.

Clear instruction on how the firstfruits were given.

They were to be given with thanksgiving.

“You shall rejoice”

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 (ESV)

They were brought to the house of God.

They were given corporately.

They were given as testimony.

“I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come into the land that the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.”

They were given in Trust

a. That I Can Trust God with my First
b. That God is the Source

FIRSTFRUITS IS A PRIORITY

“Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce”
Proverbs 3:9 (ESV)

• Honor
• Wealth
• Firstfruits

Every time increase comes, a decision is going to be made.

• Who will I honor first? Who gets the priority.

“Out of gratitude flows generosity. Generosity is the heartbeat of God; He gave everything. Being “truly blessed” may end the saying on the plaque, but it doesn’t end the story. Blessing is meant to flow through us, not stop with us.” Mike Justice

If I can trust Him with the first things, I can trust Him with everything.