First Fruit Offerings – How To Start Working With God Financially Part 7

God helps you get money / gives you money (in various ways) and then asks for you to give it back (in various ways) so that you can honor God, bless others and get more money.  Maybe that sounds crazy, but if you have read the first six installments of this message then you would understand how we got here. 

God wants us to tithe, give to the poor, give other offerings and give first fruits offerings all as forms of “seeds” that bring various “harvests” into our lives.  God’s economic system works through “seedtime and harvest” and we need to start integrating these concepts into our financial lives.

The last type of offering or giving to God that we will discuss is the first fruits offering.  Some people suggest that tithing is a form of the first fruits offering because we bring the first 1/10 of our increase to God, but I believe they are actually different concepts, and the first fruits offering is something we should all understand and give (when applicable).  As with the other forms of giving, the first fruits offering is not a legal requirement, but another form of seed we can sow, another way we can honor God financially, and another way we can integrate our financial and spiritual lives. 

Exodus 23:19 says, “the first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the Lord thy God.” Note also Romans 11:16 – “For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy.” 

I believe the first fruits offering applies to any new source of income and to the first income of your new year.  Again, these are not requirements, but seeds that can produce harvests in your life. 

I remember the first time I got paid legal fees, it was $5,000.00.  I prayed and the Lord said to give half of it as the first fruit offering.  I knew that I was going to need lots of legal fees in the years ahead, and I wanted to make sure the first was holy so the lump would be holy.  I wanted to identify God with all the money I would make as a lawyer.  I can tell you beyond the shadow of any doubt that God has blessed me in this law practice in numerous ways.

So whenever you have a new source of income, or you have some money come in for the new year, consider giving the first fruits offering.  This places God’s blessing on the entire year’s money, and on all the money from that venture, and further identifies God with your finances.

(In case you missed any installments in this series or want more information otherwise, you can always see all of my messages, posts, podcasts, etc. at byronhowell.com.)

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