"Honor the LORD from your wealth, and from
the first of all your produce;
So your barns will be filled with plenty, and
your vats will overflow with new wine."
-Proverbs 3:9-10
When it comes to
giving, most Christians are pretty pathetic at it. The last survey I saw stated
that the average Christian only gave 2% of their income. Those are Christians
that don't understand the blessing and requirement of giving nor do they
trust in the God that provides for their needs.
While I don't
believe that Christians have to follow the Old Testament command of giving
certain tithes (which if you added them all up would be 25% +/-), I do believe
we are to follow the command of giving
the best of all our first fruits. The New Testament commands that we give and
give abundantly...See 1 Corinthians 16:2, 2
Corinthians 9:6-7, Acts 2:44-45, Acts 4:32, Philippians 4:15.
When it comes to
money (and everything else) we must gain Gods wisdom. Well, there may be no
better place to start than the Book of Proverbs.
In Proverbs 3:9-10
it first gives a specific command and is then followed by the result that will
come from obeying that command.
Verse 9 the command:
"Honor the LORD from your wealth, and from the first of
all your produce."
Verse 10 the
blessing: "So your barns will be filled with plenty, and your
vats will overflow with new wine."
Honor
in Hebrew is kabad and can mean
to be numerous, rich, glorify, abounding or honor.
Wealth
in Hebrew is hown and means
substance (coming from just labors), riches, or wealth.
First
in Hebrew is re'shiyth and means
first in place, first in rank, chief, the principle thing.
Produce
in Hebrew is T@buw'ah and means
income, produce, fruit, gain, or revenue.
Filled
in Hebrew is male' and means to
be full, overflow, fullness, satisfy.
Plenty
in Hebrew is saba' and means abundance
or plenty.
Overflow
in Hebrew is parats and means to
burst out, to grow or to increase.
To sum up verse 9 we
are to give the first and best of ALL of our income/produce/fruit/revenue to
the Lord that was derived from our just and righteous labors. We are not to
hold anything back that God has blessed us with.
To sum up verse 10
is to say that by following the command of verse 9 that God will bless us with
more than we need. He will not leave us lacking!
Here are some suggestions
on you could apply this:
If you have a garden, when you take of the
first harvest or yield of a plant, then bless someone by giving that away
to them. Perhaps there is a brother or sister in Christ in need of food.
Giving to a neighbor can lead to opportunities to share a testimony and
the gospel.
If you have a farm where you raise a lot
produce, vegetables or livestock do the same thing. Give ALL of the
firstfruits away or all of the first income that comes in from your
harvest or yield.
Ok, so you don't have a garden or a
farm. Well here's where the rubber meets the road. If we are commanded to
give all of our first income and revenue to the Lord then here are some
ways that it can be done.
Regular Employment: Give away all of
your income that you derived from your first day of working during a
week. So if you make $1000 per week and you work five days per week, then
you should give away $200.
Commission Basis: Give away your first
commission each week or month depending on how often you receive a
commission. Maybe you sell cars and sell several a week. Then give away
your first commission that you earn that week.
Self-Employed: Maybe you do certain
jobs for different clients each week. And perhaps each client pays you a
different amount. Give away whatever the first client pays you for that
week.
The basic idea is to
give away the best of ALL of what you first make, whether it is on a weekly
basis or harvest basis.
For me I do it
different ways depending on the source of income/revenue. Since Paul commands
us to "lay aside money as we may prosper on the first day of the week"; I
choose to give away my first revenue that I make during the week. If I am
earning revenue each day, then whatever I make on Monday I set aside to give
away on Sunday...Even if what I make on Monday is more than I make on the other
days of the week.
In conclusion let me
encourage you to trust in the Lord for your provision and to demonstrate that
trust by giving more abundantly. And He will bless you abundantly...But not
always in material return.
*I am not saying this is THE way to give, just a fresh look or alternative way of giving.
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