WHAT IS FIRST FRUITS?

The first thing we need to understand is that the first fruits are not the same as the TITHE.

2Ch 31:5

As soon as the command went abroad, the Israelites gave in abundance the firstfruits of grain, vintage fruit, oil,
honey, and of all the produce of the field; and they brought in abundantly the tithe of everything.

We see a clear distinction as clear mentioned is made of both the tithe and the first fruits.

Neh 10:37

(37) And we shall bring the first and best of our coarse meal, our contributions, the fruit of all kinds of trees, of
new wine, and of oil to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God. And we shall bring the tithes from
our ground to the Levites, for they, the Levites, collect the tithes in all our rural towns.

Neh 12:44

(44) On that day men were appointed over the chambers for the stores, the contributions, the firstfruits, and the
tithes, to gather into them the portions required by law for the priests and the Levites according to the fields of the
towns, for Judah rejoiced over the priests and Levites who served [faithfully].

Again from these scriptures we can clearly see that the firstfruits and the tithe were separate entities.

xo 22:29-30

(29) You shall not delay to bring to Me from the fullness [of your harvested grain] and the outflow [of your grape
juice and olive oil]; give Me the firstborn of your sons [or redeem them]. [Exodus 34:19, 20]

(30) Likewise shall you do with your oxen and your sheep. Seven days the firstborn [beast] shall be with its
mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.

Neh 10:35-37

(35) And [we obligate ourselves] to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the first of all the fruit of all trees year
by year to the house of the Lord,

(36) As well as the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as is written in the Law, and the firstlings of our herds
and flocks, to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in [His] house.

(37) And we shall bring the first and best of our coarse meal, our contributions, the fruit of all kinds of trees, of
new wine, and of oil to the priests, to the chambers of the house of our God. And we shall bring the tithes from
our ground to the Levites, for they, the Levites, collect the tithes in all our rural towns.

TO WHOM IS THIS GIVEN

· Tithe to the storehouse (Mal 3:10) This goes to the set man and his staff.
· The firstfruit is to be given directly to the priest (the set man).

Deu 18:3-5

(3) And this shall be the priest's due from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, whether it be ox or sheep:
they shall give to the priest the shoulder and the two cheeks and the stomach.

(4) The firstfruits of your grain, of your new wine, and of your oil, and the first or best of the fleece of your sheep
you shall give the priest.

(5) For the Lord your God has chosen him out of all your tribes to stand to minister in the name [and presence] of
the Lord, him and his sons forever.

Eze 44:30

(30) And the first of all the firstfruits of all kinds, and every offering of all kinds from all your offerings, shall
belong to the priests. You shall also give to the priest the first of your coarse meal and bread dough, that a
blessing may rest on your house.

Neh 10:35-36

(35) And [we obligate ourselves] to bring the firstfruits of our ground and the first of all the fruit of all trees year
by year to the house of the Lord,

(36) As well as the firstborn of our sons and of our cattle, as is written in the Law, and the firstlings of our herds
and flocks, to bring to the house of our God, to the priests who minister in [His] house.

Lev 23:10-11

(10) Tell the Israelites, When you have come into the land I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the
sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest.

(11) And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, that you may be accepted; on the next day after the Sabbath the
priest shall wave it [before the Lord].

WHY DO YOU GIVE FIRST FRUITS?

· TO HONOUR GOD.

Pro 3:9-10

(9) Honor the Lord with your capital and sufficiency [from righteous labors] and with the firstfruits of all your
income; [Deuteronomy 26:2; Malachi 3:10; Luke 14:13, 14]

(10) So shall your storage places be filled with plenty, and your vats shall be overflowing with new wine.
[Deuteronomy 28:8]

· HONOUR GOD BY HONOURING HIS SERVANTS.

HOW DO WE GIVE FIRST FRUITS?

Deu 26:1-19

(1) When you have come into the land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance and possess it and
live in it,

(2) You shall take some of the first of all the produce of the soil which you harvest from the land the Lord your
God gives you and put it in a basket, and go to the place [the sanctuary] which the Lord your God has chosen as
the abiding place for His Name [and His Presence].

(3) And you shall go to the priest who is in office in those days, and say to him, I give thanks this day to the Lord
your God that I have come to the land which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us.

(4) And the priest shall take the basket from your hand and set it down before the altar of the Lord your God.

(5) And you shall say before the Lord your God, a wandering and lost Aramean ready to perish was my father
[Jacob], and he went down into Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and he became there a nation, great,
mighty, and numerous.

(6) And the Egyptians treated us very badly and afflicted us and laid upon us hard bondage.

(7) And when we cried to the Lord, the God of our fathers, the Lord heard our voice and looked on our affliction
and our labor and our [cruel] oppression;

(8) And the Lord brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm, and with great
(awesome) power and with signs and with wonders;

(9) And He brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey.

(10) And now, behold, I bring the firstfruits 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 and the Levite and the stranger and the sojourner among you shall rejoice in all the good which the
Lord your God has given you and your household.

(12) When you have finished paying all the tithe of your produce the third year, which is the year of tithing, and
have given it to the Levite, the stranger and the sojourner, the fatherless, and to the widow, that they may eat
within your towns and be filled,

(13) Then you shall say before the Lord your God, I have brought the hallowed things (the tithe) out of my house
and moreover have given them to the Levite, to the stranger and the sojourner, to the fatherless, and to the
widow, according to all Your commandments which You have commanded me; I have not transgressed any of
Your commandments, neither have I forgotten them.
(14) I have not eaten of the tithe in my mourning [making the tithe unclean], nor have I handled any of it when I
was unclean, nor given any of it to the dead. I have hearkened to the voice of the Lord my God; I have done
according to all that You have commanded me.

(15) Look down from Your holy habitation, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land which You
have given us as You swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.

(16) This day the Lord your God has commanded you to do these statutes and ordinances. Therefore you shall
keep and do them with all your [mind and] heart and with all your being.

(17) You have [openly] declared the Lord this day to be your God, [pledging] to walk in His ways, to keep His
statutes and His commandments and His precepts, and to hearken to His voice.

(18) And the Lord has declared this day that you are His peculiar people as He promised you, and you are to keep
all His commandments;

(19) And He will make you high above all nations which He has made, in praise and in fame and in honor, and
that you shall be a holy people to the Lord your God, as He has spoken.

The celebrant brings his TITHES AND FIRSTFRUITS to the priest. On his way he will sing “I was glad when
they said to me let us go into the house of the Lord.

He would come before the priest to preach – to declare his position – that God had kept His promise. His offering
was a declaration of his accurate position and God’s wonderful faithfulness.

The celebrant declared:

· He had not eaten his tithe in mourning(during difficult times, not spent on medical bills or other living expenses)

· He had not used it for unclean purposes – paid i.e. water and lights, rent, telephone bills etc. Prefer to stay in the
dark.

· He had not used it to pay for funeral expenses or to waste it upon things of this world that has no life.

This act proclaimed the Lord to be your God and your source.

After this act God proclaimed that you were his special people.

After this act God promised to set you high above all nations in praise, in name, in honour and in holiness.

This act acknowledged that God was your source.

OLD TESTAMENT TRUTHS ARE PATTERNS.

WE LIVE UNDER THE PRINCIPLES AND PATTERNS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

This is a practical demonstration of the fact that we are putting God first. This is not a commandment but a issue
of conscience. New covenant believers must demonstrate superior commitment.
Start in the law and finish in the Spirit.

THE BENEFITS OF GIVING FIRST FRUITS

· SUPER-ABUNDANCE

Pro 3:9-10

(9) Honor the Lord with your capital and sufficiency [from righteous labors] and with the firstfruits of all your
income; [Deuteronomy 26:2; Malachi 3:10; Luke 14:13, 14]

(10) So shall your storage places be filled with plenty, and your vats shall be overflowing with new wine.
[Deuteronomy 28:8]

· YOU REAP THE BENEFITS OF PLACING THE KINGDOM FIRST

Mat 6:33

(33) But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being
right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.

· BLESSING SHALL REST IN THE HOUSE.

Eze 44:30

(30) And the first of all the firstfruits of all kinds, and every offering of all kinds from all your offerings, shall
belong to the priests. You shall also give to the priest the first of your coarse meal and bread dough, that a
blessing may rest on your house.

· SUSTENANCE IN FAMINE

1Ki 17:10-16

(10) So he arose and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there
gathering sticks. He called to her, Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.

(11) As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.

(12) And she said, As the Lord your God lives, I have not a loaf baked but only a handful of meal in the jar and a
little oil in the bottle. See, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and bake it for me and my son, that we may
eat it--and die.

(13) Elijah said to her, Fear not; go and do as you have said. But make me a little cake of [it] first and bring it to
me, and afterward prepare some for yourself and your son.

(14) For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: The jar of meal shall not waste away or the bottle of oil fail until
the day that the Lord sends rain on the earth.

(15) She did as Elijah said. And she and he and her household ate for many days.
(16) The jar of meal was not spent nor did the bottle of oil fail, according to the word which the Lord spoke
through Elijah.

· BLESSING OF THE WHOLE

Rom 11:16

(16) Now if the first handful of dough offered as the firstfruits [Abraham and the patriarchs] is consecrated
(holy), so is the whole mass [the nation of Israel]; and if the root [Abraham] is consecrated (holy), so are the
branches. [Numbers 15:19-21]

BLESSING THE REMAINDER.

· SIGNALLING THAT WHICH IS TO COME.

Firstfruits offerings signal the beginning of your harvest. It promises an abundant harvest. It establishes the law of
first things first in your life. It establishes the promise of that which is to come. It positions the believer to receive
the promise of God.

WHAT ARE THE CHARACTERISTICS OF FIRST FRUITS OFFERINGS:

· NO DELAY

Exo 22:29-30

(29) You shall not delay to bring to Me from the fullness [of your harvested grain] and the outflow [of your grape
juice and olive oil]; give Me the firstborn of your sons [or redeem them]. [Exodus 34:19, 20]

(30) Likewise shall you do with your oxen and your sheep. Seven days the firstborn [beast] shall be with its
mother; on the eighth day you shall give it to Me.

· FIRST FRUIT OFFERINGS ARE GIVEN IN PUBLIC:

Lev 23:9-11

(9) And the Lord said to Moses,

(10) Tell the Israelites, When you have come into the land I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the
sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest.

(11) And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, that you may be accepted; on the next day after the Sabbath the
priest shall wave it [before the Lord].

This edifies the body when others see how God is blessing you, through promotion, increase and
breakthrough. This way God is glorified.

· IT IS A HOLY THING.

Exo 29:33-34
(33) They shall eat those things with which atonement was made, to ordain and consecrate them; but a stranger
(layman) shall not eat of them because they are holy (set apart to the worship of God).

(34) And if any of the flesh or bread for the ordination remains until morning, you shall burn it with fire; it shall
not be eaten, because it is holy (set apart to the worship of God).

WHAT THEN IS THE CURRENT MODERN DAY APPLICATION- HOW DOES IT APPLY TO YOU
AND ME?

· NEW JOB – FIRST CHEQUE – GIVE 100 PERCENT. - THEREAFTER YOU TITHE OF THE GROSS.

· NEW CHURCH – ALL OF FIRST TITHES AND OFFERINGS OF FIRST MONTH GIVEN TO THE
APOSTLE.

· WHEN GET A INCREASE – FIRST INCREASE GIVE 100 PERCENT.

· THEN FIRST RIPE FRUITS IS THE BEST YOU CAN GIVE OF THE FIRST OF 12 MONTHS. E.G 1 WEEK
SALARY OF JANUARY i.e. one part of 52 parts OR THEN THE FIRST WEEK OF YOUR FINANCIAL
YEAR IN A BUSINESS.