THE POWER OF FIRST FRUITS

Proverbs 3: 9-10

Honor the LORD with your wealth,

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    with the firstfruits of all your crops;

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then your barns will be filled to overflowing,
    and your vats will brim over with new wine.

Ezekiel 44:30
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 priests the first of your dough, that a blessing may rest on
your house.

I. Faithfulness to HONOR the Giver.

Proverbs 3:9

Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;

When we present our firstfruits to God we confess our dependence on

him and our trust in Him. God wants us to give the opportunity to
Honor Him.
And so when offering our firstfruits is a way to HONOR Him, then, it
should not be a burden—it should be a pleasure to be able to do that. It
should draw us nearer to God.

The foundation of our relationship with God is: what belongs to us

(our life, strength, and money) belongs to God, and what belongs to
Him (the blessings, peace, happiness, joy, and every good thing)
belongs to us.

The first fruits offering teaches us that we should honor God first with
our best. In fact, the Hebrew word translated “first fruits” can mean,
“chief or choicest.” When the Jews would prepare their first fruits
offerings, they would go into the fields and orchards and tie a cord
around the first and best part of the harvest that they saw ripening in the
field in order to indicate what would be given to God.

It teaches us also to honor God with the first and the best of any blessing
bestowed upon us that will be ongoing in our lives. For example, as you
anticipate your annual salary for the year, you would give a first fruits
offering once at the beginning of the year.
Honor causes everything around us to elevate and attracts the blessing of
God. 

II. In obedience to the Word

The teaching of giving God your very best sacrifice as a form of

obedience is one of the foundational teachings of the Bible. It is about
giving your first fruit offering. What is that? It is simply to give your
very first income of where God gives you land to work on (your
workplace).

God’s Angel to Prepare the Way

“See, I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way

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and to bring you to the place I have prepared.

In the verses of Exodus 23:20-30, the first fruit offering could activate
The Seven Blessings and they are:
1. Angels that will walk in front of you
2. Our enemy is also His enemy
3. Your bread and drink are guaranteed
4. No disease will come near you
5. No miscarriage or infertility in your land
6. Fulfillment of your days of life and long and satisfied life.
7. Fruitful life and the possession of the promised land

III. The blessings will REST in your house.

Ezekiel 44:30 New King James Version

The best[a] of all firstfruits of any kind, and every sacrifice of any kind
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from all your sacrifices, shall be the priest’s; also you shall give to the
priest the first of your ground meal, to cause a blessing to rest on your
house.

The first fruits offering teaches that part of honoring God is also
honoring His ministers or the Men of God. Although the first fruits
offerings were given to God at the temple, it took the form of the
offerings being given to the priest personally for their worship, use, and
consumption. It was a method that God ordained to care for the needs of
the priesthood whom He had commissioned to be in service to the
people.
And when you do this, He will cause the blessing to rest in your
house.

cause
from Latin causa: 1) v. to make something happen. 2) n. the reason something happ
ens,3.)  It signifies the delivery of the thing or the accomplish-ment of the act.

IV. Stewardship of His resources – We do not own anything in this

world. We are stewards or managers of God’s resources.

V. Testimony of His generosity

Proverbs 3:10

then your barns will be filled to overflowing,

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    and your vats will brim over with new wine.

Finally, the first fruits offering teaches that giving is not something we
do with our material substance only, but it is something we do with our
hearts and mouths. In fact, the word translated “offering” is the Hebrew
word korban which can mean, “a drawing near to God.” In Deuteronomy
26:1-11, there is a blessing that each Jew was to confess over their first
fruits offering, declaring their gratitude that they had come into the land
of promise. In the same way, we can use a first fruits offering to declare
that God has brought us into every spiritual blessing in heavenly places
in Christ.
Pastor Ezekiel.