Proverbs 3:9 reads, “Honor the Lord with…the firstfruits of all your increase.”
Solomon writes: “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the firstfruits of all your increase; so your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine” (Proverbs 3:9-10). The people who heard these words lived off their land and their livestock. Whenever they reaped a harvest or birthed new cattle, they’d take the first sheaf or firstborn calf to the temple and offer it to the Lord. These were called “firstfruits”.
By doing this they acknowledged that “everything I have comes from God, and belongs to God. And everything I’ll need for the future depends upon God’s goodness to me.” There’s not a more important money management principle you’ll ever hear than this: Give God your “firstfruits,” not your leftovers!
Businessman Arthur DeMoss was a spiritual giant and benefactor who gave millions to God’s work and left behind a foundation to carry on his legacy. Mr. DeMoss said that to be successful you should give God the first dime out of every dollar, the first hour out of every day, and the first day out of every week. And that’s a formula for success in life that can’t be improved on.
You ask, “Does that mean God won’t love me if I don’t tithe?” No, you can’t do anything to earn God’s love, but you must do certain things to walk in His blessing each day. And one of them is giving Him the first tenth of your income. When you do that, agriculturally speaking, “Your barns will be filled with plenty.”
© 2017 CE