Dear Steemians,I would love to share with you three most important mandates for us as Christians which are; First fruits,Tithes and offering.
WHAT IS FIRST FRUIT?
First fruit is the first income you earn after God has blessed you with a good job which you asked Him to give you. The first fruit is renewed every year for an appreciation of what God has done for you.
Proverbs 3:9,"Honor the Lord from your wealth,and from the first of all your produce".
First fruits to God is a way of thanking Him for providing all your needs. Our God asks us to give Him all and we have to submit.
There are many benefits in giving God your first fruits,it is not done everyday or month but annually. God made His promise by giving you what asked of Him which is a job, not only a job but a very good one and you must play your part on honouring Him with your firstfruit.
When you give God your first fruit,these are what you will be enjoying;
1 UPLIFTMENT:Our perfect example here is Abraham (Gen 22:1-8),when God told him to sacrifice his only son which was his first fruit, Abraham never grumbled about this but obeyed God and he was lifted up. God is ready to lift as many as will keep or obey His voice on the matter of first fruit. Abraham honored God and was greatly blessed.
2 DOUBLE BLESSING: Hannah honoured God by bringing her only child (Samuel) into the house of God and God blessed her more with five more children. (1Sam 2:21). When you honour God with your first fruit,He will bless you in thousand folds.
3 DIVINE VISITATION: When you give Him your first fruit,He will visit you in a special way as He did to Solomon and blessed him with what money cannot buy.
TITHES AND OFFERING
"Bring ye all the tithes into the store house, that there may be meat in mine house,and prove me now herewith,saith the Lord of hosts,If I will not open you windows of heaven,and pour you out a blessing that there shall be room enough to receive it." (Matthew 3:10)
Tithes is the one-tenth of your income per month. Whatever your achievement in life,the All sufficient God has made it possible. Consequently giving Him 10% from your income should be done with gratitude and not with grudgingly heart. He will never accept such offering.
Remember Cain and Abel's offering to God,He collected that of Adam's own because he gave the best offering unlike Cain's own who didn't.(Gen 4:3-7)
God doesn't need our money or anything from us(Prov 50:9-12) that will warrant His demand of 10% but that He just want to see how the level of obedience and appreciation for all He has made us to achieve with our hand is.
Many people think it is God that needs our money but it is not so, it is the Church that needs it to expand the growth of the house of God and to spread the gospel and other kingdom projects.
There are many reasons why people do not pay tithes and offerings which I will mention few of them.
1 They believe that the whole 100% is not enough for their own needs
This is some people's belief,forgetting that God brought the job for them. They never had the faith that God will continue to bless them even in some way sending people to help them,if they had given to God 10% out of it.
2 Pastors are the spender
This should not be heard from a believer's mouth. How can somebody say that pastors spend their money which is given to God. It is a lie,they use it for the growth of the church and also use it to feed missionaries who goes to many part of the world to preach the gospel.
3 The accumulated debt or bills are more than the expected income
Some people have calculated their debt and bills to pay at the end of the month and they decide they can't remove 10%out of the money when their bills are more than the salary they earn so they end up not giving God their substance.
4 Generational or ancestral curses
While some people are under curses from their lineage and this makes them use all their salary to pay debt which there will not be any left to give to God and if this is not destroyed, that is how they will end up being in debt all their life.
5 They believe that they worked so hard to earn their income and they can't give any to God again because they are the one suffering to get it
6 Ignorance
Do you believe some are still ignorant of not paying tithes and offering?Yes,an example is my case,it was until my sister explained the issue of tithes and offering before I could understand how it is been done.
7 Spirit of disobedience
Some people have decided to be disobedient, even when the spirit of God is telling them to do it,but they develop this spirit of disobedience in them which even Satan also add his own too.
8 Procrastination
Some keep postponing when they will pay their tithes and that day will never come.
The truth is when you don't give your tithes when you are expected to,it means you are owing God and you must pay in double folds.
Also,there are benefits of paying tithes and offerings
1 Joy of obeying God commandments
2 Opportunity to be blessed by God
3 Open heavens
4 Devourers are rebuked
5 Opportunity to become God's children
6 More funds in the house of God to take care of full time ministers
7 Opportunity to load your cloud for abundant rain
8 Propagation of the gospel
Thanks for reading.