During our current series First Things First, we've been learning how to get our lives back on track in the New Year! Today, we're wrapping up our series by learning how we can give God our First Fruits in 2019. The term "first fruits" comes from the Hebrew Bible of the Old Testament and refers to the first and best part of the harvest of crops or produce, animals, and firstborn children. First fruits originates from the idea that if God created everything, it all belongs to Him. So, what is FIRST and BEST should always be given back to God.
OVERDRAWN LIFE
We see examples of God's people giving Him their first fruits all throughout the scripture, such as in Exodus 23:19 or Genesis 4. However, if we're honest, many of us today tend to live our lives from a place of being overdrawn... and as a result, we end up giving God our leftovers instead of our first fruits. Maybe your finances are a mess, or your schedule is maxed out. The truth is, God wants your first fruits... NOT your leftovers.
See, when we withhold our best from God, we actually take away something that belongs to God. But, what if moved from overdrawn to lives that are overflowing with abundance? I love how Jesus puts it in John 15 in the New Testament:
"I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing." -John 15:5
The verse above shows us that when we are connected to Jesus, we bear fruit in our lives. When we don't, we are left relying on ourselves and our limited resources. See, God would never ask us to do anything that He was not willing to do Himself... God gave us his FIRST and BEST in Jesus: His own first fruits! So, you and I can give God our best trusting that if you give God your best, he will bless the rest. There are 2 concrete ways you can do this today:
#1) Give God The First Fruits Of Your Finances
Did you know that we can actually demonstrate our trust in God by living below our means? Last year during our In God We Trust series, we learned that giving a tithe is a financial first fruit where we give God the first 10% of our income. When we make the decision to trust God with our money and rearrange our lives to give back the first fruits of what he's entrusted to us, it serves as a constant reminder that our lives - and everything in them - come from the hand of God. But, it doesn't stop there. God also wants to bless your time.
#2) Give God The First Fruits Of Your Service
In Romans 12:1, we see that we are called by God to actually offer our bodies as living sacrifices to God. How do we do that? By serving others. This is how we give the first fruits of our time. How can you do that at Liquid? You can join our Dream Team. Whether it’s helping guests park, serving them coffee, or mentoring children in Liquid Family… our Dream Team is a group of extraordinary people serving together to help make Sundays happen… and we all have a blast while we’re at it!
Remember, when we when we offer our first fruits back to God through giving of our tithes and our time, we give God our best and trust he will bless the rest. When you do this at Liquid, you're a part of helping us reach our God-sized vision to Saturate the State with the Gospel of Jesus Christ! So, what are you waiting for? CLICK HERE to learn more about how your giving is allowing us to Saturate the State or CLICK HERE to explore our Dream Teams!