“With a Freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good.” Psalm 54:6
We often call the tithe our first fruits. This is fitting since we give our tithe off the top; from our income we separate the tithe first and from what remains we dole out according to our debts, needs, wants, and desires. It is also fitting as our tithe, which ought to be considered a sacrifice, is offered from the best of what we have or received and not from whatever is left over. But what about that part that is left over; the part that remains after the tithe is separated and kept holy for God and His Church? Is that part which is then used for bills, groceries, charity, toys, etc, any less holy? Can God use the “left over’s” just as much as He uses the tithe?
Apostle Paul wrote “If the dough offered as first fruits is holy, so is the whole lump” (Romans 11:16a ESV). As God blesses the tithe and even ‘multiplies’ in order to accomplish His purposes, God can and will do the same with the remainder. God desires that His children be blessed and highly favored; God wants His people prosperous and successful; God loves to see the Redeemed of the Lord in positions of wealth and greatness. If God can make even a small morsel of dough to rise, then how much more the whole lump? For the dough to rise though, it must be baked. Going through the heat of the fire is never fun; you may be singed or even worse over baked and charred. Yet, your wealth can never be destroyed when it is the hands of the One who can never be deceived or defeated. When you offer your first fruits to God and His church, what remains will go through the fire; but it is only by the heat of the fire that it can rise and increase to more than what it started out to be.
As God blesses the left overs, and when there is more their than what is needed to supply and satisfy ones needs and desires, the next best thing to do is thank Him for the increase. How can we show God this thanks? With a Freewill offering. (see Ps. 54:6) Remember, You can NEVER outgive God. Financial multiplication and increase belongs to the givers to the House of the Lord.
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