Good Morning Everyone!
As we are at the end of this year and looking forward toward the next year, I am compelled in my heart to study once again the principle of giving God the FIRST….This message is not just about giving the first of the new year to the Lord he wants our first everyday! Giving the Lord the FIRST of your day may sound easy, but it is amazing how many things can creep in before you settle down with the word or in prayer for a morning time with the Lord. Lets go to the word and study together..
Genesis 4
1And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD.
2And she again bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.
3And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD.
Here it tells us that in the process of time, (when he got around to it), Cain brought an offering to the Lord.
4And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
In contrast, Abel brought the FIRST to the Lord! It was a priority for him to give God the FIRST and the BEST. The Lord had respect for Abels offering and accepted it with the heart that gave it correctly.
Are we giving God our FIRST and our BEST in all we do?
5But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
Sometimes we can do things, but our heart isn’t really into it, it is not a high priority. We want our heart to be right in all we do.
6And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen?
7If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him.
We need to examine our hearts and our actions and make sure we are giving God the honor that is due to Him. That He is kept First and Formost in our lives, for when we put him aside, sin crouches at the door and we become accessible to Satan and what he wants to bring into our lives. Lets make sure that door is slammed shut today and that God is FIRST and foremost in every action of our lives.
Passage Exodus 20:3:
3Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
God wants the FIRST, not the leftovers. He wants us to put HIM BEFORE EVERYTHING ELSE! We can make so many different things out God, just by worshiping them and spending more time with them that with our Heavenly Father! As you can see by this FIRST commandment, God does care about the order of our lives, HE WANTS TO BE FIRST and ONLY!!
Exodus 22:29 (Whole Chapter)
Thou shalt not delay to offer the first of thy ripe fruits, and of thy liquors: the firstborn of thy sons shalt thou give unto me.
Here the Lord tells us not to delay to offer the first. He must know that sometimes even if we have the best intentions, if we don’t do it right away, something may happen which would prevent us from doing that which he had told us to do….
Exodus 23:19
The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God.
Deuteronomy 26:10
And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land, which thou, O LORD, hast given me. And thou shalt set it before the LORD thy God, and worship before the LORD thy God:
Bringing an offering to the Lord, giving him the first of your finances, your day, your year, your marriage, this is a type of worship to the Lord.
Proverbs 3:9
Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
Every good and perfect gift comes from the Father, so everything we have came from Him. we Honor him by giving back to him the FIRST!!
Matthew 6:19-33
19Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
22The light of the body is the eye: if therefore thine eye be single, thy whole body shall be full of light.
23But if thine eye be evil, thy whole body shall be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in thee be darkness, how great is that darkness!
24No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
25Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
31Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?
32(For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.
33But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
We don’t have to worry or be anxious about this coming year as long as our hearts are turned toward Jesus. As we seek Him and HIS way of doing things first, everything else will be taken care of. His word says that he will perfect those things that concern us!! Let give God our First and our Best this coming year and you will be blessed beyond measure!!
God Bless You and May this New Year be the best one you have ever had!
Love, Pastor Carol
Pastor Carol Mora 