Leviticus 23:9-14: a reflection

9The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 10“Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, ‘When you have come into the land which I give to you, and shall reap its harvest, then you shall bring the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. 11He shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you. On the next day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12On the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb without defect a year old for a burnt offering to the LORD. 13The meal offering with it shall be two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire to the LORD for a pleasant aroma; and the drink offering with it shall be of wine, the fourth part of a hin. 14You must not eat bread, or roasted grain, or fresh grain, until this same day, until you have brought the offering of your God. This is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

Among the offerings God appointed for his people was the offering of firstfruits: when they came into the land and reaped their harvest, they were to bring the first sheaf of it to God before eating any of the new grain themselves. Bring the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest, God commands; and they were not to eat of the harvest until they had first brought this offering to God. The principle is clear: God is to be given the first of what we receive, the firstfruits, before we take our own portion. Not the leftovers, not what remains after we have taken ours, but the first and best, given to God before ourselves. To give God the first of what we receive, honoring him first with the firstfruits, rather than giving him only what is left after we have taken our share, is the heart of this offering. God is honored with the first, not the last; the firstfruits are his. To give God the first of what we receive is to honor him first. God receives the firstfruits, before we take our own. Honoring God with the first of what we have puts him first.

Notice the order this offering established: God first, then ourselves. The people were to bring the first sheaf of the harvest to God before eating any of it themselves; God received the firstfruits, before the people took their own portion. This was a way of honoring God first, of acknowledging that all they had came from him and that he deserved the first, not merely the last. The principle of firstfruits is this: giving God the first of what we receive, honoring him before ourselves, rather than giving him what is left over after we have taken our share. This puts God first, in a practical and tangible way, in the very order of how we use what we receive. To give God the firstfruits is to say, in effect, that he comes first, that what we have is from him and he deserves the first of it. We can be tempted to take our own portion first and give God only what remains; but the firstfruits principle calls us to give God the first, honoring him before ourselves. To honor God with the first of what we receive puts him first in a real way. Giving God the firstfruits acknowledges that all is from him. The first, not the leftovers, is God's portion. To put God first is to give him the first.

That is worth taking to heart, for we are called to give God the first of what we receive, the firstfruits, honoring him before ourselves rather than giving him only what is left over. We can take our own portion first and give God only what remains after we have had ours; but the firstfruits offering called the people to give God the first of the harvest, before they took any for themselves. To give God the first, not the leftovers, is to honor him first, acknowledging that all we have is from him. Do not give God only what is left after you have taken your share; give him the first of what you receive, honoring him first, as the people brought the firstfruits before eating. Give God the first of what you receive, the firstfruits, honoring him before yourself rather than giving him only what is left after you have taken your own share, as God's people were to bring the first sheaf of the harvest to him before eating any of it themselves; for God is to be honored with the first, not the last, and to give him the firstfruits acknowledges that all we have is from him and puts him first in a real and tangible way, in the very order of how we use what we receive, so that we do well to give God the first of what we have rather than the leftovers, honoring him before ourselves as the firstfruits offering teaches.

Lord, among the offerings you appointed for your people was the offering of firstfruits: when they came into the land and reaped their harvest, they were to bring the first sheaf of it to you before eating any of the new grain themselves. Bring the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest, you command; and they were not to eat of the harvest until they had first brought this offering to you. The principle is clear: you are to be given the first of what we receive, the firstfruits, before we take our own portion. Not the leftovers, but the first and best, given to you before ourselves. Show me the order this offering established: you first, then ourselves. The people were to bring the first sheaf of the harvest to you before eating any of it themselves; you received the firstfruits, before the people took their own portion. This was a way of honoring you first, of acknowledging that all they had came from you and that you deserved the first. The principle of firstfruits is this: giving you the first of what we receive, honoring you before ourselves, rather than giving you what is left over. This puts you first, in a practical and tangible way. I can be tempted to take my own portion first and give you only what remains; but the firstfruits principle calls me to give you the first. Take that to my heart, for I am called to give you the first of what I receive, the firstfruits, honoring you before myself rather than giving you only what is left over. I can take my own portion first and give you only what remains after I have had mine; but the firstfruits offering called the people to give you the first of the harvest. Keep me from giving you only what is left after I have taken my share; help me give you the first of what I receive, Lord, honoring you first, as the people brought the firstfruits before eating, acknowledging that all I have is from you.