Giving Is Worship - April 24

Read Proverbs 3:9

Honor the LORD with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce…

Reflect

What does giving God our very best communicate?

J. Warner Wallace is a cold-case detective and former atheist. He became a believer when he investigated Christianity the way he investigates his cold-cases and he discovered that Christianity is true. He’s gone on to write several excellent apologetics books making a case for the truth of the Christian world-view.

In his latest book, The Truth in True Crime: What Investigating Death Teaches Us About the Meaning of Life, Wallace wrote a chapter explaining “How To Be More Careful About Your Object(s) of Worship”. He wrote: “Religious believers aren’t the only people who worship. Everyone considers someone or something more important than anything else, and we are inclined to create our own objects of worship. When we offer love, honor, adoration, extravagant respect, or devotion to something or someone, we demonstrate our propensity to worship.”

So, we all worship something or someone and we know that if we are worshiping anything or anyone other than the Lord God, we are committing idolatry. But so often, we are blind to our misplaced worship. Wallace recently appeared on the Maven Parent Podcast to talk about his new book and he offered this question as one way to identify your idols. He asked: “What are you spending your money on? Because we spend what is valuable on what we value. Value goes to value, always does. And the only two things you have in life that are really valuable are money and time.”

Today’s verse is a proverb. Remember that proverbs are principles for wise living. The guiding principle of today’s proverb is that we can worship God (honor Him) by giving Him the firstfruits of our wealth. Whether we are talking about time, talents, or treasure, giving God our “firstfruits” means that we give to God off the top and the very best of what we have.

Imagine that someone really important is coming over to your house for dinner tomorrow and you want to demonstrate how much you honor and respect them. What kind of a meal would you make? Would you pull out week-old leftovers and serve your honored guest a tossed together fridge clean-out? Or, would you sacrifice some of your best groceries to make a fresh and delicious meal for your guest? Sadly, I think this is how many believers view offerings to God. We’ll give to Him from our left-overs rather than give sacrificially from the good stuff.

So often, Christians seem to be worried about the amount that we have to give to God. There is a lot of discussion around whether or not New Testament believers are held to the minimum standard of the tithe (one tenth) commanded to Israel under the Old Covenant.

But when I examine the New Testament for instructions about giving to God, I don’t see a specific minimum amount that we should offer to the Lord. Rather, I see a heart posture or attitude that we should have towards giving to Him. 2 Corinthians 9:7 confirms that God isn’t interested in contributions that are given out of a sense of obligation: “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”

If we are asking about the bare minimum that we are expected to give to our Creator, Sustainer, and Savior, I think we are asking the wrong question. I think the better questions to ask are what else am I spending my money on and how does my investment in His kingdom compare to all of my other discretionary spending? Am I giving God the very best that I have to offer, my firstfruits, or am I offering the Creator of the universe my leftovers?

Today’s verse doesn’t tell us how much we have to give to God. Rather, it urges us to view our giving as an act of worship. When we give God first dibs on the very best we have to offer, we are honoring Him as worthy. We are making a statement about Who we value above all else, Who we trust to continue to provide, and Who we are eternally grateful to. Remember, “we spend what is valuable on what we value…” May we honor God with our wealth and offer Him the best we have… because giving is worship.

Respond

Lord, I praise You because You are the only One worthy of our worship! But I confess that sometimes, I don’t demonstrate that by the way I use the resources that You have given me. I am guilty of having idols in my life and misdirecting my devotion that should only be for You. Forgive me and help me, Lord. I want to give to You what is valuable to me because I treasure You above everything else. Amen.

Reveal

Who or what do you worship most? Take some time to look over how your spend your most valuable assets (money, time) and ask God to help you find opportunities to worship Him through your giving.