WEBVTT

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Welcome to the Life Bible Church podcast. We

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want to thank you for joining us today, and we

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hope you find today's sermon impacting as you

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listen to it wherever you are in your daily walk.

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To find service times and watch messages online,

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see our website at lifebiblechurch .org. Now,

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enjoy this week's message. All right. Well, guys,

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my name is Scott, Pastor Scott. I'm a staff pastor

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here. Pastor Brad and Jenny are not in town.

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They are traveling this weekend. So you guys

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get me today. So I'm excited. Could we just lift

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up our senior pastors this morning in prayer?

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Father, we just thank you for pastors Brad and

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Jenny. Lord, you are a faithful God. Lord, that

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you would bring them to this house. Lord, that

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you would put in them, Lord, everything they

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need to release grace, giftings, Lord, and to

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build your house here in Harrisburg, Oregon.

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Lord, we are grateful. Lord, I'm asking right

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now that your hand of blessing, your hand of

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favor, your hand of rest would be upon them right

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now. Lord, that even... even as they're out and

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about, as they're traveling, Lord, that there

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would be an impartation of grace, an impartation

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of rest that comes upon them, Lord, and equips

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them for the next season, for the next steps

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that you have for them in leading this church.

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Lord, we honor them. We're thankful for them

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and we bless them today. And Lord, we also just

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lift up, Lord, this time. Holy Spirit, we welcome

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you in this place. We give all honor to you.

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You are the one that brings the power of Calvary

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into our hearts. You're the one that reveals

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all truth that leads us to the person of Christ.

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So Holy Spirit, we welcome you in this place

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right now. And we just surrender our hearts.

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We surrender our minds. Lord, we surrender everything.

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before you today. And Lord, I'm also asking that

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faith would be stirred in our hearts in this

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room right now. Lord, not a faith for something

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temporary, Lord, but a faith in who you are.

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God, let that faith of your character, your nature,

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let it begin to burn in each and every one of

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our hearts this morning. God, we honor you. We

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thank you that you paid a high price. For us

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to know you, for us to be in relationship with

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you, Lord. I'm asking that fresh revelation of

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what you came to do and what you're actively

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doing in our lives would be released in this

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room right now. In Jesus' mighty name. And all

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God's people said, amen. Amen. We had an amazing

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guest speaker last week for Mother's Day. How

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many of you guys were here for Rachel preaching?

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Wasn't that incredible? I just have to say, we

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had our National Day of Prayer earlier that week.

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And her and Gordon and what's her other friend's

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name? Helen. They all came to National Day of

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Prayer. Rachel got up and started praying. And

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man, I was convicted as an American because she's

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from the UK and she was just praying and interceding

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for our nation so passionately. Anyway, she's

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such a gift. It was awesome having her last week.

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We are actually, if you are new to Life Bible

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or this is maybe your first time here, we are

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in the middle of our first fruits giving season.

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And so we're gonna actually jump in this morning

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and we're gonna talk about first fruits. So I

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got a lot to share this morning. So I'm gonna

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try to move fast and not lose anyone along the

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way. But I do wanna just cover a few questions

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this morning about first fruits. I wanna answer

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some questions as far as what our heart posture

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should be in bringing first fruits to the Lord.

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And I also want to cover a question on what should

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the result of a firstfruits offering in faith

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be? But before we do that, I want to just preface

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a little bit on what firstfruits is. So if you

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guys have your Bibles, I want you to open up

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to Leviticus 23, verses 10 through 11. Leviticus

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23, 10 through 11. So before we jump into this

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passage, this kind of gives a little bit of an

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explanation of what it is. But I want to give

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a little bit of context. First fruits is an offering

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that we see. It's first mentioned in the Old

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Testament. And it was an offering that was very

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specifically for the nation of Israel when they

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entered the promised land. It wasn't an offering

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that took place before they got to the promised

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land. It was a promised land offering. And what

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it looked like is it looked like in the Jewish

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culture, they had certain feasts that the nation

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was required to participate in. So they had the

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Passover feast, which was, we know Passover,

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obviously Jesus celebrated Passover with his

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disciples before going to the cross. But at the

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end of that first Passover week, The day after

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the Sabbath, the Jewish people would celebrate

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first fruits. So actually first fruits took place

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on a Sunday. And what it looked like back then

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is people on first fruit Sunday, they would go

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out into their barley fields because barley was

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ripened before wheat back then. Well, it still

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is, but that was what they did on that first

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fruit Sunday. They would go out into their barley

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field. And the grain was maybe just starting

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to ripen, but not quite there yet. And they would

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cut a section of their barley field. They'd wrap

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it up and they'd bring this big sheaf of barley

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to the priest, along with a lamb and another

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type of offering. And they would bring that barley

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to the priest and the priest would actually wave

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it before the Lord. So we're gonna read this

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passage out of Leviticus where this process is

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described. It says, speak to the people of Israel

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and say to them, when you come into the land

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that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall

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bring the sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest

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to the priest and he shall wave the sheaf before

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the Lord that you may be accepted. On the day

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after the Sabbath, the priest shall wave it.

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I can just picture a giant sheaf and that priest

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like picking one of those things up and doing

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one of those. I don't know what it looked like,

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but that is the process where they would harvest

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some of their crop before it was really ready.

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They'd bring it to the priest. The priest would

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wave it and bless it before the Lord. And you

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might ask, well, why did they do this? I'm gonna

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cover that in just a little bit, but I want to

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point out even in this chapter, this was specifically

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a promised land offering. right, where it says,

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when you come into the land, when Leviticus was

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written, they weren't there yet. They were still

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inside and Moses wrote the book of Leviticus.

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So this was actually, there was a promise attached

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to first fruits right out of the gate of saying,

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not only are you, it's not that going into the

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promised land is an if, it's a when, it's going

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to happen. And so there was a promise given to

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the Israelites. So these offerings, were to be

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offered once they had taken possession of the

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land and they had begun to sow and reap in that

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land. That is the context of when this offering

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took place. Now, why is this important for us?

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Israel's journey into the promised land was a

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type and shadow for us as new covenant believers.

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Did you guys know that? Even when you look at

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Israel in bondage in Egypt, They had taskmasters.

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They were not free. But what did the Lord do?

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He delivered them out with a mighty hand. They

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could not get free on their own, but God brought

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deliverance miraculously. Well, that actually,

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there's a parallel. For us, we were once slaves

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to sin. We were in darkness. We were completely

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separated from God. And by a mighty hand, because

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of what Jesus did, we were brought out. And we

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experienced salvation, right? Same thing with

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the Red Sea. Israel was brought to the edge of

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the Red Sea and the Lord brought the whole nation

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through. That actually points to, even as a new

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covenant believer, when we went through the waters

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of baptism, we came out to walk in the newness

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of life with Jesus Christ. So you see all of

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Israel's journey, it points and prophesies really

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to the life that we live as believers. So this

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is why it's important that this is a promised

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land offering. Because guess what? In the same

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way that Israel went into the promised land,

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we are called to enter into the promised land

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that God has for us. It's not a physical land

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per se, but it is apprehending the life and the

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purpose that God has for each and every one of

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us. That is what we're called to do. So, first

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fruits. It was an offering specific to the promised

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land. This is an offering now that we can engage

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with as we pursue the promises of God manifesting

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in our life. So let's read 2 Corinthians 1 .20.

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It says, for all the promises of God, find their

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yes in him. That is why through him that we utter

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our amen to God for his glory. How many of you

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guys like that scripture? All the promises of

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God are yes and amen. That is God's heart for

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his people is that every promise that we would

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apprehend it, we would step into it, but there

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is partnership required. Am I right? So the first

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fruit offering represented giving God the first

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portion of his unripened harvest, believing him

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to increase the remaining grain in the field.

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And also in that process, thanking him for his

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faithfulness to provide. So as new covenant believers,

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this offering actually engages our faith and

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it causes us to trust God in a radical way. In

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the same way, we saw it in form with the Old

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Testament, with Israel, it doesn't make sense

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to cut your grain before it's ripe. Am I right?

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I mean, not everyone in this room is a farmer,

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and I'm not a farmer either, but I know that

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if you cut your grain before it's ripe, that's

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not the smartest thing to do. But there is faith

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attached saying, God, we're bringing you the

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first portion and we're believing that you are

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going to bless and multiply that which is still

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in the field. And that's really what first fruits

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reflected in the Old Testament. And that is what

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first fruits reflects now for us as new covenant

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believers, where we bring something to the Lord

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in faith saying, God, we know who you are and

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we trust you. And we're believing that not just

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provision will come, but multiplication will

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come to that which is still growing and still

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in our metaphorical field. Does that make sense?

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So 1 Corinthians, and I don't know if you guys

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knew this, but we are God's field. Do you know

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that? 1 Corinthians 3, 9, it says, for we are

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God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's

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building. Our life is a field that God is planting,

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cultivating, and he's looking for a harvest.

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And what does our field look like? There's many

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things. I would say that God is actually cultivating

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in your life. It's not just your finances. Praise

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God, it's not just your finances. It's your gifting,

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it's your talents. It's the ministry that God's

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called you to. It's your family, it's purpose

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from heaven that God has put in your life. And

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God's looking to cultivate that. He's looking

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to plant and he's looking to see a great harvest

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of multiplication. That is what God's doing.

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And first fruits is a way that we can actually

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partner with God and begin to see that acceleration

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and that multiplication of what he's doing on

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the inside of our lives. So I'm gonna move forward

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here, but I wanna also just talk about first

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fruits in the New Testament. Jesus, I don't know

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if you guys knew this, but Jesus was our first

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fruit offering. 1 Corinthians 15, 20 through

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23 says this, but in fact, Christ has been raised

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from the dead, the first fruits of those who

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have fallen asleep. For as by man came death,

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by a man has come also the resurrection of the

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dead. For as in Adam, all die, so also in Christ,

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all will be made alive. but each in his own order,

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Christ, the first fruits, then at his coming,

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those who belong to Christ. So I don't know if

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you guys know this, but Jesus was actually raised

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from the dead on first fruit Sunday. Do you guys

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know that? Passover happened, then you move into

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the Sabbath day, the day after Sabbath, first

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fruits. That's when Jesus was raised from the

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dead. So this is... Paul's actually explaining

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something. It's not just metaphorical. Jesus

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literally raised from the dead on first fruit

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Sunday, but now we are the harvest that follows

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him. If you are in this room right now, Jesus

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is your Lord and savior. You've been born again.

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Guess what? You are the result of God's first

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fruit offering in Christ. That he was offered

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up to God and now we are the increase, the multiplication

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that follows. So it's a really powerful picture

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of Jesus becoming, he is that first fruits offering

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for us. He's the fulfillment of that. Now we

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get to bring our lives into alignment with him

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and we get to follow him giving our lives as

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a first fruits to his purpose. Okay, I wanna

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look at the question today. What should our heart

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posture be in bringing first fruits? Here's what,

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there's a lot of things I could probably say

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in what should be the posture of our heart. The

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human heart is very complicated and complex,

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but I'm just gonna focus on two important elements

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of our heart posture before the Lord when we

00:15:48.059 --> 00:15:51.200
bring a first fruit offering. And that is really

00:15:51.200 --> 00:15:56.730
having a heart filled with joy and faith. Those

00:15:56.730 --> 00:15:59.210
two components, as I look at scripture, I think

00:15:59.210 --> 00:16:02.830
are the most important components of bringing

00:16:02.830 --> 00:16:05.809
an offering to the Lord. And so I wanna talk

00:16:05.809 --> 00:16:09.409
specifically, I wanna start with faith. Faith

00:16:09.409 --> 00:16:11.889
is the reason that we're in this room right now.

00:16:12.929 --> 00:16:17.389
We would not be here on a Sunday morning if it

00:16:17.389 --> 00:16:19.950
weren't for faith in who Jesus is and what he's

00:16:19.950 --> 00:16:23.909
asked us to do. And it really is the foundation,

00:16:23.909 --> 00:16:27.049
I would argue, for everything we do as New Covenant

00:16:27.049 --> 00:16:30.350
believers. See, the Israelites, they were in

00:16:30.350 --> 00:16:33.690
a different dispensation, right? They were under

00:16:33.690 --> 00:16:36.730
the law. So there was an element of first fruits

00:16:36.730 --> 00:16:40.350
that was actually required for them to walk in

00:16:40.350 --> 00:16:44.629
accordance with the law. We are not under the

00:16:44.629 --> 00:16:47.389
same requirement. So as New Covenant believers,

00:16:47.850 --> 00:16:50.740
we're not justified by the law. We're actually

00:16:50.740 --> 00:16:53.299
justified by faith alone. It says that in Romans

00:16:53.299 --> 00:16:57.759
5 .1. So for us, anything done outside of faith

00:16:57.759 --> 00:17:01.159
is not permissible. And I'm gonna go even a step

00:17:01.159 --> 00:17:03.299
further and say anything done outside of faith

00:17:03.299 --> 00:17:08.119
is actually sin. Romans 14 .23 talks about that.

00:17:08.220 --> 00:17:11.079
It says, for whoever doubts, Paul's talking about

00:17:11.079 --> 00:17:13.279
eating certain types of food, but he says, whoever

00:17:13.279 --> 00:17:16.440
doubts is condemned if he eats because the eating

00:17:16.440 --> 00:17:20.000
is not from faith. Whatever does not proceed

00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:25.680
from faith is sin. So this is why I feel like

00:17:25.680 --> 00:17:28.660
we have to start here for the sake of a first

00:17:28.660 --> 00:17:31.519
fruits offering, because this principle has to

00:17:31.519 --> 00:17:36.440
operate from a platform of faith. If it doesn't,

00:17:36.440 --> 00:17:39.400
then you're just actually bringing a religious

00:17:39.400 --> 00:17:43.160
offering or doing a religious duty that really

00:17:43.160 --> 00:17:48.549
has no bearing or impact on your soul. We operate

00:17:48.549 --> 00:17:51.529
in faith when we hear him, when we hear the Lord

00:17:51.529 --> 00:17:54.890
speak into an area of our life and we respond

00:17:54.890 --> 00:17:58.950
in obedience. Romans 10, 17, it says, so faith

00:17:58.950 --> 00:18:02.670
comes from hearing, hearing through the word

00:18:02.670 --> 00:18:05.769
of Christ. So there's an important element of

00:18:05.769 --> 00:18:09.130
faith where we have to actually discern the voice

00:18:09.130 --> 00:18:12.210
of the Lord. In the same way, when all of us

00:18:12.210 --> 00:18:14.769
were saved, You maybe didn't hear the audible

00:18:14.769 --> 00:18:16.990
voice of God telling you you need to repent,

00:18:17.289 --> 00:18:20.910
but you probably felt deep conviction. You felt

00:18:20.910 --> 00:18:24.109
something stirring inside of you to actually

00:18:24.109 --> 00:18:28.650
get right with God. You are hearing the word

00:18:28.650 --> 00:18:32.509
of Christ inside of you. Classic definitions

00:18:32.509 --> 00:18:36.230
of faith, Hebrews 11, one, it says, now faith

00:18:36.230 --> 00:18:39.009
is the assurance of things hoped for. It's the

00:18:39.009 --> 00:18:43.089
conviction of things not seen. You know, I wanna

00:18:43.089 --> 00:18:47.549
just say this, to operate in faith, you have

00:18:47.549 --> 00:18:51.910
to look past natural circumstance and you have

00:18:51.910 --> 00:18:55.589
to actually place your trust, just like Tiffany

00:18:55.589 --> 00:18:58.609
was talking during the offering message, you

00:18:58.609 --> 00:19:02.150
have to actually place your trust in God. And

00:19:02.150 --> 00:19:04.930
you may not see what the solution is in that

00:19:04.930 --> 00:19:08.750
moment, but that is what faith is. It's a conviction

00:19:08.750 --> 00:19:12.650
of things not yet seen. You haven't seen it.

00:19:12.670 --> 00:19:14.769
You haven't discerned it. So you're looking past

00:19:14.769 --> 00:19:17.190
natural circumstance. You're looking to what

00:19:17.190 --> 00:19:20.609
God has spoken. So what does that feel like?

00:19:20.630 --> 00:19:23.970
That type of faith, it feels like risk and it

00:19:23.970 --> 00:19:27.549
requires obedience. I think that's, in my opinion,

00:19:27.549 --> 00:19:29.769
one of the best definitions of faith outside

00:19:29.769 --> 00:19:32.849
of Hebrews 11 .1. It feels like taking a giant

00:19:32.849 --> 00:19:38.259
risk and it actually requires obedience. I'll

00:19:38.259 --> 00:19:40.440
tell you guys a quick story. I was talking to

00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:43.059
a young man at our church a couple of weeks ago.

00:19:43.359 --> 00:19:46.140
Do you guys remember when Pastor Tim was here

00:19:46.140 --> 00:19:49.920
preaching on first fruits? Well, while Pastor

00:19:49.920 --> 00:19:53.039
Tim was preaching, he also shared a little bit

00:19:53.039 --> 00:19:56.660
on his testimony about the tithe and how when

00:19:56.660 --> 00:19:59.019
he first started tithing, he was in debt. He

00:19:59.019 --> 00:20:01.779
didn't have any resource. He just felt like he

00:20:01.779 --> 00:20:04.380
was in a financial pit and the Lord convicted

00:20:04.380 --> 00:20:07.339
him to start tithing. I was talking to a young

00:20:07.339 --> 00:20:09.960
man at our church and he heard that testimony.

00:20:10.000 --> 00:20:12.059
He heard that teaching and he felt the conviction

00:20:12.059 --> 00:20:14.460
of the Holy Spirit because he hadn't been tithing.

00:20:15.519 --> 00:20:19.220
And in that process, he went home and he was

00:20:19.220 --> 00:20:22.279
kind of wrestling with that, that he needed to

00:20:22.279 --> 00:20:25.839
tithe. But he also, like Pastor Tim, was in a

00:20:25.839 --> 00:20:28.160
bit of a hole and did not have a lot of excess.

00:20:28.740 --> 00:20:31.119
And he finally made a decision. His rent was

00:20:31.119 --> 00:20:35.539
due that week. And he realized if he tithed,

00:20:35.799 --> 00:20:41.099
he would be $500 short on rent. And he heard

00:20:41.099 --> 00:20:43.440
the Holy Spirit inviting him into that and he

00:20:43.440 --> 00:20:47.119
went for it. He just in faith, looking beyond

00:20:47.119 --> 00:20:50.539
circumstance, looking beyond what was in the

00:20:50.539 --> 00:20:53.079
natural, he said, God, I know that you're calling

00:20:53.079 --> 00:20:55.059
me to do something, I'm partnering with you.

00:20:55.599 --> 00:20:58.680
And he gave that tithe, he brought that tithe.

00:20:59.299 --> 00:21:02.900
And what happened the next day is absolutely

00:21:02.900 --> 00:21:07.839
amazing. He called me or we talked at church

00:21:07.839 --> 00:21:10.519
the next day. And what had happened is he had

00:21:10.519 --> 00:21:14.240
actually given that tithe earlier that week.

00:21:14.299 --> 00:21:18.079
The day his rent was due, he got paid at his

00:21:18.079 --> 00:21:22.779
workplace double what he was expecting. Didn't

00:21:22.779 --> 00:21:24.980
know why, but there was literally his paycheck

00:21:24.980 --> 00:21:27.759
was double what it normally was. And on top of

00:21:27.759 --> 00:21:32.579
that, he's a veteran. And he doesn't get any

00:21:32.579 --> 00:21:34.799
benefits or anything for being a veteran, but

00:21:34.799 --> 00:21:37.799
the VA randomly sent him a check that same day

00:21:37.799 --> 00:21:42.480
for some type of payment. And so it's a really

00:21:42.480 --> 00:21:46.000
powerful testimony, right? Where he took a step.

00:21:46.019 --> 00:21:49.380
It felt like risk to actually be faithful and

00:21:49.380 --> 00:21:52.200
obedient to release that tithe. But God showed

00:21:52.200 --> 00:21:54.859
up the day that he needed it. God showed up.

00:21:55.500 --> 00:21:57.380
And you know, I think that's a great example.

00:21:57.440 --> 00:21:58.799
I know we're talking about first fruits. We're

00:21:58.799 --> 00:22:00.920
not talking about tithing here, but anything

00:22:00.920 --> 00:22:04.400
we do as a Christian in our Christian faith,

00:22:04.500 --> 00:22:08.900
it requires faith. And it feels like you're taking

00:22:08.900 --> 00:22:13.539
a big risk. You're taking a step and it doesn't

00:22:13.539 --> 00:22:15.200
feel like there's anything that you're actually

00:22:15.200 --> 00:22:18.660
going to be landing on. That is what faith feels

00:22:18.660 --> 00:22:21.140
like. But it's when we look past the natural

00:22:21.140 --> 00:22:23.900
and we look to the promises of God, that's where

00:22:23.900 --> 00:22:27.500
God shows up. And that really is the power of

00:22:27.500 --> 00:22:30.259
first fruits is we're looking to God as our provider.

00:22:30.519 --> 00:22:33.119
We're looking to his character, his nature, and

00:22:33.119 --> 00:22:36.599
his promises corporately for all, but also for

00:22:36.599 --> 00:22:40.900
us as individuals. You know, Psalm 27, 12 through

00:22:40.900 --> 00:22:44.460
13, David kind of talks of this aspect of faith.

00:22:45.039 --> 00:22:48.440
He says, do not turn me over to the desires of

00:22:48.440 --> 00:22:52.880
my foes. For false witnesses rise up against

00:22:52.880 --> 00:22:58.700
me, spouting malicious accusations. I remain

00:22:58.700 --> 00:23:03.059
confident of this. I will see the goodness of

00:23:03.059 --> 00:23:07.279
the Lord in the land of the living. Most of us

00:23:07.279 --> 00:23:09.700
are familiar with that last verse. Sometimes

00:23:09.700 --> 00:23:13.619
I forget even the context of that. What was he

00:23:13.619 --> 00:23:16.740
saying? He's saying, There's people rising up,

00:23:16.740 --> 00:23:18.960
false witnesses lying about and making false

00:23:18.960 --> 00:23:22.640
accusations. His enemies are rising up on every

00:23:22.640 --> 00:23:26.839
side. In the natural, it doesn't look very promising

00:23:26.839 --> 00:23:30.779
for David in this Psalm, right? But what does

00:23:30.779 --> 00:23:32.980
he say? He says, I remain confident in this.

00:23:33.039 --> 00:23:36.700
I will see the goodness of God in the land of

00:23:36.700 --> 00:23:38.680
the living. There was something in him. There

00:23:38.680 --> 00:23:42.160
was a faith to look past what was right in front

00:23:42.160 --> 00:23:45.200
of him and see the goodness of God and the promises

00:23:45.200 --> 00:23:48.640
of God that had not fully come to fruition. And

00:23:48.640 --> 00:23:52.140
he lived from that place. And I'm gonna say this,

00:23:52.220 --> 00:23:56.220
faith demands you to look beyond natural circumstance

00:23:56.220 --> 00:24:00.509
and trust God. That's what faith does. And especially

00:24:00.509 --> 00:24:03.430
in the realm of first fruits. I'm gonna tell

00:24:03.430 --> 00:24:06.430
you guys just a story. My wife and I got married,

00:24:06.509 --> 00:24:09.609
we're approaching three years, three years ago.

00:24:09.670 --> 00:24:15.250
It was June of 2023. So the very next year, 2024,

00:24:15.410 --> 00:24:19.210
we were doing first fruits together as a married

00:24:19.210 --> 00:24:23.029
couple for the first time. And so in that process,

00:24:23.089 --> 00:24:25.890
we'd been married a year. My wife had just got

00:24:25.890 --> 00:24:30.900
pregnant. And so I am, starting to panic a little

00:24:30.900 --> 00:24:34.900
bit as a finance guy, thinking about the costs

00:24:34.900 --> 00:24:37.200
of birth and realizing insurance isn't gonna

00:24:37.200 --> 00:24:40.700
cover the full amount of a birth. So I'm looking

00:24:40.700 --> 00:24:43.319
at how we can save money, how we can set money

00:24:43.319 --> 00:24:46.480
aside to start saving for this baby that's coming.

00:24:47.039 --> 00:24:49.519
And so we're doing that and we're looking at

00:24:49.519 --> 00:24:51.680
everything. And in the middle of first fruit

00:24:51.680 --> 00:24:55.160
season, in my mind, I'm thinking in the natural,

00:24:55.259 --> 00:24:57.240
this is probably going to be a little bit of

00:24:57.240 --> 00:25:01.599
a, Lower year of the first fruits offering. That's

00:25:01.599 --> 00:25:04.640
where I was just thinking in my natural mind.

00:25:05.079 --> 00:25:08.180
And I remember my wife and I spent some time

00:25:08.180 --> 00:25:12.079
in prayer and I got a number that was majorly

00:25:12.079 --> 00:25:15.859
stretching for me personally. Majorly stretching.

00:25:16.019 --> 00:25:19.740
And then I talked to my wife and she had a number

00:25:19.740 --> 00:25:21.980
that was stretching for her personally and they

00:25:21.980 --> 00:25:24.660
were somewhat close to the same. But neither

00:25:24.660 --> 00:25:27.819
of us felt like... her number was right or my

00:25:27.819 --> 00:25:29.720
number was right. As we prayed, we're like, what

00:25:29.720 --> 00:25:31.460
in the world? And so we spent more time in prayer.

00:25:32.240 --> 00:25:35.140
And I hear the Lord, as we're praying, I hear

00:25:35.140 --> 00:25:38.319
the Lord speak to me loud and clear because he

00:25:38.319 --> 00:25:40.480
knows it has to be loud and clear in this scenario

00:25:40.480 --> 00:25:45.500
for me. He goes, Scott, add your numbers together.

00:25:45.559 --> 00:25:52.119
That's your offering. And I'm like, no, that

00:25:52.119 --> 00:25:56.059
can't be right. I mean, again, In natural circumstance,

00:25:56.200 --> 00:25:58.599
it didn't make sense. And I remember sharing

00:25:58.599 --> 00:26:00.819
it with my wife and she started weeping and she

00:26:00.819 --> 00:26:03.079
goes, that's exactly what we're supposed to do

00:26:03.079 --> 00:26:06.099
this year. And I'm like, why did you say that?

00:26:06.240 --> 00:26:10.599
You were my out. No, but all that to say, so

00:26:10.599 --> 00:26:13.720
in faith, and it took a lot of faith to write

00:26:13.720 --> 00:26:17.099
that check and bring it to the Lord. But I'm

00:26:17.099 --> 00:26:21.140
telling you guys, when we took the step of faith,

00:26:21.380 --> 00:26:25.690
that is where God shows up. And in the next couple

00:26:25.690 --> 00:26:28.970
months, we watched thousands of dollars just

00:26:28.970 --> 00:26:31.710
given to us, cash, checks, random people, people

00:26:31.710 --> 00:26:35.849
we knew specifically for our baby. We had just

00:26:35.849 --> 00:26:38.789
insane blessings come in from very unexpected

00:26:38.789 --> 00:26:43.069
places. And then Noah was born, healthy baby.

00:26:43.170 --> 00:26:44.910
One of the things we were believing for in our

00:26:44.910 --> 00:26:47.309
first fruits, what we were believing the Lord

00:26:47.309 --> 00:26:50.230
for, she was born and then the bills started

00:26:50.230 --> 00:26:53.700
coming in. So I applied for like a financial

00:26:53.700 --> 00:26:55.940
aid with the hospital and they actually gave

00:26:55.940 --> 00:26:58.700
us a portion. They cut a portion of it, but we

00:26:58.700 --> 00:27:01.200
were still paying these bills. So we kind of

00:27:01.200 --> 00:27:03.500
like get to the, what I thought was the end of

00:27:03.500 --> 00:27:06.920
the hospital bills. Wasn't, a little disclaimer.

00:27:07.619 --> 00:27:10.359
Eight months afterward, I think we're all good.

00:27:10.400 --> 00:27:12.359
We're all settled up. And I get another $2 ,000

00:27:12.359 --> 00:27:15.619
bill from the hospital. And I'm like, oh, how

00:27:15.619 --> 00:27:17.940
are we gonna do this? And so I'm praying and

00:27:17.940 --> 00:27:20.680
the Lord says, apply for financial aid again.

00:27:21.240 --> 00:27:23.660
I'm like, I already did that. They didn't give

00:27:23.660 --> 00:27:25.440
us a full scholarship. He said, apply again.

00:27:25.599 --> 00:27:27.759
And so I did, and I wrote them a letter. Well,

00:27:27.799 --> 00:27:30.960
it turns out they canceled the $2 ,000 bill,

00:27:31.099 --> 00:27:35.539
the last one at the end. And again, it's amazing

00:27:35.539 --> 00:27:39.359
how God works the provision, how he brings blessing.

00:27:39.700 --> 00:27:43.940
I couldn't have logically come to the conclusion

00:27:43.940 --> 00:27:46.920
of how things are done, how God would make it

00:27:46.920 --> 00:27:49.319
happen. I couldn't have done that in my own mind.

00:27:49.920 --> 00:27:52.400
but God brought it about. And we truly, we came

00:27:52.400 --> 00:27:54.420
to the end of that year and I just looked at

00:27:54.420 --> 00:28:00.420
our finances from a bigger perspective and somehow

00:28:00.420 --> 00:28:03.680
we had way more than we had had the year prior.

00:28:03.859 --> 00:28:05.839
And again, I don't know how that works because

00:28:05.839 --> 00:28:08.869
I'm a finance guy and like. Math is easy. You've

00:28:08.869 --> 00:28:11.650
got equations and the numbers work or they don't

00:28:11.650 --> 00:28:13.470
work. You know, I was an accountant for a couple

00:28:13.470 --> 00:28:16.150
of years. I don't know how God did it, but somehow

00:28:16.150 --> 00:28:19.490
at the end of that year, our finances were actually

00:28:19.490 --> 00:28:21.789
significantly larger than they were the year

00:28:21.789 --> 00:28:25.529
before. And that is, again, this is just strictly

00:28:25.529 --> 00:28:28.329
a financial testimony, but I'm telling you, it

00:28:28.329 --> 00:28:32.240
took faith. It actually took hearing the Lord

00:28:32.240 --> 00:28:36.180
and stepping out in what felt extremely unwise.

00:28:36.220 --> 00:28:39.599
It felt unwise to me and dangerous, but that's

00:28:39.599 --> 00:28:42.480
where God meets us. That is where God meets us.

00:28:42.559 --> 00:28:48.259
So, okay, this type of faith offering, what it

00:28:48.259 --> 00:28:51.799
says is it says, God, I don't see how you will

00:28:51.799 --> 00:28:54.640
bring increase, but I know that you're faithful,

00:28:54.880 --> 00:28:58.549
you're trustworthy, and I'm confident. That when

00:28:58.549 --> 00:29:01.809
you speak, you will come through. That's what

00:29:01.809 --> 00:29:04.269
a first fruit offering really, really speaks

00:29:04.269 --> 00:29:07.569
as you bring it to the Lord. So I wanna look

00:29:07.569 --> 00:29:14.049
now at the aspects of joy. Joy is amazing. It's

00:29:14.049 --> 00:29:16.049
a third of the kingdom of God, according to Romans

00:29:16.049 --> 00:29:18.710
14, right? The kingdom of God is not eat and

00:29:18.710 --> 00:29:21.150
drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the

00:29:21.150 --> 00:29:25.819
Holy Ghost. This, I would argue that joy is one

00:29:25.819 --> 00:29:30.259
of the most important aspects of bringing first

00:29:30.259 --> 00:29:32.619
fruits to the Lord, but really any offering to

00:29:32.619 --> 00:29:36.920
the Lord. So let's read 2 Corinthians 9, verses

00:29:36.920 --> 00:29:40.480
six through seven. It says, the point is this,

00:29:40.579 --> 00:29:45.500
whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly.

00:29:45.940 --> 00:29:49.859
Whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.

00:29:50.490 --> 00:29:55.009
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart,

00:29:55.109 --> 00:30:00.250
not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God

00:30:00.250 --> 00:30:04.210
loves a cheerful giver. Now let's just give you

00:30:04.210 --> 00:30:06.869
guys some context here. This passage, 2 Corinthians,

00:30:07.029 --> 00:30:10.210
actually it's eight and nine. Paul is dealing

00:30:10.210 --> 00:30:14.509
with collecting a gift for the people in Jerusalem,

00:30:14.670 --> 00:30:17.660
the church in Jerusalem. And so he's talking

00:30:17.660 --> 00:30:21.279
on bringing a, really a faith offering and a

00:30:21.279 --> 00:30:26.279
gift to the Lord for his people. And I love this

00:30:26.279 --> 00:30:30.059
that he says, you must give as you've decided

00:30:30.059 --> 00:30:31.859
in your heart. And then he gives a stipulation,

00:30:31.940 --> 00:30:36.960
not under compulsion, not under obligation or

00:30:36.960 --> 00:30:42.589
reluctantly, but from a cheerful heart. God loves

00:30:42.589 --> 00:30:44.750
a cheerful giver and pastor preached on this

00:30:44.750 --> 00:30:47.690
a couple weeks ago that word cheerful is the

00:30:47.690 --> 00:30:50.710
Greek word hilarious which is the root word that

00:30:50.710 --> 00:30:53.849
we get the word hilarious and what it denotes

00:30:53.849 --> 00:30:58.150
it actually denotes good cheer joy and someone

00:30:58.150 --> 00:31:00.890
who would be prompt to do anything that that

00:31:00.890 --> 00:31:03.829
is what that word actually means here's the amazing

00:31:03.829 --> 00:31:06.890
thing so that's new testament Let's look at the

00:31:06.890 --> 00:31:09.170
Old Testament because this same principle is

00:31:09.170 --> 00:31:11.210
actually connected to first fruits in the Old

00:31:11.210 --> 00:31:14.930
Testament. Deuteronomy 26 verses 10 through 11.

00:31:15.170 --> 00:31:18.049
And I'm gonna read out of the message. So it's

00:31:18.049 --> 00:31:19.690
gonna sound a little bit different, but starting

00:31:19.690 --> 00:31:22.910
in verse 10, it says this. So here I am, I've

00:31:22.910 --> 00:31:25.190
brought the first fruits of what I've grown on

00:31:25.190 --> 00:31:29.710
this ground that you gave me, oh God. Then place

00:31:29.710 --> 00:31:34.480
it in the presence of your God. Bow low in the

00:31:34.480 --> 00:31:40.019
presence of God, your God, and rejoice. Celebrate

00:31:40.019 --> 00:31:42.900
all the good things that God, your God, has given

00:31:42.900 --> 00:31:46.440
you and your family, you and the Levi and the

00:31:46.440 --> 00:31:50.339
foreigner who lives with you. So here's the cool

00:31:50.339 --> 00:31:52.539
thing. You have Old Testament and New Testament.

00:31:52.619 --> 00:31:56.940
Both of them are describing the elements of bringing

00:31:56.940 --> 00:31:59.960
a gift to the Lord, bringing an offering to the

00:31:59.960 --> 00:32:03.230
Lord. And Deuteronomy specifically is referencing

00:32:03.230 --> 00:32:06.029
first fruits. And at the very end of that instruction,

00:32:06.430 --> 00:32:11.869
what is the Lord instruct? He says, now, once

00:32:11.869 --> 00:32:15.029
you've bowed down and worship the Lord, celebrate.

00:32:15.569 --> 00:32:18.089
He literally says, rejoice, celebrate. If you

00:32:18.089 --> 00:32:22.250
look at that Hebrew word for rejoice, it's the

00:32:22.250 --> 00:32:26.440
word samach. And it means to rejoice. to be joyful

00:32:26.440 --> 00:32:29.619
and to have great cheer. So the words mean almost

00:32:29.619 --> 00:32:32.640
the exact same thing. And you see that that is

00:32:32.640 --> 00:32:35.680
what God is actually calling his people to do.

00:32:35.720 --> 00:32:39.519
When we bring gifts, we should be bringing them

00:32:39.519 --> 00:32:44.619
in joy. Now, why is joy and rejoicing important?

00:32:45.319 --> 00:32:47.839
Because sometimes it feels like it's the opposite,

00:32:48.000 --> 00:32:51.220
right? You're like weeping as you give your altar

00:32:51.220 --> 00:32:54.200
or your... first fruit offering at the altar.

00:32:54.420 --> 00:32:58.200
But when we rejoice and celebrate what God has

00:32:58.200 --> 00:33:00.799
already done, it actually does something inside

00:33:00.799 --> 00:33:05.140
of us. It causes us to look back and to recognize

00:33:05.140 --> 00:33:08.160
where God has been faithful in our life. And

00:33:08.160 --> 00:33:10.299
that's what this passage in Deuteronomy is saying.

00:33:10.380 --> 00:33:13.839
He said, celebrate all the good things that God

00:33:13.839 --> 00:33:16.579
has done in your family, in your neighbors, in

00:33:16.579 --> 00:33:19.579
your community, in your region, celebrate what

00:33:19.579 --> 00:33:23.119
God has done. And it does, it causes us to actually

00:33:23.119 --> 00:33:26.180
look back and recognize what God has already

00:33:26.180 --> 00:33:28.259
done in our lives. I don't know about you guys,

00:33:28.299 --> 00:33:32.799
sometimes it's easy to just move past the incredible

00:33:32.799 --> 00:33:35.400
testimonies, the incredible times where God has

00:33:35.400 --> 00:33:37.900
brought provision, he's brought blessing, and

00:33:37.900 --> 00:33:40.980
we just kind of forget. We forget quickly. There's

00:33:40.980 --> 00:33:43.960
something about rejoicing in what God has already

00:33:43.960 --> 00:33:48.049
done that causes us to look back. and recognize

00:33:48.049 --> 00:33:50.250
where he's been faithful. And you know what it

00:33:50.250 --> 00:33:53.130
also does? When you start rejoicing at what God's

00:33:53.130 --> 00:33:56.170
done in a past season, it begins to establish

00:33:56.170 --> 00:33:59.589
your faith for the next season. Because you know,

00:33:59.730 --> 00:34:02.829
God has been faithful back then. He's gonna be

00:34:02.829 --> 00:34:06.890
faithful in this next season. So there's a practicality

00:34:06.890 --> 00:34:08.969
to rejoicing as well that's super important.

00:34:10.349 --> 00:34:13.530
It really, and it can make the difference in

00:34:13.530 --> 00:34:17.829
an offering. What could be, extremely painful

00:34:17.829 --> 00:34:21.269
can begin to shift how that's even perceived

00:34:21.269 --> 00:34:24.070
to an opportunity to trust God at a deeper level.

00:34:25.710 --> 00:34:28.989
Now I'll ask one other question here. How many

00:34:28.989 --> 00:34:34.590
of you guys know you can't fake joy? You can

00:34:34.590 --> 00:34:40.250
try. My wife and I are in the beginning stages

00:34:40.250 --> 00:34:45.500
of raising a toddler. She's 19 months. You guys,

00:34:45.519 --> 00:34:47.739
when you see her walking around the church, she's

00:34:47.739 --> 00:34:51.440
in top form. She's saying hi to everyone. She's

00:34:51.440 --> 00:34:53.960
happy. We don't always get that version of her

00:34:53.960 --> 00:34:58.019
at the house. Sometimes she gets a little grumpy.

00:34:58.059 --> 00:35:01.239
She gets pouty. She has a bad attitude. And so

00:35:01.239 --> 00:35:05.000
my wife and I, many times when we're at home

00:35:05.000 --> 00:35:07.360
with her and she's giving us attitude or she's

00:35:07.360 --> 00:35:09.440
giving us sass, which she does all the time,

00:35:09.500 --> 00:35:13.340
we say, Noah Jane. Fix your attitude or change

00:35:13.340 --> 00:35:15.960
your attitude. And this is the funniest thing.

00:35:16.059 --> 00:35:19.159
She understands so much at this young age. She

00:35:19.159 --> 00:35:23.679
will be like in tears sometimes or just a really

00:35:23.679 --> 00:35:27.179
sour face. And she will try to slap a smile over

00:35:27.179 --> 00:35:32.440
the sourness. And she'll do this fake cheesy

00:35:32.440 --> 00:35:35.039
grin where she just grins with her teeth, but

00:35:35.039 --> 00:35:37.199
it looks like she's travailing on the inside.

00:35:39.559 --> 00:35:41.480
And she thinks like, well, this is what they're

00:35:41.480 --> 00:35:43.380
asking for, right? I just slap a smile. Well,

00:35:43.420 --> 00:35:47.780
sometimes we do the same. Honestly, we are not

00:35:47.780 --> 00:35:50.900
in a place of joy. We come to church, we slap

00:35:50.900 --> 00:35:53.460
a smile on, let's bring the first fruits offering

00:35:53.460 --> 00:36:00.440
to the Lord. It's not great and you can't fake

00:36:00.440 --> 00:36:02.900
it. And that God's desire is that we wouldn't

00:36:02.900 --> 00:36:05.679
fake it, that we'd actually receive what he has

00:36:05.679 --> 00:36:09.679
for us and step into it. And truly, I'm gonna

00:36:09.679 --> 00:36:12.579
say this, cheerfulness and joy, it comes from

00:36:12.579 --> 00:36:15.300
the heart. It comes from the heart. What did

00:36:15.300 --> 00:36:17.300
Jesus say? Out of the abundance of the heart,

00:36:17.360 --> 00:36:20.460
the mouth speaks. I would argue that goes deeper

00:36:20.460 --> 00:36:22.639
than just the words that come out of your heart.

00:36:23.360 --> 00:36:26.880
It starts in your heart. Joy starts in your heart

00:36:26.880 --> 00:36:29.039
and it begins to bubble out of your life and

00:36:29.039 --> 00:36:33.119
your expression. And I love that in 2 Corinthians

00:36:33.119 --> 00:36:38.159
9, Paul actually talks about this. He says, When

00:36:38.159 --> 00:36:42.440
you give, don't do it out of reluctance. Don't

00:36:42.440 --> 00:36:46.739
do it under compulsion for God loves a cheerful

00:36:46.739 --> 00:36:49.559
giver. And what did he say before that? He said,

00:36:49.619 --> 00:36:53.619
give what you have decided to give from your

00:36:53.619 --> 00:36:56.900
heart. There's a connection between your heart

00:36:56.900 --> 00:37:00.199
and actually being a cheerful giver. So then

00:37:00.199 --> 00:37:04.420
that begs the question. What do we do if we don't

00:37:04.420 --> 00:37:06.119
have joy? And we're just honest with ourselves.

00:37:06.320 --> 00:37:09.000
And this is not a, there's something in us that

00:37:09.000 --> 00:37:12.079
is not rejoicing and is not full of joy in this

00:37:12.079 --> 00:37:14.800
season of first fruits. That is where we get

00:37:14.800 --> 00:37:17.460
to invite the Holy Spirit to begin to cultivate

00:37:17.460 --> 00:37:20.400
your heart. And that's what I would recommend.

00:37:21.059 --> 00:37:24.260
If you're, and I've had these seasons as well,

00:37:24.300 --> 00:37:27.280
where it's like, man, I don't feel the joy. I

00:37:27.280 --> 00:37:30.880
don't sense the, cheerfulness in bringing the

00:37:30.880 --> 00:37:34.039
gift, that's usually a sign to me that I need

00:37:34.039 --> 00:37:36.199
to invite the Holy Spirit into an area of my

00:37:36.199 --> 00:37:40.579
heart that's grown a little bit hard. And how

00:37:40.579 --> 00:37:44.539
do we do that? We invite him in and he brings

00:37:44.539 --> 00:37:47.719
his Holy Spirit plow and begins to plow up the

00:37:47.719 --> 00:37:50.500
hardened areas of our heart. Can I just say,

00:37:50.519 --> 00:37:54.199
that's not usually a fun process. I will tell

00:37:54.199 --> 00:37:56.280
you from experience, it's not a fun process.

00:37:56.500 --> 00:38:00.019
It is usually quite painful. And even if you

00:38:00.019 --> 00:38:02.920
look at the, I know we spent like a year looking

00:38:02.920 --> 00:38:06.320
at the four soils and that parable. Obviously

00:38:06.320 --> 00:38:11.260
there was soil that was hard ground and the seed,

00:38:11.360 --> 00:38:14.960
the word of God could not grow. Well, when there's

00:38:14.960 --> 00:38:17.800
hard ground, you have to actually bring in a

00:38:17.800 --> 00:38:20.659
lot of force to begin to turn that ground over.

00:38:21.059 --> 00:38:24.360
I'm not a farmer. But I do like to garden. And

00:38:24.360 --> 00:38:27.300
I have a memory years ago when I think I was

00:38:27.300 --> 00:38:29.179
in middle school or high school, I was helping

00:38:29.179 --> 00:38:32.159
my mom expand the garden. So we'd had an area

00:38:32.159 --> 00:38:35.780
that we had tilled for years and then we were

00:38:35.780 --> 00:38:38.599
wanting to expand it. And so that task got put

00:38:38.599 --> 00:38:40.940
on me. I went and got the old Briggs and Stratton

00:38:40.940 --> 00:38:43.039
rototiller from my grandpa's barn and took it

00:38:43.039 --> 00:38:46.800
over. And this little stretch of ground, I don't

00:38:46.800 --> 00:38:49.340
know if it had ever been tilled. And on top of

00:38:49.340 --> 00:38:51.900
that, it was kind of rocky. So I'm, as I've,

00:38:52.349 --> 00:38:54.949
13 year old or whatever I was, I had this rototiller

00:38:54.949 --> 00:38:58.469
and it's bouncing up and down because those blades

00:38:58.469 --> 00:39:01.610
are just hitting rocks and hard ground. I got

00:39:01.610 --> 00:39:03.969
a workout. I was sweating profusely and it took

00:39:03.969 --> 00:39:08.389
a lot of time to actually turn over that soil

00:39:08.389 --> 00:39:11.510
because it had lied fallow for so long. So I'm

00:39:11.510 --> 00:39:14.809
just warning you guys, if this has been an area

00:39:14.809 --> 00:39:17.130
that has lied fallow in your heart for a long

00:39:17.130 --> 00:39:22.380
time, it may take a little bit of time. an invitation

00:39:22.380 --> 00:39:25.219
of the Holy Spirit to bring his rain to soften

00:39:25.219 --> 00:39:27.480
that soil and then bring the plow to begin to

00:39:27.480 --> 00:39:30.679
turn that soil over in your heart and bring you

00:39:30.679 --> 00:39:34.300
into a new season of joy. Here's the truth though,

00:39:34.340 --> 00:39:38.039
we are responsible to cultivate the soil in our

00:39:38.039 --> 00:39:41.050
hearts. It's not that we do it in our own strength

00:39:41.050 --> 00:39:43.590
or we just will our hearts to change. No, we

00:39:43.590 --> 00:39:47.130
partner with the grace of Christ and the power

00:39:47.130 --> 00:39:49.530
of the Holy Spirit. And it's in that partnership

00:39:49.530 --> 00:39:52.150
that God begins to do a good work in our heart.

00:39:53.329 --> 00:39:58.730
Okay, so I'm gonna answer another question here,

00:39:58.829 --> 00:40:04.329
hopefully. What does First Fruits actually accomplish?

00:40:06.699 --> 00:40:09.579
It can accomplish a lot, but I wanna just give

00:40:09.579 --> 00:40:13.019
you guys a principle that when we bring a first

00:40:13.019 --> 00:40:16.739
fruits offering in faith from a place of joy,

00:40:16.940 --> 00:40:20.840
it actually releases multiplication in your life.

00:40:22.340 --> 00:40:25.219
And I'm gonna say this, when we give from a place

00:40:25.219 --> 00:40:28.800
of faith and joy, we can actually expect that

00:40:28.800 --> 00:40:33.480
God will multiply. I'm gonna tell a story. This

00:40:33.480 --> 00:40:35.860
is, and some of you have probably heard this

00:40:35.860 --> 00:40:38.059
before. I'm pretty sure I've shared it. I never

00:40:38.059 --> 00:40:39.760
remember what I have shared and haven't shared.

00:40:39.880 --> 00:40:42.480
So if you've heard it before, so be it. But this

00:40:42.480 --> 00:40:45.519
was a marking moment for me where the Lord began

00:40:45.519 --> 00:40:49.639
to teach me the power of sowing and reaping and

00:40:49.639 --> 00:40:53.800
the power of multiplication as we give gifts

00:40:53.800 --> 00:40:57.900
in faith. And so this happened years ago. I wanna

00:40:57.900 --> 00:41:02.429
say it was like 2017, 2016, 2017. I was going

00:41:02.429 --> 00:41:05.389
to ministry school at the time, working part

00:41:05.389 --> 00:41:08.769
-time pretty much at minimum wage, did not have

00:41:08.769 --> 00:41:13.829
a lot of extra income. So I budgeted, I was really

00:41:13.829 --> 00:41:16.829
strict to budget. And one of my buddies in the

00:41:16.829 --> 00:41:18.929
summer decided to get married on the East Coast.

00:41:19.389 --> 00:41:23.269
So I got a flight to the East Coast, spent time

00:41:23.269 --> 00:41:25.889
with him as he got married, came back and I was

00:41:25.889 --> 00:41:29.269
like, I had pulled out of my limited savings

00:41:29.269 --> 00:41:33.260
to go to that wedding. And so I had very little

00:41:33.260 --> 00:41:35.920
left and I'm sitting there in my prayer closet

00:41:35.920 --> 00:41:38.320
and I hear the Lord speak to me loud and clear.

00:41:38.420 --> 00:41:42.199
He highlighted a missionary at our church. And

00:41:42.199 --> 00:41:44.539
he said, I want you to sow into this missionary.

00:41:45.059 --> 00:41:50.559
And I'll tell you, it was $200. Now that's not

00:41:50.559 --> 00:41:54.920
a huge number, but for me in 2017, as a ministry

00:41:54.920 --> 00:41:57.340
school student, working part -time with very

00:41:57.340 --> 00:41:59.420
little savings, that was like an astronomical

00:41:59.420 --> 00:42:04.079
number for me. And I remember fighting with the

00:42:04.079 --> 00:42:07.400
Lord on just saying like, God, you told me to

00:42:07.400 --> 00:42:10.460
budget. You told me to be wise, to set money

00:42:10.460 --> 00:42:14.079
aside. Why this is not the wise thing to do.

00:42:14.300 --> 00:42:16.539
And I fought with the Lord and I wrestled with

00:42:16.539 --> 00:42:20.760
him. And again, I sensed him say over and over,

00:42:20.820 --> 00:42:25.159
no, you need to give this. And so after 20 minutes

00:42:25.159 --> 00:42:27.599
of wrestling in my prayer closet, I just got

00:42:27.599 --> 00:42:30.159
online. I went to the church's website and I

00:42:30.159 --> 00:42:32.500
gave it to that missionary. Didn't think a thing

00:42:32.500 --> 00:42:34.579
of it after that. Just kind of went about life.

00:42:34.800 --> 00:42:39.280
Well, two or three weeks later, I was going with

00:42:39.280 --> 00:42:41.920
my friend. We were going to church and we run

00:42:41.920 --> 00:42:44.699
into this lady and her like 14 year old son.

00:42:45.039 --> 00:42:46.920
And we were just talking to her. She was visiting

00:42:46.920 --> 00:42:48.380
the church for the first time. So we had a quick

00:42:48.380 --> 00:42:50.619
conversation. We ended up just praying for her.

00:42:51.260 --> 00:42:53.539
and blessing her. It wasn't a super long or,

00:42:53.679 --> 00:42:56.260
from my opinion, super impactful prayer, but

00:42:56.260 --> 00:42:58.699
we just prayed for her, and then we walked off.

00:42:58.860 --> 00:43:00.840
About five minutes later, we were chatting somewhere

00:43:00.840 --> 00:43:03.639
else, and her 14 -year -old son came over to

00:43:03.639 --> 00:43:07.320
us, and he handed me a check and handed my friend

00:43:07.320 --> 00:43:10.179
a check. And I looked down, and it was $1 ,000

00:43:10.179 --> 00:43:15.380
from someone that I had never met before. I don't

00:43:15.380 --> 00:43:17.139
even remember her name. I don't know if she even

00:43:17.139 --> 00:43:19.239
shared her name. She didn't even put my name

00:43:19.239 --> 00:43:20.920
because she didn't know it. So she just left

00:43:20.920 --> 00:43:25.199
that part blank on the check. But I was absolutely

00:43:25.199 --> 00:43:30.380
shocked. Like what just happened? And I remember

00:43:30.380 --> 00:43:33.079
getting in my truck and driving home and I'm

00:43:33.079 --> 00:43:35.940
holding the check in my right hand and I'm looking

00:43:35.940 --> 00:43:37.719
and I asked the Lord a question. I'm like, Lord,

00:43:37.820 --> 00:43:40.340
what is that all about? What was this all about?

00:43:40.889 --> 00:43:43.610
I was actually confused. And I heard the Lord

00:43:43.610 --> 00:43:46.969
loud and clear in my spirit. He said, you sowed

00:43:46.969 --> 00:43:52.389
in faith. You need to expect to reap. And I was

00:43:52.389 --> 00:43:55.530
a little bit offended when he said that. I actually

00:43:55.530 --> 00:43:58.090
was. I'm like, what do you mean? I'm to expect

00:43:58.090 --> 00:44:01.429
to reap. And I'm like, that can't be biblical.

00:44:01.570 --> 00:44:04.230
That sounds like prosperity gospel. Like, I don't

00:44:04.230 --> 00:44:06.409
know. Like you hear bad stuff on that side of

00:44:06.409 --> 00:44:11.340
the pulpit. I was a little bit offended. I remember

00:44:11.340 --> 00:44:16.420
the Lord took me to 2 Corinthians 9, verses 10

00:44:16.420 --> 00:44:18.579
through 11. And this is what it says. It says,

00:44:18.619 --> 00:44:22.400
he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for

00:44:22.400 --> 00:44:30.619
food will, he will supply and multiply your seed

00:44:30.619 --> 00:44:34.920
for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness.

00:44:36.400 --> 00:44:40.960
You will be enriched in every way to be generous

00:44:40.960 --> 00:44:44.480
in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving

00:44:44.480 --> 00:44:48.900
to God. See, the principle of multiplication,

00:44:48.980 --> 00:44:52.820
it actually starts with just recognizing that

00:44:52.820 --> 00:44:57.860
God brings provision. Seed to the sower, bread

00:44:57.860 --> 00:45:02.159
to the eater, right? That is, that is... if we're

00:45:02.159 --> 00:45:05.179
gonna understand multiplication, we have to understand

00:45:05.179 --> 00:45:07.219
that it starts there, that we have to see that

00:45:07.219 --> 00:45:09.960
God is the one who provides for our present needs

00:45:09.960 --> 00:45:13.320
and our future needs. And he's faithful to do

00:45:13.320 --> 00:45:16.340
it. As we're faithful to release seed at the

00:45:16.340 --> 00:45:21.219
right time, provision will come. And once we

00:45:21.219 --> 00:45:24.599
recognize that all provision comes from God and

00:45:24.599 --> 00:45:28.460
not ourselves, do you guys know that? You may

00:45:28.460 --> 00:45:31.239
be a really hard worker. And you may have a good

00:45:31.239 --> 00:45:33.920
job and you might work overtime. Provision doesn't

00:45:33.920 --> 00:45:37.300
actually come from you. It really doesn't. Deuteronomy

00:45:37.300 --> 00:45:40.280
8, 17 through 18. I don't remember it by heart,

00:45:40.340 --> 00:45:42.760
but it says something along the lines that do

00:45:42.760 --> 00:45:46.019
not let a wicked thought rise up in your heart

00:45:46.019 --> 00:45:48.800
saying it's by my power and my strength that

00:45:48.800 --> 00:45:52.360
I've created this wealth. The next verse, what

00:45:52.360 --> 00:45:56.059
does it say? It says, the Lord has given you

00:45:56.059 --> 00:45:59.340
the power to create wealth. So we have to understand

00:45:59.340 --> 00:46:03.239
that that provision, it all comes from God. And

00:46:03.239 --> 00:46:06.739
when we understand that, we can begin to sow

00:46:06.739 --> 00:46:11.380
knowing that God will multiply what we sow. Now,

00:46:11.460 --> 00:46:15.599
one thing to note here, multiplication is not

00:46:15.599 --> 00:46:19.780
just to keep you fat and happy. That is not why

00:46:19.780 --> 00:46:23.260
God releases this principle in our life. And

00:46:23.260 --> 00:46:25.420
it even says that in this passage of scripture.

00:46:26.039 --> 00:46:27.980
What does it say? It says you will be enriched

00:46:27.980 --> 00:46:31.260
in every way. So it's not just finances. It's

00:46:31.260 --> 00:46:36.159
in every way enrichment. Why? To be generous

00:46:36.159 --> 00:46:41.619
in every way. That is the purpose of multiplication

00:46:41.619 --> 00:46:45.139
in the eyes of God. That's why he actually multiplies

00:46:45.139 --> 00:46:49.159
what comes into our life. And I'll say this,

00:46:49.199 --> 00:46:53.480
greater generosity is the goal of everything.

00:46:54.199 --> 00:46:56.340
that God would multiply in your life. And that

00:46:56.340 --> 00:47:00.699
is not just finances, that is way more. It's

00:47:00.699 --> 00:47:04.860
gifts, it's ministry, it's family, it's business,

00:47:05.179 --> 00:47:09.179
it's many other things in addition to your finances.

00:47:09.179 --> 00:47:11.619
Finances might even be the least of those things,

00:47:11.760 --> 00:47:15.119
but God's calling us to be generous in all of

00:47:15.119 --> 00:47:18.340
those areas, with our time, with our resource,

00:47:18.539 --> 00:47:21.480
with our love, that he's looking that generosity

00:47:21.480 --> 00:47:24.650
would be established in us. And how do I know

00:47:24.650 --> 00:47:28.050
that? John 3, 16, right? God so loved the world

00:47:28.050 --> 00:47:32.269
that he gave his one and only son. That is who

00:47:32.269 --> 00:47:37.210
God is. He is the epitome of a generous being.

00:47:37.650 --> 00:47:41.690
That is who he is. And so even as we are growing,

00:47:42.050 --> 00:47:45.269
what does scripture say? We're daily being conformed

00:47:45.269 --> 00:47:48.849
to the image of Christ. Romans 8, 29. Those that

00:47:48.849 --> 00:47:51.539
have been... predestined, he's called and he

00:47:51.539 --> 00:47:54.360
is conforming us to the image of Christ. So day

00:47:54.360 --> 00:47:57.840
by day, year by year, God's goal for us, even

00:47:57.840 --> 00:48:00.920
in first fruits offerings and random giving is

00:48:00.920 --> 00:48:03.980
that we would become more generous as a people.

00:48:04.199 --> 00:48:07.280
We'd be enriched in every way to be generous

00:48:07.280 --> 00:48:10.980
in every way. That is God's heart for us. Okay,

00:48:11.039 --> 00:48:15.300
so let's go back to 2 Corinthians 9, 6. It says,

00:48:15.340 --> 00:48:19.639
the point is this, whoever sows sparingly, will

00:48:19.639 --> 00:48:24.659
also reap sparingly. Whoever sows bountifully

00:48:24.659 --> 00:48:29.619
will reap bountifully. So again, in this passage,

00:48:29.659 --> 00:48:32.920
the Holy Spirit is using a natural law to describe

00:48:32.920 --> 00:48:37.460
a spiritual reality. And let's use an example

00:48:37.460 --> 00:48:40.659
here. If I'm a farmer, which I'm not, but if

00:48:40.659 --> 00:48:45.139
I was a farmer and I had a one acre plot of land,

00:48:46.219 --> 00:48:50.400
And I took a handful of corn seed on one acre.

00:48:50.480 --> 00:48:54.119
One acre is a decent size. And I scatter that

00:48:54.119 --> 00:48:58.900
handful of corn seed on my one acre plot. Guess

00:48:58.900 --> 00:49:01.760
what? I'll reap a harvest. When the corn grows,

00:49:01.980 --> 00:49:04.619
I will reap a harvest, but it'll be kind of small.

00:49:05.360 --> 00:49:08.739
Versus if I went with a hundred pound bag of

00:49:08.739 --> 00:49:12.619
corn seed and I maximized every stretch of that

00:49:12.619 --> 00:49:15.570
land, that one acre plot, How many of you know

00:49:15.570 --> 00:49:18.789
the harvest will be exponentially larger? We

00:49:18.789 --> 00:49:21.690
understand this, that the harvest reaped is directly

00:49:21.690 --> 00:49:25.010
correlated to what is sown. And that's what Paul

00:49:25.010 --> 00:49:27.769
is saying by the Holy Spirit here. That when

00:49:27.769 --> 00:49:31.449
we sow with scarcity, we're gonna reap with scarcity.

00:49:31.590 --> 00:49:34.269
But when you sow bountifully, you're gonna reap

00:49:34.269 --> 00:49:37.989
a great harvest. This natural principle is correlated

00:49:37.989 --> 00:49:42.250
with faith. See, the only reason a farmer wouldn't

00:49:42.250 --> 00:49:45.519
sow bountifully Well, number one is if he just

00:49:45.519 --> 00:49:48.739
didn't have the seed, but number two is if he

00:49:48.739 --> 00:49:51.300
didn't believe that the crop was actually gonna

00:49:51.300 --> 00:49:55.039
grow and produce a harvest. And that's what oftentimes

00:49:55.039 --> 00:49:59.219
happens to us. It's not about the amount that

00:49:59.219 --> 00:50:02.039
you sow, it's about our obedience and our sowing.

00:50:02.679 --> 00:50:06.679
And it's recognizing when God speaks to us to

00:50:06.679 --> 00:50:09.599
release something, do we actually believe him

00:50:09.599 --> 00:50:13.690
that multiplication will happen? Is there faith

00:50:13.690 --> 00:50:17.489
attached that the God of the impossible will

00:50:17.489 --> 00:50:20.030
actually show up for us or is there not faith?

00:50:20.590 --> 00:50:22.989
And that really comes down to how we sow. If

00:50:22.989 --> 00:50:26.389
we sow with scarcity or sow with abundance is

00:50:26.389 --> 00:50:29.309
do we actually believe that God is a God who

00:50:29.309 --> 00:50:33.889
honors this principle of multiplication? And

00:50:33.889 --> 00:50:37.130
I'll say this guys, the harvest reaped, it may

00:50:37.130 --> 00:50:41.860
be financial, it may not be. or it may not be

00:50:41.860 --> 00:50:45.539
exclusively financial. I can tell you this, scripture

00:50:45.539 --> 00:50:48.500
does promise that your provision will be covered.

00:50:48.940 --> 00:50:51.480
Your daily provision, your future provision,

00:50:51.599 --> 00:50:57.019
that will come. But what areas of your life is

00:50:57.019 --> 00:50:59.840
God looking to multiply? What areas of the field

00:50:59.840 --> 00:51:02.940
of your life, maybe it's financial one year,

00:51:03.000 --> 00:51:04.840
and maybe the next year it has to do with your

00:51:04.840 --> 00:51:08.809
family, or it has to do with your business. I

00:51:08.809 --> 00:51:10.409
don't know, it could be a lot of different things,

00:51:10.489 --> 00:51:13.969
but God is looking as we sow in faith, he's looking

00:51:13.969 --> 00:51:16.610
to bring that multiplication and we can trust

00:51:16.610 --> 00:51:21.369
that he will multiply as we sow in faith. Okay,

00:51:21.530 --> 00:51:25.489
now what does the word multiply mean? In the

00:51:25.489 --> 00:51:29.610
English, it just means to increase greatly in

00:51:29.610 --> 00:51:35.230
number or quantity. So I just wanna remind you,

00:51:35.369 --> 00:51:37.809
God didn't give us the principle of addition.

00:51:38.519 --> 00:51:42.380
In scripture, he didn't say, I will add to what

00:51:42.380 --> 00:51:46.380
you've given. He said, I will multiply a harvest

00:51:46.380 --> 00:51:48.539
of righteousness. That is important for us to

00:51:48.539 --> 00:51:51.199
know that when we give in faith, there is a promise

00:51:51.199 --> 00:51:53.780
for that type of exponential multiplication.

00:51:54.480 --> 00:51:57.239
And we see the same principle in Jesus's ministry

00:51:57.239 --> 00:52:00.059
with the feeding of the 5 ,000. So I'm gonna

00:52:00.059 --> 00:52:02.280
read that passage. It's a little bit of a longer

00:52:02.280 --> 00:52:06.760
passage. You guys doing okay today? All right.

00:52:07.289 --> 00:52:10.130
This is John 6. If you have your Bibles, you

00:52:10.130 --> 00:52:17.730
can open up. Starting in verse four. So it says,

00:52:17.829 --> 00:52:21.329
now the Passover, a feast of the Jews was near.

00:52:22.349 --> 00:52:27.130
Then Jesus lifted up his eyes and seeing a great

00:52:27.130 --> 00:52:29.690
multitude coming toward him, he said to Philip,

00:52:29.869 --> 00:52:33.090
where shall we buy bread that these may eat?

00:52:33.650 --> 00:52:36.960
But this he said to test him. for he himself

00:52:36.960 --> 00:52:41.000
knew what he would do. Philip answered him, 200

00:52:41.000 --> 00:52:44.659
denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for

00:52:44.659 --> 00:52:46.699
them, that every one of them might have only

00:52:46.699 --> 00:52:49.920
a little. One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon

00:52:49.920 --> 00:52:53.480
Peter's brother, said to him, there is a lad

00:52:53.480 --> 00:52:55.800
here, I love the New King James, there's a lad

00:52:55.800 --> 00:52:59.739
here who has five barley loaves and two small

00:52:59.739 --> 00:53:04.079
fish, but what are they among so many? Then Jesus

00:53:04.079 --> 00:53:07.579
said, make the people sit down. Now there was

00:53:07.579 --> 00:53:10.219
much grass in the place. So the men sat down

00:53:10.219 --> 00:53:13.960
in number about 5 ,000 and Jesus took the loaves.

00:53:15.210 --> 00:53:18.010
And when he had given thanks, he distributed

00:53:18.010 --> 00:53:21.190
them to the disciples and the disciples to those

00:53:21.190 --> 00:53:24.210
sitting down and likewise of the fish as much

00:53:24.210 --> 00:53:26.889
as they wanted. So when they were filled, he

00:53:26.889 --> 00:53:29.949
said to his disciples, gather up the fragments

00:53:29.949 --> 00:53:34.289
that remain so that nothing is lost. Therefore

00:53:34.289 --> 00:53:37.489
they gathered them up and filled 12 baskets of

00:53:37.489 --> 00:53:40.969
fragments of the five barley loaves, which were

00:53:40.969 --> 00:53:45.380
left over by those who had eaten. Okay. I know

00:53:45.380 --> 00:53:48.800
that's a long passage here, but there's a lot

00:53:48.800 --> 00:53:52.019
more to this passage, I think, that meets the

00:53:52.019 --> 00:53:55.480
eye, just in how it relates to first fruits.

00:53:57.539 --> 00:53:59.960
And I wanna look at some of the parallels here

00:53:59.960 --> 00:54:02.480
to first fruits. So I don't know if you guys

00:54:02.480 --> 00:54:06.159
noticed, but in verse four, John made note of

00:54:06.159 --> 00:54:09.699
something. He said, the time of Passover was

00:54:09.699 --> 00:54:14.469
at hand. I actually just noticed this for the

00:54:14.469 --> 00:54:17.130
first time prepping for this sermon. I had never

00:54:17.130 --> 00:54:20.050
noticed that it was Passover season. We don't

00:54:20.050 --> 00:54:22.210
know, some translations say it was at hand, it

00:54:22.210 --> 00:54:25.010
was near, it was close. The point is, is it was

00:54:25.010 --> 00:54:27.630
in the season of Passover. Well, guess what's

00:54:27.630 --> 00:54:31.010
right after Passover? First fruits, the feast

00:54:31.010 --> 00:54:34.550
of first fruits comes directly on the heels of

00:54:34.550 --> 00:54:38.489
Passover. And so this is interesting that in

00:54:38.489 --> 00:54:43.639
the season of Passover and first fruits, Something

00:54:43.639 --> 00:54:47.239
pretty remarkable takes place here where Jesus

00:54:47.239 --> 00:54:50.159
begins to multiply the bread. But I wanna actually

00:54:50.159 --> 00:54:54.360
draw your attention to this little boy. I mentioned

00:54:54.360 --> 00:54:57.199
it earlier, but what was the custom for the Israelites

00:54:57.199 --> 00:54:59.539
when they would participate in first fruits?

00:54:59.639 --> 00:55:03.480
They would gather a barley sheaf. They'd bring

00:55:03.480 --> 00:55:06.500
it to the priest. The priest would wave it before

00:55:06.500 --> 00:55:10.539
the Lord, bless them. and pray for that multiplication

00:55:10.539 --> 00:55:13.000
to take place over their field. So I want you

00:55:13.000 --> 00:55:16.820
to look now at New Testament. You have the first

00:55:16.820 --> 00:55:19.980
fruits was likely within the week. We don't know

00:55:19.980 --> 00:55:22.260
exactly when, but it was likely very close by.

00:55:22.880 --> 00:55:28.820
And this young boy brings barley loaves. Didn't

00:55:28.820 --> 00:55:32.579
bring wheat. He brought barley and fish and he

00:55:32.579 --> 00:55:35.219
brought it to Jesus, the high priest of our confession.

00:55:36.079 --> 00:55:40.159
What did Jesus do? He stood, he blessed it. He

00:55:40.159 --> 00:55:43.960
gave thanks and he broke it and he began to distribute

00:55:43.960 --> 00:55:47.800
to the disciples. And we see an amazing miracle

00:55:47.800 --> 00:55:52.739
take place where 5 ,000 men, it was most commentators

00:55:52.739 --> 00:55:57.420
think there's 25 to 30 ,000 people in this feeding.

00:55:57.619 --> 00:56:01.199
So with five loaves and two fish, Jesus brought

00:56:01.199 --> 00:56:04.980
a supernatural multiplication that fed the entire

00:56:04.980 --> 00:56:11.409
family. Group of people. You know, Jesus, I love

00:56:11.409 --> 00:56:14.269
the fact that it said also that the people didn't

00:56:14.269 --> 00:56:16.750
just eat a little bit. It says they ate to the

00:56:16.750 --> 00:56:21.409
fullness. They got their fill. So they weren't

00:56:21.409 --> 00:56:25.670
just like eating one barley loaf. Like they went

00:56:25.670 --> 00:56:30.030
to town, hometown buffet. They went for it. And

00:56:30.030 --> 00:56:35.010
that is the nature of what God does when he multiplies.

00:56:35.719 --> 00:56:39.639
is that he actually brings abundance and it was

00:56:39.639 --> 00:56:43.659
released to this entire group. And I believe

00:56:43.659 --> 00:56:46.500
this really is a New Testament example of a first

00:56:46.500 --> 00:56:49.539
fruit offering from this little boy. Didn't look

00:56:49.539 --> 00:56:53.039
like much, but it was offered in faith. He brought

00:56:53.039 --> 00:56:55.619
those loaves, he brought the fish to the Lord

00:56:55.619 --> 00:56:59.760
and God brought an insanely powerful miracle

00:56:59.760 --> 00:57:02.820
of multiplication. And here's what I wanna draw

00:57:02.820 --> 00:57:04.579
our attention to kind of in the last couple of

00:57:04.579 --> 00:57:10.539
minutes here. Philip, Jesus tested him. It even

00:57:10.539 --> 00:57:12.719
says in scripture that he was testing him, right?

00:57:13.400 --> 00:57:16.260
And he goes to Philip and he said, what should

00:57:16.260 --> 00:57:18.300
we do? How should we feed this many people? And

00:57:18.300 --> 00:57:22.579
Philip says, Lord, 200 denarii, which was a lot

00:57:22.579 --> 00:57:24.440
of money back then. He said, it wouldn't even

00:57:24.440 --> 00:57:26.940
scratch the surface. Like they would only give

00:57:26.940 --> 00:57:29.559
people just a little bit. Philip was thinking

00:57:29.559 --> 00:57:34.500
from the mindset of limit. and the mindset of

00:57:34.500 --> 00:57:37.960
what was logical and what was rational. I don't

00:57:37.960 --> 00:57:39.699
know about you, but I read this passage and I

00:57:39.699 --> 00:57:42.039
actually relate to Philip. I'm like, man, that

00:57:42.039 --> 00:57:44.539
could have been me in the exact same situation.

00:57:44.659 --> 00:57:48.559
I could have said the exact same thing, quantifying

00:57:48.559 --> 00:57:51.260
how much money it would cost, 25 ,000 people,

00:57:51.539 --> 00:57:54.380
10 bucks a head. Oh man, this is gonna be rough.

00:57:55.159 --> 00:57:59.599
But you know, he was testing Philip. Jesus wasn't

00:57:59.599 --> 00:58:02.400
operating under the same law. I don't know if

00:58:02.400 --> 00:58:05.559
you guys noticed that. Yeah, he gave Philip a

00:58:05.559 --> 00:58:09.699
opportunity to partner his faith, but Jesus already

00:58:09.699 --> 00:58:12.619
knew what he was gonna do. And Jesus was thinking

00:58:12.619 --> 00:58:15.139
differently than Philip was. He was thinking

00:58:15.139 --> 00:58:18.820
from a mindset of relationship with a limitless

00:58:18.820 --> 00:58:23.139
God. That is how Jesus was forming his thoughts

00:58:23.139 --> 00:58:26.219
as he was approaching this situation. And you

00:58:26.219 --> 00:58:28.719
know, again, I think oftentimes when it comes

00:58:28.719 --> 00:58:31.400
to first fruits, We can be a little bit like

00:58:31.400 --> 00:58:35.239
Philip. We can think in terms of limit, think

00:58:35.239 --> 00:58:39.380
in terms of logic and reason. Meanwhile, the

00:58:39.380 --> 00:58:42.179
God of the impossible is inviting us to a deeper

00:58:42.179 --> 00:58:46.519
place. And you all through scripture, we see

00:58:46.519 --> 00:58:49.519
it. You know, you shall stand in that place praying,

00:58:49.619 --> 00:58:52.079
believing nothing shall be impossible for you.

00:58:52.639 --> 00:58:55.460
You shall stand in that place believing and you

00:58:55.460 --> 00:58:58.260
will ask anything, it will be done for you. That

00:58:58.260 --> 00:59:02.019
is the God that we serve, a God who multiplies

00:59:02.019 --> 00:59:08.360
in a limitless fashion. You know, this story

00:59:08.360 --> 00:59:11.500
is a prime example of what Jesus does with our

00:59:11.500 --> 00:59:14.679
first fruits. When we bring it, he multiplies.

00:59:15.300 --> 00:59:18.800
He's faithful to do this. And going back to that

00:59:18.800 --> 00:59:22.639
little boy, that little boy ate his fill and

00:59:22.639 --> 00:59:26.539
he probably took home a bag of leftovers would

00:59:26.539 --> 00:59:31.429
be my guess. But he actually got to participate

00:59:31.429 --> 00:59:35.849
in something that wasn't just for his benefit.

00:59:36.389 --> 00:59:40.989
He got to participate in something yielding a

00:59:40.989 --> 00:59:44.610
little amount to the hand of his high priest.

00:59:44.869 --> 00:59:49.070
And he got to watch as God released an incredible

00:59:49.070 --> 00:59:55.329
miracle of legacy in front of his eyes. I'm gonna

00:59:55.329 --> 00:59:57.510
mention just one more thing about this story.

00:59:57.670 --> 00:59:59.690
I don't know if you guys have noticed this, but

00:59:59.690 --> 01:00:05.610
it says at the end, after 25 ,000 people ate,

01:00:05.650 --> 01:00:09.429
sitting on the hillside, Jesus made a statement.

01:00:09.469 --> 01:00:12.630
He said, gather up the fragments that remain

01:00:12.630 --> 01:00:17.110
so nothing is lost. Have you guys ever wondered

01:00:17.110 --> 01:00:21.769
about that? Why was Jesus so concerned that that

01:00:21.769 --> 01:00:24.739
made it into scripture where he said, make sure

01:00:24.739 --> 01:00:29.559
you gather the fragments. I was thinking about

01:00:29.559 --> 01:00:33.440
this a lot and I think it's actually an important

01:00:33.440 --> 01:00:36.960
facet of multiplication for us to understand

01:00:36.960 --> 01:00:43.300
how God operates. Fragments can be very easily

01:00:43.300 --> 01:00:48.639
bypassed, very easily discarded. And if you look

01:00:48.639 --> 01:00:52.420
even at the context of this situation, It would

01:00:52.420 --> 01:00:55.920
have required work for the disciples to actually

01:00:55.920 --> 01:00:59.099
gather those fragments, right? They weren't just

01:00:59.099 --> 01:01:02.480
in a big pile. There was probably acres of grassland

01:01:02.480 --> 01:01:05.079
where people, 25 ,000 people had spread out in

01:01:05.079 --> 01:01:08.679
circles to eat. They had to grab baskets, bend

01:01:08.679 --> 01:01:13.099
over, pick up little quarter pieces, half pieces

01:01:13.099 --> 01:01:17.159
that were left over. But Jesus was adamant, do

01:01:17.159 --> 01:01:21.079
not neglect the fragments. Do not walk past them.

01:01:21.449 --> 01:01:24.190
Collect them. And when you see, what did they

01:01:24.190 --> 01:01:26.670
do? They did that. And it actually brought 12

01:01:26.670 --> 01:01:30.769
basket full of fragments that became provision

01:01:30.769 --> 01:01:33.610
for the disciples. You know, as I was thinking

01:01:33.610 --> 01:01:35.550
about that, I was asking the question, well,

01:01:35.610 --> 01:01:40.349
Lord, what are those fragments for us? They could

01:01:40.349 --> 01:01:45.349
be ideas. They could be God thoughts. that actually

01:01:45.349 --> 01:01:49.230
carry with them blessing and God's desire to

01:01:49.230 --> 01:01:51.630
release blessing and increase into your life.

01:01:51.730 --> 01:01:54.570
But they're not necessarily gonna be super easily

01:01:54.570 --> 01:01:57.070
received. You may actually have to partner your

01:01:57.070 --> 01:02:01.070
faith and go out and pick those things up. I

01:02:01.070 --> 01:02:03.909
don't know, I'll just, we'll finish with this.

01:02:03.949 --> 01:02:07.730
But I was thinking about the times in my life

01:02:07.730 --> 01:02:10.489
where God brought multiplication through fragments.

01:02:13.610 --> 01:02:17.809
I'll share just one story with you guys. It was

01:02:17.809 --> 01:02:21.809
the year that my wife and I got married. I was

01:02:21.809 --> 01:02:26.050
driving a 1999 Toyota 4Runner, beautiful rig.

01:02:26.170 --> 01:02:31.010
I love that vehicle so much. And I was preparing

01:02:31.010 --> 01:02:35.630
to get married and my wife had a 2017 Nissan

01:02:35.630 --> 01:02:40.320
Frontier. As I started looking at... gas mileage,

01:02:40.460 --> 01:02:42.920
I realized this is not good. We're coming together.

01:02:43.000 --> 01:02:46.280
We drive a lot and we, on a good day, when the

01:02:46.280 --> 01:02:48.420
wind's right, both of us would maybe get 16 miles

01:02:48.420 --> 01:02:53.800
a gallon. And so I just hear the Holy Spirit

01:02:53.800 --> 01:02:57.380
encouraging me, sell your 4Runner. Like, no,

01:02:57.559 --> 01:03:02.340
no, that's not the Lord. It was the Lord. And

01:03:02.340 --> 01:03:06.539
I felt like he was asking me to sell it. And

01:03:06.539 --> 01:03:10.670
so I did. And it turns out, And I've probably

01:03:10.670 --> 01:03:14.469
shared this story too. I actually got a good

01:03:14.469 --> 01:03:17.289
return on investment on a vehicle because I bought

01:03:17.289 --> 01:03:20.989
that vehicle five years prior for $4 ,000. I

01:03:20.989 --> 01:03:23.570
sold it that year at the height of the used car

01:03:23.570 --> 01:03:28.849
market in 2023. I sold it for $8 ,000. I like

01:03:28.849 --> 01:03:31.550
doubled my money on a car after putting 100 ,000

01:03:31.550 --> 01:03:35.510
miles on it. And then my wife, I'm telling this

01:03:35.510 --> 01:03:38.130
to you guys for a reason because I wanna encourage

01:03:38.130 --> 01:03:42.530
you. Just in regards to fragments. Later that

01:03:42.530 --> 01:03:45.190
year, my wife and I also felt like, you know

01:03:45.190 --> 01:03:47.489
what? I think we're supposed to sell your truck.

01:03:47.949 --> 01:03:50.869
Then she was the one weeping and crying at the

01:03:50.869 --> 01:03:54.010
prospect of selling her truck. But we started,

01:03:54.210 --> 01:03:56.170
we felt like, you know what? The Lord's on this.

01:03:56.309 --> 01:03:59.130
And so we went out and we sold it. And we, she

01:03:59.130 --> 01:04:02.889
made, now she had a family member sell it to

01:04:02.889 --> 01:04:05.489
her for a discount, but she made over triple.

01:04:06.250 --> 01:04:09.070
of what she had bought it for. Again, at the

01:04:09.070 --> 01:04:12.610
absolute height of the used truck market in 2023,

01:04:12.989 --> 01:04:15.429
where trucks were going for an insane amount

01:04:15.429 --> 01:04:19.010
of money. And I remember the Lord gave us instruction

01:04:19.010 --> 01:04:22.070
on where to put that money, where we put it in

01:04:22.070 --> 01:04:23.630
a couple of different investments. We bought

01:04:23.630 --> 01:04:25.730
more modest vehicles that were more fuel efficient.

01:04:26.269 --> 01:04:31.289
And as I look today, the money that we put into

01:04:31.289 --> 01:04:33.989
that, some of those investments have doubled.

01:04:35.119 --> 01:04:38.679
And I look back and I'm like, that was a fragment

01:04:38.679 --> 01:04:43.780
that very easily I could have bypassed. It required

01:04:43.780 --> 01:04:48.699
partnership. It required sacrifice. But God was

01:04:48.699 --> 01:04:53.460
actually looking to release blessing from a fragment

01:04:53.460 --> 01:04:57.400
that maybe in a previous season, I would have

01:04:57.400 --> 01:04:59.699
just said, nope, that wasn't a God thought, moving

01:04:59.699 --> 01:05:04.050
on. So I wanna encourage you guys as we get ready

01:05:04.050 --> 01:05:08.250
to close, don't neglect the fragments as you're

01:05:08.250 --> 01:05:10.849
looking at the multiplication that God's looking

01:05:10.849 --> 01:05:13.130
to release in your life. You notice there were

01:05:13.130 --> 01:05:15.769
12 disciples, there were 12 baskets received.

01:05:16.409 --> 01:05:20.329
That basket became, as they ministered before

01:05:20.329 --> 01:05:22.309
the Lord, as they watched the miracle take place,

01:05:22.349 --> 01:05:24.769
the fragments became their reward and their blessing.

01:05:26.230 --> 01:05:30.429
So why don't you guys bow your heads? We're gonna...

01:05:30.809 --> 01:05:37.090
We're gonna close in prayer. Father, we thank

01:05:37.090 --> 01:05:41.969
you today that you are the God of multiplication.

01:05:43.530 --> 01:05:48.010
Lord, you are faithful. Lord, that as we bring,

01:05:48.010 --> 01:05:53.050
Lord, our first fruits offering to you, Lord,

01:05:53.090 --> 01:05:56.670
we do not have to fear whether provision will

01:05:56.670 --> 01:06:00.219
come. We do not have to rationalize where it

01:06:00.219 --> 01:06:02.320
will come from, but we can trust, Lord, that

01:06:02.320 --> 01:06:07.239
if you are leading us to give, if you are speaking

01:06:07.239 --> 01:06:10.559
to us, Lord, you will provide. That is who you

01:06:10.559 --> 01:06:14.739
are. God, I'm asking right now for grace and

01:06:14.739 --> 01:06:19.099
faith to be released over us. Lord, as a church,

01:06:19.099 --> 01:06:22.260
corporately and individuals, Lord, that whether

01:06:22.260 --> 01:06:27.280
we've been a people that Lord, that maybe we've

01:06:27.280 --> 01:06:30.000
never given firstfruits before. We've never engaged

01:06:30.000 --> 01:06:34.039
in this offering. God, I'm asking that a fresh

01:06:34.039 --> 01:06:38.420
faith to hear you and respond would begin to

01:06:38.420 --> 01:06:41.639
take place in hearts. Lord, I also ask for those

01:06:41.639 --> 01:06:45.179
maybe that have given in firstfruits. They've

01:06:45.179 --> 01:06:47.539
released that offering year after year after

01:06:47.539 --> 01:06:50.559
year. God, I'm asking that a freshness would

01:06:50.559 --> 01:06:54.619
begin to settle over each person. Lord, where

01:06:54.619 --> 01:06:58.300
maybe this has become more of a religious act

01:06:58.300 --> 01:07:02.400
or something that we just do each spring. God,

01:07:02.500 --> 01:07:06.880
let a fresh grace come over each person here.

01:07:07.079 --> 01:07:11.699
Lord, that we would see that this is an opportunity

01:07:11.699 --> 01:07:15.960
to grow in our faith, to grow in joy, to grow

01:07:15.960 --> 01:07:20.639
in trust, and to see you multiply and accelerate

01:07:20.639 --> 01:07:23.699
what you are doing in our lives. And Lord, I

01:07:23.699 --> 01:07:26.519
release that right now. Lord, let multiplication

01:07:26.519 --> 01:07:30.639
come. Let acceleration come forth, Lord. And

01:07:30.639 --> 01:07:34.679
I pray for every household, every family. Lord,

01:07:34.739 --> 01:07:38.820
as we step into a greater purpose, Lord, that

01:07:38.820 --> 01:07:41.519
you would begin to do mighty works in our midst.

01:07:42.280 --> 01:07:46.579
Lord, we're believing you as the great cultivator

01:07:46.579 --> 01:07:50.440
and harvester of the field in our lives. Lord,

01:07:50.519 --> 01:07:54.909
we trust you. We honor you. And Lord, I bless

01:07:54.909 --> 01:07:59.030
the people of God this morning in Jesus' mighty

01:07:59.030 --> 01:08:05.409
name. Amen. Thank you for taking the time to

01:08:05.409 --> 01:08:08.369
listen to this week's message. We are so grateful

01:08:08.369 --> 01:08:10.969
for those who tune in each week and have given

01:08:10.969 --> 01:08:25.060
generously to this ministry. If you are in need

01:08:25.060 --> 01:08:28.920
of prayer, send us a text message at 541 -625

01:08:28.920 --> 01:08:32.579
-1365. We would love to pray with you.