In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering—fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast.
Genesis 4:3-5
(emphasis added)
Did Cain just bring his leftovers to God? Did he harvest his crop and keep the best for himself – and then present the gnarly, under-developed, deformed looking vegetables to God?
The Scripture says Abel brought some of the FIRSTBORN to God. It is indeed a much greater sacrifice to give to God FIRST – because it requires faith and trust that there will be a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th to come.
When we write out our tithe check FIRST, we are trusting there will be enough money left to pay the electric bill, the house payment and buy groceries the last week of the month. Financial planners tell you to pay yourself first. Make your savings deposit first if you want to build up wealth, but God says in Malachi 3:10,
Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.”
God doesn’t NEED our money – He wants to bless us by giving us opportunity to depend on Him, to demonstrate our faith in Him.
The “first” principle applies not only to our money, but to our time and our talent, as well. It is a greater sacrifice to do my quiet time first – it requires trusting that everything else on my To Do list for the day will be accomplished.
And I have found it to be true over and over — as I use my gifts to serve Him, He rolls back blessing to me.
The additional benefit of giving to God FIRST is that my attitude is transformed in how I spend the other 90% of my resources and the other 23-23 ½ hours of my day. I’m less selfish, more God-focused. My time, talent, and treasure are all spent in ways that honor the God I love and bring Him glory. I’m less likely to make it all about me when I give to Him FIRST. Giving to Him first gets “Laura” out of the way and allows the Holy Spirit to lead out as I spend my time, treasure, and talent.
Perhaps for you it’s not the giving first that is the problem, but just the quantity of the giving. I encourage you to start where you are. If it’s money, you can use 10% as a guide – but we must remember that it’s all His. He gave us the job, the ability to do the job, the education required to qualify for the job. 10% sounds like a whole bunch – when we are writing a check. But let me ask you this: if our favorite department store advertises a big 10% off sale, do we dash off to the mall? Probably not. We yawn at a 10% off coupon– which means 10% is not really a very big deal. It’s all about perspective.
Let’s accept the challenge to ask God to stir up our hearts to not only give to Him, but to give to Him first. Let’s ask Him for the faith to believe it is really possible.
The Woman of God gives to God FIRST – with her time, her treasure, and her talent.
Whether it was the lack of blood sacrifice or the lack of giving to God first, Abel’s sacrifice found favor with God while Cain’s did not.
