GIVE GOD YOUR VERY BEST

PROCLAMATION

“In the process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto The Lord.  And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof.  And The Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering; But unto Cain and his offering He had not respect.  And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.”  Genesis 4:3-5 (KJV)

 

EXPLANATION

These are the words of God which were revealed to and written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  In this fourth chapter of Genesis, Moses presents the sons of Adam and Eve.  Cain, the oldest, grew up to be a worker of the soil, and Abel grew up to be a keeper of the flocks. (Genesis 4:1-2)  In the course of time, Cain brought of some of the fruits which he had produced as an offering to The Lord.  Abel, however, brought the best from the firstborn of his flock as an offering to The Lord.  The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but He did not look upon Cain and his offering with favor. (Genesis 4:3-5 and Hebrews 11:4)  Cain did not give The Lord God the best of his produce.  God told him that if he had done that which was right, and given of his best, he and his offering would have been accepted. (Genesis 4:6-7)  Afterwards, while they were in the field, Cain attacked and killed his brother Abel. (Genesis 4:8)  Later on, God asked Cain, “Where is Abel thy brother?”  Cain replied, “I know not; Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Genesis 4:9)  The blood of Abel cried out to The Lord God from the ground, and He cursed Cain then drove him out of the land.  God put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. (Genesis 4:10-16)  Adam and Eve then had another son, Seth.

 

APPLICATION

When we give to The Lord God, we should give Him the very best of whatever it is that we have to offer.  We are to give to Him from the first fruits of all of our increases. (Proverbs 3:9)  He deserves the first portion of the very best that we have, and not some small part of that which is left over after we give to ourselves and to others.  We need to put God first in everything, including our giving of our time, our talent, and our treasures. (Matthew 6:33)

 

GIVE THE LORD GOD YOUR VERY BEST

Proclamation:

“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 first born 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 (NIV)

Explanation:

These are the words of God which were written by Moses under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God.  In this fourth chapter of Genesis, Moses presents the sons of Adam and Eve.  Cain grew up to be a worker of the soil and Abel grew up to be a keeper of the flocks. (Genesis 4:1-2)  In the course of time, Cain brought of some fruits as an offering to The Lord.  Abel, however, brought the best from the first born of his flock as an offering to The Lord.  Abel and his offering were looked upon with favor by The Lord, but He did not look upon Cain and his offering with favor. (Hebrews 11:4)  Cain did not give The Lord God his best and The Lord God told him that if he had done that which was right, he and his offering would have been accepted. (Genesis 4:6-7)

Application:

When we give to The Lord God, we should give Him the very best of what we have to offer.  We are to give to Him from the first fruits of all of our increases. (Proverbs 3:9)  He deserves the first portion of the very best that we have, and not some small part of that which is left over after we give to ourselves and to others. We need to put God first in everything, including our giving. (Matthew 6:33)

WE SHOULD COMMIT WHATEVER WE DO TO THE LORD GOD

Proclamation:

“Commit to The Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans.  The Lord works out everything to its proper end …”  Proverbs 16:3-4 (NIV)

Explanation:

This proverb was written by King Solomon under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God. In this sixteenth proverb, Solomon changes his presentation style somewhat.  He offers several positive phrases or verses before stating one or more negative ones.  He still continues to compare and contrast that which is good and righteous with that which is not.  However, in this verse, he exhorts believers to entrust whatever they do unto The Lord.  By giving themselves and their actions over to The Lord, He will guide their plans.

Application:

We should do all that we do as if we were doing it for The Lord.  We should strive to do our best at whatever we do.  “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might, for in the realm of the dead, where you are going, there is neither working, nor planning, nor knowledge, nor wisdom.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10 NIV)  In the end, only that which we do for The Lord God will matter.  We need to commit our works, our words, and our thoughts to The Lord so that we will walk His way and give Him glory.  If we do this, He will work things out to our benefit.

CURSED IS HE WHO VOWS ONE THING BUT DOES ANOTHER

Proclamation:

“‘Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal to The Lord.  For I am a great king,’ says The Lord Almighty, ‘and My name is to be feared among the nations.’”  Malachi 1:14 (NIV)

Explanation:

These words were written under the influence of The Holy Spirit of God by the prophet Malachi.  In the days when sacrificial offerings were made to The Lord God, the animal which was to be sacrificed was to be the best of the flock, a perfect one without spot or blemish.  Malachi told the people that God will curse those who claim to give Him their best animal but knowingly offer Him less than their best.

Application:

This passage of scripture clearly refers to sacrificial animals.  However, it is my opinion that the principal involved here can be generalized to include promising God one thing, but then giving Him something else which is of lesser value.  Our promise could include giving God of our time, talent, or treasure and then not keeping our promise and giving Him less of whatever.  God is not pleased with us when we do not keep our word.  We should take heed of this and live up to our promises.  We need to give God our best and our best effort.  When we vow to do something for The Lord and then don't do it, especially when we easily could have done it, we may also incur the wrath of God and be cursed instead of blessed.