My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we who are giving God our offering, we should first give ourselves with our whole mind to God.

Ephesians 5: 1, 2 - Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.

And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.

Matthew 5: 23, 24 - Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you,

leave your gift there before the altar and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Also, in Exodus 23: 19, 20 - The first of the firstfruits of your land you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. You shall not boil a young goat in its mother’s milk.

“Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. (Angel: Jesus Christ)

Also, in Exodus 34: 20 - But the firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb. And if you will not redeem him, then you shall break his neck. All the firstborn of your sons you shall redeem. “And none shall appear before Me empty-handed.

In every blessing that our Lord gives us the first fruits belong to God.  We must also be very careful in all the tithe and all the offerings that we have to give. This is because if we will give our whole heart, whole mind, whole strength and whole soul to God it truly means we are giving our all to God.

Mark 12: 29, 30 - Jesus answered him, “The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.

If we do not give ourselves completely to God in this manner –

Malachi 3: 1 – 3 “Behold, I send My messenger, And he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, Will suddenly come to His temple, Even the Messenger of the covenant, In whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the Lord of hosts.

“But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire And like launderers’ soap.

He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi, And purge them as gold and silver, That they may offer to the Lord An offering in righteousness.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, till we give offering in righteousness he will refine us like silver and gold. That is what God is telling us through Christ in Luke 21: 1 – 4 And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury,

and He saw also a certain poor widow putting in two mites.

So He said, “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all;

for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had.”

In this way, God is testing all of us.

Psalms 12: 6 - The words of the Lord are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times.

In this manner, God is purifying us and blessing us.

Let us pray.

-           To be continued