FIRST FRUITS TITHING
There was a knock on the door of the hut occupied by a missionary in Africa. Answering, the missionary found one of the native boys holding a large fish in his hands. The boy said, “Pastor, you taught us what tithing is, so here—I’ve brought you my tithe.” The missionary replied, “Thank you so much, my son, but where are the other nine fish?” The boy beamed and said, “Oh, they’re still in the river. I’m going to catch them now.”
That boy understood the practice of first-fruits tithing. A trusting believer gives the first and the best part to God, and then believes that God will assist him or her in earning enough to cover all other needs. As Moses taught God’s people, “Bring the best of the first-fruits of your soil to the house of the Lord your God” (Exodus 34:26).