Valuing God is a state of the heart. It does not just involve God, it also involves valuing ourselves and others.
It is evident that we are of great value to God. He invested in us deeply; so deeply He paid the ultimate price, the life of His Son. (John 3:16) “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.”
God wants us to value Him in return. In today’s world nearly everyone is broken to some degree. In that state, we cannot truly value God. Through healing and restoration we begin to understand how God values us. It is then that we desire to give him everything. (Matthew 22:37) And He said to him, “ ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ (Romans 12:1) Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.
So how do we value God with our lives? We value Him by believing what He says about us, and by receiving all that Jesus made available to us. By receiving this we acknowledge our own value. When we acknowledge our own value we will want to co-operate with God for our own blessing and protection. Giving to God invites Him to pour out HUGE BLESSINGS on our lives; blessings on every aspect of our lives. (Malachi 3:10-12) ”Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house, and test Me now in this,” says the Lord of hosts, “if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows. Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the Lord of hosts. ”All the nations will call you blessed, for you shall be a delightful land,” says the Lord of hosts.
We cannot value God and ourselves without also valuing others. The same way we give ourselves to God when we value Him, we also give tokens of appreciation to others when we value them. God is asking us to value others for their service and sacrifices made for our sake. This also results in big blessings.
(Deuteronomy 18:3-5) “Now this shall be the priests’ due from the people, from those who offer a sacrifice, either an ox or a sheep, of which they shall give the priest the shoulder, the two cheeks, and the stomach. You shall give him the first fruits of your grain, your new wine, and your oil, and the first shearing of your sheep. For the LORD your God has chosen him and his sons from all your tribes, to stand and serve in the name of the LORD forever. (Exodus 23:15) You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; for seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the appointed time in the month Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. And no one is to appear before Me empty-handed. (Exodus 34:20) …… You shall redeem all the firstborn of your sons. None shall appear before Me empty-handed. (Deuteronomy 16:16,17) “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they are not to appear before the LORD empty-handed. Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you.
As our appreciation for the value of God, ourselves, and others grows, the more we will want to bless and be blessed. Here at Ablaze Global Discipleship Ministry, we understand that this is a changing dynamic for anyone on a journey toward healing and freedom. For this reason, we do not have a set recommendation of how much to give. We encourage you to give by following the leading of the Holy Spirit. We pray each one of you will be blessed as you progress in discovering how true value for God honors everyone.
– The AGDM Team
All scripture passages are taken from Zondervan Bibles, Classic Comparative Side-by-Side Bible. 2011. NASB.