In this episode of Pray the Word on Nehemiah 10:35, David Platt asks God to help us give sacrificially, cheerfully, and generously.
“We obligate ourselves to bring the first fruits of our ground and the first fruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord.”
-Nehemiah 10:35
So, this verse comes in the middle of this rebuilding process among God’s people. So in the book of Ezra, the temple was rebuilt. In the book of Nehemiah here, the walls around Jerusalem have been rebuilt, and now the people are committing themselves to the kind of lives they’re going to live and the kind of community they’re going to be as God’s people in Jerusalem.
God, help us to sacrificially, generously, cheerfully, and willingly give to the work that you’ve given us to do as your people here.
Nehemiah 10:35 Teaches Us to Commit Ourselves to Giving
And they say in Nehemiah 10:35, “We obligate ourselves,” like we commit ourselves,” to bring the first fruits of our ground and the firstfruits of all fruit of every tree, year by year, to the house of the Lord.” that word firstfruits, you see it twice, is a clear reminder to us that God calls each one of us to give our best in every way to his work. So tithing, or first fruits, some of these pictures we see in the Old Testament, there’s a lot of discussion about how much that applies in the New Testament. And there’s no question when we read through the New Testament that the kind of giving we see in the Old Testament just goes to a whole nother level in the New Testament. We give generously, sacrificially, willingly, cheerfully.
Giving to Spread the Worship of God
Certainly from the start, when we receive money, our first thought should be, “How can we give some of this for the work of God to spread the worship of God?” And to do that generously, sacrificially, cheerfully, willingly. And then in all of our lives, in every facet of who we are and what we of to say, “God, here’s my best. Use it maximally for your glory.” Read 2 Corinthians 8–9, and see a picture of how Nehemiah 10 plays out in New Testament giving.
Nehemiah 10:35 Leads Us to Give Cheerfully
Oh God, we pray that you would help us to give like this. I pray that even right now in each one of our hearts, and our minds, you help us to examine how we are giving out of the resources you have given to us, specifically money. God, we pray that you would help us to see how we all are, or are not glorifying you with our money. God, help us to sacrificially, generously, cheerfully, willingly give to the work that you’ve given us to do as your people here. To the spread of the gospel in the world, to the building up of your church.
Giving Our Best for God
God help us to be generous, sacrificial givers, taking our best and not spending it on stuff that doesn’t matter, and storing up treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But storing up for ourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and rust don’t destroy, and where thieves don’t break in and steal. God, we pray that you would help us to give, in a way that reflects what we see here in Nehemiah 10:35. From the first fruits, from the best of all you’ve given to us.
Nehemiah 10:35 Calls Us to Entrust Our Gifts to God
God, we confess, we know everything we have is from you. So help us to steward your grace, your gifts toward us, your resources that you’ve entrusted to us, money you’ve given to us that belongs to you. Help us to use it maximally for your glory and giving in our local churches and giving for the spread of the gospel among the nations. God, when we look at the research and we see that so little of our giving, like around 1% of our even giving to missions is going toward places that have not been reached with the gospel.
We give so relatively little to the spread of the gospel among people who’ve never heard it. God, change that among us. Rectify this great imbalance, us spending so much on ourselves. And even when we give to mission, spending so much on places where the gospel’s already gone, God, please help us to change the way we give for the spread of the gospel among 3.2 billion people who’ve never heard it.
Praying for the Spread of the Gospel in Brazil
God for the Carabota of Brazil, this Brazilian tribe who hasn’t heard the gospel, God, we pray for the spread of the gospel through us, through our giving. Help us to give generously and sacrificially for what’s going to matter for all of eternity, for the Great Commission you’ve entrusted to us. God, may it be so we pray, according to Nehemiah 10:35, we pray in Jesus name. Amen.
View the 2022 McLean Bible Church Reading Plan.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
