Speaker 1: Most of us eat every day, some of us too
much because yesterday's food is not enough to supply energy
for today's needs. Why then, do some of us expect
yesterday's portion of heavenly manna, the word of God to
keep us through today's challenges. On this program, we are
going to change all of that. Let's experience God's words
today and receive the power we need to live healthy,
vibrant lives. Welcome to Your Daily Portion with your host,
author speaker Elle David Harris.
Speaker 2: Good morning, good morning, good morning. It is Monday. It's
the fourth day of August in twenty twenty five. Hello,
my name is El David Harris. I am your host,
and this is your Daily Portion where we give you
God's word every single day, and today is no exception.
We are continuing in our Lesson study series through the
Book of Exodus, and our caption for today is Consecration
of the Firstborn. Consecration of the first Born. We'll get
into that in just a moment, but first i'd like
to say welcome to you and ask you to please
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This is one of the ways that we continue to
build faith and fellowship. Let's go ahead and pray, and
then we will get underway. Father, We thank you, We
thank you for consecrating us, setting us aside for a
holy use. Please help us to be satisfied only in
your presence everything else help us to run away from it.
In Jesus name, I pray, Amen and Amen again. Consecration
of the Firstborn. There's so much to say, so little time.
Let's just go ahead and begin by reading from the
Book of Exodus, the Bible Book of Exodus, chapter thirteen
and verse two and verse two. I'll read it from
the amplified version of the Bible, and it reads consecrate
to me. That means to set aside for a holy use.
God is saying, pull this aside and dedicate this only
to me. We should be consecrating some of our time
to God. We are consecrated beings. We're set aside for
a holy use. But there's a moment that we don't
use social media because we need to be with God.
There are some of our brothers and sisters really around
the world that at least five times of their day
they are consecrating to what they are experiencing as God.
From their perspective, I wish I had the time to
deal with that three times a day he consecrated specifically
to God. Minimally, I'm saying, minimally, I wish I had
the time. Let me keep going, So consecrate to me
all the first born, whatever opens the womb among the
children of Israel. So now we know specifically in this
context what is to be consecrated the very first are
you consecrating the first part of your day? Are you
consecrating or setting aside for a holy use? The first
part of your money, the first part of your energy,
the first part of your mindset, Like, are you setting
apart the first of all that you have and all
that you are to God? But here, specifically, whatever opens
the womb among the children of Israel, both of humans
and of animals. Why God, it is mine? It is mine?
And So the word, the Hebrew word kadash means to
for set aside or sanctify, means to set apart, to dedicate,
to make holy, and for divine use. So now you
know I didn't make that up. And then if the
first born becare the first male to open the womb
represents strength. It represents strength inheritance and leadership. I wish
I had the time for us to apply all of this.
And of course it belongs to me Lee mine in
Hebrew Lee, and it's an emphatic possession. It belongs to me.
God is pointing at us right in our faces and
saying that belongs to me. Okay. So the firstborn symbolize
the deliverance through the Final plague where the first born
of Egypt died. You see the contrast there. But God's
people were spared through the blood of the lamb. The
symbol of their faith was manifest and God spared them.
While those who decided that they did not want to
be connected with God, the ones who still decided with
a dog it's sort of digging in of their heels.
They decided they didn't want God, they wanted their false gods,
whom God already showed were powerless. Well, those individuals were
in contrast to the people of God who were covered.
So God claimed the first born. It was a symbol,
a symbolic reminder that everything that the people have belongs
to him. I said it to you the other day.
All what is that song? Again? We give thee, but
Thine own whatever it shall be, whatever it may be,
All that we have is Thine alone, a trust o
Lord from thee. So God's claim as a symbol that
all belongs to him. This also prefigured the coming of Christ,
the true first born, that means the pre eminent one.
In the case that Jesus took on human flesh, he
came in order to save us right in the fullness
of time, God sent forth his son, made of a woman,
made under the law, so that we could be redeemed,
who are under the law, so we could be the
adoption of son. So in that context, the first born
of all creation in Colossians one in verse fifteen, and
the first born from the dead according to Revelation chapter
one and verse five was Jesus. The first two come
back from the dead. Absolutely not was the pre eminent
one that did in his humanity come back from the
dead because we know Divinity can't die. Well, yes, absolutely,
but there is still one more thing. It's a bonus
for us to really get this. He is the only
one who came back from the second death. The first
born from the dead is the only one who came
back from the second death. Literally, no other person who
will experience, God forbid but experience the second death will
recover from that. It's final. But Jesus came back from that.
That means that when you are dying in sin, because
you're shapen in iniquity, because you have entertained all kinds
of wickedness, because you hardened your heart even like that
particular pharaoh had done. But God has given you away.
He's giving you an opportunity like he did for him.
But he refused. But you don't have to refuse. He's
giving you the opportunity to be to have a softened heart,
and then God give you a clean heart and renew
a right spirit within you so that you don't need
to die the second death. That's what I'm trying to say.
Here's so much, so much, so much. From two seventy four,
page two seventy four from the book patriarchs and prophets.
The first born of both man and beast were to
be the lords, to be bought with a price or
a dedicated to sacred service. This was to keep constantly
before the minds of the people of God the wonderful
delay deliverance wrought for them. So much to say, so
little time. Let me just apply this. Well, let's we
can go into the context really quickly, and then we'll
apply it to today. I'm looking at my time. This
command was not only a cultural reality, it was not optional.
God had just passed over the firstborn of the people
of God and judged Egypt's false gods. The consecration of
the first born was threefold at least a perpetual reminder
of salvation through the blood of lamb only, a call
to stewardship God owns the people he redeems, and a
nationwide act of worship rooted in personal obedience. It reminded
every family in among the people of God that their strength,
that is, the first born, belongs to the Redeemer and
not to themselves. Now let's apply it. God still claims
the first place in our lives. I started with that
your first and income, your time your decisions, your family.
It belongs to him. Redemption is not free. Okay, okay,
I know somebody just said, wait a minute, of course
it's free. Yeah, but God paid a lot. It costs
God a lot. Redemption costs something. The first born had
to be redeemed with a substitute, pointing forward to Christ
who would redeem us, not with silver or gold, but
with his blood. Yeah, redemption is invaluable because the price
that was paid was the blood of Christ.
Speaker 1: Thanks for joining us listening. Friends, Always remember we cannot
live by bread alone, but by every word that comes
from the mouth of God. This has been your daily
portion with el David Harris. Make it a great day. Yeah,