A certain mom & dad worked hard and saved to pay for their son to go to college. He blew off his freshman year. He was irresponsible, didn't study, made terrible grades, squandered his money, & finally came back home. His parents told him, “If you decide to go back to school you’ll have to pay your own way.”
So he had to work that summer & was not allowed go on the family vacation. That was part of his punishment. The family went to Greece that year & the mom sent him a postcard, “Dear Son,” she wrote. “Today we stood on the mountains where ancient Spartan women sacrificed their defective children. Wish you were here.” (From Melvin Newland)
We've started a series of lessons on offerings and sacrifices and blessings from God.
Last week we took a look at what the Bible says about Cain and Abel's offering and how Cain's true colors came out as his offering was rejected and Abel's was accepted. Cain's way of offering seems to have been to look around and give God whatever Cain wanted to offer, but God's way of offering is to look into our lives and tell us what He wants us to offer Him.
We learn from Cain and Abel that our offerings expose our hearts and are directly related to our relationship with God and others. We also learned the importance of teaching our children about offerings God's way and that our very lives are to be living sacrifices to God.
Today's lesson comes primarily from Genesis 22.
But before we get into the story of Abraham and Isaac, listen to a couple of scriptures about offerings and sacrifices and blessings from God that inform us as to where God is leading us in this. Hear how serious God takes this, how personal and also how full of celebration this act of worship is.
Exodus 22:20 (Are you ready for this?) Whoever sacrifices to any god other than the Lord must be destroyed. How does God really feel about our offerings and sacrifices? I tell you, God takes these very personally! And we should too!
Deuteronomy 12 tells us more, lots more, but let's just hear the first 7 verses.
1 These are the decrees and laws you must be careful to follow in the land that the LORD, the God of your fathers, has given you to possess—as long as you live in the land. 2 Destroy completely all the places on the high mountains and on the hills and under every spreading tree where the nations you are dispossessing worship their gods. 3 Break down their altars, smash their sacred stones and burn their Asherah poles in the fire; cut down the idols of their gods and wipe out their names from those places.
4 You must not worship the LORD your God in their way. 5 But you are to seek the place the LORD your God will choose from among all your tribes to put his Name there for his dwelling. To that place you must go; 6 there bring your burnt offerings and sacrifices, your tithes and special gifts, what you have vowed to give and your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks. 7 There, in the presence of the LORD your God, you and your families shall eat and shall rejoice in everything you have put your hand to, because the LORD your God has blessed you.
I get the picture here that, number one: God is not pleased when His people make offerings to any god but Him. Number two: God wants us to bring our offerings before Him and celebrate in joyful worship! Worship that recognizes that all our blessings have come from the Lord!
Just two more passages and we will go to Genesis 22.
Psalm 27
4 One thing I ask of the LORD,
this is what I seek:
that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life,
to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD
and to seek him in his temple.
5 For in the day of trouble
he will keep me safe in his dwelling;
he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle
and set me high upon a rock.
6 Then my head will be exalted
above the enemies who surround me;
at his tabernacle will I sacrifice with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make music to the LORD.
Nehemiah 12:43
And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.
Would you say that offerings and sacrifices were associated with joy in those passages? Isn't that beautiful? God wants us to be cheerful givers and thankful receivers! Offerings are a part of worship where this is supposed to happen! Right?
Genesis 22 tells of a time of offering that was far from pleasant and joyful... at first. In fact, what started out as perhaps Abraham's greatest burden, most difficult test... was at the end transformed into his greatest blessing.
(Read verses 1-18)
Lessons? Here's just five:
1. Our offerings test our faith and our relationship with God.
What would you refuse to give to God if He told you to give it? I have three children, two daughters and one son. Yesterday I was trying to burn up a stump. Has anyone here ever tried to burn a stump? Well, they don't burn up too well. I had the fire going pretty hot. I thought, what if God were to ask me to offer one of my children as a burnt offering? Could I do that?
It's easy to say, God would never do that. But He did! Didn't He? What a test of faith for Abraham! Abraham didn't argue with God or plead for consideration. Now one time God told Abraham that He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah and Abraham spoke up and plead for God to save these cities. He got God to agree to spare them if God could find 10 righteous people there. Remember?
But here, when God tells him to sacrifice his son, Isaac as a burnt offering, Abraham submissively, obediently does what God says without any argument. The Bible calls it a test. Abraham passes and proves his faith to be genuine.
2. When we draw close to Him, God puts on our hearts what He wants us to give, it's not just our own choice. Our choice is whether or not to trust and obey Him.
Do you believe this? Does God actually tell you what to offer Him? How about His command to love the Lord your God with all our heart, all our soul, all of our strength and all of our mind? How about Jesus command to store up treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal? How about where Jesus tells us to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him? How about where Paul tells the Corinthians to give what they have purposed in their hearts to give?
Does God put on your heart what to offer Him? Does He tell us what we are to offer? Rachel gave me a little book called the 10 second rule. In this book the author goes through the Bible and his own life and says that God does indeed let us know what He wants us to do. First there is scripture. The Bible is the standard of authority for knowing God and His will for us. But the Bible teaches us that as Christians we are led by the Holy Spirit. We have an advocate with the Father helping us pray, empowering us to overcome temptation, and leading us in the will of God. We must be careful here, because we must test the spirits to see if they are from God. But to deny the influence of the Holy Spirit is unbiblical.
Perhaps the number one thing the Holy Spirit leads us in is this matter of offering. I think of Mary, the sister of Lazarus, the man Jesus raised from the dead. (Mark 14:1ff) Mary had about 10 ounces of pure Nard in an alabaster jar. It was a hugely expensive perfume. Royalty wore it. That single jar of ointment was worth over a years wages. As Jesus was reclining at the table at a celebration of Lazarus' resurrection, Mary came up behind Jesus with this jar of ointment, she broke it, and poured in out on His head, body and feet. Mark says she poured in on His head, John says she poured in on his feet, Jesus says she anointed His body. It was 10 ounces! More than enough to do all of that, plus.
Did God put that on her heart or did she come up with that one herself? Jesus said that she had anointed his body to prepare for its burial. It looks to me like God was leading her and she was joyfully offering her best.
3. When God calls you to give a great sacrifice and if you in faith chose to submit and obey Him, He rewards you greatly.
What did God say to Abraham after his offering Isaac?
What did Jesus say after Mary offered her gift of the nard?
What will the Lord say after we offer whatever He leads us to give?
Mark 12:41-44 tells about a widow who offered in the collection two pennies. Jesus was watching, listen to His response.
4. Christian joy comes from discovering the truth in Jesus words: It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Hebrews 12:1-3 tell us that Jesus endured the cross where He offered Himself for all mankind, for the joy set before Him. What was the joy Jesus was looking toward as He endured the cross?
Jesus tells us that we are to rejoice when we are persecuted for His name's sake because we have a great reward.
Do you believe the joy of the reward from God will be worth offering your body as a living sacrifice for Him here and now?
What is your offering to God?
5. God is the ultimate joyful, sacrificial giver and He wants us to be like Him.
God gives us everything we have. He created the entire universe and wants to share it with you forever in glory. He is the giver who never stops giving. God's greatest joy is seeing us come to Him and bring others to Him. He offers us eternal life in Christ.
God knows that whatever stands between us and Him will keep us from having His greatest gifts. Our offerings are sometimes just the removal of things or even people who stand between us and our love for God.
Offer God your life. Offer Him your doubts. Offer Him your anxious cares. Offer Him whatever He leads you to give.
