A Fitting Sacrifice

The pastor said, “Well, your commitment was to God, not to me so I don’t see any legitimate way to drop it. But let’s pray.” And he prayed, “Lord, would you see fit to bring this brother’s income back down to a level where he feels like he can afford to keep his commitment.” The man said, “I get the point, Pastor — and I will keep my commitment no matter what it costs!”

A FITTING SACRIFICE HAS TO COST SOMETHING! AND

II. A FITTING SACRIFICE MUST BE OUR BEST:

A. The Macedonians may have had little, and it may not have been the most expensive or desirable – but they sold or gave the best they had. You can bet on that!

B. When we give to God, let’s give our best!

1. The Lord said to ancient Israel, “You are presenting defiled food upon My altar. But you say, 'How have we defiled You?' In that you say, 'The table of the LORD is to be despised.' But when you present the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and sick, is it not evil? Why not offer it to your governor? Would he be pleased with you? Or would he receive you kindly?" Malachi 1:7-8 (NASB).

2. Some may say, “If I had better stuff I would sell it or give it away. But my stuff is pretty shabby. I’d be embarrassed to offer it!.” Paul said, “For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have.” 2 Corinthians 8:12 (NASB).

C. To make a fitting sacrifice, give your best! Your best, not someone else’s best.

1. The song asks, “How could I make a lesser sacrifice, when Jesus gave His all?”

2. And we sang, “Give of your best to the Master!”

D. What is your best? What would be a real sacrifice for you to give up?

1. Not necessarily your most expensive, but it is your most cherished.

2. Not necessarily your rarest but it is your most valued.

3. Not necessarily something most people would like to take from you, but it is something you find it hardest to give up.

E. To be a fitting sacrifice we need to be willing to give up what we consider the most important, what we deem the most desirable, what we consider to be our best. Sometimes people are like a man who had nothing … and God gave him ten apples. He gave him three apples to eat, three to trade for shelter from the sun and rain, and three apples to trade for clothing to wear.

He gave him one apple so that the man might have something to give back to God to show his gratitude for the other nine. And He was going to do this every week.

The man ate three apples. He traded three for a shelter from the sun and the rain. He traded three for clothing to wear.

Then he looked at the tenth apple. It seemed bigger and juicier than the rest. He knew that God had given him the tenth apple so he could return it to God out of gratitude for the other nine. But the tenth apple looked so good and so appealing and so much better than the rest. And he reasoned that God had all the other apples in the world … so the man ate the tenth apple ... and gave God back the core. Hardly his best.