What is God asking you to sacrifice?
If you were a Hebrew living 3000 years ago God would ask you to sacrifice very specific things in a very specific manner. Open your Bibles to Leviticus Chapter one. While you’re making your way there I want to give away a secret – my marinade for barbequing steaks. You take a nice ribeye steak and poke a lot of holes in it with a fork. Then you sprinkle it with Worcestershire sauce and soak it in soy sauce. Finally, when you put it on the grill coat it with this – pepper seasoning. It’s simple, but absolutely delicious. I love to BBQ. Don’t you just love the smell when someone in the neighborhood is BBQing? The smell makes my mouth water.
I think God loves BBQing too. He told Moses to build a big BBQ. In Exodus God says this to Moses:
Ex 27:1-8
"Make an Altar of acacia wood. Make it seven and a half feet square and four and a half feet high. 2 Make horns at each of the four corners. The horns are to be of one piece with the Altar and covered with a veneer of bronze. 3 Make buckets for removing the ashes, along with shovels, basins, forks, and fire pans. Make all these utensils from bronze. 4 Make a grate of bronze mesh and attach bronze rings at each of the four corners. 5 Put the grate under the ledge of the Altar at the halfway point of the Altar. 6 Make acacia wood poles for the Altar and cover them with a veneer of bronze. 7 Insert the poles through the rings on the two sides of the Altar for carrying. 8 Use boards to make the Altar, keeping the interior hollow.
God told Moses to build a big BBQer – a big grill. And look how big it is. Seven feet square and four feet deep. It’s every mans dream grill (grunt grunt). Have you seen the all stainless steel grills? Man are the pretty. This thing though was all bronze – wow! God even tells him to make a set of grilling utensils to go along with it – it was like the ultimate fathers day gift.
God says to Moses – This is going to be a primary means for you to make sacrifices to me. What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Let’s look at some of the different sacrifices God tells the Hebrews to make:
Lev 1:3-17
Whole-burnt-offering
This was a sacrifice they would make to pacify God’s wrath for their sins. It would cover over, or hide, their sins from God. Notice that it is to be all burnt up. It’s like God consumes all of the BBQed meat. And remember God told them to do this so that they may draw near to Him.
Turn to Lev 2:1-3
Grain offering
In this sacrifice Gods says to bring flour in the form of bread or just the ingredients for bread which included butter and sometimes frankincense. He says to put some on the grill and give some to the priests. I love the smell of fresh baked bread and that’s exactly what this was. It was a pleasing aroma to God and to the people making the sacrifices. God said sacrifice this bread so that you remember who gave you the grain in the first place. Remember that I love you and that I take care of you.
Turn to Lev 3:1-5
Fellowship offering
Here God says make a sacrifice for fellowship – of friendship. In this sacrifice some of the meat was burnt up on the big BBQ, some went to the priest, and some went to the person bringing the sacrifice. God said do this so we can hang out together. But look at what it involved. It involved someone bringing an animal to God to sacrifice. Something that they valued. Something that costs them.
God goes on in Leviticus and lays out all sorts of sacrifices that He wants the Hebrews to make in order for them to have a relationship with Him. There’s the
Burnt
Sin
Trespass
Peace
Heave
Wave
Meat
Drink
Thank
Free-will
Incense
First-fruits
Tithe
Gift
And Jealousy
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Remember God is telling the Hebrews – Make all these sacrifices because this is how I want you to have a relationship with me. It wasn’t the Hebrews trying to work for their salvation. It wasn’t them trying to manipulate God. It was God saying – Do these things in these particular ways. Living in the freedom of Christ sometimes it’s easy to look down our noses at the Hebrews. We tend to look at them in the same light we look at other religions trying to work their way to God. Remember it was God who said to them – This is how I want you to have a relationship with me. Sometimes it’s easy to take our freedom in Christ for granted. We can buy into the lie that sacrifices ended with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. Don’t get me wrong - did Jesus die for sin once for all? Absolutely! Can we do anything to pay for the sins we have committed? NOPE! Our salvation is not by works.
Does God ask us to offer sacrifices today? Absolutely. They just aren’t bread, wine, or meat. They are the things that get in the way of our relationship with him.
Look at Rom 12:1
Rom 12:1
12:1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship.
NIV
God says to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. Are we supposed to physically climb up on a big grill – no – I hope not. God says to sacrifice your bodies as a LIVING sacrifice. So we’re not talking some weird suicide cult.
So what’s it mean to sacrifice our bodies? In this sense the word “body” represents your whole self – not just physically. The body is seen as the instrument for living. It contains your will, desires, pride, love, thoughts, urges, and actions. It is you in your entirety. And God says I’m asking you to sacrifice ‘you’. All of you.
But my question is what specifically is God asking you to sacrifice? What specifically about you is he asking you to sacrifice? What is getting in the way of a closer relationship with Him?
Could it be your ego? Do you feel the need to be the center of attention when you walk into a room? Does the conversation always end up being about an experience you had? Oh sure we can try to justify it – but God I’m the leader. They expect me to be like this. God might be saying – if you’re going to be the leader it’s going to be for me not you. I want you to put your ego on the altar.
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Could it be your shyness? “But God I’m not arrogant and egotistical”. God might be saying – you don’t trust me. You won’t step out in faith and build relationships with people. You won’t initiate conversations with people I want to minister to.
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Could it be your resistance to authority? Do you feel like your boss is an idiot? Do you disagree with the direction of this church? Are you angry with the police officer when you get a speeding ticket? Are you passive-aggressive when you disagree with management? God might be saying –I want you to put your lack of submission up on the altar.
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Could it be a passion or desire?
Let me tell you my own experience . . .
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Do you tip toe around subjects and avoid conflict because you want to be liked by people? Oh I can just hear the spiritualizing of that one – But God you said blessed are the peace makers . . .
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
Pride
Ego
Secret lusts
Arrogance
Shyness
Self-centeredness
Messiah complex – God’s not saving them, I guess I have to
Seriousness
Silliness
Passive-aggression
Desire to change others
Rules for others
Box that you have God in
What is God asking you to sacrifice?
This summer as you BBQ, as somebody in your house fires up the grill, as you go over to friends house for burgers and brauts, as you drive up into you driveway and smell someone in your neighborhood BBQing, everytime you see a grill . . .
I want that question to echo in your head.
What does God want me to put up on that altar? What is God asking me to sacrifice?
