Sacrifice
Luke 21:1-4
Turn to Luke 21:1-4
"Once upon a time, a pig and a chicken were walking down a village street. They came upon a church sign which was advertising a bazaar and breakfast which was going to be held in a few days.
At the bottom of the sign the menu was given, it read ’Ham and eggs will be served from 6:30 to 8:00 am.’ The chicken turned to the pig and said, "See!!’ Even we can help the work of the church!!!"
"Yes," said the pig, "but yours is only a contribution, mine is a SACRIFICE."
Sacrifice
-Honest with you
-I am not a huge fan of sacrifice ASK SHAWNA-Judah @ 3
-We as comfortable Americans greatly dislike sacrifice
-Asking most Americans to sacrifice is like asking a cat to take a bath
-Devoted to pleasure, comfort, the absence of pain
Inspite of how we might feel about it sacrifice is a very important part of our Christian life
-Most people who choose not to follow the Lord do so because of the sacrifice involved in the Christian life
-Sacrifice is extremely important
Romans 12:1-Therefore, I urge you, bothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, this is your spiritual act of worship
Definition of Sacrifice-The offering of something that is precious, that has value, that is important
A sacrifice isn’t a sacrifice unless it costs you something
The Butterball Turkey company set up a hotline to answer consumer questions about preparing holiday turkeys. One woman called to inquire about cooking a turkey that had been in her freezer for 23 years.
The operator told her it might be safe if the freezer had been kept below 0 degrees the entire time. But the operator warned the woman that, even if it were safe, the flavor had probably deteriorated, and she wouldn’t recommend eating it.
The caller replied, “That’s what we thought. We’ll just give it to the church.”
-A sacrifice isn’t a sacrifice unless it costs you something
-It is not a sacrifice to give your dirty socks to the
Baseball-Sacrifice fly
-You get out so your teammate can score
-Its not a sacrifice fly unless you get out/Its just a fly
Culture
-All about me
(Car, house, boat, RV, summer home, vacations, jet skies, better job, more money, more fun, bigger truck, more toys, faster toys)
-All these things are great, but its not all about these things
-Its about hurting, lost, and dying of our world
-What are you willing to sacrifice?
-Money, Time, Success, Position
-God has called us all as Christians to a place of sacrifice
Today I want to talk to you about a woman who understood the principle of sacrifice
Luke 21:1-4 As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. I tell you the truth, he said, this poor woman has put in more then all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.
Make a few observations about this passage, give you a challenge, then you can go to lunch
-I was thinking as a test of your sacrifice level I should preach until noon
-I realized that wouldn’t be a sacrifice, but stupidity
THERE IS A DIFFERENCE
Great place to insert this
-God doesn’t call us to sacrifice for the sake of sacrifice, but as a response of obedience
1 Sam 15:22-Obedience is better then sacrifice
To sacrifice just for the sake of sacrifice is called stupidity
Sacrifice is to be done as an act of obedience
I-Jesus Saw
Vs 1 As He looked up, Jesus saw
Hide and Go Seek
-We might think we are playing hide and go seek with God, but were not
Ps 44:21-He knows the secrets of our heart
A-Jesus sees every part of our lives, including the very intentions of our hearts
-Just because you put your money in your wallet doesn’t mean Jesus doesn’t see it
-Just because you aren’t in the sanctuary when you said it doesn’t mean Jesus didn’t hear it
-Just because no one else was with you when you watched it didn’t mean Jesus didn’t see it
-Just because your computer is in your bedroom doesn’t mean he stays out
He sees absolutely every area of your life
So what does Him seeing have to do with sacrifice?
B-Jesus sees your every sacrifice
-He’s never too busy to notice your sacrifice
-People here-You have sacrificed for years out of obedience to Gods call-seemingly unnoticed
-Jesus sees
-He’s never too busy to notice the little things you do
Matt 6:4b-then your father who sees what is done in secret will reward you
It’s interesting
-This is the final incident in Jesus’ public ministry before He would sacrifice himself-very next thing-Judas’ betrayal-He knew it was the end
-He could have taken this time to do other things (teaching/healing/casting out demons/family)
-He took the time to recognize this poor widows gifts
-This tells us that He Passionately cares about our sacrifices or lack of sacrifices
He cares about what we have given up for the gospel
-The time you gave that extra dollar
-spent that extra time
-Time you woke up and prayed
He cares about what we have not given up
-The time you held back
-Cared more about your comfort then that call
Jesus cares deeply about and sees your sacrifice
Second thing
II-This lady was extremely poor
Vs 2-He saw a poor widow
This widow wasn’t poor like a lot of the poor we see in the States
San Francisco/Turkey
A-Two words in the Greek language used to describe a poor person
Peno-To have to toil for daily substance (living day by day)
Ptochos-A beggar, destitute, a very deep poverty
-This woman was so poor that not just one but both were used to describe her
-Bottom of the barrel
NOT ONLY POOR< BUT WIDOW
B-She was a widow
-Her source of all revenue-her husband-had died
-No SS, Medicare, welfare, shelters
Yet she gave/sacrificed
C-If there is anyone who had an excuse not to give it was this woman
-Great excuses (Husband died, she had nothing)
-we have some great excuses to don’t we
I can’t-im tired-im to energetic-im hungry-im to full-im broke-im wealthy-im bored-im hyperactive-im not smart enough-im to smart-im above that-im not good enough-im to old-im to young-im to short-im to tall-im to busy-im retired-im buried in to many bills-im working to much-im looking for a job-Im not ready-im overqualified-Im not elequest-Im to good-im to far from there-im to close to there- Im to scared
-What do all these excuses have in common?
-Our excuses don’t work with God
-Because of our excuses we miss out on the privilege of sacrificing for God
What excuse do you offer?
God wants sacrifice-not excuse
Inspite of her many great excuses she could offer
III-She gave everything
4b-She out of her poverty put in all she had to live on
" Two wealthy Christians - a lawyer and a merchant – joined a party that was going around the world. Their pastor asked them to take pictures of anything which they thought was unusual.
In Korea, as they were traveling, they saw in a field a boy pulling a crude plow, while an old man held in his hands the handles.. The lawyer was amused, and took a picture.
Commenting to the guide, he said,” That is an unusual sight. I suppose they are very poor."
"Yes," came the answer. "They are poor, that is the family of Chi Noui. When the church was being built in this area they were excited to give something to help it along, but they had no money so they sold their only ox and gave the money to the church. This spring they are taking turns pulling the plow themselves."
The lawyer said thoughtfully, "That must have been a real sacrifice "
The guide said, "They did not call it that." They thought it was fortunate they had an ox to sell.".
A-Inspite of her poverty this poor widow held nothing back
-Not just 10%-Not just left over time-Not just the thing she didn’t want
-2 copper coins or 1/8 of a penny
-She gave it all
-ALL SHE HAD TO LIVE ON
-She held nothing back
-God measures our giving not on how much we give, but how much we have left
Not a financial expert
B-It would have made more since for her to give one and to keep one for food
-Jesus wouldn’t have been mad
-Jesus wouldn’t have jumped out of his chair and screamed “hey poor widow-You still have 1/16 of a penny left---SELFISH”
C-She choose to sacrifice
-To offer something that is precious, that has value, that is important
-To get out so her teammate can score
-To give so someone else didn’t have to go without
-She chose to be the pig and sacrifice, instead of the chicken and simply contribute
Conclusion
What sacrifice is God calling you to? Obedience is better then sacrifice
Every one of us have been called to give all our life
Matt 10-And anyone who does not take up his life and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will loose it. Whoever looses his life for my sake will find it
Call into ministry
Call to a ministry
A call to give
Two statements in conclusion
You shouldn’t answer this call in accordance to what you have, but in accordance to what God desires---Obedience
-If God didn’t call us to sacrifice beyond ourselves nothing great would ever be achieved for God
You sacrifice for what you care about
-You can always measure how much someone cares about something by how much they sacrifice
-Tells us a lot about how much Jesus cares about u (you are his most valuable asset/apple of his eye) sacrificed his only Son
-What is worth holding back?
What sacrifice is God calling you to?
-Give him a chance
-Sacrifice
-Give everything
