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sacrifice

Sacrifice of Praise

by TerryLema

“Therefore, through Him let us continually offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of our lips that confess His name.” [Hebrews 13:15 HCSB]

Sacrifice of praise.  Praising God is one of the most uplifting and blessed of all experiences.  Coming into the presence of God with praise on our lips, hands raised to honor God, hearts and minds focused on Him fills us full.  So, when Scripture talks about it as a sacrifice it seems rather odd.  We are told to offer to God the sacrifice of praise.  When I consider that verse, I am drawn to those first two chapters in the book of Job.

In Chapter 1 Job loses just about everything he has, including his 12 children.  As wave after wave of bad news assaults him, Job drops to the ground in grief.  And there, shaken by all the bad news, it says that Job worshipped.

“Then Job stood up, tore his robe, and shaved his head. He fell to the ground and worshiped, saying: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will leave this life. The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away. Praise the name of Yahweh.’ Throughout all this Job did not sin or blame God for anything.” [vs 20-22 HCSB]

In Chapter 2 we are told of a second assault upon Job, this time on his health.  Covered with boils, sitting in the ash heap, scraping his sores with broken pottery, he is as wretched a man as one can be.  When his wife advises him to curse God and die, his response is amazing.

“’You speak as a foolish woman speaks,’ he told her. ‘Should we accept only good from God and not adversity?’ Throughout all this Job did not sin in what he said.” [vs 10 HCSB]

In the midst of overwhelming adversity, Job did not sin with his lips but instead praised God and worshipped.  That is what is meant by a sacrifice of praise.  It is praising when life hurts. It is blessing God rather than cursing.

It is responding to the grievous difficulties in life by acknowledging grief yet lifting our heads off the ground to praise and not charge God with wrong.

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Everything We Have

by TerryLema

In the middle of last Sunday’s song service, I was overcome with a truth. One of those “Ah ha” moments that can come when we sing a song or read a Scripture or pray a prayer.  It may be something we already know or have studied in the past, but now rather than just knowing … we KNOW!

This “Ah ha” moment came as we sang the song, “Above All.” As I was singing the chorus, I felt the LORD touch me deeply.

“Crucified, laid behind a stone. You lived to die, rejected and alone. Like a rose trampled on the ground: You took the fall and thought of me above all.”

I realized in that moment that everything I have, everything I am as a child of God is mine because Jesus sacrificed something of Himself.

“For [God] made [Jesus] who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” [2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV]

“[Jesus] Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that, having died to sins, we might live for righteousness; you have been healed by His wounds.” [1 Peter 2:24 HCSB]

And that is just the beginning. For every blessing, every benefit, everything we have in God, Jesus sacrificed something that those things might be ours.

As we count our blessings this month – as we gratefully come before our God with praise and thanksgiving, let us be reminded of what our salvation and acceptance cost our LORD and Savior.

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Praise!

by TerryLema

For over a year now I have battled two chronic autoimmune diseases. I am praying and hoping for remission for both so I can go back to just battling my diabetes and aging. (Smile!)  I have good days and I have not-so-good days. There are times when everything hurts and times when just some things hurt. Pain and fatigue seem to be my constant companions.

There is usually one time each day where I do not sense either pain or fatigue. Right before I get out of bed each morning is usually pain and fatigue free. I stay there for a little while appreciating those moments.  I praise God for that brief time when I feel normal, knowing it will likely not carry over into my upcoming day.

The writer of Hebrews has one last “let us” phrase that I often think about. He calls praise “a sacrifice.”

“Therefore, through Him let us continually offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of our lips that confess His name.” [Hebrews 13:15 HCSB]

For me, praising God has always been a blessed experience. I love to worship my Savior and to sing and shout His praises – not just in church but around the house or when I walk. I have praised Him in sunshine and in the shadows of life. I never considered it a sacrifice to praise Him, just a gracious and loving experience.

I never thought much about it being a sacrifice until these past months when almost every day I have been challenged with fatigue or pain. Some days I just want to sigh, or cry, or hide. Instead, I know my Savior is calling me to praise. He understands that it will require a sacrifice to do so, but He also knows that praising Him will lift me into His Presence. There I will find the strength and peace I so desperately need.

So yes, there are times when praising becomes a sacrifice. And in those times, it also becomes our lifeline to the One who loves us most. Amen & Amen.

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A Thanksgiving Sacrifice

by TerryLema

Did you know that the first mention of a formal thanksgiving in the Bible is found in Leviticus 7? Most of us do not wake up in the morning excited to read through that book.  Instead we probably try to avoid it, what with all the references to mildew, sin, skin diseases, bodily discharges, and such.

Yet right there, in Leviticus 7:11-15, a formal offering of thanksgiving is referenced. “Now this is the law of the fellowship sacrifice that someone may present to the Lord: If he presents it for thanksgiving, in addition to the thanksgiving sacrifice, he is to present unleavened cakes mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers coated with oil, and well-kneaded cakes of fine flour mixed with oil. He is to present as his offering cakes of leavened bread with his thanksgiving sacrifice of fellowship.” [v11-13 HCSB]

It seems odd to put thanksgiving and sacrifice in the same sentence. We usually apply thanksgiving to all the great and wonderful blessings we experience. We offer thanks readily when things are going well in life. We have our health, or financial security, good jobs, family peace. Yes, we may become forgetful at times, but once reminded we go down our list of blessings and find much to praise God.

In those tough times, when health declines, financial security disappears, jobs are tenuous or family upheavals are the norm, thanksgiving truly becomes a sacrifice. Hebrews 13:15 is clear, however: “Therefore, through Him let us continually offer up to God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of our lips that confess His name.” [HCSB]

There is no excuse for ingratitude when we remember all God has done for us in Christ’s sacrifice. All those things we found in Romans 5:1-2, in Psalm 100, are ours. They are eternal. They will never disappear or diminish or be overcome, not even by the trying circumstances of this life.

So yes, sometimes thanksgiving is a sacrifice because of what we have around us … but it must always be offered considering the eternal sacrifice of our Lord and Savior on that cross for us.

 

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Feeling His Pleasure

by TerryLema

I think I have come to the end of the “let us” devotions, at least for present. It is one that I consider the most vital of all. “Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise-the fruit of lips that confess his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.” [Heb 13:15-16]

The cross of our LORD Christ Jesus reaches two ways, it reaches up and it reaches out. The writer to Hebrews reminds us of that. He reminds us that our Christian duty is to both God and to people.

We are to remember to do good and to share with whom we walk through this life. We share our lives with others, our encouragement, our finances when we can, our time (the most precious of all our commodities), our love. It is our responsibility and our privilege to also share the Gospel with those who do not yet know Christ.

Perhaps as great a responsibility and privilege – and one that is sometimes harder during difficult times in life — is that we are to “continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name.”

 Interesting that the author calls praise a sacrifice. When things are difficult, circumstances dire, or problems arise, praising God is a sacrifice. It is our offering to Him remembering all He has done for us. Difficulties, circumstances, and problems are not eternal (they only seem that way). One day they will be gone, and we will be with the LORD where nothing like that will ever arise again.

Beloved, we cannot wait until we get in His presence to praise Him, we need to do it now amid the trying times. Offering a sacrifice of praise takes our focus off the problems and puts it on the King of kings. It demonstrates to God and this world that we are a people who trust in the LORD not just when it is easy, but when it is most difficult.

If you genuinely want to feel God’s pleasure, praise Him with your words today – and with your life. Amen.

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As He Loves Us

by TerryLema

It’s almost Valentine’s Day when the world thinks about “romantic love.” I know the restaurants will be full and the card and candy makers and flower shops will have a busy day. Maybe even the jewelry stores. I remember talking to a waitress once who told me that she hated working on Valentine’s Day because the tips weren’t very good. People had spent all their money on the dinner and gifts. However, she loved working Mother’s Day because it was the best tip day of the year. Apparently, we still want to impress our moms!

Jesus had a lot to say about love, not the romantic kind, but the love that emanates deep from His presence in us and captures not just emotions but a determined will of obedience. He said:

“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” [John 15:12 NKJV]

“I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.” [Matt 5:44-45 NIV]

“If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” [John 14:23 NKJV]

None of what Jesus said about love is easy.

We are to love each other as He loved us. That involves sacrifice.

He said we are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us as they persecuted Him.

And He said our love for Him will be seen in our obedience to Him.

Nope, not easy, and it is getting harder in our society today to follow Jesus’ way of love, but there is also a promise given. If we do love as He commands, He and the Father will come and make their home with us. Loving Jesus’ way may not be easy, but it is sure worth it! Amen.

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