Our Offering

Have you ever had the thought "what offering is worthy of the Lord"? I sure have. In fact, when I've offered the Lord things, whether it be my finances, my time, my attention, my prayers, my confessions, my music...I've wondered if it was even worthy of being offered to Him. What do I have that is worth offering up to God? The first 7 chapters of Leviticus spell out specific ways to make offerings to the Lord in Old Testament times. But how can I make an offering that is heart felt and is an actual sacrifice?

During my short time at Immanuel (6 mo. at the time of this writing) I have had the privilege of serving on the interior design team for our new worship center. As we've talked and gotten together for several meetings one thing continues to plague my mind...THE COST! Now, before I go any further, I want you to understand where I'm coming from. I have no issue with what the project will cost, but instead with how long it is projected to take us to raise those funds. The reason for the long time frame? Many will make "offerings" out of their resources as opposed to making sacrifices. What does that mean? Let me put it another way.

If I am in the desert and I see a man who needs water, I have a couple of choices: A) I can share my water with him or B) I can pass him by. If I share my water with him it could mean that I would have to do without. I would be very thirsty and it would put a strain on my body, but without that sacrifice the man will surely die. This brings us back to my original question. What offering is worthy of God? The one that is given as a sacrifice.

Under the old covenant sacrifices were extremely important. We see an example of that in Leviticus, as we have already mentioned. However, under the new covenant God does not require the sacrifice of animals and such, instead he wants the praise and thankfulness of His people. Because we, as new testament believers, are all priests (1 Peter 2:5,9)we are to offer up "sacrifices of praise" from our lips, in our lives, as a lifestyle of worship.

Imagine if every believer in our churches took hold of this understanding and owned it. If we walked in a close relationship with Him as a common practice, then we would be accustomed to making sacrifices to Him on a daily basis. As a result we would see a culture that is influenced by the church. We would see true evidence of lives changed all around us. We would see buildings going up without a 10 year plan.

Now, look at your life. Do you fall short in any area? Most all of us do. (I know I do.) I want to live my life as a new testament priest...offering up daily sacrifices to the Lord. Not on Sunday and Wednesday, but every day. Can I live up to that? Not in and of myself. But by the infinite power of God in my life as I walk with Him daily, making sacrifices to Him will be a way of life.