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Obedience Trumps Sacrifice

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Image          Many times we may come up with our own ideas about what we think would be a good sacrifice to make for God.  It may be that we want to build a great cathedral.  Perhaps we think that giving up something that we like to eat for a certain time period would be a good sacrifice to make for God.  Is this what God wants us to do?  Does He want us to try to figure out what to do on our own?

            In the Old Testament we have an account about King Saul that gives us some insight into this question (1 Samuel 15:1-31).  In this narrative, Saul is returning from defeating the Amalekites, and he and the people have planned to make a sacrifice to the Lord.  For this reason they have not destroyed the best of the sheep and oxen, but have instead brought them back with them (vv. 9, 15).  As Saul encounters Samuel along the way, he is very happy with himself for coming up with this grand idea.  However, God is not pleased with Saul.  Samuel points out to him that he has not followed the commandment of God.  Saul was commanded to destroy everything that the Amalekites had (v. 3).  They were not supposed to bring anything back with them.  Yet Saul has not carried out this command given to him by God, and God is not pleased.  Samuel instructs Saul that God does not delight in sacrifices as He does in obedience, for it is better to obey than to make sacrifice (v. 22).

            We should heed the words of the prophet as well and realize that what God wants from us more than anything is our obedience to His word.  We can say that we believe in God and then go our own way and not obey His commands.  However, if we do not obey, then we do not truly believe.  No matter what sacrifice we may think is appropriate for God, this account clearly shows that obedience to God trumps what we think we can sacrifice for Him.

Who Do You Love?

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            Suppose that someone were to ask the question, who do you love?  What would our answer be?  Who would be at the top of our list?  Most likely those we would think of first would be the people who love us in return.  Hopefully God would be at the top of that list as well.  But would any of us have mentioned people who openly hate us?  If we are being honest, probably not many of us would have answered that way.

            Let us consider for a moment what is written for our learning in Romans 5:6-11.  In this passage we are reminded that when we were without strength, when we were unrighteous, when we were yet sinners, and when we were enemies of God, He sent His only Son to die on the cross for us.  Imagine sending your only child to die for the benefit of people that hate you.  Could you do it?  This passage says “but God” showed His love for us by sending Christ to die for our sins while we were less than unworthy (v. 8).

            If we only love those who love us, we are no better than the heathen (Matthew 5:46-47).  Instead Jesus encourages us to love our enemies and to strive to do good to all men.  If we would be willing to share the good news of the gospel with anyone, no matter if they love us or hate us, what better way could there be to show our love and concern for them and their eternal soul?

Is It Now Acceptable To Lie?

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Over the past week we have had confirmation of two different athletes at two very different stages of their careers giving false information in a repeated fashion.  Lance Armstrong, who is at the end of his cycling career, admitted to using performance enhancing drugs.  This is something which he previously had adamantly denied.  Manti Te’o, who stands at the beginning of his pro football career, admitted to lying about meeting a girlfriend who never existed.  It leads us to ask the question, is lying now acceptable in our society?

            An even more important question would be is it acceptable before God for us to lie in order to gain an advantage or to ‘cover our tracks?’  When we look into the pages of scripture we can quickly find the answer to this question.  Consider Proverbs 6:16-19, which tells us that there are seven behaviors that are an abomination to the Lord.  Twice in that list of seven we find that lying is mentioned (vv. 17, 19).  To put it simply, God hates lying.  We can also see in Revelation 21:8 these words recorded, “But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death” (NKJV).  Notice here that liars are listed with a very unsavory crowd of people who you will not meet in heaven. 

            The clear conclusion is that lying is not acceptable with God, no matter what our society, politicians, or athletes may say.  God’s standards are higher than man’s.  God calls us to be honest, to deal with others fairly, to be accountable to a higher authority, and to treat others as we would want to be treated.  Thus those who would follow after God will not view lying as an acceptable practice, no matter the reason for it.

The Road To Salvation

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Light on path We live in a country where we have many options in our food choices, sporting events, entertainment avenues, etc. However, in looking at a portion of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount it can be seen that there are only two ways of life and only two eternal destinations. These two ways could not be more different than what Jesus contrasts in Matthew 7:13-14.

The first way is wide, easy, and well traveled. If we consider human nature, perhaps it is not surprising that many people are traveling in this direction. After all, most of us would rather take a four lane highway to travel from Chicago to L.A. than to take a series of two lane roads through small towns with traffic lights and lower speed limits. However, there is a problem when we take the easy way out and only follow our own will. Jesus warns us that this route will lead to our ultimate destruction. Those who do what they want at the expense of God’s inspired instructions will be lost for eternity at the end of time (2 Corinthians 5:10). So although this way may look appealing on the surface, it is not the way that we should go.

The second way is narrow, difficult, and there are few that travel this way. This is the way of Christianity and following the precepts and commands of God. In many cases this way invites the ridicule of others. In many cases this way can lead to divisions in our family as loved ones cannot understand why we would travel the more difficult path. The truth of the matter is that everything depends on this choice that we must make. If we choose not to decide, we still have made a choice. To not follow this way, is to follow the other. The truth of the matter is that those who would chose to follow God can. If we will truly seek to find God, all of us can do so, since He is not far from us (Acts 17:27). Ultimately the decision is in our hands.

In Robert Frost’s poem, The Road Not Taken, he concludes by saying, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.” Christianity is that road less traveled by, and if we will venture that way in our lives, it will make all the difference.