This morning, I continued my study of Leviticus using the Christ-Centered Exposition series commentary for this book - continuing with chapter nineteen - Holiness and Leadership - covering Leviticus 21-22, looking specifically at the fourth theme for the chapter - God Calls Us to Present Acceptable Offerings to Him. Here, the commentary encourages us to examine a very important question - to what extent am I surrendering my life to Christ? It starts by looking at Leviticus 22:17-30, where the Lord is speaking to Moses, and communicating His commands for acceptable offerings. The command to offer only sacrifices without blemish is described four times in these verses, underscoring God emphasis that God seeks our best. The commentary states that we are to offer our best because "He is God. When we recognize His greatness and glory, we give offerings that are great and glorious--the best we have." This is a challenge for all believers, myself included. It was certainly a challenge for the Israelites as the commentary points out scripture is replete with examples where the Jewish people in the Old Testament failed to give their best to God. As just one example, the commentary refers to the book of Malachi, where in Malachi 1:6-14, the Lord responds to those who doubt His love as He questions Israel's love for God as they repeatedly presented "polluted offerings" to God. The commentary writes how, here in Malachi, the Israelites "would not offer second rate gifts to their governor. They naturally respected their governor, and if they respected God, they would not bring their leftovers to Him as offerings." The commentary recommends a book by Vance Havner, Lord of What's Left, and discourages us from offering only what is leftover in our lives to God - instead we must offer the best of everything we are and every we do to God. It writes: "[t]o profane God's name is to misuse His name, to desecrate His name. God's name represents His character; it represents God Himself, and desecrating God is a serious sin....Sub-standard sacrifices, second rate offerings, profane God's name. We give Him the best, the first, and we give Him obedience because He is God."
The commentary refers us to the following scriptures for us to better understand how we are to offer to God only our best - the Old Testament references below describe how "God says that He sent His people into exile to prevent them from further profaning His name." Paul, then, provides the example in Romans.
- Isaiah 42:24-25, 42:27-28
- Jeremiah 7:30-34, 27:15
- Ezekiel 43:8
- Romans 12:1
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My Prayer:
