God Doesnt Want Your Sacrifices... He Wants Your Obedience! Note: All verses in NIV unless otherwise indicated. 1 Samuel 15:22 But Samuel replied: Does the LORD delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the voice of the LORD? To obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. God provided the ultimate (1 Jn. 2:2), one time only (Heb. 10:10), all encompassing (Heb. 9:26), eternal (Heb. 10:14) Sacrifice for sins in His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ at Calvary. This Sacrifice cannot be duplicated (Heb. 10:12), and no other sacrifice will atone for sin, and in fact never could! John 14:6 Jesus answered, I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved. Blood is required to atone for sin, but the blood of animals was not enough. Hebrews 10:4 because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. It took the physical death of the One and Only Son of God, of God Himself, to pay the penalty (Rev. 5:9) for sin and provide us a way to be reconciled to the Father. Colossians 1:22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ’s physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— There is no other way but the One Way. But atonement for sin is not enough for forgiveness of sin. The gift of atonement is in place through Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, but there is more to this story. Let me explain how the process works. Man sinned and is desperately wicked and sinful by nature (Jer. 17:9, Rom. 5:14). He cannot save himself (Acts. 14:12) nor can he justify himself before the Father (Rom. 5:18). In the Old Testament God forgave sins based on the sacrifice of animals by a high priest in the Tabernacle or Temple (Heb. 13:11) and the repentance of those who sinned (Is. 59:20, Eze. 18:30). This was a foreshadowing of the better hope (Heb. 7:19), better promises (Heb. 8:6) and better covenant (Heb. 7:22) to come in Jesus Christ. When Jesus Christ was crucified He became High Priest and Sacrifice all in one, and He took that before the Father Who accepted it for all eternity (Heb. 10:12). The veil was ripped in two from top to bottom (Matt. 27;51), meaning God tore it, thereby providing a way into the Holy of Holies through Jesus Christ the High Priest and Sacrifice (Heb. 10:19). The Holy Spirit convicts men of their sin (John 16:8) and opens their blind eyes (Jn. 9:39, Is. 42:7, Rev. 3:18) to their condition before God (Rom. 3:23). If a person repents (Acts 3:19) and believes on the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 16:31. Rom. 10:9), the Holy Spirit indwells that person (Acts 2:38, Eph. 1:13, 1 Cor. 12:13). He is the Author and Finisher of the faith (Heb. 12:2) of believing Christians as they continue to obey the Lord (1 Jn. 2:3, 3:24) and add to their faith (Jude 1:20, 2 Pet. 1:5). Now, Im sure you have no problem with what I have said so far. If you do, you had better study all these verses and hundreds more like them carefully. But you may be shocked if I say that Gods process of salvation requires a response from us. He has provided the only Way (Jn. 14:6), He provides the conviction (John 16:8), He opens the eyes (Jn. 9:39, Is. 42:7, Rev. 3:18). But our part in the process is that WE MUST RESPOND! Our response is to Admit, Commit and Submit. We must repent and admit we are sinners (1 Jn. 1:8-9), and more importantly we must turn away from sin with the help of the Lord (2 Tim. 2:19). We must commit and believe (Acts 16:31, Rom. 10:9-10) that Jesus Christ is Lord and Savior, that He is the God-man (1 Jn. 4:2, 15) Who is the only One Who can save us. We must then obey by submitting (James 4:7, Heb. 12:9) to God and His revelation through the written Word (1 Jn. 4:6, Luke 11:28, 2 Thes. 2:15) and living obedience to Him (1 Jn. 2:3, 3:24, 5:3, 2 Jn. 1:6). night night & God bless you
Posted on: Sun, 26 Jan 2014 21:06:52 +0000
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