“For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You do not take pleasure in burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, God, You will not despise.” (Psalm 51:16-17 New American Standard Bible)
As our Wednesday night Victory Class was studying, looking at the verses above from David penitential Psalm, I posed the question about making sacrifices to God, whether they would be sufficient to please God after we have sinned, realizing that all our sins, whatever you call them, are against God first and foremost. Yes, you can call them wrongdoings, trespasses, iniquities, or even think in a way that you discount sin as just a little mess-up hardly noticeable, but whatever you label it, it is still sin, first and foremost against God.
Are sacrifices enough to get right with God? No! Is an increase in service enough? No! Is sincere partial obedience enough? No! Listen carefully, my friend! If we do not (1) acknowledge our sin, (2) if we do not admit with integrity our sin to ourselves; agree in all honesty that our sin has caused a broken spirit within us, and (3) if we don’t sincerely repent from our sin, and seek God’s forgiveness and His cleansing, then our sacrifices will not please or delight the Lord. On top of that, we will not have a brand-new start, more determined than ever to get it right!
Our Director of the Ushers and Tech Team, pointed out that sacrificing our time, talent, and treasures is not only “not enough,” but she summed it up with just one word, “Useless!” The whole class said, “You just inspired a meditation.” Yes, God used her for that purpose. As a matter of fact, I should have inserted a heading above this meditation, similar to the headings that we find above many Psalms in our bibles, something like, “To the Director of The Ushers.” (Smile!)
Look at number (2) above and do just the opposite of what is useless! Acknowledge your sin, admit with integrity that our spirit is broken, sincerely repent/confess your sins, seek the Lord’s forgiveness, the cleansing that will come, you will get a new start, and God will be delighted with you once again!
Now, knowing that all sin and fall short of the glory of God, when you pray, don’t rush through expressed words that communicate that you are seeking forgiveness! Don’t just repeat an expression from the Lord’s prayer with no meaning behind your words! Confess your sins of commission and omission. Then don’t stop there! Respond in fulfilling your purpose for being here! May I remind you, “We were not saved to sit.” Let me add, “We were not taught by our experiences, not to use what we learned to teach others.”
Friend, think about all you have read this morning. Get right with God! Put a smile on His face, one that will reflect His delight! Have a great Tuesday! Be blessed!
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:9 NASB)
Committed to the climb,
Mark L. King