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THE JOY OF WILLING SACRIFICE

Date: 
Wednesday, July 24, 2019
Bible Meditation: 
1 Chronicles 29: 1-25

“Then the people rejoiced, for they had offered WILLINGLY, because with a loyal heart they had offered WILLINGLY to the LORD; and King David also REJOICED GREATLY – 1 Chronicles 29:9

There is a unique dimension of Joy that is accessible only to those who dare – the JOY of WILLING SACRIFICE: “Then the people rejoiced, for they had offered WILLINGLY, because with a loyal heart they had offered WILLINGLY to the LORD; and King David also REJOICED GREATLY” (1Chronilces 29:9).

If our giving would be different from the way people give to secular fund raising campaigns, where the focus is merely on the amount given and the time it takes to reach the target, there are some spiritual lessons that are pertinent to our sacrificial sharing or giving to the Lord. What we see consistently from the witness of God’s Word is that the Lord is more concerned about why we give what we give, than about the amount we give. This is the very root of the subject of giving, and is the key to accessing a unique realm of Joy! Why should we give of our time, talents and treasures to the Lord at all? What are the right reasons for giving to God?

People have different motives for giving to God. Some people think that without their contributions and valuable help His work could stall. Others may regard their giving or service as a form of payment for their membership in church. To them what they give is like a membership fee, compulsory dues, or like buying a stake in an organisation! Then there are people who give to the Lord because they want to solicit blessings from Him in return; their whole scheme of giving is similar to a business transaction, where blessings such as peace, health and prosperity can be bought with money, or with service. Once upon a time in Church history, it was even taught that a person could buy God's forgiveness and salvation from Hell by paying large sums of money. Although indulgences are no longer being sold in our days, many people still believe that they can buy blessings or forgiveness with their gifts or their service.

All of these reasons for giving fall far short of the Biblical standard. Chronicles 29 reveals the secret to the Joy of Willing Sacrifice. King David desired to build a House for the Lord, but God had told him that this task would not be accomplished by him, but by his son, Solomon. So David did the next best thing he could do: He began to make all the preparations that were needed for the building of God’s Temple, so that Solomon would have everything he needed when he started to build. As king of a mighty nation, David could have commanded, coerced or cajoled the people, but he chose to encourage them to give their free-will offerings to build the Lord's House.

There are three descriptions of the kind of offering the people made to the temple. 

1. They gave “willingly.” They were not forced or compelled to give. It was their desire to do so. They gave because the Lord deserves the Very Best (vv.1-5)

2. They gave with a “whole heart” not grudgingly. There was no hesitation. All of their being, their heart, their soul, and their mind were invested. We give because it is our JOY and privilege to give to the Lord (vv.6-9).

3. They offered “freely.” We give because all that we have come from the Lord and rightly belongs to Him (vv.10-16).

The result of WILLING SACRIFICE was JOY. They discovered the secret to true joy in life. It's not found in pleasing self, but in giving yourself wholly and completely to please God. Grudging sacrifice only leads to misery: “You also say, ‘Oh, what a weariness!’ and you sneer at it,” says the LORD of hosts. “And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick; thus you bring an offering! Should I accept this from your hand?” says the LORD” (Mal.1:13). Willing sacrifice gives us true peace and joy in knowing that we have given what our Father truly approves. May this Joy be our portion!

Adetokunbo O. Ilesanmi (Meditations)

Prayer: 
Lord, nurture in me a heart and mind to give and serve; that I might know the JOY of WILLING SACRIFICE, in Jesus name.
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