God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:23 - 24
Noah obeyed God and he and his family ,and the other living creatures who went with him into the ark were the only survivors of the rains and flood which destroyed all living beings on earth. Genesis 8 :13 -19.
When Noah stepped out of the ark after the flood , he saw the devastation all around him. Destroyed by the flood were his homestead , his livestock and farmland , all his neighbours and friends and the life he had known for decades were all swept away by the great deluge.
The scene before Noah was that of a total wipe out by flood waters with no immediate remedy in sight for Noah and his household .
God saw Noah and his household surveying the devastation all around them .
Then God waited , expecting to see and hear reactions from them .
There were two options before Noah ; either he offered sacrifices of thanksgiving unto God for sparing his life and for sparing the lives of his family ; or Noah could have chosen the other option which was that Noah and his family could have raised up a huge lament to God ; bewailing the loss and destruction of their houses , lands ,fields , farms, livestock and other worldly possessions .Noah could have cried out like this :
" Oh my God ! All we see every where is muddy , smelly water !
God why did you allow millions of souls to perished here? !
Are you not supposed to be a merciful God ?!
Everything is gone ; our homes and land, our crops and livestock !
How can we farm and what shall we eat ?! God?! Can you see us now ?"
Sacrifice has been aptly described as" the giving up of the indispensable third leg of the stool".
The heart of men is linked to their worldly treasures which is everything which they hold dear.
Sacrifice is that offering which is as special and precious as it is costly to the giver .
The word "sacrifice", would readily ,come to mind as the giving of spiritual offerings of songs, dancing , of cash or goods to God and the giving of donations to needy human beings.
There are diverse forms of sacrifices in the forms of either spiritual offerings to God or giving something valuable as donations and gifts to help the disadvantaged.
God appreciates all sacrifices which are offerings from genuine hearts
Usually the poor and the needy would appreciate immediate reliefs and so they would prefer cash donations to cashless ones.
Gifts in cash and kind minister to immediate human needs quicker and more effectively than greeting and hugging the poor and the needy or preaching and singing to them.
Therefore cashless sacrifices are not accorded the same value and appreciation as those made in monetary forms .
Sacrifice is not only that offering or donation which is tangible and which is in form of offerings of cash and goods only .
Offering praise and prayers are worthy sacrifices acceptable to God so also are
offerings in the form of goods , money , time , efforts or talents to minister to God and fellow men.
There is a wrong perspective which views certain offerings as a waste of time and money because such offerings are viewed as "mammon-worship" or as "sowing to the wind".
Under this umbrella of perceived "wasted sacrifices" are the time, money or efforts given as donations to non-religious charitable organisations or spent on non-religious activities such as on personal needs , on business or office work , on family and friends , on leisure and hobbies , or on any other activities which are not related to spiritual purposes.
Some have even asserted that their religious organisation is better than all others and as such , they are the only people acceptable to God as the only qualified recipients and reliable supervisors of all offerings made by their members.
There are also different motives
for offering sacrifices to God and men .
In whatever amount or forms it is presented , a worthy sacrifice must come with the motive of being a genuine offering from the spirit and soul of the worshipper .
The widow's mites . Mark 12 : 41 - 44 .
Sacrifice becomes Worship when it is done in the spirit . John 4:23 - 24.
When we worship in the spirit and in truth we move from the natural realm into the spiritual realm of offering sacrifice unto God . Then we begin to see things they way God sees it and we begin to speak the word of God which is the creative word which created the dominion which God gave to Man in the beginning.
Genesis 1: 26-28.
Worshippers offer sacrifices as a wilful forfeiture , relinquishing or giving up of something of great value to them ; in acknowledgement of who God is and not only for what they are expecting to receive from God.
Offering gratitude and praise to God bestows upon the worshipper the uplifting aroma flowing from the fullness of God's presence .
Now , visualise this : When Noah went into the ark before the Flood , he went in with limited numbers of males and females of clean and unclean animals, birds and other living creatures , as he was instructed by God to select them . Genesis 8 :1-3.
When Noah emerged from the ark , instead of moaning about the loss and destruction around him, Noah led his household in offering sacrifice and he blessed the Lord his God.
Out of Noah's very limited stock of animals , he willingly offered several of them unto God as a burnt offering.
"And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar " . Genesis 8 : 20.
Noah's " third leg of the stool " was the offering of the animals which he selected from his limited number of animals and he offered these as a burnt sacrifice to God .
By his sacrifice , Noah gained dominion over the chaotic scene before him and Noah's sacrifice was a sweet-smelling offering unto God.
It pleased God when He saw that the first thing Noah and his household did was to make the choice of building an altar to offer a sweet -smelling sacrifice to Him, Genesis 8 :20- 21
When faced with seemingly insurmountable , prevailing challenges, go into "the Worship Mode".by honouring God with your sacrifice of worship .
Worship in the spirit attracts divine intervention which bestows triumph also known as DOMINION.r
When we are in the midst of chaotic situations , God does not expect us to recount to Him the obvious negative facts . God sees us and He knows about them all , already.
And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.
For they think that they will be heard for their many words.
“Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. Matthew 6:7,8 ( NKJV)
May you manifest DOMINION in every aspect of your life , continually . Amen.
Our confession always should be :
" I will bless and worship the Lord at all times .
His praise shall continually be in my heart and in my mouth !
My soul shall make my boast in the Lord and I declare that I have DOMINION over every situation by the power of the Word of God which works in me ".
When Noah stepped out of the ark after the flood , he saw the devastation all around him. Destroyed by the flood were his homestead , his livestock and farmland , all his neighbours and friends and the life he had known for decades were all swept away by the great deluge.
The scene before Noah was that of a total wipe out by flood waters with no immediate remedy in sight for Noah and his household .
God saw Noah and his household surveying the devastation all around them .
Then God waited , expecting to see and hear reactions from them .
There were two options before Noah ; either he offered sacrifices of thanksgiving unto God for sparing his life and for sparing the lives of his family ; or Noah could have chosen the other option which was that Noah and his family could have raised up a huge lament to God ; bewailing the loss and destruction of their houses , lands ,fields , farms, livestock and other worldly possessions .Noah could have cried out like this :
" Oh my God ! All we see every where is muddy , smelly water !
God why did you allow millions of souls to perished here? !
Are you not supposed to be a merciful God ?!
Everything is gone ; our homes and land, our crops and livestock !
How can we farm and what shall we eat ?! God?! Can you see us now ?"
Sacrifice has been aptly described as" the giving up of the indispensable third leg of the stool".
The heart of men is linked to their worldly treasures which is everything which they hold dear.
Sacrifice is that offering which is as special and precious as it is costly to the giver .
The word "sacrifice", would readily ,come to mind as the giving of spiritual offerings of songs, dancing , of cash or goods to God and the giving of donations to needy human beings.
There are diverse forms of sacrifices in the forms of either spiritual offerings to God or giving something valuable as donations and gifts to help the disadvantaged.
God appreciates all sacrifices which are offerings from genuine hearts
Usually the poor and the needy would appreciate immediate reliefs and so they would prefer cash donations to cashless ones.
Gifts in cash and kind minister to immediate human needs quicker and more effectively than greeting and hugging the poor and the needy or preaching and singing to them.
Therefore cashless sacrifices are not accorded the same value and appreciation as those made in monetary forms .
Sacrifice is not only that offering or donation which is tangible and which is in form of offerings of cash and goods only .
Offering praise and prayers are worthy sacrifices acceptable to God so also are
offerings in the form of goods , money , time , efforts or talents to minister to God and fellow men.
There is a wrong perspective which views certain offerings as a waste of time and money because such offerings are viewed as "mammon-worship" or as "sowing to the wind".
Under this umbrella of perceived "wasted sacrifices" are the time, money or efforts given as donations to non-religious charitable organisations or spent on non-religious activities such as on personal needs , on business or office work , on family and friends , on leisure and hobbies , or on any other activities which are not related to spiritual purposes.
Some have even asserted that their religious organisation is better than all others and as such , they are the only people acceptable to God as the only qualified recipients and reliable supervisors of all offerings made by their members.
" By him
therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that
is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.
But to do good and to communicate forget not : for with such sacrifices God is well pleased ".
Hebrews 13 :15 -16 . But to do good and to communicate forget not : for with such sacrifices God is well pleased ".
Acceptable sacrifice to God could be in the form of donating money , time , efforts and talents to God and also to all mankind.
For some people , their worthy sacrifice could be committing their lives unto God as an offering
A worthy offering unto God is the offering of a life-style of obedience to God through crucifying the flesh and abstaining from all vices , from all pleasures and comforts or it could be laying down one's pride , prestige or self esteem to serve God and man.
It is a worthy offering unto God when one spends time and effort in waiting on the Lord in prayers and in searching for more understanding and knowledge of God through learning and studying the Scriptures ; in order to be able to minister the Word of God , effectually. 11Timothy 2: 15.
Sacrifice could also be in the form of giving up all forms of distractions , worries and fears as a sacrifice of faith unto God.
Also, sacrificial offerings could be in the form of giving one's time to attend Church fellowships or to attend other Charity functions as forms of worshipping God .
Acceptable sacrifices unto God is not offering our time , only to attend church ; but offering our talents and efforts to function as nonsalaried Church volunteers and doing all types of volunteer Charity work .Acts 6: 1-7
For some people their most precious offering is giving up their time and talents to serve God.
They would state that the monetary value of their time, talents and efforts is far higher than if they gave cash in lieu of these .
Therefore such people see it as a valuable sacrifice to forfeit their efforts, talents and time which they would have spent with their families and friends, spent on watching TV, on the Internet , on enjoying their hobbies and the time they would have invested on building their businesses or careers or the time spent working extra hours to earn extra money as over-time bonuses . These forfeitures are their own worthy sacrifices indeed.
Just as there as there are different dimensions of sacrifices, there are great rewards for every
kind of sacrifice .
For some people , their worthy sacrifice could be committing their lives unto God as an offering
A worthy offering unto God is the offering of a life-style of obedience to God through crucifying the flesh and abstaining from all vices , from all pleasures and comforts or it could be laying down one's pride , prestige or self esteem to serve God and man.
It is a worthy offering unto God when one spends time and effort in waiting on the Lord in prayers and in searching for more understanding and knowledge of God through learning and studying the Scriptures ; in order to be able to minister the Word of God , effectually. 11Timothy 2: 15.
Sacrifice could also be in the form of giving up all forms of distractions , worries and fears as a sacrifice of faith unto God.
Also, sacrificial offerings could be in the form of giving one's time to attend Church fellowships or to attend other Charity functions as forms of worshipping God .
Acceptable sacrifices unto God is not offering our time , only to attend church ; but offering our talents and efforts to function as nonsalaried Church volunteers and doing all types of volunteer Charity work .Acts 6: 1-7
For some people their most precious offering is giving up their time and talents to serve God.
They would state that the monetary value of their time, talents and efforts is far higher than if they gave cash in lieu of these .
Therefore such people see it as a valuable sacrifice to forfeit their efforts, talents and time which they would have spent with their families and friends, spent on watching TV, on the Internet , on enjoying their hobbies and the time they would have invested on building their businesses or careers or the time spent working extra hours to earn extra money as over-time bonuses . These forfeitures are their own worthy sacrifices indeed.
Just as there as there are different dimensions of sacrifices, there are great rewards for every
kind of sacrifice .
"Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me,
I was in prison and you came to me.’
Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me." Matthew 25:34- 40. ( ESV)
In whatever amount or forms it is presented , a worthy sacrifice must come with the motive of being a genuine offering from the spirit and soul of the worshipper .
The widow's mites . Mark 12 : 41 - 44 .
Sacrifice becomes Worship when it is done in the spirit . John 4:23 - 24.
When we worship in the spirit and in truth we move from the natural realm into the spiritual realm of offering sacrifice unto God . Then we begin to see things they way God sees it and we begin to speak the word of God which is the creative word which created the dominion which God gave to Man in the beginning.
Genesis 1: 26-28.
Worshippers offer sacrifices as a wilful forfeiture , relinquishing or giving up of something of great value to them ; in acknowledgement of who God is and not only for what they are expecting to receive from God.
Therefore Worship cannot flow from the carnal heart which is devoid of love and appreciation toward God.
Now , visualise this : When Noah went into the ark before the Flood , he went in with limited numbers of males and females of clean and unclean animals, birds and other living creatures , as he was instructed by God to select them . Genesis 8 :1-3.
When Noah emerged from the ark , instead of moaning about the loss and destruction around him, Noah led his household in offering sacrifice and he blessed the Lord his God.
Out of Noah's very limited stock of animals , he willingly offered several of them unto God as a burnt offering.
"And Noah builded an altar unto the Lord; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar " . Genesis 8 : 20.
Noah's " third leg of the stool " was the offering of the animals which he selected from his limited number of animals and he offered these as a burnt sacrifice to God .
By his sacrifice , Noah gained dominion over the chaotic scene before him and Noah's sacrifice was a sweet-smelling offering unto God.
It pleased God when He saw that the first thing Noah and his household did was to make the choice of building an altar to offer a sweet -smelling sacrifice to Him, Genesis 8 :20- 21
When faced with seemingly insurmountable , prevailing challenges, go into "the Worship Mode".by honouring God with your sacrifice of worship .
Worship in the spirit attracts divine intervention which bestows triumph also known as DOMINION.r
When we are in the midst of chaotic situations , God does not expect us to recount to Him the obvious negative facts . God sees us and He knows about them all , already.
And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.
For they think that they will be heard for their many words.
“Therefore do not be like them. For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him. Matthew 6:7,8 ( NKJV)
Worship is the sweet-smelling sacrifice unto God which births Dominion and retains Dominion.
When the grateful heart offers praise , worship and thanksgiving to God , it attracts God's pleasure and His intervention resulting in more power for more Dominion.
Dominion births more divine intervention which leads to even more praise and thanksgiving..
Retain your dominion by blessing the Lord and acknowledging His goodness and His grace in every situation. When the grateful heart offers praise , worship and thanksgiving to God , it attracts God's pleasure and His intervention resulting in more power for more Dominion.
Dominion births more divine intervention which leads to even more praise and thanksgiving..
May you manifest DOMINION in every aspect of your life , continually . Amen.
Our confession always should be :
" I will bless and worship the Lord at all times .
His praise shall continually be in my heart and in my mouth !
My soul shall make my boast in the Lord and I declare that I have DOMINION over every situation by the power of the Word of God which works in me ".
No comments:
Post a Comment