עניין של הלב

In ancient Israel, there were several types of offerings that were offered in the temple, two of which being the burnt offering and the sin offering. Burnt offerings symbolized being wholly surrendered to God, whether of the individual or the entire congregation. Sin offerings represented the sins of a specific person or family and were given to symbolize redemption. Many did it out of a sense of tradition, and not an act of worship. Today, Christians don't participate in these because it is no longer required of them from God. But how often do we do the things that Christians are "supposed" to out of a sense of duty? How often do we go to church, raise our hands in worship, and go to the altar to offer our offerings of outward surrender because we think it is expected?

" ⁶ In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted,
   but you have given me an open ear.^[a]
Burnt offering and sin offering
   you have not required."

Psalm 40: 6

 The Lord does not delight in meaningless sacrifices from us any more than he did from Israel. Going through the outward motions of Christianity is not what he desires of us. Reread verse 6. He doesn't require for us to go to church, to raise our hands and close our eyes while the music plays, to slip money in the offering plate, to serve in the soup kitchen....Granted, he would love for us to do all of those things. But let's be honest with ourselves for a moment. When we really do those things, what is our purpose? Is it to look good for our friends, our parents, our spouses, the church family? Is it to try and work our way into the good graces of God?

⁷Then I said, "Behold, I have come;
   in the scroll of the book it is written of me:
⁸ I delight to do your will, O my God;
   your law is within my heart."

 Psalm 40: 7-8 (ESV)


Or does it stem from a desire to worship the Lord? This is a matter of the heart. God doesn't want our outward sacrifices. They are meaningless. The only sacrifice he desires from us is our heart. Jesus gave all on the cross. His very heart burst. We are to follow his example. So the real question is: do we give everything? He doesn't want our fake, lame sacrifices. He wants us to delight in coming to him with our struggles. He wants us to delight in coming to him and praising him for what he has done in our lives. He wants us to delight in giving our lives for his plan, his will. He wants us to delight in serving him.

Check out this snippet from verse 6: "but you have given me an open ear".  It is such a sweet promise, but it is also a prompt to action.

The Lord desires nothing more than for us to run to his throne, as a child would to his daddy, and whisper these things into his ear. Young children trust their parents for everything, they tell them everything. There is nothing sweeter than a child's relationship with their parents. That is what the Lord desires of us: a relationship. That is why he rescues us, that is why he wants to be our trust. Because there is no other way that we can have a relationship with him. And sans relationship, we are incapable of living a changed life.

Look at your own heart. What do you see there? Do you have a heart of true worship, of true surrender? Do you see Christ?

Lord, give me a heart of worship.

Waiting for a changed heart,
Alicia
Psalm 138:8