On His Terms
“Present to the LORD an offering made by fire, a burnt offering of two young bulls, one ram and seven male lambs a year old, all without defect. With each bull prepare a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil; with the ram, two-tenths; and with each of the seven lambs, one-tenth. Include one male goat as a sin offering to make atonement for you. Prepare these in addition to the regular morning burnt offering. In this way prepare the food for the offering made by fire every day for seven days as an aroma pleasing to the LORD; it is to be prepared in addition to the regular burnt offering and its drink offering.”
Numbers 28:19-24
Rather complicated! In other Scriptures, when God describes how to present offerings to him, it’s more convoluted. Divide up the meat just so. Lay it on the altar this way. Why does God go to such an extent to make worship as demanding as possible? From the beginning, from the time when he refused Cain’s grain offering yet accepted Abel’s meat offering (Gen. 4:4-5), God underscored that people must come to him on his terms.
People in Old Testament times needed to hear that—they were far too prone to fashion calves out of gold and make up their own rules for worshiping God. People in modern times need to hear it—we are prone to throw out all the rules, follow our instincts like idols, and experience God however we see fit.
No longer do we need to bring to God grain, drink, sin, or burnt offerings. We have Jesus: “He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood” (Heb. 9:12). But worship is no less demanding. So how do we come to God on his terms? How do we worship in the way he considers acceptable and pleasing? “His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth” (John 4:24). These are his terms. Look at the word must. We must worship God this way: with the proper heart attitude and with Christ, the Truth, as our focus.
I worship you in spirit and in truth, Lord. Please accept my offering!
God’s Power in Weakness
Looking back on 55 years in a wheelchair, Joni reflects on the Lord’s faithfulness amid her adversity. She shares how trusting God through hardship has given her strength to not only persevere but live with hope and joy!
