Sacrificial giving
Genesis 23:16, “Abraham listened to Ephron ; and Abraham weighed out for Ephron the silver which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, commercial standard.”
At the death of Abraham’s wife Sarah he had to make a choice. Should he accept the offer of Ephron before him and bury Sarah, his beloved wife, in a grave that cost him nothing; or should he refuse the offer and demand to pay the full market value for the land. I know what my “human flesh and mind” would say. “Free is better!” But, Abraham knew that by paying the price he would prove his love, and show the worth of Sarah.
Abraham was teaching us an important lesson that run’s throughout the Bible. If we love something, or someone, then we will “Go the extra mile” to bring them honor. Abraham refused, graciously, to bury his wife in a tomb that was given to him because he loved and respected her.
I’m sure the people that were around Abraham thought he was insane for doing this. I mean who turns down a “freebie”, but I’m sure they also realized that he was compelled to do this because of the great love that he had for Sarah.
We see another example of this in 2 Samuel 24 when King David is offered a free gift to sacrifice to the Lord. 2 Samuel 24: 24 says, “However, the king(David) said to Araunah, “No, but I will surely buy it from you for a price, for I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God which cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.”
Our love for God ALWAYS costs us something. If we ever offer a sacrifice to God without losing something we cherish then it is not a sacrifice, but because of our love we cannot consider our lose a sacrifice. Dr. Robert Livingstone said, “Sacrifice, away with the word in such a thought. One can hardly consider a sacrifice that which is repaying a small portion of a debt that we never can repay.” God, our loving, Heavenly Father has given us His Son so that we can spend eternity with Him, so nothing that we can ever do to repay Him a small portion can ever be considered a sacrifice.
The sacrifice was made by God, and now we are simply on this earth to show others and Him that our love is everlasting. As you go throughout your day I ask you to think, “Are my actions demonstrating my love for God, and do they show how much I love Him?”
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Father, I thank You for making the ultimate sacrifice for me, and I ask that You would remind me that nothing that I can offer You can be considered a sacrifice. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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Yes, You Can Ministry 