Devotional: Sacrifice
“For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”
- Hosea 6:6
When I was a teacher, sometimes I would receive work that I knew the student did not produce. It was clearly done by an AI website. It would meet all the requirements and technically be correct.
On the other hand, I would sometimes receive work from a student who put in their best effort, but they misunderstood the requirements, and the work was technically wrong according to the rubric.
In situations like this, the student who used the AI website received a failing grade, but the student who actually tried received a second chance at my discretion and most often, a passing grade on their assignment.
The first type of student just wanted to “get the work done.” They didn’t care about the process and didn’t realize that it was obvious to me that they cheated. If I confronted them about it, sometimes they wouldn’t own up to it and continue the lie. The second type of student was willing to learn and work hard, even if they messed up. As a result, this type of student received more grace.
In a similar way, God doesn’t want us to “cheat the system.” He wants us to have a living relationship with Him that exhibits our trust in Him. We see one of the first examples with Cain and Abel. God rejected Cain’s offering but accepted Abel’s likely because of their heart posture and willingness to obey what God required of them.
In 1 Samuel 15, Saul disobeys God’s instruction to “utterly destroy the sinners, the Amalekites, and fight against them until they are consumed.” When confronted by Samuel, Saul responds exactly how some of my students did– by trying to justify his actions. He technically obeyed God’s instructions, but he didn’t kill their king and spared their livestock which were offered up as animal sacrifices to God. Samuel’s rebuke was this: “Has the Lord as great a delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…”
Those are just two examples from the Bible, but as we know, the Bible is filled with stories and exhortations about God’s desire for obedience. He desires our hearts and full trust, rather than our lip service or doing things our way instead of His.
God doesn’t want His children going through the motions of sacrifice for the sake of sacrifice, but how many Christians are operating that way? What is the modern equivalent of what we just read in Scripture?
I immediately think of Catholicism and their rituals of praying the rosary, going to confession, attending mass, partaking in the Eucharist, etc. Many Catholics do these things because they think that doing these actions are what God wants from them. Many don’t realize, however, that God doesn’t want their rote actions; He wants their hearts.
I also began to think of compromises that Christians make, bending God’s instructions so that they don’t “technically” disobey. One example that has infiltrated churches is the acceptance of homosexual lifestyles. Many churches have bought into the lie that same-sex attraction is a part of who a person is. They might not agree with same-sex marriage, but they’ll make allowance for same-sex couples who build their lives together, yet claim they are celibate.
Why is it so ingrained in human nature to rebel and twist what God has asked of us? I realized that the fundamental issue is our perspective of God’s character. When our perspective of God is that He doesn’t know best, that He isn’t all-loving, that He doesn’t have the best in mind for us, or that He’s a punisher, then we fall into the trap of disobedience or legalism.
Rather, when we have the proper perspective that He is all-loving, all-knowing, all-good, merciful, gracious, and trust-worthy, then we are more inclined to obey His direction instead of going our own way.
It all stems from knowing who God rightfully is.
Take a moment: Where is your heart?
Does your relationship with God operate according to your terms and your way, or according to what God desires?
Consider these following Scriptures:
Micah 6:8 – “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
Proverbs 21:3 – “To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.”
Hebrews 13:16 – “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.”
Psalm 51:17 – “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”
Proverbs 3:5-6 – “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
Pursuing obedience according to what God wants because He is good, and having the proper heart posture toward Him is what it means to live by faith.
-Alina