FOLLOWING GOD COSTS US, BUT OUR SACRIFICES ARE REWARDED.
1 Chronicles 21:24:
NIV: “But King David replied to Araunah, “‘No, I insist on paying the full price. I will not take for the Lord what is yours, or sacrifice a burnt offering that costs me nothing.’”
I checked out 12 Stone Church this morning and while the sermon focused on David and how his comfort led to him counting the wrong things and hurting the people of Israel as a result, this verse stuck out to me today while reading the chapter.
It’s easy for us to sacrifice things that don’t cost us much, but harder for us to sacrifice things that cost us something or even everything. The dictionary defines sacrifice as “the act of giving up something that you want to keep especially in order to get or do something else or to help someone.”
David realized that the true way to worship wasn’t through “sacrificing” things that didn’t belong to him or things he didn’t want, but through giving up your whole self to God.
David realized that the true way to worship wasn’t through “sacrificing” things that didn’t belong to him or things he didn’t want, but through giving up your whole self to God.
I’m reminded of a quote from one of my favorite books, “And The Bride Wore White” by Dannah Gresh: “I only know one thing in this world that is free, and that is God’s loving forgiveness. But that short parable that Jesus told about the merchant and the pearl of great price says that to really pursue God, know God, and love God may require selling all that you have. God asks that we trade in all the fake pearls of our life to buy the real pearl. In Luke 14:33 He says, ‘any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.’”
Matthew 13:45-46:
MSG: “God’s kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for excellent pearls. Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything and buys it.”
NIV: “The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.”
Everything costs something, and some things cost everything.
Nowadays, I don’t think we “get” the value of pearls because we live in a culture that creates them synthetically. However, in the culture that Jesus lived in, it was a different story; back then, the only way to find a pearl was to dive into the ocean and find mollusks…like, truckloads of mollusks. In fact, it’s estimated that a guy had to crack open 15,000 of the babies to find just one pearl – and even then, it may not have been one of great value. So, how many mollusks would a person go through just to find that precious pearl of great value? It was so rare of a find that often a man had to sell everything he had – land, servants, home, livestock – just to have enough to buy one pearl of great price. …Are we willing to pursue Christ with such a passion and such sacrifices?
The costs of “fake pearls” can be great. For instance, giving your body away to someone might someday need to be paid for in the form of a pregnancy, or giving your heart away could end in heartache and a spiritual low. Sometimes, even seemingly “good” things can be fake pearls if they haven’t been cultured into the real thing.
…what are the fake pearls in your life? Lust? Outright sex? Running with the wrong crowd? Language? Materialism? Anger? Take a moment to stop and be upfront with God – tell him what you’re struggling with and ask him to help you surrender them to Him and sacrifice them as your burnt offering. But also trust Him to replace them with something far better as you stop making payments on a fake pearl and start making them on the pearl of great price.
So, here are 5 things that have been emphasized for me tonight:
Nowadays, I don’t think we “get” the value of pearls because we live in a culture that creates them synthetically. However, in the culture that Jesus lived in, it was a different story; back then, the only way to find a pearl was to dive into the ocean and find mollusks…like, truckloads of mollusks. In fact, it’s estimated that a guy had to crack open 15,000 of the babies to find just one pearl – and even then, it may not have been one of great value. So, how many mollusks would a person go through just to find that precious pearl of great value? It was so rare of a find that often a man had to sell everything he had – land, servants, home, livestock – just to have enough to buy one pearl of great price. …Are we willing to pursue Christ with such a passion and such sacrifices?
The costs of “fake pearls” can be great. For instance, giving your body away to someone might someday need to be paid for in the form of a pregnancy, or giving your heart away could end in heartache and a spiritual low. Sometimes, even seemingly “good” things can be fake pearls if they haven’t been cultured into the real thing.
…what are the fake pearls in your life? Lust? Outright sex? Running with the wrong crowd? Language? Materialism? Anger? Take a moment to stop and be upfront with God – tell him what you’re struggling with and ask him to help you surrender them to Him and sacrifice them as your burnt offering. But also trust Him to replace them with something far better as you stop making payments on a fake pearl and start making them on the pearl of great price.
So, here are 5 things that have been emphasized for me tonight:
- 1. There is a pearl of great price.
- 2. We have to seek it.
- 3. We are commanded to purchase it.
- 4. It costs us everything.
- 5. It is worth the price.
[He costs everything. He is worth the price and sacrifice. ]
[You cost everything. You’re worth the price and sacrifice.]
[You cost everything. You’re worth the price and sacrifice.]
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