Samuel understood that sacrifices aren’t always sacrificial. He confronted Saul with the sin of going through the motions of sacrifice to avoid doing what God commanded. Saul was like the spoiled child who was ordered to leave the cookies in the jar. Instead, he cleaned out the jar but left one cookie behind, saying, “Well, I didn’t take them all!”
Continue reading WHAT’S THE MEANING OF SAMUEL’S PROVER, “OBEDIENCE IS BETTER THAN SACRIFICE”?
The idea of sacrifice is at the core of the Christian faith. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ is one of the central truths of the gospel. However, this important element of the Christians faith finds its origin and explanation in the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. It is true that Jesus’ sacrifice has made obsolete the Old Testament sacrificial system (Hebrews 10:1-18). However, the original readers of the letter to the Hebrews knew and understood the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. From that knowledge, they were able to more fully understand Jesus’ work on the cross.
Continue reading SACRIFICES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
1.O Lord my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me:
2 Lest he tear my soul like a lion, rending it in pieces, while there is none to deliver.
3 O Lord my God, If I have done this; if there be iniquity in my hands;
Continue reading SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY (PSALM 7:1-15)