To Obey is Better Than Sacrifice

Greetings everyone and welcome to another SALT challenge! We're thrilled when you have an opportunity to play along with our challenges so if you're feeling inspired to create something based on today's topic, please drop us a comment with a link back to your blog or online gallery; we'd love to come visit!

This week I’d (Kim) like to focus on a verse from the Old Testament; 1 Samuel 15:22. I’m specifically thinking on the portion, "to obey is better than sacrifice." This statement was Samuel's response to Saul when he realized the Saul had failed to utterly destroy a certain city, saving “all that was good” for himself. Saul first tried to blame the people and then claimed the reason was that he saved the "best animals to sacrifice to the Lord." Of course God knew Saul's heart...the result of Saul's actions? He would no longer be king.

Since we can't identify with the Old Testament rituals of animal sacrifice, how can we apply this verse to our modern lives and experiences? We can think of those we know that are very giving, maybe even putting professing Christians to shame. They feed the poor, give a lot of money to charities, sacrifice their time to certain causes, etc. However, these same folks will never bow the knee to Christ. In Matthew 7:22 Jesus tells His followers, “many will say in that day “Lord, Lord did we not prophesy in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name? And then I will declare to them, I never knew you…”

That said, I agree that works are important, God calls us to good works (James 2:14) but to offer works without faith in Christ is empty. I spent many years proudly boasting of the many things I didn't do. I had a neat little list; I didn’t drink, didn’t smoke, didn’t listen to “worldly” music. The problem? I don't believe that I was trusting in Christ; I was merely worshipping myself and my list of man made rules. Had God not truly changed my heart, I would have been one of the ones He confessed to not know.

My study Bible has this to say on faith and works, "...(there are those) that know the gospel and even agree with it, but fall short of trust in God. Failure to grow, develop, and bear the fruits of righteousness shows that the free gift of Christ has never been received. The answer for those with such a faith is not to save themselves by establishing a righteousness of their own, as if they could create faith by their own efforts, but to call on the name of the Lord (Rom. 10:13)."

All that we do is acceptable to God only because of the mercy of Christ (Rom. 7:13-20). Christ changes our hearts so that we express love for God by doing what pleases Him and He in His kindness promises to reward us for what we do (Phil. 3:12-14, 2 Tim. 4:7, 8).

May God enable us to cling to Christ and His righteousness as we seek to serve those around us.

Kim


Hazel

Julie

Lythan

'Here I Am'

It’s nice to be back briefly for a guest appearance. Glad to see that things are looking as lovely as ever on SALT. Here are a few thoughts for the week…

1 Samuel 3:8-10
And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. So he arose and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you did call me.” Then Eli perceived that the LORD had called the boy. Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and it shall be, if He calls you, that you must say, ‘Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. Now the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel answered, “Speak, for Your servant hears.”

Genesis 22:1, 9-12
Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied.
When they reached the place God had told him about, Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it. He bound his son Isaac and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, "Abraham! Abraham!" "Here I am," he replied. "Do not lay a hand on the boy," he said. "Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son."


These passages have been brought to my attention recently, but on different occasions. Both the responses we find in the passage have the same words ‘Here I Am’. It made me think about the willingness to hear and answer God when they heard His voice. If God were to call us to a certain place or to a certain work would our answer be ‘Here I am’? And are we ready to listen to what God has to say to us through the scriptures? And are we willing to act upon his will for our lives whatever the challenges may bring?

Mother

Hello it's my turn today (Julie) to post the challenge. A friend from church and I will be starting a program in the Fall for the little girls (kindergarten & up) at our church. We have several elementary school age girls in our church, and a couple who live in single-parent homes with their dads. It's our desire to spend time teaching them from Prov 31, different aspects of being godly girls and women someday. In preparation for this, I have begun reading books and search for resources for not only the group, but for the mothers of these girls.

I was reading an excellent book this week the author talks about motherly love and one of the best examples of it in Bible, Hannah. We all know the story well I'm sure. As a mother I cannot imagine giving up my son, my firstborn son, to live far away from me the care of priests at the temple. But the author pointed out that the very next verse after Hannah takes Samuel to the temple and gives him over to Eli is I Samuel 2:1: "And Hannah prayed and said, 'My heart rejoices in the Lord.'" After doing what was probably the most difficult thing she could have, she praised God! Hannah knew, as we should, that our children belong first to God - He loves them more than even we do and He has given them to us for a short time to raise for His glory!

I thought of the verses in Deuteronomy 6:6-7: And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. As the mother of 5 small children, my greatest desire isn't that they be "happy", as you hear so often, but that my children love the Lord with all their hearts and live to serve Him always!

Enjoy all the beautiful creations from the team today and if you get chance, we'd love to have you create along with us! Be sure to leave a link.

Julie

Tanis

Hazel

Kim

Lythan

Pauline

Stacy

The Empowering Spirit

"Everyone around was in awe - all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met."

Acts 2:42-45 The Message

The story of the coming of the Spirit at Pentecost, which we read in Acts 2, dramatically shows a new order begun by Jesus. The sense of unity is incredible, with the people working together in harmony. People speaking different languages could understand news of God's work, and God is seen to be uniting people for a common purpose. The same Spirit of Pentecost remains with us today, uniting us as Christians and empowering us to work together. Do we keep our eyes open for signs of the Spirit today?

"The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I'm leaving you well and whole. That's my parting gift to you. Peace."

John 14: 23-27 The Message

The Spirit can empower us in positive directions, not limiting us or holding us back. In church on Sunday we sang a song to the music of a Tanzanian melody, Njoo Kwetu Roho Mwema. Some of the words are:

Gracious Spirit, hear our pleading;

fashion us all anew.

It's your leading we are needing;

help us to follow you.

Come, come, come, Holy Spirit, come.

Come, come, come, Holy Spirit come.

Guide our thinking and our speaking

done in your holy name.

Motivate us in our seeking,

freeing us from guilt and shame.

My prayer is that we can all be united through the Holy Spirit and be empowered to do God's will in our own lives.