Tuesday – Pentateuch

Reading – Numbers 15-16

Highlight Verses:

“When you present these offerings, you must also give the Lord a grain offering of two quarts of choice flour mixed with one quart of olive oil. For each lamb offered as a burnt offering or a special sacrifice, you must also present one quart of wine as a liquid offering.”
‭‭Numbers‬ ‭15‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

When I first read this, I thought it was curious that the people needed to add to the basic sacrifice.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized the adding these other ingredients made a complete meal (if you don’t worry about the veggies).

This enabled the Levites to concentrate fully on their work without worrying about feeding themselves.

Beyond that, it made for a more complete act of obedience on the part of the worshipper bringing the sacrifice.

So why does this matter today?

While I certainly don’t recommend bringing animal sacrifices (though I know some pastors who would love a good barbecue), I believe the principle behind it still applies today.

Our initial “sacrifice” is believing. Putting our trust in Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins is what brings us into eternal life.

We do not need to add anything to that for salvation.

But when we put our complete trust in Him, we will want to bring our sacrifices of tithe and offerings, of righteous living, of service to the church and to others.

All these add together for a more complete and vibrant faith.

Again, I am not saying that it takes anything beyond grace to be saved.

But what a rich life awaits us when we surrender our hold on our lives to the One who makes all things complete.

Is there anything that you believe you should sacrifice to surrender your life to Jesus?
Do you have a different take on these verses? Please share.