Sacrifice

sacrifice (v.) : To forfeit (one thing) for another thing considered to be of greater value.


    Christ sacrificed Himself in obedience to His Father. He took on the wrath and judgement of God on the cross. The word sacrifice comes from the word sacer (meaning sacred or holy) and facere( to make or do). Directly translated, the definition is "to make holy". We deserved death and the wrath of God. Yet, by Jesus' blood, we are made holy.. He saved our lives. And all He asks in return in our love. 


    He wants to spend time with us; He wants us to get to know Him-- to truly love Him. Yet, we don't want to sacrifice our time. As if we deserve anything. The definition of sacrifice is to forfeit something for another considered to be of greater value. How much value is Christ to us? 


   The great prophets in the new and old testament gave up everything. Elisha had to leave his parent's house to follow Elijah-- another man of God. Moses left all he knew to follow God's will.  Some of the apostles gave up their dignity for the sake of Christ. But :


"The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name." Acts 5:41


I love this verse because of the reaction of the apostles. They were rejoicing! 
   They are many Christians in other countries being martyred for the sake of Christ. Many who live in other countries are being persecuted for their faith in the Lord and their denial of all other gods. Sorry to say, but we have it easy. We think persecution is being made fun of? That's barely it. Try being disowned by your parents? Try being kicked out of your home? Try having your home vandalized. And through all that, try and love your enemy. Try to rejoice and thank the Lord. I guarantee, it's very, very difficult.


   And to end this post, I pray to the Lord that He would bless us with such tests. I pray that He'll show us what real sacrifice is, and what it really means to be a Christian and to live for the Name. 


   Have a blessed Ressurection Sunday! We remember the day that Jesus Christ conquered sin and death and freed us so we may have everlasting life!




   "Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I entrust my life." -- Psalm 143: 8


"Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." --Matt. 10:37


"The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again." -- John 10: 17


“If you love me, keep my commands." -- John 14:15


"Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.” -- John 14: 21


" As Jesus started on his way, a man ran up to him and fell on his knees before him. “Good teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

    “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good—except God alone.¹⁹ You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, you shall not defraud, honor your father and mother.”

 ²⁰ “Teacher,” he declared, “all these I have kept since I was a boy.”

 ²¹ Jesus looked at him and loved him. “One thing you lack,” he said. “Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

 ²² At this the man’s face fell. He went away sad, because he had great wealth.

 ²³ Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God!”

 ²⁴ The disciples were amazed at his words. But Jesus said again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! ²⁵ It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.”

 ²⁶ The disciples were even more amazed, and said to each other, “Who then can be saved?”

 ²⁷ Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.”

 ²⁸ Then Peter spoke up, “We have left everything to follow you!”

   ²⁹ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus replied, “no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel ³⁰ will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. ³¹ But many who are first will be last, and the last first.” -- Mark 10: 17- 31

The Secret Place

Hello All,
    I'm sorry! I have not posted in a very long time due to sinus infections and tests and exams. Mea Culpa. ( That's Latin...if you don't know what it means...look it up:D )
      I always joke around with my dad that I can recognize him by his cough. It's funny but it's so true. When you know some one well enough, you know their voice. You can recognize them immediately! Many say that my mom and I sound the same on the phone. However, our close family can distinct which one of us it is. Why? Because they know our voice.
   So, where am I getting at? It should be the same with the Holy Spirit. How do we expect to listen to Him, when we don't know His voice? When Jesus tries to speak to us, how do we tune our spiritual ears to Him? By spending time with Him. It's as simple as that. To be still and seek out His voice. Talk with Him. Alone. With no distractions. As His children, we should know the voice of our Father. We need to  spend time with Him.
    So, find your secret place with Him. And spend time seeking and praying. And just like with those you're close to, when, for some reason, you cannot speak in the secret place for a day or two, you miss it. We long to hear the voice of the Bridegroom.

 "The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep.The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.  When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice.  But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice."
--John 10: 2-5


    How do we know if we are following God or not if we do not recognize His voice. Don't children know the voice of their Father? Doesn't a bride know the voice of Her Beloved? It is a very crucial time to listen to the voice of the Father. To listen to His direction. It is so very important to be in the secret place with Him. To know His voice, and to learn His plan in our lives. 
    
"But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you." -- Matt. 6:6


"One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple." -- Psalm27: 4