Seventh In Ramah

This blog post was a personal study I was lead to by God after questions about true worship. It was convicting to my own life, and I wanted to share. 

There are several different types of OT offerings for different needs and abilities. Understanding the heart of them is a help to form our relationship and worship with God. The person sacrificing is called the “worshiper” because the sacrifice and offering was worship.

Jesus came to be the sacrifice. He came so we didn’t need the blood of an animal and we could go on our own behalf. The heart of the sacrifices were clearly extremely important to God and I believe still are. Every single detail from the construction and appearance of the temple, layout of the holy place, priestly garments, and sacrifice were specifically laid out by God because He cared about them greatly. 

One of the offerings was an Incense Offering. There was a specific blend of spices used to make this incense. The priest would take hot coals and place them on the incense altar. He would then put the incense on top. It would fill the holy place with a pleasing aroma to God and also create a protective smoke around the mercy seat. The hot coals are representative of God’s judgement. This is guidance and also conviction. We can put obedience here. Revelations says that our worship and prayers are incense and creates a pleasing aroma to God. Our obedience to God’s judgement with our worship + prayer now creates the “protective smoke”. 

Worship. My question was.. what is it fully? There is more to it than lifting our hands on Sundays (beautiful expression) since we’re to live a life of worship. What is counted as worship? Short answer- Sacrifice and offering. Every sacrifice ended with a pleasing aroma to God (which is worship). The heart of these sacrifices outline it beautifully. The Burnt Offering signified full devotion to God and atonement for our sins. The Grain Offering signified dedication and praise. The Peace Offering was gratitude for the peace God had given (blessings) and fulfilling a vow. Those were voluntary acts of worship. The Sin Offering was a mandatory sacrifice for unintended sins and transgressions against God’s law (repentance). The Trespass Offering was a mandatory offering when a specific sin had been committed or an offense against what was God’s or withholding what was God’s. The sacrifice needed to be unblemished (enter Jesus). Looking at the heart of this, God wanted the best of the flock, grain, offering, whatever it may be. In the Peace Offering, God receive the choice cut of meat. That showed commitment, reverence, and reliance. Give God the best, He’ll take care of the rest. 

We were created to be worshipers. It’s very serious to God. Worship is sacrifice and offering. It’s devotion, commitment, gratitude, asking forgiveness, being good to our word, relying on God. Repentance, change for the better. It’s giving our best. It’s dedication to God and his house. It’s obedience to His judgements and convictions. It’s giving Him the first parts and the best parts of us. Instead of planning out our week, it’s walking into prayer with a blank piece of paper and asking God to fill it. It’s putting things of God on the list first, and then planning everything else. 

We are to be people of God. Not people of social obligations, people of extracurricular activities, people of career goals. Not people of fear, people of doubt, people of anger. People of God. Anything that takes His place in that phrase is an idol. In Malachi, the Israelites were offering with lame and sick animals. They planned their own lives with their best and then gave God the rest out of obligation. In return, they went spiritually stagnant and God called them the Land of Wickedness. They became dependent on the Persian Empire and the life they could create all by themselves without God’s blessings. It’s fine to have a social life and be involved in extracurricular activities.. fellowship is of God! It’s fine to want good things in your career.. God wants the best for you. It’s fine to have emotions as long as they’re as God intended and submissive to Him. The difference is bringing everything to God first and letting Him lead in them. Not relying on our own strength or letting emotions lead while letting Him follow along hoping He’ll throw out a blessing or two. We have to make sure we don’t pass by God and put our things first. When His people worshipped as they were called, He made them NATIONS. When they didn’t, He called them wicked. 

Because of Jesus, we have been given the freedom to worship God anywhere, any time and can have a more abundant relationship with Him than ever seen before. We have been given the grace to have our sins erased through repentance no matter where we are. We can give offerings of ourselves anywhere and have God everywhere. We can have a life of worship.