Tuesday 24 July 2012

Offerings

Offerings


If you present a peace offering to the LORD from the herd or the flock, whether it is to fulfil a vow or is a voluntary offering, you must offer a perfect animal. It may have no defect of any kind.
You must not offer an animal that is blind, crippled, or injured, or that has a wart, a skin sore, or scabs. Such animals must never be offered on the altar as gifts to the LORD. 
If a bull or lamb has a leg that is too long or too short, it may be offered as a voluntary offering, but it may not be offered to fulfil a vow. If an animal has damaged testicles or is castrated, you may not offer it to the Lord.
You must never do this in your own land, and you must not accept such an animal from foreigners and then offer it as a sacrifice to your God. Such animals will not be accepted on your behalf, for they are mutilated or defective.
Lev 22:21-25 NLT

Here is what I get hermeneutically from this passage:
If you give your offerings to God from your time, energy, money, or anything else, then you must offer something perfect.
You must not offer your energy without your vision, or your time without your availability, or your money without your injured heart healed first. Why offer something you can't use? What would that cost you?
Like they say, offer what's right, not what's left.
So give God the best that you've got.

And some encouraging words from Paul the Apostle:
Give in proportion to what you have. Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don't have.
2 Cor 8:11-12 NLT


Photo credit: thalia1965.wordpress.com

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