Friends, happy Wonderful Wednesday!!! I found the following articles very interesting and as usual I wanted to share them with my brethren. They all talk about “Empty-Handed Before God”…I am a firm believer that one should add giving to one’s budget spreadsheet because if you fail to plan, you indirectly plan to fail! I truly believe that a sower plans to sow… One should not be caught at unawares and have nothing to give because one should’ve set aside something to give everytime one gets paid. The amounts one sets aside of course will be “according to how God has blessed us” At least, that is my understanding….However, the following articles were a blessing to me and I hope they will be as blessing to you as well. Have a Wonderful Wednesday! Margaret Morenike Doherty-Aka EMPTY-HANDED BEFORE GOD No one is to appear before me (God) empty-handed (Exodus 23:15, Ex. 34:20) No man should appear before the LORD empty-handed: Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the LORD your God has blessed you (Deut. 16:16-17) These verses provoked a lot of thought for me, since I have been guilty of coming before God without offering something up to Him. Of course, due to the New Covenant these verses no longer mean we should bring an object as a gift. So what, then? King David speaks on the matter: You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise (Psalm 51:16-17) According to this passage, one offering we can bring is a broken spirit. I find it notable that he states God will not despise a broken and contrite heart. There are offerings God does not accept (example: Cains offering in Genesis 4) but we know that this offering to God will always be welcome. Thats a big deal, because it is clear how we can please God. The question is are we really doing it? Paul also sheds light on the subject: Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of Gods mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship ( Rom. 12:1) This verse states that another gift we have to offer God are our bodies. Though that may sound strange, it holds a special meaning in my life. When I was 11-13, I was at a place in my spiritual walk were I just kept praying, I want to honor you with my life and with my body. Please take this offering, and do whatever will bring you the most glory. Since 13 my body has begun to fail me, and is currently wracked with severe illnesses. But by the grace of God I have been held to my sacrifice, and He has brought Himself much glory through it. Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that confess his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased (Hebrews 13:15-16) Praising God is yet another gift that we can bring, as well as doing good and sharing with others. Have you ever thought of those things as sacrifices made to God? I worship the Lord and dedicate each day to bringing Him glory, but I have never before realized the need to ensure that I do not stand empty-handed before Him. Could this possibly be why so many people find their prayer lives unfulfilling? Could it be that we are simply appearing before the Lord empty-handed? What have been some of your motives, reasons, or excuses for not giving these offerings to the Lord? Does anyone have other thoughts or verses on this matter? EMPTY HANDS Posted by Joel Taylor on March 27, 2012 In that wonderful hymn, Rock of Ages, we joyfully sing: Nothing in my hand I bring, Simply to the cross I cling. When it comes to salvation, ‘tis true, we bring nothing to the table of redemption, and yes, salvation is wholly of the Lord, an act of undeserved mercy and grace towards sinners. Our hands are empty. Regretfully, there are many who continue to think they must remain empty-handed in worship, whether it be private prayer at home or corporate worship on the Sabbath. In Exodus 34:20, there appears the statement from the Lord: None shall appear before me empty-handed. We find the same statement in Deuteronomy 16:16, which reads: Three times in a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, at the Feast of Unleavened Bread and at the Feast of Weeks and at the Feast of Booths, and they shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed. To understand what this phrase means, we must look at the next verse, v. 17: Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD your God which He has given you. Clearly, no man was to appear before the Lord ‘empty handed’ but was instructed to appear before Him with something for the Lord; that is, each man was to be ready, prepared and eager to give and to do for the Lord according to howsoever the Lord had blessed him. Immediately what comes to mind is the poor widow whom, you might say had been blessed with poverty (Mark 12:41-44), yet, because her heart was right before God, she worshipped in her giving according to her blessing – two copper coins, which make a penny! She came to worship not empty-handed, but gave all she had to the One who was the giver of all things. In 2 Corinthians 8:12, God teaches us through the Apostle Paul: For if the readiness is present, it is acceptable according to what a person has, not according to what he does not have. Is it not true that we have too often been guilty of neglecting this clear precept of Scripture found in both the Old and New Testaments? How often in our lives do we appear before the Lord with the premeditated purpose of asking, pleading to receive some blessing for ourselves or a loved one; a physical healing, financial stability, assistance in a time of difficulty in present circumstances. Certainly, the Lord is our Friend and we are free and privileged to go to Him at anytime we are troubled and in need of help. Yet, throughout Scripture, I find that the Spirit has recorded for our good the truth that we, as His children, are to be eager first, to seek and to ask, “What can I do for my Lord today? How may I serve Him? How might I bring glory to God for all the great things he has done for me?” Is this not true brethren? Should this not be our eagerness and priority before our own needs? Does it not call for our own heart examination regarding our desires being in line with what God would have us be and become? In the giving of our monies for the Gospel cause; our giving and sacrificing our time for the same, be it in prayer, service to the church or neighbors, our readiness and eager attitude to do so for the Lord is what He desires, and for His glory alone, for our gracious Lord will have none come before Him empty-handed! DO NOT COME EMPTY-HANDED, BUT YOU MUST COME! By Adron Dozat People think the church worship service is boring, dull, and irrelevant to modern religious experience. I wonder if it is the worship service or the worshipper. “Celebrate the Feast of unleavened Bread; for seven days eat bread made without yeast, as I commanded you. Do this at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in that month you came out of Egypt. No one is to appear before me empty-handed.” Exodus 23:14. NIV. We live in an entertainment culture where we go to “get,” to be entertained or at least edified. We go to church to hear a sermon, (hopefully one that is not too troubling to our conscience), with a few laughs and memorable stories. We want the child care to be clean and happy and the fellowship hour to be well stocked with fresh cookies. It is tragic that today’s Christianity has turned away from the example of our Lord who “came not to be served but to serve and give himself as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28). We should come to church with the attitude that we are there to give not get. We should enter the door looking for opportunities to meet needs. Do not come before God “empty handed.” This requires personal consecration, a setting aside of self interest and needs to prepare to serve. Prepare for worship on The Lord’s Day by spending time the day before in God’s word, prayer, meditation, and personal worship. Daily Personal devotions make us ready to bring an offering of service on Sunday, perhaps a song of praise or a word of encouragement. Daily personal worship makes us ready to say “Amen” to the benediction or the offertory or the sermon. When you spend time during the week to read the Bible, pray and worship the Worship Meeting becomes a celebration of our personal worship experienced through out the week. When I come to our community worship I am able to sing from my heart to the Lord since He has been close to my heart all week long. I am able to pray silently and say amen to the prayers offered by others. When I bring an offering of a full heart to the community worship service and give it to God I take with me a heart full of blessing far exceeding what I brought. Your Friend Adron The Lord gave the word; GREAT is the company of those that published it (psalm 68:11)
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 13:32:26 +0000
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