HE REQUIRES YOUR OBLATIONS—NOT DONATIONS – Pastor Chris
Sunday, March 10, 2019
For in mine holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them in the land, serve me: there will I accept them, and there will I require your offerings, and the firstfruits of your oblations, with all your holy things (Ezekiel 20:40).
There’s a difference between a donation and an oblation. When you give to the Lord, it’s an offering, an oblation; it’s called a holy giving and it’s a connection between you and your heavenly Father, different from donations. There’re endeavours to which we can make donations; we can donate to charity organizations, NGOs, and worthy causes, but when it comes to giving to God, it’s not a donation; your offerings, and tithes that you give to the Lord are oblations and must be hallowed in your heart, and given reverently.
This is important because how you deal with your giving determines the results you’re going to get from God. If you give as a donation, you get what a donation promises. You don’t donate to God; you give an offering to Him, because He is God. Your offering is a testimony that you recognize, and are honouring Him as God, and not as a man.
Sometimes, donations or contributions may be called for in the church. These could be for some church project or endeavour, and could be classified accordingly. Nonetheless, your tithes and offerings, like seed offerings, first-fruit offerings, etc., are not donations or contributions: they are oblations to the Lord. Remember, worshipping the Lord must be according to His prescribed order or else we lose the blessing promised. The word teaches that there are blessings connected with oblations. Donations and contributions have their blessings as well.
For example, if you give alms to the poor, that’s not an offering; it’s a loan to God (Proverbs 19:17); it has its blessings. An offering to God is very different. This understanding is important, because when you want to have maximum results from God, you have to do God’s things, God’s way.
PRAYER
Dear heavenly Father, I worship you with my giving and oblations. I declare that I continually increase in the grace of giving, even as I abound in wisdom and understanding. Through my commitments, the furtherance of the Gospel is swift, and many lives are touched, all to the praise and glory of your Name. Amen.
FURTHER STUDY: 2 Corinthians 9:7-8; 2 Thessalonians 1:3
1 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Mark 14:27-52 & Numbers 27-28
2 YEAR BIBLE READING PLAN: Matthew 21:33-46 & Exodus 19
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