"But the king said to Araunah, "No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing." So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. And David built there an altar to the LORD and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings" (2 Sam. 24:24-25).
David set out to buy the threshing floor of Araunah in order to raise up an altar to the Lord as He commanded. But out of respect and honor to the King, Araunah wanted to give the King whatever he needed at no cost to the King. However, David would not allow Araunah to just give him what he needed to build an altar for free. Therefore David said to Araunah, "I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God that cost me nothing." In other words David wanted his act of worship to cost him something.
When one truly worships God he/she recognizes the infinite worth and value of God. And in seeing the Lord's supreme worth, beauty and excellent majesty they can't help but want to give their all, their life their best to God. But sadly what many professing Christians and churches call worship today has very little to do with God and more to do with self. Worship is about being impressed with God not with how good the worship team sounds or the dynamic personality of the preacher.
Worship is more than an event that we participate in on Sunday morning. Worship is a lifestyle of surrender and sacrifice to a worthy God. When we truly worship God on Sunday morning it will carry over into the rest of the week and affect how we live our lives. When we truly worship the one who "although he was rich yet for your sakes he became poor that you through his poverty might become rich"---when we truly worship the one who gave his life as a ransom for many we will desire for our Christianity to cost us something. When we truly appreciate and value the love that Jesus demonstrated when he suffered and sacrificed himself on the cross to redeem us from sin, we will gladly suffer for the cause of Christ if need be.
When our eyes are opened to who God is and all that he has done for us in Christ we will desire for our Christianity to cost us something. Concerning Moses the author of Hebrews wrote, "By faith Moses when he was come to years refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompense of the reward" (Hebrews 11:24-26).
Worship that cost nothing is worth nothing. Give your best, your all, your life to the God who is above all, deserves all and is worthy of all. Praise His name!
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