"That We Should Rejoice"

"And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare his works with rejoicing."
(Psalms 107:22

 Maybe the most opposite issue that we have is condemnation, the guilt and shame that haunts our soul and robs us of the joy of the Lord. Do we even know what it means to have the joy of the Lord in our hearts, or have we forgotten and tried to produce a counterfeit joy in its place? What does it mean, "let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving"? When you think about the Temple sacrifices, they were burnt offerings that were offered up to God; but more than that, they were offered as a symbol of our sins and trespasses being offered, burnt up, as smoke that disappears and is seen no more. Thinking back to something I had said about the "Unthankful Servant," the parable from Matthew 18:21-35; Jesus was answering a question Peter asked, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?" A really good answer to that question would be to ask ourselves, How many times do I need God's forgiveness? Will seven times be enough? Maybe in a single day, if we try really really hard not to slip up! I seriously doubt Jesus was trying to put a number to His answer when he said, "I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven." How could anyone keep tabs after even seventy times? If you were following my discussion from way back on the unfaithful servant, you might recall the reason that I believe he could not forgive his fellow servant, even though he had been forgiven so much more than he was willing to forgive someone else; that it was because he had not finished getting in debt. His very large debt had been totally wiped away, but whatever it was that caused him to be in debt had not been dealt with. It might not seem all that important, at least not at first; but having been forgive such a heavy debt, should have filled that servants heart with so much joy, the little debt of his fellow servant would have been nothing to forgive. It reminds me of Paul's explanation of our need to "reckon our old man to be crucified with Christ." (Romans 6) Christ died for every sin, those that were behind us, as well as those that might be ahead; every sin we could ever think of, He paid the price in full upon that cross. The sinner does not need to live with sin any longer, because the sin has been washed away; just like that smoke from the sacrifice, it has totally disappeared and can not be gathered up again. So what keeps us from rejoicing in that? Maybe looking at Paul's next point, "Being Released from the Law," might help to explain some of the joy being robbed from our hearts...

"Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas. Your strength comes from God's grace, not from rules about food, which don't help those who follow them. We have an alter from which the priests in the Tabernacle have no right to eat. Under the old system, the high priest brought the blood of the animals into the Holy Place as a sacrifice for sin, and the bodies of the animals were burned outside the camp. So also Jesus suffered and died outside the city gates to make his people holy by means of his own blood. So let us go out to him, outside the camp, and bear the disgrace he bore. For this world is not our permanent home; we are looking forward to a home yet to come. Therefore, let us offer through Jesus a continual sacrifice of praise to God, proclaiming our allegiance to his name. And don't forget to do good and to share with those in need. These are the sacrifices that please God." (Hebrews 13:8-16) NLT