BUT WHO AM I? (1 CHRONICLES 29:1-22)

 

BUT WHO AM I?

BIBLE PASSAGE: 1 CHRONICLES 29: 1- 22

Picture taken from Google

Lesson Prepared by: Krisha of Solomon’s Wisdom FB page

Lesson ideas taken from: tony evan/sermons

JULY 04, 2021

MEMORY VERSE

But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.

1 CHRONICLES 29:14

 

INTRODUCTION:

Try to imagine the time you were in your mother’s womb. Out of millions of cells, you were the one successfully reached the place of conception. Remember what God says to Jeremiah, “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5).  Therefore, God knows everyone of us and Luke 12:7 says, “But even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.” Sometimes or most of the times we live as if we own our lives. We live like there’s no God who controls everything. Psalms 90:10 says, “The days of our years are threescore years and ten; and if by reason of strength they be fourscore years yet is their strength labour and sorrow; for it is soon cut off, and we fly away.” People don’t see how short life is. They focus more on how to accumulate money and no time for spiritual things. Let’s be reminded what the book of Job says in 21^st verse of chapter 1, “And said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return thither: the Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” And in Ecclesiastes 5:15 says, “As he came forth of his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand.” So you see, we carry nothing out on this world.

 

Another thing, we are all doomed to hell but because of God’s love, He sent His only begotten Son on earth to die and pay the penalty of sins of mankind. Do we owe everything to God? YES! Colossians 2:13-14 say,

¹³ And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

¹⁴ Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

 

For all the things God has done to all of us, what we should give in return? Psalm 116:12 says, “What shall I render unto the Lord for all his benefits toward me?” In our passage today, David had in his heart to build a house as a place of rest for the ark of the covenant of the Lord. But sad to say, God didn’t allow him instead the task was given to his son, Solomon. In verse 1, David’s concern to his son; he was young, and the task was too great. He tried his best for the preparation of the building of the temple. We noticed in the last line, “… for the palace is not for man but for the Lord God.” This a great reminder that it is for the Lord. They should give their 100% on this task; focus, effort and sacrifice are needed because it’s for the LORD.

 

In verse 14, where our title came from, “But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.” In tagalog, “Ngunit sino ako at ang bayang ito? Buong puso kaming nagkakaloob pagkat ang lahat ng ito ay galing SAiyo at ibinabalik lang naming. Personally this gives me the thought that even we have the ability to give in abundance or sacrifice more for the Lord, we can’t be proud of it because everything comes from HIM. With this, what should be our attitude in giving?

 

 

LESSON OUTLINE:

1.  DAVID GAVE WITH A HUMBLE HEART (1 CHRONICLES 29:14)

² Now I have prepared with all my might for the house of my God the gold for things to be made of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and the brass for things of brass, the iron for things of iron, and wood for things of wood; onyx stones, and stones to be set, glistering stones, and of divers colours, and all manner of precious stones, and marble stones in abundance.

³ Moreover, because I have set my affection to the house of my God, I have of mine own proper good of gold and silver, which I have given to the house of my God, over and above all that I have prepared for the holy house.

 

In verses 1-5, we can see how David was generous and even his own gold and silver, he gave unto the Lord. Why he was generous? Because he had set his affection to the house of the Lord (Kasiyahan niyang magkaroon ng bahay si Yahweh).

 Like what I have said, though David was a king and he had all the resources, the influence, and the power needed, he said, “But who am I and what is my people?”  We know that when a person has all the resources, he has the tendency to be proud of it. He might not be vocal about it but there’s something in his heart telling him, “You’ve done good.” This is a good reminder for every one of us that whenever you give, give it with a humble heart.

Romans 11:35-36 say, “Or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto him again. For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.”

Tagalog: “Sino ang nakapagkaloob ng anuman sa Diyos. Para siya nama’y gantimpalaan? Sapagkat mula sa kanya at sa pamamagitan niya at sa kanya ang lahat ng bagay. Sa kanya ang karangalan magpakailanman! Amen.

For man himself can give nothing. This truth explains the amazing response of the people in David’s day. But it also stands as the basic truth that animates all Christian giving. All that we are and all that we have comes from God. Everything is a gift. Nothing is earned; everything is given: Your life is a gift. Your health is a gift. Your career is a gift. Your intelligence is a gift. Your strength is a gift. Your personality is a gift. Your children gift. Your friendships are gift. Your possessions are gift. Your accomplishments are gift. Your wealth is a gift.

You own nothing. Everything you have is on loan from God. He gives it to you for a little while and says, “Take care of it.” We hold on tight because we think it all belongs to us. Sooner or later we’ll understand that it doesn’t belong to us … and it never did. We are like little children holding so tightly to a few borrowed marbles. We grip them in our palm because we’re afraid of losing them. But sooner or later God himself begins to pry the marbles out of our hand. One by one he pulls our fingers off the things we think are ours. We may fight back, but he is stronger and he always wins. In the end he takes back that which belongs to him in the first place.

Life is the ultimate gift, but none of us lives forever. Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief, man, woman, boy, girl, white or black, and young or old we all die sooner or later.

The Bible warns us over and over about the seductive power of money. First Timothy 6:10 reminds us that “the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil.” The love of money corrupts us in so many ways. It makes us selfish, greedy, and envious. It causes us to forget our friends, trample on our co-workers, neglect our children, and ignore our wives. It seduces us with the promise of happiness but then delivers nothing at all. God has enabled us to give like this, even though we do not deserve to be helped. LET’S GIVE WITH A HUMBLE HEART because nothing we can boast.

2.  DAVID GAVE WITH A WILLING HEART (1 CHRONICLES 29: 5-6)

The gold for things of gold, and the silver for things of silver, and for all manner of work to be made by the hands of artificers. And who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?

Like what I have said, David offers his own resources for building the temple: gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, precious stones, marble. Having set a good example, he then challenges the leaders to follow his lead. Verse 6 tells what happened next:

Then the chief of the fathers and princes of the tribes of Israel and the captains of thousands and of hundreds, with the rulers of the king's work, offered willingly,

David asked, “Who then is willing to consecrate his service this day unto the Lord?” Did David persuade the people? They were asked and made choices. Human choices. They were not persuaded by David; we can see in the next verses that they gave willingly. David was just set an example to the people. He chose what was better for the task given by God.

This is leadership at its best. First the king gives, then all the other leaders follow, from the greatest to the least.

Notice two points in this verse. First, they gave “freely.” That means there was no pressure. Second, they gave “wholeheartedly.” That means there was no limit. The same two signs may be found today whenever God’s Spirit is moving. People will give freely and won’t have to be pressured, enticed or intimidated. And they will give without limit to the work of the Lord. The next few verses record a psalm of praise composed by David on the spot. In verse 12 he reveals the secret of generous giving: “Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all; and in thine hand is power and might; and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.”  In tagalog, “Sa iyo nagmumula ang kayamanan at ang karangalan. Taglay moa ng kapangyarihan at kadakilaan, at Ikaw ang nagbibigay ng lakas at kapangyarihan sa lahat.” He then explains that truth in more detail in the following verses, beginning with verse 14 then in 15-17:

¹⁴ But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee. ¹⁵ For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as were all our fathers: our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding. ¹⁶ O Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared to build thee an house for thine holy name cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own. ¹⁷ I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people, which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.

 These verses contain a truth we need to carefully consider. David says the people gave generously because they understood that everything they had came from God. In a sense, they were only giving back to God what he had given them in the first place. That’s why the people were able to give “willingly” and with so much joy.

Let’s consider this thought, “Generous giving is not difficult when we understand that everything we have comes from God.”

3.  THEY GAVE WITH A REJOICING HEART (1 CHRONICLES 29:9-13)

Then the people rejoiced, for that they offered willingly, because with perfect heart they offered willingly to the Lord: and David the king also rejoiced with great joy.

So how are we to give to God? Just this way. We are to give with a willing heart, with a complete heart. And we are to give with rejoicing. Give what you can. Give with a free rejoicing heart. Now God doesn't want you to give to Him out of pressure. God doesn't want you to give to Him because you're being forced or constrained to do it. Because God never wants you to gripe over what you gave to Him. What an insult to God for a person to turn around and gripe over what they gave. Complain over what they gave. That would be horrible. God never wants that to happen. Therefore, He always wants your gift to come from your own heart. That which you purposed in your own heart to give to God willingly. That which you can give cheerfully, give. That which you can't give cheerfully, don't give. If you can't do it with a cheerful, willing heart, then don't do it at all. It's of no value. God isn't interested in it.

And so, these men gave complete heart willingly unto the Lord. And there was great rejoicing. There's real joy in giving to God.

Wherefore David blessed the LORD before the congregation: and David said, Blessed be thou, LORD God of Israel our father, for ever and ever. Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all ( 1 Chronicles 29:10-11 ).

Now verse eleven here sounds much like the final phrase of the Lord's prayer. "For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever" ( Matthew 6:13 ). Look at it again. "Thine, O LORD, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all." David was so great with words and so able to praise the Lord. I love the way David is just able to express himself to the Lord so freely, so. And really with such great expression. "Lord, Yours is the kingdom. The whole earth is Yours and the whole universe."

CONLUSION:

Giving is not about money; it’s never about money. It’s certainly not about what numbers you write on your commitment card. And it’s not about building new classrooms. It’s about your heart and your faith and about your relationship to God. It’s about our commitment to the work of God in CBT and all its missions. It’s our commitment to be part of what God is doing in the world today. If we have trouble with our giving, it’s probably because we’ve never figured out that everything comes from God. We don’t own a thing. It’s all loaned to us and someday God will take it all back.

When we give generously, we’re saying, “Lord, it’s all yours anyway.”

When we give generously, we’re investing in the Kingdom that cannot be shaken.

When we give generously, we are declaring, “There’s a lot more where that came from.”

When we give generously, we’re laying up treasures in heaven.

The late Bishop Edwin Hughes once delivered a rousing sermon on “God’s Ownership” that put a rich parishioner’s nose out-of-joint. The wealthy man took the bishop off for lunch, and then walked him through his elaborate gardens, woodlands, and farm. “Now are you going to tell me," He demanded when the tour was completed, “that all this land does not belong to me?” Bishop Hughes smiled and replied, “Ask me that same question a hundred years from now.” EVERYTHING ON EARTH WILL TURN TO DUST.

 

WHEN GIVING COST ME NOTHING (1 CHRONICLES 21; 2 SAMUEL 24)

 

WHEN GIVING COST ME NOTHING

BIBLE PASSAGE: 1 CHRONICLES 21; 2 SAMUEL 24

Picture taken from Google

Lesson Prepared by: Krisha of Solomon’s Wisdom FB page

Lesson ideas taken from: https://baptistlessons/https://www.sermoncentral.com/

 

JULY 10, 2022

KEY VERSE

And the king said unto Araunah, Nay; but I will surely buy it of thee at a price: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the Lord my God of that which doth cost me nothing. So David bought the threshingfloor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver.

2 SAMUEL 24:24

 INTRODUCTION:

What situations of life we can say that giving cost me nothing or how we can say that giving cost me nothing? (Allow responses in the audience)

It’s easy to give when we have an easy ability or an abundance of time and treasure. But when we feel drained, incapable, and cash flow is tight, what then?

Before, I thought giving offerings is only for those who can afford or capable but as we study God’s word, giving is not just for rich or can afford because we read many passages in the bible that despite their poor situation, still they give and one example for this is the members in Macedonia Church.

 

David said that he wouldn’t offer that cost him nothing. What does this mean to you? It’s a good attitude that we give offerings that affect us. A pastor said, “It’s not true giving, if it costs me nothing. Giving is only genuine when it becomes a sacrifice.” This is why the widow who gave so little was credited by Jesus. It cost her something because she gave out of her poverty, while others simply gave out of their abundance.

When David said that, what are the possible thoughts he had in mind? “When an offering that costs me nothing is given, I haven’t really given. When it truly costs me something, that’s when what I give is true giving.”

Giving that cost you something is sacrificial. A “sacrifice” is defined as “an offering made to God . . . as an acknowledgement of His power and provision. Many times, in life we will encounter situations in which we will feel that life is spinning out of control, and that we’ve lost our handle on things. In this lesson it encourages us that we have to let go – or rather, sacrifice - our control on life, and then acknowledge God’s power and His provision in order to prosper in the midst of life’s difficult circumstances.

In order to receive a spiritual breakthrough, we might have to make a sacrifice, but we often avoid sacrifice by any means necessary. We tend to pursue the path of least resistance and look for the easy way out of our circumstances; however, the easy way is not always the best way. What we will learn in this lesson is that if we desire a breakthrough, then we might have to make a sacrifice, and a sacrifice must cost us something; for we can’t cheat the Lord and expect Him to bless us for it.

Today we will see why David says, “Nay; but I will verily buy it for the full price: for I will not take that which is thine for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings without cost.” (1 Chronicle 21:24)

 

LESSON OUTLINE:

1.  A SACRIFICE REQUIRES US TO PUT OUR FAITH IN GOD INSTEAD OF OURSELVES

David Was Asked to Make a Sacrifice (vv. 18-22)

¹⁸ And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him, Go up, rear an altar unto the Lord in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite. ¹⁹ And David, according to the saying of Gad, went up as the Lord commanded. ²⁰ And Araunah looked, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him: and Araunah went out, and bowed himself before the king on his face upon the ground. ²¹ And Araunah said, Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant? And David said, To buy the threshingfloor of thee, to build an altar unto the Lord, that the plague may be stayed from the people. ²² And Araunah said unto David, Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him: behold, here be oxen for burnt sacrifice, and threshing instruments and other instruments of the oxen for wood.

We read here that David was required to erect an altar to the Lord, meaning he was required to make a sacrifice; and we also see the mention of an angel. Why David was asked to sacrifice? Let’s see the background behind these verses, which can be found in the first seventeen verses of this chapter.

In 1 Chronicles 21, verses 1-6, we find that Satan had moved David to sin against the Lord by taking a census of the people and all the available fighting men in Israel.

¹Nais guluhin ni Satanas ang Israel kaya inudyukan nito si David na magsensus. ² Dahil dito, inutusan ng hari si Joab at ang mga pinuno ng hukbo na alamin ang bilang ng mga Israelita mula sa Beer-seba hanggang sa Dan, at iulat sa kanya.

Taking a census was a sin, why? In Exodus 30:12 says (Tagalog)

 “Pagkuha mo ng sensus ng mga Israelita, bawat isa'y hingan mo ng pantubos sa kanilang buhay. Ihahandog nila ito sa akin para walang kapahamakang umabot sa kanila habang ginagawa ang sensus.”

The principle of Exodus 30:12 speaks to God’s ownership of His people. In the thinking of these ancient cultures, a man only had the right to count or number what belonged to him. Israel didn’t belong to David; Israel belonged to God. It was up to the LORD to command a counting, and if David counted he should only do it at God’s command and should receive ransom money to “atone” for the counting.

Another thing, there was a subtle but great sin behind this census. Counting the men betrayed the fact that David was not counting on God; David was placing his trust in the number of soldiers he had instead of placing his confidence in God’s power to fight for Israel; meaning that he trusted in people more than he trusted in God.  

Joab objected the census: (2 Chronicles 21:3)

³ Ngunit sinabi ni Joab, “Halimbawang ang mga tao'y paramihin ni Yahweh nang makasandaang beses, hindi ba't sila'y mga lingkod mo pa rin, at ikaw ang kanilang marangal na hari? Bakit pa ninyo kailangang gawin ito, Kamahalan? Bakit pa ninyo bibigyan ng dahilan upang magkasala ang Israel?”

2 Samuel 24:4 tells us that it wasn’t only Joab who tried to tell David not to do this – the captains of the army also warned David not to count the soldiers in Israel. But David did so anyway. 2 Samuel 24:5-9 indicates that it took almost 10 months to complete the census. David should have called off this foolish census during the ten months, but he didn’t. “So when they had gone through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days.” Joab didn’t include the two tribe in counting.

“But Levi and Benjamin counted he not among them: for the king's word was abominable to Joab.”

TAGALOG: “Ngunit hindi niya isinama sa sensus ang lipi nina Levi at Benjamin, sapagkat labag sa kanyang kalooban ang utos na ito ng hari.”

(1 Chronicles 21:6).

 

The Lord displeased with David and He would punish Israel for David’s sins. David responded by dressing in sackcloth and falling on his face in mourning over his sin, and for the disaster that he had brought on the people of Israel.

“Sinabi ni David sa Diyos, “Napakalaking kasalanan ang nagawa ko, Yahweh! Patawarin mo sana ako sa aking kahangalan.” (1 chronicles 21:8)

God let David choose the punishment. Three years famine. Three months of persecution from your enemies. Or three days of pestilence.

⁹ And the Lord spake unto Gad, David's seer, saying, ¹⁰ Go and tell David, saying, Thus saith the Lord, I offer thee three things: choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee. ¹¹ So Gad came to David, and said unto him, Thus saith the Lord, Choose thee

David responded, “ And David said unto Gad, I am in a great strait: let us fall now into the hand of the Lord; for his mercies are great: and let me not fall into the hand of man.” (2 Samuel 24:14).

TAGALOG: “Hirap na hirap ang aking kalooban sa nangyaring ito. Sapagkat mahabagin si Yahweh, ang pipiliin ko'y ang tuwirang parusa niya, kaysa ako'y mahulog pa sa kamay ng mga tao.”

In verse 14, God sent pestilence.  This plague was sent for David’s sin and killed seventy-thousand men. The reason why we see mention of an angel is because the Lord had sent an angel to destroy the entire city of Jerusalem; however, God changed His mind and stayed the angel’s hand, and the angel sat in wait over the threshing floor of Araunah until the Lord could see David’s response.

 

In verse 17, we read that he accepted responsibility for his sin.

Tumawag siya sa Diyos, “Ako po ang nag-utos na alamin ang bilang ng mga tao. Walang kasalanan ang mga taong-bayan. Kaya ako at ang aking angkan na lamang ang inyong parusahan. Huwag ninyong idamay sa salot ang mga tao.”

For restoration, the Lord commanded David to offer a sacrifice on the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite. In obedience, David asked to buy Araunah’s threshing floor, to build an altar on it. Araunah freely offered the land to the king. But David refused. He insisted on paying for the land, because he could not make an offering that cost him nothing.

From this, we could learn a valuable lesson concerning our faith in God. How many times have we taken a census, or numbered our resources, in a moment of crisis or in a time in which God was asking us to walk by faith? How many times have we trusted in, and relied on, human reasoning over God’s infinite wisdom? How many times have we sought advice from people instead of going to the Lord in prayer? Like David, we often trust in people more than we trust in God.

 

We sometimes feel that human beings have the intelligence and reasoning ability to solve their own problems apart from God; and this is a prideful spirit. Whenever we become proud then we have a difficult time in being obedient to the Lord and walking in submission to His will and His authority. If we possess this kind of self-sufficient attitude then the Lord will ask us to repent, and He could even ask us to make a sacrifice.

2.  SACRIFICE REVEALS OUR INNER-MOST HEART ATTITUDE BEFORE GOD

David was asked to make a sacrifice, and here he was being given an exit or the easy way out of his commitment to God. Ornan (Araunah) wished to give away his threshing floor to David, and not just the land, but also the elements of the sacrifice, such as the oxen, implements, wood, and the wheat and grain. Ornan (Araunah) likely did this out of respect for David’s position as the king, for we read in verse 23 where he stated, “Let my lord the king do what is good in his eyes.” He was indeed the king, and he could have used his position to take advantage of the situation, but David instead chose to do the right thing.

 

When Ornan (Araunah) offered the sacrificial elements to David free of charge, David replied, “No, but I will surely buy it for the full price, for I will not take what is yours for the Lord, nor offer burnt offerings with that which costs me nothing.” A sacrifice really isn’t a sacrifice until it costs us something. If it didn’t cost David, or if he decided to take the easy way out, then the Lord would have observed that David was not sincere in his remorse and repentance for his sin; and then he would have brought about the destruction of Jerusalem.

The purpose of a sacrifice is to reveal our inner-most heart attitude before God. Making a sacrifice shows submission and obedience to the Lord, whereas refusing to sacrifice reveals pride, arrogance, and self-sufficiency. Have you ever before made a promise to offer a sacrifice to the Lord, or did He ask something from you? What did you promise to God, and then you wound up taking the easy way out? I will leave these questions in your minds for you to answer.  May this 2^nd point reminds us to sacrifice with a genuine heart.

God Honored David’s Genuine Sacrifice (vv. 25-27)

²⁵ So David gave Ornan six hundred shekels of gold by weight for the place. ²⁶ And David built there an altar to the Lord, and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings, and called on the Lord; and He answered him from heaven by fire on the altar of burnt offering. ²⁷ So the Lord commanded the angel, and he returned his sword to its sheath.

We see here that David actually paid for the sacrifice, revealing his sincere heart before God; and the Lord honored his sincerity and caused the angel to return His sword back into His sheath. What He honored was David’s submission and his willingness to trust God with the situation.

The Lord searches our heart to see if we are sincere before Him. In Jeremiah 17:10, God declared, “I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” In 2 Chronicles 16:9 we read, “For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him...”

The Lord wants to show that He is strong and faithful on behalf of those whose heart is sincere and trusting, and He will do so if we submit to Him. In James 4:10 we are told, “Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.” If we live a life of submission and sacrifice before the Lord, and put all our hopes and dreams in His hands, and place all our burdens on Him (Psalm 55:22; 1 Peter 5:6) instead of bearing them ourselves, then the Lord will provide for us. Whenever we let go of the controls and turn them over to God, then the Lord receives all the glory for our spiritual victories, and that is what He desires – full glory – for He is a jealous God who wants to be praised above all others (Exodus 20:4).

 

CONCLUSION:

On the threshing floor of Araunah is where David made his sacrifice and submitted himself to the Lord. The location where this event took place actually symbolizes sacrifice? In 2 Chronicles 3:1, we read, “Then Solomon began to build the house of the Lord at Jerusalem in mount Moriah, where the Lord appeared unto David his father, in the place that David had prepared in the threshingfloor of Araunah the Jebusite..” The threshing floor of Araunah is also known as Mount Moriah, and this was the site of the first temple; and the temple was where the priests would make animal sacrifices unto God and prostrate themselves in humble submission before Him.

This site is better known for Abraham’s faith and submission before the Lord. In Genesis chapter 22, we read where God asked him to sacrifice his son Isaac, the very son of promise, on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22:2), and he willingly proceeded to do as He asked. The Lord stopped him at the very last second as he was getting ready to plunge the knife into Isaac, and God provided another sacrifice instead, which was a ram caught in a thicket. This is the location where Abraham experienced the Lord as his Provider, or Jehovah Jireh, in direct response to his obedience and submission.

Mount Moriah represents submission before the Lord, and whenever God requires a sacrifice from us, He is seeking our submission unto Him. The Lord wants us to acknowledge that we can’t provide for our own needs, and He wants us to place our faith and trust in Him as our Provider, or our Jehovah Jireh.

What we give unto the Lord? Time, service, body, and money? This addresses anything we do for the Lord. We should follow David’s example and never offer to God something that cost us nothing.