Nothing But A Promise

The Cost of Commitment: Building Altars in Our Lives

Bible Passage: 1 Chronicles 21:18–27

We need to establish personal altars in our lives - this means we create space for prayer, reflection, and spiritual growth. Not just on Sunday, but even when we don’t feel like it. On our own and in community.

Sue Gandee came on Wednesday night with grandchildren.

As Christians we must engage - with eachother and with God - Especially in times of struggle because thats when we recognize that true faith often requires sacrifice and effort on our part.

The last few week’s we saw David’s dependance on God be put to the test, and overall he is seen as a man after God’s heart - when faced with the choice to depend on God or his army to protect him, he choses his army.

1. Obedience Opens Opportunities

1 Chronicles 21:18-19

Something we need to understand - because this is a common area where people are resistance to God - so many of us get hung up on what things have happened to us - and we allow it to shape our view of God.

“I want to believe in God but why did He take my child?”

“I want to believe in God but why did I go through that divorce?”

“Why did God allow that disease to take my mom?”

“Right after I bought our new house, I lost my job.”

Its apparent that for some of us, if we can’t fit God into a box that fits our view of Him, then we’re okay just wanting to believe in Him.

If God would only just give you an explanation for what’s happened in your life, then He could be God.

The truth of it is, when we have a belief and devotion to God through Jesus, we go through hard, unexplained things in our life.

The Bible says the days are evil.

“So whats the point of being a Christian you might ask?”

When we have God on our side, He goes through it with us. He brings us through it into victory. Because without God, we go through it but don’t achieve victory on the other side.

Our faith is put to the test when we go through a storm, battle, trial, failure.

Here, God is telling David to build an altar, and we’re called to do the same today.

Not a physical altar, but we establish a place of sacrifice to God for the purpose of remembering His faithfulness and goodness in our life and how He brought us through and stayed with us.

We can get deceived by today’s church culture that everything with God is supposed to be easy and we’re protected from bad things happening to us and when they do happen, we just need to pray, put on a face like things are good and we have strong faith and keep going!

But an altar is messy. Its bloody. Its costly. Back when they used physical altars, they sacrificed animals on them.

When we’re talking about the spiritual altars being established in our lives, we’re talking about putting the things we go through, struggle with, desire and want all on the altar and sacrificing it to God.

We’re called here to make intentional steps of faith in obedience in our spiritual journey.

Not just go through the motions. If you’re going through the motions, you can’t establish an altar.

An altar is a marker for how you’re moving through and forward.

I used to go running on the road at Windber Rec and would try to do 4 miles. I’d end up doing 2 or maybe 1. I realized that because I was just going in circles, I could stop and go home whenever I wanted. If it fell and got hurt - just head home. If I got a cramp - go head home.

Then one day, I decided to take the harder route and run through town. Down and up hills and not stop until I got 1.5 miles because no matter what, I needed to get home. I had to then run 3 miles. Whether I wanted to when I got to my end point, it was going to cost me the energy to keep going. If I got hurt, there wasn’t an easy off ramp - i had to keep going.

Sometimes I worry that as Christians, we are going in circles. Our goal is big but we don’t even do half of it.

Maybe you’re going through the motions, going in circles and we can get off really quick and quit very easily.

Establish an altar in our life. Establish a marker that you can’t turn from. Give up and sacrifice the easy way out.

Establishing an altar is like that point where theres no cop out. It will cost us to keep moving forward. It eliminates the excuses.

Sundays are for church. Establish that.

Don’t establish sports.

“I was out late last night.”

“I won’t be here on Sunday if the weather is nice.”

Church was his copout not established.

The threshing floor was where the altar was to be. Where the sheaves of grain were beaten and put under pressure.

Guys - we’re going to be beaten and put under pressure. Don’t go “ohhhh” and not do something about it.

2. Engagement Encourages Growth

1 Chronicles 21:20-22

“I promise that I will give this dollar to the first person who walks up to the front.”

How often do we hear from God and wait for Him to spoon feed us instead of walking into His promise and word with confidence?

David didn’t say, “well that place belongs to someone else.”

“Maybe God will make a way and give it to me.”

Just because God told you you’d have to do something hard doesn’t mean He’s going to make it easy for you.

David walked up to the owner while there was pressure - the angel of the Lord was there ready to pour out the wrath of God - and said he was going to pay full price for this place.

He wasn’t afraid to take the necessary steps in our faith journey towards establishing an altar. He wasn’t afraid of getting messy.

He was a king. He couldve sent someone else to do it. He couldve demanded it be given to him.

You see, he had to go to the people. He had to get into the community. Who here knows that when more than one person is involved, it can get messy.

3. Sacrifice Strengthens Spirit

1 Chronicles 21:23-27

Accepting Christ is a commitment.

True commitment requires sacrifice.

Christ made the ultimate sacrifice, but He calls us to be a living sacrifice.

Christ made the sacrifice because no matter how much we sacrifice, its not sufficient for what is owed.

In our flesh, we’re all bad to the core that there isn’t anything we could do to makeup for it. The only thing that brings us to holiness and perfection in the eyes of God is Christ’s sacrifice.

It was messy. It was bloody. It was BOLD.

David knows that he must be the one to sacrifice - foreshadowing Christ being the ultimate sacrifice.

We can’t pay the ultimate price - There is a price to your altar.

In today’s day and age, we look for the fast lane.

David went and did what God told him would be his but he asked for it at full price. It was offered it for free and still paid full price.

NYC - giving out free albums.

Maybe we should look for what we can sacrifice for God instead of receiving something for free from Him.

How often do we just pop in for prayer or show up when we’re struggling - but when the Lord brings you through, you don’t establish an altar of sacrifice?

David wanted to not just repent, but establish an altar of sacrifice to show his repentance that would COST HIM SOMETHING.

He didn’t want to take the fast lane. He didn’t want to take the road that would cost him nothing.

The angel that wouldve poured out the wrath of God was stopped from unleashing God’s wrath because of the altar of sacrifice that was established.

Church, establish and altar today.

Closing

This is an example of punishment that we deserve that would be God’s wrath but Jesus bore that punishment and the wrath on the cross for us.

Without Christ, we’re living in our flesh. Because Christ sacrificed His own flesh, we can allow our flesh to die and be raised to new life in Him.

The baptism demonstrates our flesh dying when we go under the water, and when we raise up out of the water it represents our new life.