Come to the Altar. Let’s Eat!

The Altar: Where we meet God

Exodus 20:18–24 “Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses, “You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us (directly), lest we die.”

Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, that the fear of him may be before you, that you may not sin.” The people stood far off, while Moses drew near to the thick darkness where God was. And the Lord said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the people of Israel: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have talked with you from heaven. You shall not make gods of silver to be with me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. An altar of earth you shall make for me and sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, your sheep and your oxen. In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.”

12 Days until Thanksgiving : “I’m just asking for one PERFECT meal a year!”

[Picture of family Thanksgiving spread]

Nothing like Thanksgiving meal at Gradaddy & Meema’s house!!! Several years ago at Thanksgiving one of the granddaughters (she was young) had gotten into a culinary and she somehow convinced Nanna to let her cook the Thanksgiving sides… In case you didn’t know, Thanksgiving IS NOT a meal where you test things out!!! It’s a place where we come to the table together to enjoy the best greens, and ham, and turkey… (that’s good preaching church!!)

Truth: As much as God’s people have been convinced that the altar was about “our sacrifice”…what we are giving up…how dedicated we were to God… it really has never been about that. The altar has always been about hearing some of the most beautiful words in all of scripture: “Come to the table…let’s eat!” (some of my favorite words to hear!!)

The Altar was where God distinguished himself above all other gods.

There are a lot of (little “g”) gods out there calling you to their altars.

the gods of entertainment

the gods of national politics

the gods of your bank account (mammom)

the gods of leisure and pleasure

the gods of image and sex

In scripture all the other gods demanded an altar to make them happy…

If you wanted a blessing from the god, you needed to appease him with the right sacrifice.

If you wanted divine favor, you had to make the god happy with you.

If you needed a curse lifted, you needed to get the attention of the god through your sacrifice.

But here’s the distinction between those (little “g”) gods, and the God we know in Jesus…

The altar wasn’t a place where the people satisfied God…the altar was a place where God invited the people to come and be together with him!

The God we know in Jesus is not interested in your sacrifice. He’s interested in freeing you from the chains of sin and the power of death.

For Israel and for us today there are lots of gods demanding our sacrifice…the difference is our God is not interested in your sacrifice. He’s interested in your FREEDOM.

Hosea 6:6 “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.”

1 Samuel 15:22 “And Samuel said, “Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to listen than the fat of rams.”

Isaiah 1:11 “What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices? says the Lord; I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed beasts; I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats.”

Psalm 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.”

Matthew 9:13 “Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.””

Romans 12:1 “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.”

God is NOT a God of Destruction. He’s a God of Life (the lesson of Abraham).

The reason we struggle to “let go” and leave it on the altar is because we’ve been lied to.

The lie: “Did God really say?” … “Can I really trust that when I let go and obey God, will he come through?”

It’s easier to hold on to our pride, money, resources, time, and pleasure because at least we can have some sense of control.

But the moment it leaves my hands, can I trust God with it? Will God really protect my family? Will God provide? …. Or is he just like all the other gods (powers and principalities)???

As long as its in my hands my sacrifice controls me (it becomes a god/idol). But the moment it leaves my hands and I place it on the altar, it becomes a sweet aroma (Lev. 2:9) in heaven.

It suddenly becomes a meal of provision where God frees me and supplies all my needs.

The altar is not a place where…

You can earn God’s love.

This might be the simplest point of any sermon ever, but you need to hear this today: “God loves you.”

God already loves you. You can neither earn nor lose his love.

You prove your commitment or worth.

You are already made in the image of God. You’ve got nothing to prove!

The enemy will keep you locked in cycles of proving and performing….that steals the joy from your life!

You get God’s attention.

Job 34:21 “For his eyes are on the ways of a man, and he sees all his steps.”

You earn favor with God.

Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”

No! The altar is a place where we let go of the idol in our hands in exchange for the body and life of Jesus in his hands.

What do you need to bring to the Altar today?

Is it your finances, your control, unforgiveness, hurt, disappointment, or even sickness.

The thing is, its hard to let something go at the altar while you’re still standing far away…

Israel wanted Moses to get near God on their behalf…but God doesn’t do proxies.

Jesus became our mediator on the cross. And now we bodly come to the Father because of his sacrifice.

Can I just remind you this morning, that conviction you feel inside is not God threatening you…it’s the Holy Spirit calling you to FREEDOM.

As long as it remains in your hands it’s an idol. When it gets placed on the altar it becomes a Thanksgiving meal of fellowship.