Take a moment to read Deuteronomy 12 before reading the devotional below.
I’ve already picked out my project for next summer. There is a kit you can buy on Amazon that gives you the plans and all the pieces you need to build an entire shed out of just two-by-fours. I’m not very good at doing construction projects, so the idea of being able to follow a set of directions, so the idea of being able to build myself a shed is really exciting. The one thing I know, though, is that if I buy the kit I need to be careful to follow the directions. Projects like that always fail when you don’t carefully study and follow the plans.
Chapter 12 of Deuteronomy continues to instruct the Israelites on how they should live once they enter into the land God promised them. The previous chapters reminded the Israelites that God chose them because of his own character, not because of theirs. This chapter now specifically teaches them how to relate to him once they have arrived in the promised land. Specifically, the message is this: worship God in the ways that he teaches you rather than making up ideas on your own. This involved two key elements. The first was sacrifices. God had instituted a series of sacrifices as the heart of worship for his people. Sacrifice was an object lesson that God regularly used to help his people understand the seriousness of sin and the significance of devotion to God. The second element was celebration. God was the greater provider for his people, so he instructs them to eat celebratory meals, meals specifically emphasizing meat which was a luxury.
God wants to guide us in worshiping him in ways that he finds to be the most pleasing. Learning how God likes to be worshiped is somewhat like learning how a spouse likes to be complimented or what kinds of gifts a particular friend likes to receive. God shows us in this passage that he likes to be worshiped through celebration and sacrifice. Worship is the humble act of celebration and sacrifice. Celebration helps us cultivate gratitude toward God. Sacrifice is a way of giving back to God a portion of what he has provided us. That ensures that we will always remember that it is God we are dependent on, not the gifts we have received. Today, give yourself the gift of freedom: celebrate and sacrifice as ways of worshiping God.