In this blog, I provide encouragement and biblical teaching on pleasing the Lord and offering sacrifices that are acceptable to the Lord.
As the Scripture says:
“To love Him with all the heart and with all the understanding and with
all the strength, and love one’s neighbor as himself, is much more than
all burnt offerings and sacrifices.” (Mar 12:33).
“And walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for
us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” (Eph 5:2).
"For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings." (Hos 6:6, NIV)
Some of the topics covered are the supreme sacrifice of Christ, laying down your life for others, cross bearing, suffering, walking in love, showing mercy, and living an unselfish life. I hope this will be an edifying and encouraging experience for you that will help you to grow in your walk with the Lord.
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you
repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible
says?
“Jesus
came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time
is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in
the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and
believe.
Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.
He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as
well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who
multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of
planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United
States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.
The Lord Jesus said there would be many who claim Him as Lord, but do not do the will of the Father. He taught that such people would not enter the kingdom of God, regardless of their profession of Him as Lord. Rather they would be shut out as evildoers.
The apostle Paul, in his epistle to the Ephesians, said Christ’s purpose for both Jews and Gentiles was “…In this one Body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross…” (Eph 2:16, NIV).
There is one Body of Christ. This one Body has been crucified on the cross and raised from the dead. His purpose was to reconcile us (both Jews and Gentiles) to God in this Body on the cross. Anyone who becomes a part of this Body must also be crucified with Christ in order to do so. Otherwise they cannot be a member of this Body, nor can they be reconciled to God. They cannot have access to the Father by one Spirit (Eph 2:18), nor can they be sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus (Eph 3:16).
We must truly say with the apostle, “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Gal 2:20)
To claim membership in the Body of Christ without being crucified with Him is to abuse the grace of God, which insults the Spirit of grace. Regarding those who live this way, the apostle Paul wrote, “How much severer punishment do you think he will deserve who has trampled under foot the Son of God, and has regarded as unclean the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge His people.’ It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Heb 10:29-31)
This is just as Jesus taught: "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. "Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'" (Mat 7:21-23). Jesus doesn't know those who claim to belong to Him, but who do not do the will of His Father in heaven. Since they practice lawlessness, He will tell them to depart from Him.
Being crucified with Christ is not a static thing. It's not a one-time historical thing that happened to you one day when you got saved. Jesus was saying to them all, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me." (Luk 9:23). If you wish to come after Jesus, you must deny yourself, daily take up your cross, and follow Him.
Have you been crucified with Christ? Are you daily denying yourself, taking up your cross daily, and following Jesus?
Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you
repent and believe in Jesus. Do you know what God's Word, the Bible
says?
“Jesus
came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time
is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in
the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and
believe.
Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.
He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as
well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who
multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of
planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United
States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org
What are you willing to do to please the Lord? Jesus always did the things that were pleasing to the Father.
He said, "And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him." (Joh 8:29).
The Father confirmed this at the Lord's baptism, when He came up out of the water. The Scripture says, "Behold, a voice out of the heavens said, 'This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.'" (Mat 3:17)
He was willing to do anything to please the Father. Even when it was the Father's will to crush Him, He said, "Not My will, but Yours be done." (Lk 22:42). That's love!
Not only does it require love, but it also requires faith to please God. The apostle Paul said, "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. (Heb 11:6)
The apostle John wrote about having confidence when we pray, and receiving answers to prayer from God. He wrote: “Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and whatever we ask we receive from Him, because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.” (1Jn 3:21-22). John taught that the reason we receive whatever we ask from Him is because we keep His commandments and do the things that are pleasing in His sight.
Speaking of obedience, Paul admonished the Philippians to always obey, when he wrote to them, "So then, my beloved, just as you have
always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my
absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God
who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." (Php 2:12-13). We, too, as disciples of Christ, must always obey, whether or not anyone is watching. We must work out our salvation with fear and trembling, since God is the One at work within us, both to will and to work for His good pleasure. He desires to accomplish His will in us and do that which is pleasing to Him. However, we must surrender to His will and obey Him for that to be fulfilled. That requires daily self-denial and cross-bearing.
Jesus said, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it. For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?" (Luk 9:23-25). If you want to find life, you must lose your life for Christ's sake.
When you come to know Jesus, your whole life belongs to Him. Paul said, "For the love of Christ controls us, having concluded this, that one died for all, therefore all died; and He died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf." (2Co 5:14-15). That means that since Christ died for you, and rose again on your behalf, you must no longer live for yourself but for Him. Your life is not your own any more, but you are crucified with Christ.
You can tell whether a person's whole life is surrendered to the Lord by the words of their mouth, as well as their actions. David prayed, "May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer." (Psa 19:14, NIV 1984). Let it be our prayer, too! David wanted not only his actions, but even his thoughts and words, to be holy. He wanted the Lord to govern every part of his life, in order to make it pleasing to Him.
Let the Lord control every aspect of your life. That includes your finances, which means your tithes and offerings (Mal 3:10; Lk 6:38). It also includes how you spend your time on the Lord’s Day, which is Sunday (Ex 20:8; Ac 20:7-8). The Holy Spirit spoke through the prophet Isaiah, "If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot from doing your own pleasure on My holy day, And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the LORD honorable, And honor it, desisting from your own ways, From seeking your own pleasure And speaking your own word, Then you will take delight in the LORD, And I will make you ride on the heights of the earth; And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father, For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (Isa 58:13-14).
The Lord’s Day each week is holy, and we must keep it holy. It’s not a day to do profane, common, secular things, such as working, shopping, spending money, and recreational activities. That means you must turn your foot from doing your own pleasure, honor the Lord's Day, cease from your own ways, from seeking your own pleasure and speaking your own word. Then you will take delight in the Lord, live a victorious life, and the Lord will feed you both now in this life and hereafter in the kingdom of God.
Paul prayed for the Colossians, so that they might please the Lord in every way. He said, "For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you. We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives, so that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please Him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." (Col 1:9-10, NIV). My brother or sister in Christ, are you living a life worthy of the Lord and pleasing Him in every way? In order to do so, you need to be filled with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives.
Paul said, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.” (2Co 5:9). So whether we are at home in the body and absent from the Lord, or absent from the body and at home with the Lord, we make it our aim to be pleasing to Him. In fact, we are zealous to do so!
He wrote to the Thessalonians, urging them, "As for other matters, brothers and sisters, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more." (1 Thes 4:1, NIV)
He also admonished the Ephesians to “Find out what pleases the Lord.” (Eph 5:10. NIV). That's what we should do also. The Holy Spirit teaches us what pleases the Lord, and He does through various means. He does so through His Word, His conviction, His leading, His guidance, and His gifts, as well as through visions and revelations from the Lord. But regardless of how He shows us, it will always agree with the Word of God.
Try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord. Then any changes you make in your life should be out of total love for Jesus, understanding Who He is and who you are in Him. Your attitude should be that because you love Him with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, you will do whatever pleases Him by faith through the power of the Holy Spirit.
“Jesus
came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time
is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in
the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15). He preached that we must repent and
believe.
Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.
He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as
well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who
multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of
planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United
States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org
