Reciprocate

1 Kings 3:^4-5 “…Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon during the night in a dream, and God said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.”

The God of creation creates from nothing. God creates from little. No god can stand against Him. The fourth thing you need to know about the God of creation is that He Responds To Sacrifice. In the Book of Genesis, the story of Cain and Abel, God responded to the sacrifice of Abel and ignored the sacrifice of Cain. Elijah on Mount Carmel called forth fire, God responded to Elijah’s sacrifice. You have been sacrificing, fasting, and praying; God has been perceiving the fragrance of your sacrifice. In this season, God will respond to your sacrifice. For those of us who are yet to bring sacrifices before God in this season, my prayer is that grace will locate you. When you are in good company where good things are happening, good things will happen to you.

However, there is something you and I need to understand about God. 1 Cor. 8:⁶ “But for us, there is one God, the Father, by whom all things were created, and for whom we live. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things were created, and through whom we live.” (emphasis added). Rom.3:²⁵ “For God presented Jesus as the sacrifice for sin. People are made right with God when they believe that Jesus sacrificed his life, shedding his blood. This sacrifice shows that God was being fair when he held back and did not punish those who sinned in times past” (emphasis added). The world was made by God, through Jesus. For God to regain the world from sin, God did not decree it, or veto it, or command it. God sacrificed! He is God but He sacrificed. God is showing us that His justice remains.

Even though all things were made by God and through Him, God still sacrificed. But for Him to access it, He sacrificed. I know we are a claiming and naming generation – we name it and we claim it. But the truth is that you cannot get by claiming what is only available by sacrifice. For you to access all that God has for you, you must sacrifice. To access certain things, you must pay the price in sacrifice. God is waiting for you to pay the price so that doors can be opened. As you pay the price this season, in the Name of Jesus, the doors will be open (say Amen). I know that a lot of bad press has happened to the Catholic church. Notwithstanding, one thing we must learn from the Catholic church is sacrifice. A lot of people have varying opinions for and against their theology but that is not the focus. Learn from their sacrifice.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, as You lead me and empower me to bring sacrifices before You in this season, help me also find mercy and favour with You, in Jesus Name. Amen!