By in large, the Church of Jesus Christ in America is filled with powerless people because we REFUSE to SACRIFICE!  The Power of God needed to transform our homes, neighborhoods, Churches, Cities, States and Nations will only be released when we’re willing to become living sacrifices.

I recommend a short prayer to you…

Lord Jesus, I know you said if I’m not willing to deny myself, take up my cross and follow you, I’m not worthy to be your disciple.  I know this means unless I’m willing to do all three, I will not have access to all that comes from being your disciple.  Lord Jesus, teach me to be a willing sacrifice and to be willing to sacrifice what’s important to me so that I can receive power from you.

The opening line is fully intended to provoke a strong reaction.  The Church in America really needs a wake-up call, and God is sure to provide it.

I want to invite you to read, study and investigate the following obscure passage of scripture.  I’ve included the King James and the God’s Word version of this passage for the sake of clarity.

And they beat down the cities, and on every good piece of land cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the wells of water, and felled all the good trees: only in Kirharaseth left they the stones thereof; howbeit the slingers went about it, and smote it.  And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew swords, to break through even unto the king of Edom: but they could not.  Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt offering upon the wall. And there was great indignation against Israel: and they departed from him, and returned to their own land.

2 Kings 3:25-27 (KJV)

 

Then Israel tore down the cities, each man throwing rocks on every good field until it was covered. They sealed every well and cut down every good tree. Only the stones {in the walls} of Kir Hareseth were left. Soldiers surrounded Kir Hareseth and attacked it with slings and stones.  When the king of Moab saw he was losing the battle, he took 700 swordsmen to try to break through to the king of Edom. But they couldn’t do it.  Then he took his firstborn son, who would have succeeded him as king, and “sacrificed” him on “the wall” as a burnt offering. There was bitter anger against the Israelites. So they went home to their own country.

2 Kings 3:26-27 (GW)

Here’s the back story behind these verses of scripture

• Through the mighty hand of Jehovah, Mesha the King of Moab, has been made subject to the nation of Israel and as a result pays tribute to the Northern Kingdom of Israel which used to be led by Ahab and Jezebel.  Now, one of their sons Jehoram is on the throne.  Jehoram is an ungodly king ruling over God’s people.  King Mesha decides to stop paying the tribute, which causes Jehoram to join forces with Jehoshaphat and the King of Edom to restore the tribute (money).
• Jehoram, although he’s successful in getting the King of Judah and the King of Edom to join him, is full of ungodly fear II Kings 3:10.
• Since King Jehoram is so afraid, King Jehoshaphat suggests going to inquire of Elisha, the set prophet in Israel at the time.  Although Elisha has a serious issue with King Jehoram, he agrees to inquire of the Lord on the behalf of Jehoshaphat.  God confirms Himself by revealing to Elisha the fear in the heart of King Jehoram.  In addition, God tells them that He has given Moab into their hands.  II Kings 3:11-17
• They have the Word of the Lord and seemingly they have unity.  So what happened?…

This is where we pick up the opening passage of scripture in this article.  The battle started out as expected.  Armed with the Word of the Lord and unity, the three kings proceed to prevail and win the battle against Mesha the King of Moab.  That is, until they come to the Wall of Kir Haraseth.  The wall was the best stronghold the Moabites had ever erected.  The wall was built high on a mountain and was impenetrable.  The scripture records the fact that the slingers, or those using catapults and other devices began to do serious damage to the stronghold, which caused Mesha to become desperate and summon the powers of darkness to stop Israel and Edom from destroying the last and most impenetrable stronghold that stood between the fulfillment of the prophetic word from God by the mouth the Prophet Elisha concerning the defeat of Moab.

This is the focus of this post.  Unfortunately, since satan was created, anointed and empowered by God Himself, he understands the technology that governs all that God created better than most of God’s people.  Satan understands the POWER OF SACRIFICE!

The scripture records that when Mesha saw the Moabites could not prevent Israel and Edom from prevailing against their last defense stronghold, he resorted to an extraordinary measure.  He took his oldest son, the apparent heir to the throne in Moab, and sacrificed him on the very wall that the Israelites and Edomites were well on their way to conquering.  After performing this act of demonic worship to the Moabite false God Chemosh, the scripture tells us that Great Indignation or great wrath and anger was released against Israel and Edom.  This demonic sacrifice released demonic power which sent Israel and Edom retreating from the battle, even though they had a Word from the God that rules in the kingdom of men.  So what happened here?  This is the question every spirit filled believer should be asking her of himself?

The Power of an Evil Sacrifice

Here’s what happened.  The wall that Mesha sacrificed his son on was a wall dedicated in witchcraft to the false god Chemosh.  If you ever have time, look up the Moabite Stone here (http://www.bible-history.com/resource/ff_mesha.htm).  You’ll find that the testimony found on the stone reveals that the demonic power that ruled over the humans in Moab spoke to them and commanded them to perform these acts of demonic worship in order to keep other kingdoms from prevailing against them in battle.

The King of Moab understood the principle that sacrifice releases power!  Whether evil or good, the principle stands no matter what.  It’s similar to the power of giving, it’ll work for whoever is willing to honor the principle.

The Power of a Holy Sacrifice

Don’t believe there is power released when humans are willing to sacrifice that which is important to them?  Consider the following examples:

1. God establishes the pattern of sacrifice that would mark the Adamic race in Genesis.  By sacrificing an animal, Adam and Eve were allowed to live and power was released so that the following generations would begin to call upon the name of the Lord again.
2. God calls Abraham from the Moabite tradition of human sacrifice.  By the way, this one is a freebie, did you know that Lot’s son was the father of the Moabites?  You remember Lot, the crazy cousin that caused Abraham so much trouble.  However, in order to test Abraham, God asks him to sacrifice the most important thing God ever gave him.  Once Abraham demonstrates that he feared God enough to obey Him at all levels of sacrifice, power was released to transform Abraham from an idol worshiper to the father of faith.
3. God calls Moses to sacrifice the riches, wealth and honor of Egypt in order to release the power necessary to transform Moses into a deliverer.
4. Finally, the greatest demonstration of sacrifice of all, the lamb that was slain.  Jesus willingly sacrifices His own life so that “ALL” power would be given to Him and in turn given to us to prevail against the enemy of our souls.

It’s God’s desire to intervene in the day to day situations that seem to be so full of hopelessness.  However, unless the people of God are willing to become living sacrifices, while we can worship God all day long, the power of God necessary to transform our environments will remain in heaven.  Romans 12:1

Jesus Himself set the pattern for the life of sacrifice that every Christian should be modeling.  Jesus has made every spiritual resource available to us to live holy and godly lives.  However, our willingness to live sacrificial lives becomes the determining factor in just how we experience the resources made available to us.

Practical Application

Okay, so what does it mean to live a sacrificial life.  Of course, only God can accurately answer that question for you.  However, maybe these suggestions will inspire you to pray and ask God for wisdom specific to your life.

1. Reading/Studying the Word of God – Your willingness to study the Word of God on your own time, not just while in Church, will cause the power of God to be released into your life.  In this age of “Mass Distraction“, your decision to sacrifice entertainment for spiritual growth will be honored by God.
2. Tithing – This is a willing sacrifice of the reward you get for expending the most precious asset you’ve been given by God, time!  The tithe (no matter what you want to call it) is Holy and your decision to give it faithfully will cause the power of God to be released into your life.  II Timothy 3:1-4 tells us that the days we live in will be marked by unprecedented selfishness and covetousness.  Your willingness to give despite the cultural norms will cause the power of God to be released on your behalf.
3. Serving Others – Isn’t it amazing, our Lord said He did not come to be served but to serve.  However, the culture in America has deceived many into believing that the more you are served the more successful you are.  Your willingness to serve others despite your own needs will cause the power of God to flow into your life.
4. Serving the Kingdom of God With Your Talents – The Church needs technical people that know how to repair computers.  The Church needs mathematical people that know how to do accounting.  The Church needs people trained in the academic sciences of human behavior.  The Church needs people gifted in the area of organization and administration.  The Church needs people gifted at plumbing and HVAC services.  Your willingness to yield your talents to the Church, WITHOUT EXPECTING COMPENSATION, will cause the power of God to be released into your life, your family, your community, your business, etc…

Well, those are four practical examples of ways we can become living sacrifices for our God and the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I recommend a short prayer to you…

Lord Jesus, I know you said if I’m not willing to deny myself, take up my cross and follow you, I’m not worthy to be your disciple.  I know this means unless I’m willing to do all three, I will not have access to all that comes from being your disciple.  Lord Jesus, teach me to be a willing sacrifice and to be willing to sacrifice what’s important to me so that I can receive power from you.