Does My Sacrifice Live? – A Reflection on Genesis 22:9

The Parable of the Living Offering

A sculptor once set out to create a masterpiece. He gathered tools and began chiseling away at a block of marble. To his dismay, he found that the marble resisted his efforts, cracking in ways he didn’t intend. Frustrated, he cried out, “What do you want from me?” A voice whispered back, “Not the destruction of the marble, but its transformation into something beautiful.”

The sculptor realized his task was not to break the marble but to refine it, removing only what hindered the beauty within. This parable reflects God’s work in our lives. He doesn’t call us to give up everything for the sake of sacrifice itself but to let go of what hinders His life within us so that we might live as His masterpiece.

Reflection on "Does My Sacrifice Live?"

Oswald Chambers challenges us to reconsider the nature of sacrifice. Often, we misunderstand God’s call, imagining He desires the ultimate sacrifice of death. Instead, God calls us to live as sacrifices—fully offered to Him, transformed by our union with Christ’s death and resurrection.

1. The Purpose of Sacrifice:
   Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac was not about giving up something for its own sake. Rather, it was about trusting God completely and loosening his grip on anything that could hinder his relationship with Him. Similarly, God calls us to release anything that interferes with our life in Him, but only so that we can embrace the fullness of life with Him.

2. Identification with Christ’s Death:
   Chambers emphasizes that God doesn’t want our lives merely given up in death but identified with Jesus’ death. In Christ’s death, we are set free from the power of sin and self. This identification allows us to live as “living sacrifices” (Romans 12:1), offering every aspect of ourselves to God for His purposes.

3. The Beauty of Life With God:
   God’s ultimate desire is not our destruction but our transformation. By loosening the bands of sin, self-effort, and misplaced attachments, we are free to experience the fullness of life with Him. Every sacrifice we make in Christ is not a loss but a gain, leading us into deeper intimacy with God.

Practical Applications

1. Offer Yourself as a Living Sacrifice:
   Ask God to show you what areas of your life are hindering your relationship with Him. Release them not for the sake of giving them up but to make room for more of His life in you.

2. Focus on Transformation, Not Loss:
   Remember that God’s call to sacrifice is always for the sake of something better. Trust Him to use every surrender as a means of refining and renewing you.

3. Live in the Power of Christ’s Death and Resurrection:
   Being identified with Christ’s death means living in the freedom and power of His resurrection. Let every area of your life reflect His victory over sin and self.

Reflection Questions

1. Are there areas in your life that you have been unwilling to release to God, fearing the cost of sacrifice?

2. How does the concept of being a “living sacrifice” challenge your understanding of what God desires from you?

3. What does it mean to you to be identified with Christ’s death and to live in the power of His resurrection?

Prayer

Lord, we thank You that You do not call us to sacrifice for the sake of loss but for the sake of life with You. Help us to loosen our grip on anything that hinders our relationship with You. May we live as living sacrifices, fully offered to You and transformed by Your life within us. Amen.

Closing Thought

True sacrifice is not about giving up but about being transformed. As we are identified with Christ’s death, we are set free to live as holy, living sacrifices, reflecting His glory and fulfilling His purposes.

This post draws inspiration from Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest, encouraging us to live fully surrendered and fully alive in Christ.