1 Peter 2:4-5 NKJV
4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, rejected indeed by men but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
One of the roles of the priest in the old covenant was to present sacrifices to God on behalf of the people. In the new covenant, Jesus our high priest became a sacrifice once and for all, meaning we no longer have to present blood sacrifices before God.
That said, we do have spiritual sacrifices we are meant to present as believers in the New Testament.
Romans 12:1 NKJV
I beseech[a] you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your [b]reasonable service.
As we know, sacrifices are dead things, meaning we daily must offer our bodies as a sacrifice by being dead to the things of the flesh, not giving in to the desires of the flesh but instead fulfilling the desires of the Spirit.
Hebrews 13:15-16 NKJV
15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, [a]giving thanks to His name. 16 But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
Our verbal praise unto God is a sacrifice expected of us. We do not only praise when things look OK, even when things are rough, we still praise. May we not be like the Israelites who continually complained in the wilderness and this displeased God.
When we do good to others and share what we have with them from a heart of love, then these are things God considers sacrifices unto him. No wonder, the Bible tells us that what we do, we do unto the Lord.
Romans 15:15-16 NKJV
15 Nevertheless, brethren, I have written more boldly to you on some points, as reminding you, because of the grace given to me by God, 16 that I might be a minister of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, ministering the gospel of God, that the offering [a]of the Gentiles might be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
Paul the great Apostle talks about how ministering to the gentiles and offering them to God is acceptable and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. This means that when we do evangelism and minister the gospel to others, bringing them to the Lord, then that is considered a spiritual sacrifice.
Philippians 4:18 NKJV
Indeed I [a]have all and abound. I am full, having received from Epaphroditus the things sent from you, a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God.
In his time of need, Paul received financial help from the church in Phillipi and he calls it a sweet-smelling aroma, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. This tells us that our giving is a spiritual sacrifice that pleases God.
Revelation 8:3-4 NKJV
3 Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand.
The Prayers of the saints are also a spiritual sacrifice offered unto God.
The question is, how many believers have the understanding that these things are a spiritual sacrifice unto God?
Reflections
Which of the above sacrifices do you offer the most to the Lord?
Which one do you offer the least?
What are you going to do to change your response and commitment?
