A Sacrifice of Praise
Date: November 26, 2024
I use the BLESS method every morning for my devotional.
B - Bible Verse
L - Listen for God's Voice and pray
E - Explore the History and meaning
S - Study the Key Words or Phrases
S - Summarize and Share
B - Bible Verse in NIV (Hebrews 13:15) "Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name."
L - Listen for God's Voice and pray Heavenly Father, thank You for the privilege of offering praise through Jesus. Help us to cultivate hearts that praise You even when it feels like a sacrifice. May our lips be quick to profess Your name and our lives be a constant testimony to Your goodness. In Jesus' name, Amen.
E - Explore the History and meaning The author of Hebrews wrote this near the end of the letter, after explaining how Jesus fulfilled and replaced the old system of animal sacrifices. Instead of bringing animal sacrifices to the temple, believers are now called to offer a different kind of sacrifice - our praise. This praise isn't just for good times but should be continuous, even when it feels costly.
S - Study the Key Words or Phrases
"Through Jesus" - Our praise is made acceptable because of Christ
"Sacrifice of praise" - Worship that costs us something
"Continually" - Ongoing, not just occasional
"Fruit of lips" - Verbal expression of praise and testimony
S - Summarize and Share
Sometimes we think of praise as something we do when everything's going great. But here, the writer of Hebrews talks about a "sacrifice of praise" - and that word "sacrifice" really catches my attention.
Think about it - a sacrifice costs us something. When we praise God during difficult times, when we choose to lift up His name even when we don't feel like it - that's a sacrifice of praise. It's saying, "God, even though this is hard, even though I might not understand, I still choose to praise You."
And notice how this verse starts with "Through Jesus." That's so important! It's because of Jesus that we can approach God with our praise. We don't need to go through priests or bring animal sacrifices anymore. Jesus has made the way for us to come directly to God with our worship.
The word "continually" shows us that this isn't just a Sunday morning thing. It's meant to be our everyday response - in good times and hard times, in joy and in sorrow. Our praise becomes like a constant melody playing in the background of our lives.
When we offer this kind of praise - consistent, costly, Christ-centered praise - it becomes a powerful testimony. That's what "fruit of lips that openly profess his name" means. Our praise tells the world about the God we serve.
Today, let's commit to offering God our sacrifice of praise. Whether life is easy or hard right now, let's choose to lift up His name. Through Jesus, our praise becomes a beautiful offering to God.