We’ve been described as a generation that will not sacrifice. This rebuke speaks of our lack of discipline in giving, fasting, and praying, so I’d like to take a look at the generation that came before us. Some of our parents went hungry. Some have lost loved ones. Almost all of them have endured hardships as immigrants in ways that will forever be unfamiliar to you and me. This contributes in part to the huge disparity between their sense of sacrifice and our flimsy, modern day work ethic.
Our parents’ generation wasn’t a group of angels, either. With a strong sense of sacrifice and service is the pitfall of locking into the thinking that your hardwork earns you some merit. Works-based salvation, however, isn’t the topic of discussion here. Having breakfast with a brother this morning, something I came across while reading, and how the rest of my day went this Thursday, October 26th prompted me to ask myself: “Why do I consistently fail at making sacrifices to further God’s kingdom and will?”
I think the biggest deterrent standing in the way of a believer about to make significant sacrifices for the sake of a good purpose isn’t the weight of the sacrifice itself; it’s the inability to see the fruit that will come of it. The following is from something I’ve been reading:
“He had to make real sacrifices. And when you think about it, sacrifice – along with the ability to make sacrifices – is something like a forgotten virtue in much of modern life. Or at least, it’s under-appreciated. We tend to think of it in almost wholly negative terms, focusing on what we’re being asked to give up, and losing sight of the value of the goal that cannot be attained without the sacrifice. A sacrifice is always a down payment, or an up-front cost. It’s both rational and beneficial when what is being purchased by that cost is of great good, and can’t be attained in any other way.”
We make sacrifices all the time. If we value something, we will give up things to attain it. Trouble is, we tend to sacrifice the good things to gain the wrong things, usually for our own profit. In a sense, this isn’t sacrifice at all – it’s a combination of being self-absorbed and thoroughly foolish. Often, we have our value system all warped out of shape, or completely upside down.
I think one of the reasons why Jesus did what He did was because He had His eyes fixed on the objective His Father had in mind: the glory of the kingdom by the redemption of humankind. Every waking moment, He had the heart, mind, eyes, hands, and soul of the Father. And so the sacrifice awaiting Him wasn’t the point of focus for our Lord (His own life). Instead, He was consumed by what the sacrifice would yield (our lives). For Him, the fulfillment of God’s will on earth superseded the exceedingly painful and bitter means of attaining it, for our sake. What a wondrous and immensely powerful love He had for us as He went to the cross… what a love He has for us still. He demonstrated to us the truth and meaning of sacrifice.
One of the things I’ve been asking God for is a set of eyes to recognize the beauty and majesty of His world: His glory, His pleasure at seeing the lost come to Him through our witness, His vindication at His people praising Him in the midst of adversity, His honor when His children humble themselves at His throne. These eyes of mine still see this present world as valuable, with all its offerings of pleasure, power, and knowledge. These appeal to my earthly senses. I strive and hope to count all other things in me and around me as loss in order to attain an inheritance that will last forever. I pray that God help me as I try not to dwell on the object of whatever sacrifice He requires, but on the gift of eternal life He has freely given me.
