Sacrifices Through Jesus

There is a very intriguing verse in the epistle of Peter that says, “like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:5). What are these sacrifices? I admit I had to do something research. Most believe it is priestly duties of fasting, prayer, worship, and alms. I however, found the Got Answers list to be rather more in tune with other Scriptures, “Spiritual sacrifices include the believer's prayers, praises, will, bodies, time, and talents.” Of those that stood out to me talents, for Jesus gives a prable of the talents, which many view as money, but I believe it purposefully named to fit what it means today,

“For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. He who had received the five talents went at once and traded with them, and he made five talents more. So also he who had the two talents made two talents more. But he who had received the one talent went and dug in the ground and hid his master's money. Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them. And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here, I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.[c] You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’ And he also who had the two talents came forward, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me two talents; here, I have made two talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here, you have what is yours.’ But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents.  For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 25:14-30). Notice in the verse he says, “you know i reap where I did not sow,” which alludes to because it is Jesus Christi n us when we do these sacrifices, these talents, for as He said Gospel of John, ““Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5). This makes perfect sense because our talents come from God, but as the parable in Matthew says we msut use that talent wisely! We must multiply it, not bury it in the ground. 

We our in symbiotic relationship with the Son of God our Savior. Everything we do is through him, “For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength,” (Philippians 4:13). The reason for this is when we confessed Jesus as Lord this transpired, “For anyone who confesses Jesus as Son of God, God lives in them, and they live in God.” (1 John 4:16). As the apostle clarifies this symbiosis we have with Our Savior, “My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20). When we make sacrifices we make it through Jesus Christ The Son of God and Lord God because where He begins and we end, and where we Begin and He End is like a figure eight!  And while many will make sacrifices of prayer, fasting, and worship, all good things, and I believe those are sacrifices but I feel talents is key, that we have gifts in this world and to use them through Christ and for His kingdom. This is most obvious in musicians like Handel who gave us The Messiah, artists like Da Vinci with the Last Supper, and Mel Gibson a director with The Passion of Christ. Though it need not always be so direct, others have done great allegories like Paul Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress, Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, and C.S. Lewis’ The Space Trilogy. The point is that we use those talents to glorify the Trinity, to use the sacrifice of our time on this earth to draw attention to Truth, Jesus Christ, while others seek to draw attention to themselves, and even the dark forces of this present darkness. Amen.