I.        INTRODUCTION

A.      The very best gift that God ever gave to mankind was in the form of a sacrifice.

                                                             1.      This truth is expressed in a host of Scriptures, including these:

a.       "…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matt. 20:28)

b.       "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

c.        "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom. 5:8)

                                                             2.      It is through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that we have forgiveness of sins, salvation, the hope of eternal life, and every other spiritual blessing (Eph. 1:3).

B.      However, there some things that God desires from man more than sacrifices.  Let us consider the goodness of sacrifices and those things that are even better than sacrifices.

II.      SACRIFICES ARE GOOD, BUT…

A.      Sacrifices are good.

                                                             1.      Sacrifices to God are offerings given as tokens of worship, honor, adoration, and praise.

                                                             2.      The value of a sacrifice is according to how much the sacrifice costs the giver.

a.       David acknowledged this when he said, "I will not offer burnt offerings to the LORD my God which cost me nothing” (2Sam. 24:24).

b.       This is why Jesus valued a poor widow’s small contribution above all others, saying, "Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on” (Luke 21:3-4).

                                                             3.      The very best sacrifices are those spiritual sacrifices.

a.       David acknowledged the goodness of a repentant and remorseful sinner’s sacrifice by saying, "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (Ps. 51:17).

b.       Paul commended Christians to spiritual sacrifices in Romans 12:1 – "Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

c.        Worship itself is a type of spiritual sacrifice, for Hebrews 13:15 says, "Through Him then, let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that give thanks to His name.”

B.      Although sacrifices are good, obedience is better.

                                                             1.      Sacrificing to God valuable offerings shows a degree faith, but submitting completely to the will of God shows an even greater degree of faith.  This is why obedience is better than sacrifice.

                                                             2.      Consider the example of King Saul.

a.       Saul was commanded by God to utterly destroy the Amalekites and their possessions, but instead he spared the king of Amalek and collected the best of their possessions (1Sam. 15:1-9).

b.       When Samuel confronted Saul for his disobedience, Saul foolishly attempted to justify himself by claiming that the sheep and the oxen were for sacrifices (1Sam. 15:10-21).

c.        Samuel’s reply to Saul was:

‘Has the LORD as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the LORD?  Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.  For rebellion is as the sin of divination, and insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry.  Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, He has also rejected you from being king.’” (1Sam. 15:22-23)

                                                             3.      It is evident from the example of Saul that sacrifices are no substitute for obedience to God.

C.      Sacrifices are good, but compassion is better.

                                                             1.      On two different occasions when Jesus was criticized for violating Jewish traditions (not the Law), Jesus exalted compassion above sacrifice.

a.       When the Pharisees criticized Jesus for eating with tax-gatherers and sinners, Jesus said, "But go and learn what this means: ‘I desire compassion, and not sacrifice,’ for I did not come to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matt. 9:13; the Lord quoted Hos. 6:6).

b.       When the Pharisees accused Christ’s disciples of breaking the Sabbath, the Lord said, "But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire compassion, and not a sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the innocent” (Matt. 12:7).

c.        On both occasions, Jesus identified compassion, a trait which the Pharisees lacked, as more desirable to God than sacrifice, a trait which the Pharisees valued most of all (see Matt. 23:23).

                                                             2.      In truth, most acts of compassion are also acts of sacrifice that please God.

a.       The compassionate deeds of the good Samaritan required him to sacrifice his own time and money (Luke 10:29-37).  His sacrifice of compassion made him a good neighbor.

b.       Christians should practice compassion as a type of spiritual sacrifice: "And do not neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices God is pleased” (Heb. 13:16).

D.      Sacrifices are no good if they are without love.

                                                             1.      The apostle Paul declared the worthlessness of a loveless sacrifice in 1Corinthians 13:3 – "And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.”

                                                             2.      A sacrifice that is without love is likely motivated by a desire to be seen by men.

a.       The Lord warned against almsgiving, a form of sacrifice, that is done to be seen by men (Matt. 6:1-4).  He taught that the giver of such a sacrifice has his reward in full, meaning that he has no reward coming from God.

b.       An example of such a sacrifice is that of Ananias and Sapphria, who misrepresented their offering apparently for their own glory (Acts 5:1-11).  Not only did their sacrifice not profit them, but rather it cost them everything.

E.       Sacrifices are no good without righteousness.

                                                             1.      Just as God desires obedience and compassion more than sacrifice, so also He desires righteousness more than sacrifice.

a.       Notice Proverbs 21:3 – "To do righteousness and justice is desired by the LORD more than sacrifice.”

b.       Sacrifices cannot make a person righteous.  One cannot practice sin and wickedness and then "buy” his righteousness by making sacrifices.

                                                             2.      Not only are sacrifices without righteousness no good, but they are actually offenses to God.

a.       This truth is expressed in the following Proverbs:

i.         "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight.” (Prov. 15:8)

ii.        "The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination, how much more when he brings it with evil intent!” (Prov. 21:27)

b.       A wicked man only multiplies his wickedness when he offers sacrifices to God in self-righteous hypocrisy.

III.   CONCLUSION

A.      In no way should the value of sacrifices be diminished, but their great worth is exceeded in value by other traits that God desires even more: obedience, compassion, love, and righteousness.

B.      Let us give God all that He desires, which is our very best.  Certainly, He is worthy.