They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. (Revelation 14:3 NKJV)
Hezekiah, at the age of twenty-five, came to the throne, and decided to reverse his father's evil policy. The doors of the Temple were re-opened, and under his direction the Levites were commissioned to cleanse the desecrated courts of the rubbish and filth that had been allowed to accumulate. After eight days of strenuous labor, they were able to report that their work was successfully accomplished; that the altar of burnt offering and the table of shewbread were ready for the renewal of their desired service. It was good news, and in the early morning of a memorable day, the king, accompanied by his princes and officers of state, took part in a solemn service of rededication. Amid the tense expectancy of the vast congregation which had assembled, Hezekiah commanded that the burnt sacrifice should be offered; and "when the burnt offering began, the song of the Lord began also."
These ancient sacrifices have passed forever. "Sacrifice and offering You do not desire; mine ears have You pierced (nailing me to Your cross); burnt offering and sin offering have You not required. Then said I, Lo, I come, I delight to do Your will, O my God!" To yield up one's life to the Savior, to surrender our lives for others for His sake, to maintain the steadfast resolve of self-sacrifice, this surely fulfils the conception of the burnt offering, which the king ordered that morning as the symbol of national devotion to the will of God. Can we wonder that the Song of the Lord began also? Doesn't that same song arise in every heart when the sacrifice of love and obedience begins?
It is the self-contained life that has made itself comfortable within its four walls, sound-proof, sorrow-proof, as it thinks, and love-proof, which is without song and contemptible.
Our Lord said: "'Whosoever shall lose his life for My sake shall find it." That finding is the correcting and source of the "Song of the Lord.'" Unite yourself with Jesus on the cross, and one day you will find yourself sharing with Him the new song of accomplished redemption!
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, give us loving and thankful hearts. May Your mercies bind us like cords to the horns of the altar. Let our whole nature be consecrated for Your indwelling, and as the burnt offering begins, may the Song of the Lord begin also in our hearts. I pray in Jesus' name, AMEN.
God's Daily Promise
Promise #329:
I will bless the poor in spirit with My kingdom.
Matthew 5:3 (WEB)
“Blessed are the poor in
spirit,
for theirs is the Kingdom of
Heaven.
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