“Gather My godly ones to Me, Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.”

Psalm 50 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible 

The Mighty One, God, the Lord, has spoken
And summoned the earth, from the rising of the sun to its setting.
² Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God has shone.
³ May our God come and not keep silent;
Fire devours before Him,
And a storm is violently raging around Him.
⁴ He summons the heavens above,
And the earth, to judge His people:
⁵ “Gather My godly ones to Me,
Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.”
⁶ And the heavens declare His righteousness,
For God Himself is judge. Selah

⁷ “Hear, My people, and I will speak;
Israel, I will testify against you;
I am God, your God.
⁸ I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices,
And your burnt offerings are continually before Me.
⁹ I will not take a bull from your house,
Nor male goats from your folds.
¹⁰ For every animal of the forest is Mine,
The cattle on a thousand hills.
¹¹ I know every bird of the mountains,
And everything that moves in the field is Mine.
¹² If I were hungry I would not tell you,
For the world is Mine, and everything it contains.
¹³ Shall I eat the flesh of bulls
Or drink the blood of male goats?
¹⁴ Offer God a sacrifice of thanksgiving
And pay your vows to the Most High;
¹⁵ Call upon Me on the day of trouble;
I will rescue you, and you will honor Me.”

¹⁶ But to the wicked God says,
“What right do you have to tell of My statutes
And to take My covenant in your mouth?
¹⁷ For you yourself hate discipline,
And you throw My words behind you.
¹⁸ When you see a thief, you become friends with him,
And you associate with adulterers.
¹⁹ You let your mouth loose in evil,
And your tongue harnesses deceit.
²⁰ You sit and speak against your brother;
You slander your own mother’s son.
²¹ These things you have done and I kept silent;
You thought that I was just like you;
I will rebuke you and present the case before your eyes.

²² “Now consider this, you who forget God,
Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be no one to save you.
²³ He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me;
And to him who sets his way properly
I will show the salvation of God.”

The psalmist says:  The Mighty One, God, the Lord, has spoken And summoned the earth, from the rising of the sun to its setting. Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God has shone. May our God come and not keep silent; Fire devours before Him, And a storm is violently raging around Him. He summons the heavens above, And the earth, to judge His people:  “Gather My godly ones to Me, Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice.” And the heavens declare His righteousness, For God Himself is judge. Selah   For us, who live on this side of the cross, the sacrifice of our covenant is Jesus death on the cross for our sins. That is what we will be judged by.  In Matthew 26:28 Jesus says: “This is My blood of the covenant, which is being poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.”  

God says:  “Hear, My people, and I will speak; Israel, I will testify against you; I am God, your God. I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices, And your burnt offerings are continually before Me. I will not take a bull from your house, Nor male goats from your folds. For every animal of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills.  I know every bird of the mountains, And everything that moves in the field is Mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, For the world is Mine, and everything it contains. Shall I eat the flesh of bulls Or drink the blood of male goats?”  What could we give God that is not His? Romans 12:1-2 says:  I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and  acceptable and perfect.  Even our bodies and our very lives are His. First, He created us and gave us life, then in Christ He redeemed us and gave us new life, resurrection life. How can we not give back to Him what He both gave us and purchased? 

What can we offer; what can we give?  “Offer God a sacrifice of thanksgiving And pay your vows to the Most High; Call upon Me on the day of trouble; I will rescue you, and you will honor Me.”  He wants only that we would be a thankful people.  A sacrifice of thanksgiving though is not just to be thankful when all is well. It is not only being thankful for circumstances, but rather it is being thankful in all circumstances. We thank God because He is good, even when things are bad.  Philippians 4:11-13 says:  I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with little, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.  Beyond content, we need to be thankful in any and every circumstance. God Himself is all that we need. Psalm 37:4 says: Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart. 

But to the wicked God says, “What right do you have to tell of My statutes And to take My covenant in your mouth? For you yourself hate discipline, And you throw My words behind you. When you see a thief, you become friends with him, And you associate with adulterers. You let your mouth loose in evil, And your tongue harnesses deceit. You sit and speak against your brother; You slander your own mother’s son. These things you have done and I kept silent; You thought that I was just like you; I will rebuke you and present the case before your eyes. Now consider this, you who forget God, Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be no one to save you.  He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; And to him who sets his way properly I will show the salvation of God.”  Jesus, the facilitator of the new covenant says: “Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished! Therefore, whoever nullifies one of the least of these commandments, and teaches others to do the same, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever keeps and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. For I say to you that unless your righteousness far surpasses that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 5:17-20)  “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; leave Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:21-23)    “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.” (John 14:15) 1 Samuel 15:22-23 says: “Does the Lord have as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices As in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than a sacrifice, And to pay attention is better than the fat of rams.  For rebellion is as reprehensible as the sin of divination, And insubordination is as reprehensible as false religion and idolatry.”

We give Thee but Thine own,
Whate’er the gift may be;
All that we have is Thine alone,
A trust, O Lord, from Thee.

Thank You heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ and precious Holy Spirit. I have nothing to offer that is not already Yours, so I give You all that You are do. I give You my life. I give You my obedience and I give You my thanksgiving in any and every circumstance. You are all that I need. Amen.