THE RIGHT HEART

Psalm 50:14-15  Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High,
15  and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me."

In the Old Testament God gave Israel laws that guided them in their offering of sacrifices and the celebration of feasts.  In this psalm, God made sure that the Israelites understood the heart of it.  There always was the danger of Israelites performing sacrifices and celebrating feasts without really realizing what God desired from them, and what He wanted to see in their hearts.  Eventually this was what happened to most of them.

We, Christians, have the same tendency to fall into the same trap of doing the externals without really understanding what God desires from that action or work?  How many of us attend Sunday thinking God is pleased with attendance, and forget that He checks the heart.  How many still serve the Lord in ministry, hoping to gain “plus points” with the Lord, and not with the right motive?  This is, what I believe, the Lord was dealing with in this psalm.

Psalm 50:7-13  "Hear, O my people, and I will speak, O Israel, and I will testify against you: I am God, your God.
8  I do not rebuke you for your sacrifices or your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
9  I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens,
10  for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.
11  I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine.
12  If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
13  Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats?

God was not after their bulls or goats, for every animal of the field is His.  And God did not eat what they brought to the temple.  God has, and will always be, after the heart of the worshipper.  everything we do externally – attend Sunday, give our tithes, serve in ministry, give to the poor – all of these are useless without the right heart.

And what heart was God after?

Psalm 50:14-15 Sacrifice thank offerings to God, fulfill your vows to the Most High,
15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me."

SACRIFICE THANK OFFERINGS TO GOD.  As they were offering sacrifice, their concern was not that they were doing it, but in their hearts they were coming with thankful hearts, thanking the Lord for who He is, for His faithfulness and goodness in their lives.

Giving thanks to God acknowledges His presence and His working in our lives.  We recognize that He is the source of all blessing, that He is the One who gives us strength to accomplish things, and that without Him we would have nothing.  This is why thanksgiving, as simple as it may sound, is pleasing to the Lord.  It is acknowledging that our trust and dependence has been in Him all along.

FULFILL YOUR VOWS TO THE MOST HIGH.  I think all of us have made a vow to the Lord at one time or another.  It usually comes with an “offering” or prayer.  “Lord, if you grant me this desire I will…”; or “Lord I will serve you with all my heart, wherever and whenever…”.  Sound familiar?  I’m sure the Israelites came to their temple and celebrated feasts with the same heart, offering vows to the Lord.  But the question is – did they fulfill them?

God is not concerned with a vow in itself, but in a heart that is sincere and true when the vow is spoken.  How many of have sincerely come to the Lord and offered our time, money and strength for Him?  Fulfill it.  That’s all God desires.  Why?  He deserves it.

CALL UPON ME IN THE DAY OF TROUBLE.  Another thing God asks – total dependence upon Him.  Many call upon the Lord when they are in deep trouble, because there are some troubles that they feel they can solve on their own.  But God wants us calling upon Him every day, for all troubles, big or small.

It shows our dependence upon the Lord.  And He is pleased with that.  He sees our hearts and knows that we won’t last a day without Him, and that we don’t depend on anyone or anything else in this world.

God’s promise: I will deliver you, and you will honor me."  And this is what pleases God the most – that we honor Him, above all, above everyone else, above all things!  Giving God the honor that only He deserves, for every victory, every vow fulfilled and every blessing!

This is how God wants us coming before Him.  These are what God wants our hearts filled with when we come to Him.  Everything else external does not matter unless we come in THANKSGIVING, we FUFILL OUR VOWS, and we CALL UPON HIM IN THE DAY OF TROUBLE.