11.3.25 ~ Daily Altars

Good morning!

We have started the cycle of Genesis all over again. We have concluded that if any man is in Christ, then he is Abraham seed and heirs according to the promise given to Abraham. (Gal. 3:29). And because we are Abraham seed, we should do as Abraham did (Jn. 8:39).

In the Torah portion from last week, lech lecha/go to yourself, Abraham built three altars/mizbeach, which raises a question that modern inquiring minds would ask: 3 altars, what’s that all about?

There are multiple levels to these three altars.

And the Lord appeared to Abraham, and said, unto your seed will I give this land: and they’re built tea and alter until the Lord, who appeared unto him. (Gen.12:7)

And he removed from there into a mountain on the east of Bethel, and pitched his tent, Bethel was on the west and HAI on the east: and there he built an altar to the Lord and call upon the name of the Lord.
 (Gen. 12:8)

Arise, walk through the land in the length of it, and in the breath of it: for I will give it to you. Then Abram removed his tent and came in 12th and the plane of memory, which is in Hebron and built there an altar under the Lord (Gen. 13:17,18)

Part of the challenge that we have in our 21st-century, western culture, thinking is that we see the altars and sacrificial system as a connection to a bloodthirsty God, of Old Testament thinking, of people trying to appease God for their sinful behavior; 100% erroneous thinking!

Many cling to verses like first Samuel 15:22 where God says, "it’s better to obey and sacrifice" and how
God delights in loyalty rather than sacrifice (Hos. 6:6). We remember verses that tell us that God was fed up with Israel’s hypocritical offerings (Isa. 1:11) or Solomon‘s advice in proverbs 21:3 where he tells us that "righteousness and justice are more important than sacrifices". And as true as those references are to God's displeasure, we too often forget, however, that God loves sacrifice or He wouldn't have commanded them (Rom. 12:2.). Yet within every offering, it's only when hearts are right with God are sacrifices, acceptable, and the means of bringing great joy to God and the people (Neh. 12:43).

Also that day they offered great sacrifices, and rejoiced: for God had made them rejoice with great joy: the wives also and the children rejoiced: so that the joy of Jerusalem was heard even afar off. (Neh. 12:3)

The psalmist tells us that thanksgiving with a broken spirit are regarded as sacrifices that honor God  (Psa. 50:14, 23; 51:17, etc). He also tells us to offer the sacrifices of righteousness/zevach tzedek and trust in the Lord (Psa. 4:5).

At this point, you may be raising up walls of contention and resistance because our modern society doesn’t have a physical temple or a physical priesthood or a physical altar… At least not yet (Ezekiel 40–48).

Then again, you might ask, "do I need to go in my backyard and build an altar just like Abraham did"? Or is it more important that I understand why he built the altars and live the reality of those altars? Is that what the psalmist meant with sacrifices of righteousness?

Let's put some flesh on these bones...the three altars that Abram built have three specific contexts to consider in our daily life. The first altar has to do with the good news that God promised to Abraham and his seed of the inheritance in the land and the provision that God would give to satiate and satisfy the hunger that is in each one of us (Matt. 5:6); purposeful living that satisfies.

The second altar that he pitches between Bethel/House of God on the west and Hai/destruction on the east vaults us forward, prophetically, to Joshua leading the children of Israel into the battle of Jericho, where the people were commanded not to take any of the spoils because everything belong to God (Josh. 6&7). Unfortunately, there was a man by the name of Achan, who would be "aching", who did take some of the plunder, and as a result when the men went up to AI to fight, 36 men died. But through repentance/teshuvah God restored the people.

The third altar was built at Hebron/association, where, after Abram separated from Lot, he was able to connect to the promise of God and walk through the land and establish what would be his and his descendants forever.

Inquiring minds are saying, "thanks for the trivia, but how do I do this today"? How do I build three altars?

I'm glad you asked :-) Simply put, the first altar has to do with the study of God’s word, his Torah, and doing good deeds towards your fellow mankind. The second altar has to do with repentance/teshuvah. Recognizing today, I can do things better than I did yesterday; whether it’s for myself, towards my family, towards my spouse, towards my boss, to my employees, I can do better than I did the day before.

The third and final altar tells me that if I really want to Hebron/connect to God I need to go beyond myself. I need to press on into a deeper connection. I'm going to have to die to myself and live according to His Word (1 Jn. 2:3-6).

When I establish these three altars in my journey then I recognize that it is only God who truly satiates and satisfies my hunger. I know the decision is up to me to banish and sacrifice the evil and godless practices in my life. And finally, through that repentance, I’m able to actually connect to God in a deeper way and acquire the relationship with him that He and we long for.

As you head into the second day of the week, I hope you’ll stop to think about these three altars that Abram built in his journey to discovering himself and his relationship to the Most High. We have three altars to establish for sacrifices of righteousness. And then, with hindsight, you’ll be able to look back on your day and recognize How the Lord appeared to you, how He answered you when you called upon His name and finally, once you separated from those things that hindered your lech-lecha, you can fully experience His loving presence and purpose in your life.

If you are Abraham seed, you will do as Abraham did (Jn. 8:39)

Shalom
Alan

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