March 27th

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. Psalm 51:17

In this passage, the Psalmist David gives us a pathway back to God after we have broken our relationship with Him. In these days, we do not offer a sacrifice to God by killing bulls or sheep because of the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus. He paid our complete penalty for our sins on the cross; that will be sufficient for Father God for eternity.

What God desires is a different kind of sacrifice to mend our relationship with Him. This is our way of expressing sincerity after we have made a mistake and have admitted our sin against Him. The phrase, a broken spirit, is indicative of our rebellious spirit being broken. It is another way of saying, what we have done is not right and it displeases God. When we are contrite or sorry, we recognize our need to change our behavior. What God despises is when we do not change our behavior and continue in pride and rebellion against Him. God loves a humble attitude and a willing heart to correct our mistakes. Rebellion weakens our resolve to continue having a right heart towards God and increases our anxiety. A right heart with God gives us a much greater capacity for courage and strength.