GenesisSample

Altar

If you’ve been in church long enough, you would’ve heard the word "altar." Traditionally, altars were a physical structure built for offerings to God. The word "altar" is first mentioned in Genesis 8:20 when Noah built an altar and sacrificed burnt offerings on it. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, and Gideon built altars and brought sacrifices. The altar represents a place of consecration, where the divine and earthly worlds connect. They were often built to commemorate an encounter with God and where He responded to sacrifice.

So why are we not building altars in our churches on Sundays? What happened? Jesus.

In the greatest redemption story ever told, Jesus not only became the perfect sacrificial Lamb to take away the sins of the world forever, but He also became the altar upon which the sacrifice was made. He was the preeminent connection where the divine and earthly worlds met. The Son of God AND the Son of Man. He was the altar of flesh and bone, where death was altered forever. With Jesus’ sacrifice, He defeated hell, sin, and the grave, taking back the keys and reigning in victory.

We have been set free from the bondage of sin and death because of Him, and complete freedom is ours NOW! He put His Holy Spirit power in us so we can experience the freedom of the cross in our everyday lives. Thank God for Jesus and all that He has done.

Takeaway challenge: Use the song "Altar" as today’s soundtrack and take a moment to thank Jesus for the victorious freedom He won for us.