But the king replied to Araunah, “No, I insist on paying you for it. I will not sacrifice to the LORD my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing.” So David bought the threshing floor and the oxen and paid fifty shekels of silver for them.

II Samuel 24:24

The Lord sent a plague on Israel when David sinned by taking a census of his army. His sin was motivated by self-interest and pride. Through a man named Gad, the Lord commanded that David offer an atoning sacrifice.

David offered to buy the threshing floor of Araunah so that he could build an altar to the Lord. Araunah offered to give David the land and the animals to be sacrificed, but David refused his offer, insisting that he purchase the land to be used for the sacrifice. He refused to offer a sacrifice that cost him nothing.

How true that is for us today! Worshiping the Lord requires much from us: our time, our commitment, and our very lives! Paul writes, Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. (Romans 12:1) What does it mean to offer God our very lives as a living sacrifice? It means that we must be willing to spend time with the Lord in His Word, in prayer, and in worship. The cost is our time. The benefits are eternal.

Heavenly Father,

Help me to give my life over to worshiping You. So much of my time is invested in other things and I find myself empty and searching. I offer myself to You in worship and I’m willing to pay the cost.

In Jesus’ name, Amen