Hosea 6:6 (NIV) For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.

I believe that the majority of the people in this world don’t really know what Jesus is all about, including many who profess to know Him. Many people who self-identify as Christians are religious. Religious people do the right things on the outside, such as going to church, giving money to charity, being righteous in public (but not privately), and endeavoring to look descent and proper to those around them. This is their “sacrifice.” It’s a sacrifice because it is something that they do that is really not coming from a sincere heart. In other words, it’s like putting on a show, and that can become quite a chore. The Pharisees are a perfect example of that and Jesus twice quoted the verse above to them in responding to their accusations against Him (Matthew 9:13, Matthew 12:7)

People like to give to God what they want to give Him, not what He desires or requires. It’s interesting that the scripture above, which is the Lord speaking through the Prophet Hosea, includes the words, “and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings.” The question is, how can you offer burnt offerings to God without acknowledging Him? Obviously, this is something that we as human beings with a very sinful nature can do. We can do things out of habit, tradition or by rote to feel good about ourselves without ever having a heart for God. We like it better that way because it’s not messy. It doesn’t require repentance, tears or any emotion at all. It requires nothing of the heart because the heart is not involved in that kind of sacrifice. It’s neat, it’s tidy, and you can take care of all the sacrifice that you think is required in about an hour, once a week. That’s a lot of what happens all across this country on any given Sunday.

But God is not interested in, nor does He receive that kind of “sacrifice.” He is looking for the real deal in you and me. He is looking for mercy from us, because if we are merciful, that shows that our lives have been touched and changed by the Lord Jesus. If we have a heart of caring for others, there is only one place where that flows from and that is from the very heart of God Himself. The Lord wants people who will allow Him to transform us to be like Jesus so that instead of looking good on the outside by doing things that have no heart behind them and that don’t bear any fruit, we will be His agents to extend His mercy, his grace and His salvation to a world that desperately needs Him. God prefers mercy. Let’s live by what He prefers to His glory and so that we can be lights shining in the darkness to show people the way out.

Pastor Joey Vazquez