Contemplative Bible Reading

Psalm 51:16-17 (New International Version 2010)

You do not delight in sacrifice, or I would bring it;
you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.

My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart
you, God, will not despise.

I have contemplated on parts of Psalm 51 before. Looking at it again this morning, I find that I could write about almost every part of this Psalm. Such is what David was inspired to write in his sin asking for forgiveness.

In these two verses, David gives the sacrifice that God wants – not lambs, cattle, wheat, oil, and all those things mentioned in the law. No, God wants us to sacrifice our foolish human pride. God wants us to give Him that burning in our hearts that drives us to achieve and succeed in our modern lives here on earth.

I don’t think God wants us to be bums or pushovers or slackers (whatever noun we choose). Still, God doesn’t want us to have the pursuit of excellence or the pursuit of achievement or the pursuit of anything but God first in our lives. The pursuit of all else is what God wants as a sacrifice. I believe that pursuit is what David is sacrificing to God. David brings a broken and contrite heart to God believing that God will accept it as a true sacrifice.

God, help me to know which pursuit to keep first in my life. Help me to put righteousness above all other pursuits.