But I with the voice of thanksgiving will sacrifice to you; what I vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to the Lord!” Jonah 2:9
Do you give thanks to God as a sacrifice?
Jonah gave a sacrifice of thanksgiving to God, while he was in the belly of the fish. Here God intervened in his desperate situation. In verse 10, “And the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah out upon the dry land.”
In Hebrews 13:15 says, “Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name. Sacrifice is used symbolically to represent an offering to God. Our lives should be as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God.
Roman 12:1 says I appeal to you, therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Out of gratitude to God for his mercy and salvation, we should be completely devoted to loving him, living by his standards and serving God’s purposes for our lives. We must realize that true godly worship involves a lifestyle that brings honor to Christ in words and actions.
When we follow God, our voice, our worship, our Thanksgiving, our bodies become a living sacrifice unto God. We are offering all of our being to God. We are giving up our old ways to honor God. Offering our thankfulness or gratitude to God is a sacrifice to God.
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for all you do for us. I pray that with everything within us will be a sacrifice honoring to you.
In Jesus Name
Amen
