"And Samuel said, Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." 1 Samuel 15:22 (KJV)

This is the all-too-familiar story of the disobedience of King Saul that cost him the kingdom. God's command was simple: Go to Amalek; destroy everything; leave nothing. Saul was a warrior, and was proficient in carrying out such commands. His problem began when he entertained a thought he esteemed higher than the command of God: to take some of the plunder and offer it to the Lord as a burnt sacrifice.

Verse 22 as quoted above was Samuel's response to Saul's disobedience. Essentially, Samuel said, "God would rather have your obedience, than a sacrifice that originates out of disobedience." If Samuel were to preach that message today, it may sound like this, "When you choose to disobey the Lord, your worship is fruitless."

Now, consider with me another story found in Genesis 22:11-13 (KJV) "And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me. And Abraham lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold behind him a ram caught in a thicket by his horns: and Abraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in the stead of his son."

Again, not an unfamiliar story. Abraham's command, compared to that of Saul in the earlier case, is one of great difficulty. Whereas Saul has been commanded to wipe out the Amalekites, Abraham has been commanded to sacrifice his promised son, Isaac. If given the choice, which would you rather God ask of you? It's a no-brainer! I would gladly go destroy an enemy before sacrificing my own son! In contrast, while Saul did not obey the Lord in a simple command, Abraham obeyed in that which must have been heart breaking.

I said all of that to say this. Abraham's example teaches us that we are often faced with the issues of obedience and sacrifice. In other words, obedience often is sacrifice. This was definitely true in his case. But what Abraham discovers is that what God asks of you is not always what He requires of you! God asked Abraham for Isaac. Abraham was willing and obedient, and God therefore didn't require Isaac of Abraham. Not only that, but God gave Abraham increase by providing a ram for sacrifice.

I've found that if I will remain obedient, regardless of the personal sacrifice involved, God will always give me more than I surrendered. He asks much of us at times, but when we obey, His blessings are more than enough!