Hey There,... Your Heart Is showing....

What is the difference between being obedient to customs(traditions) and being faithful to do what God has commanded ?

This was the beginning questions of the study I am doing. I said "Heart Attitude"..Which I think is pretty good and correct ....AS I read what Mary and Joseph did after Jesus was born... the customs that they did were typical of devout Jewish parents.. but they were anything BUT typical Jewish parents!!

The 3 Rites:
1-Circumcision
2-Redemption
3-Purification

I would love to type all that God spoke to me in this study but I will give ya the readers digest versions..(Hopefully)

In circumcision- it was God's way of requiring the Jewish people to become Physically different because of their relationship to Him....Thankfully because of Jesus.. I have been spiritually circumcision.. there should be proof I am a different person....I have had to ask God for forgiveness, in my trying to be so "Relevant", I have sinned against Him.

In redemption- They presented Jesus to the Lord.. this symbolized act of giving him up by saying 'He is yours,we give him back to You"' which I kind of smiled at cause here is God coming down to earth and they are giving himself back to himself..Humm?? Reminds me when I had my kids dedicated to the Lord.. I truly pray for each of them and God gave me all three.. and I gave them back to him and boy it hasn't been easy at times wondering what is going to happen to them...and wondering if He gave them to the right parents.. I am thankful God's redemption doesn't wonder, doubt or waver.. We all needed redeeming and Jesus filled that and I am Redeemed...

In Purification--Parents would offer up a sacrifice.. which I learned this week, that Mary and Joseph offered up the least sacrifice permitted by Jewish law for Purification...They offered up the poverty version of the sacrifice....WOW!!! This hit me on so many levels... Like:God choose the poor cause He knew we are the poor in soul and could not offer Anything for our purification.. in comparison..there is no comparison..we have nothing!!!!how fitting that they held in their arms the greatest sacrifice a Holy God could make for their eternal purification...Also.. God spoke to me about how proud I could and have been by what I had offered up.. the years of service to the Lord.. trying to be good and do the right thing.. Falling down and getting back up, the roller coaster life, teaching the Bible...praying...shining my light for Him.. when in comparison.. I had nothing but rags... Yet, God in His goodness knew and Still, He came, For me!!(Titus 2:14)

One last thing.. I wondered what all the religious people thought of their sacrifice...."MY goodness ,look at this, Do they think God will honor this?, or "They are giving the least amount?"...That is Not a sacrifice?..."Do they know how that looks".. They are not right,God would not be using them., if they were right with him,, he would provided a better place and offering?" ......Oh, I haven't said those words exactly but I have said things with the same attitude about what others have offered up to Him in my church ...
God has said to Obey is better than sacrifice....He knows our sacrifice is NOTHING compared to his righteousness...What is your heart showing? Let the redeem of the Lord say so.....