During my prayer time this week, I saw in my mind’s eye, my backyard. There was an altar where a couple establishes trees were. The trees were removed and used to build the altar. I then hard that an altar to God will cost you. 

Altars (Hebrew: מִזְבֵּחַ, mizbeaḥ, “a place of slaughter or sacrifice”). Alters were typically made of earth and unworded stones, per God’s instruction in Exodus 20:24-25.

The first account of an altar being built was by Noah. After the building of that ark and the long journey on the floodwaters. Once the water reseeded the Noah open the doors for his family and all the animals to be on solid ground again he built an altar to the Lord.

Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done.”

‭‭Genesis‬ ‭8:20-21‬ ‭ESV‬‬‬‬

God asked Abram to leave his country, family, and his father’s house to a land that God would show him. Abraham did leave with his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot. As they were traveling that came into the land of Canaan, past through a place called Shechem.

Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring, I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.

Genesis 12:7 ESV

God had Abraham build another altar, this altar was to sacrifice his son Isaac. This was a test of Abraham’s faith in God. God did not allow Abraham to sacrifice but gave a ram for the altar.

Jacob and Esau were twins and had family issues, so Jacob fled. On his way to his uncle’s house he stopped to sleep, he had a dream and call the place Bethel. Once at his uncle’s house he found his wives, had children, and obtain a great about of wealth in livestock. Jacob decides to go back to his family land that was given to his grandfather Abraham. Jacob wanted to make amend with Esau so that he and his family would be safe. Jacob sent before him a large gift to Esau and Esau accepted it. Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, and bought some land outside the city.

And from the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, he bought for a hundred pieces of money the piece of land on which he had pitched his tent. There he erected an altar and called it El-Elohe-Israel.

Genesis 33:19-20 ESV

Jacob lived at Shechem for years, and one the inhabitant of Canaan attacked his daughter and two of his sons retaliated. Jacob was concerned about the inhabitants would gather together and attack his people. God told him to leave Shechem to a place God showed him years ago.

God said to Jacob, “Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.”

Genesis 35:1 ESV

The Amalek can fight with Israel instructed Moses is to hold up his hands over the battle and Israel will prevail. Moses’ hand would get tired and his hands came down and Israel would begin to lose. They sat Moses on a rock and Aaron and Hur held up his hands.

And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”

Exodus 17:15-16 ESV

Every one of these leaders set up an altar after there was a great personal sacrifice. Some of these sacrifices were by there own doing or others were designed by God. These altars were set up to worship/honor God, and anyone that came by that place would see the devotion to their living God.

An altar is both a place we can worship God and memorial to other of the true and living God we serve. My wife and I endeavored to make our home a place of worship and a memorial to Him. Even before the COVID quarantine we sacrificed our mornings by getting up 5:00 to 5:30 to worship and pray. We had to leave for work by 6:30, after the quarantine we have been spending up to 2 hours with Him.

Building and an altar is not a “one time and done”, we still need to bring our offering/sacrifice to him daily. I believe that God showed me the altar in my backyard to confirm that our homes a place of worship and a memorial for Him.

APPLICATION

• Begin to create a time and place to daily come to the Lord to worship and pray.
• We have all sacrificed, some more than others, during the COVID quarantine. Build a spiritual altar to God.
• Continue daily to bring God an offering/sacrifice.