When Paul wrote, “you are not your own, for you are bought with a price,” he was expounding a great principle of Redemption, which is that the sacrifice doesn’t just pay for the sin committed but redeems the sinner. This is best seen in the first Passover, which was held in Egypt. The blood of the Passover lamb above the door of every home not only prevented the death of the firstborn son — it also purchased that firstborn son. From then on, every firstborn son belonged to the LORD for service, and every firstborn animal for sacrifice. (Exodus 13:12)
Most Christians know they were bought with a price, the blood of Jesus Christ. But not all realize that the words, “You are not your own” indicate that the one who redeemed them owns them outright. This is clear from Numbers 3:41, where the LORD commanded that the Levites be numbered before being given to Him, instead of the firstborn son of every family. God’s intention had been that the firstborn son of every family would be its priest, but the sin of the golden calf and the zeal of the Levites changed that. An accounting took place and the number of Levites fell short of the number of firstborn sons by 273 males. How seriously God regarded the firstborn sons as belonging to Him can be seen in what followed.
The LORD commanded Moses to take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel. The Levites were to belong to the LORD. But since the firstborn were 273 more in number, it meant they had to be redeemed by the children of Israel. The redemption amount was five shekels per firstborn son. This amount, a total of 1365 shekels (273 X 5) was then given to the High Priest Aaron and his sons.
The implication of this is that not only have our sins been paid for by the blood of Jesus, but also that we have been purchased — “bought with a price”. We know we were redeemed by the precious blood of the Lamb of God, but do we realize how possessive God is of those He has bought? God keeps accounts! The presentation of our bodies as “living sacrifices” is not just our “reasonable service” but our obligation to the one who legally owns us (Romans 12:1).
Our service to God is sacrificial in that in serving others we die to the life that we would otherwise live, if it were our own. The service of a priest is not optional — it is obligatory! In military terms, “obligatory” means there is no choice in a matter.
Think about this next time God puts it in your heart to give time to prayer instead of a football game you’ve been ‘dying’ to watch. As you count yourself “dead” to it you’ll “come alive” spiritually — and wonder why the thought of missing that football match had been so painful to make.
Such small sacrifices prepare us for the ones that really count in life: our full surrender to God, our total submission to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, and our willingness to do God’s will to the exclusion of all that this world offers. Our Lord is calling us to sacrifice all in His service.