The Altar Transfigures

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”

Romans 12:1 NKJV

Altars, I would like to think, are a meeting place with you and God. Altars have various functions. To name a few, it’s a place of worship, prayer, intercession, and sacrifice.

An altar is a place that is to be honored, respected, and revered. Not to be approached casually, but as holy.

To transfigure means to change in form, appearance, or use.

“Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Command Aaron and his sons, saying, ‘This is the law of the burnt offering: The burnt offering shall be on the hearth upon the altar all night until morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it. And the priest shall put on his linen garment, and his linen trousers he shall put on his body, and take up the ashes of the burnt offering which the fire has consumed on the altar, and he shall put them beside the altar. Then he shall take off his garments, put on other garments, and carry the ashes outside the camp to a clean place. And the fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be put out. And the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order on it; and he shall burn on it the fat of the peace offerings.”

Leviticus 6:8-12 NKJV

The burnt offering - the continual sacrifice that is put on the altar that is slowly burned into consumption.

Continually offering yourself on God’s altar, constantly in the presence of God, constantly conforming to His image/likeness, to His will would always lead you to end up transforming into a new person.

After the consumption, it’s ashes. Ashes can’t return to what they once were. The priests would even change their garments as they were taking the ashes out.

“Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray. As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.”

Luke 9:28-29 NKJV

Here, in this story, when Jesus went to the mountain, He prayed. And as He prayed, His appearance changed. Not only of His face but of His garment.

This is what happens when you pray until…You transfigure. You transform into someone different; that’s the effect of the presence. You don’t come out the same.

My original title was going to be “The Altar that Alters”

To alter means to make something different without destroying its ORIGINAL identity.

When God created man, He made them in His image and according to His likeness.

(Genesis 1:26).

God has written a book about you, designed a whole life for you with Him.

(Hebrews 10:7/Psalms 40:7)

And it's simple: it is to do His will. But because of the fall of man, not everyone is living with the identity God gave them. They are living with a counterfeit, not the original design.

That’s the whole reason God sent His Son, Jesus, to die for the whole world, to restore and reconcile who He created back to His original design and intent.

So, you may be asking, how does this relate to the devotional?

When you stay long enough in the presence of God and in your walk with Him, you will realize that you’re not the same. You’re going to realize that you’re really God’s mirror. The light, love, might, and strength that God has are transferred to you, for example.

The altar is not only a meeting place for you and God, but it is a transactional place. And I’m not talking about materialistic things. I'm talking about God. The Bible says that we are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.

As Pastor Isidore says in her book “Altars”, “The presence of God comes with a present: the gift of Himself”.

Make God the priority. Once you have Him, you have everything else. God is the source, the center, and the foundation! (Matthew 6:33)

So, I implore you today, family, to STAY. Stay even if you don’t want to, even if you’re tired, faint, and feel like you failed because God can & will meet you where you are. Those who trust in Him will not be ashamed (Psalms 22:5).

“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

II Corinthians 3:18 NKJV