But the firstborn of the animals, which should be the Lord’s firstborn, no man shall dedicate; whether it is an ox or sheep, it is the Lord’s. And if it is an unclean animal, then he shall redeem it according to your valuation, and shall add one-fifth to it; or if it is not redeemed, then it shall be sold according to your valuation. Nevertheless no devoted offering that a man may devote to the Lord of all that he has, both man and beast, or the field of his possession, shall be sold or redeemed; every devoted offering is most holy to the Lord. No person under the ban, who may be-come doomed to destruction among men, shall be redeemed, but shall surely be put to death. Leviticus 27:26–29
The Bible speaks of a number of things that are “devoted” or “dedicated” or “consecrated” to the Lord, meaning that they are set aside for His service, such as the temple built by Solomon (1 Kings 8:63) and the vessels dedicated by David (7:51). The Bible also speaks of other things that are “accursed” (Galatians 3:13; 1:6–9). There are certain things, however, which can be either blessed or accursed, depending on what we choose to do with them.
The offerings of Israel were either devoted or accursed. Let’s begin with the priests who ministered in such things. The garments which they wore and the anointing oil with which they were consecrated were holy, and were therefore not to be abused in any way (Leviticus 21:10–12) or used for any profane purpose (Exodus 30:30–33), lest they bring a curse. The first fruits of Israel’s harvest was to be devoted to God (Exodus 23:19) and were to belong to the priests (Num. 18:12–15), but they could not be eaten by any stranger (Leviticus 22:10) or by anyone unclean (22:1–7), lest they bring upon themselves God’s curse (Leviticus 22:14–16). In like manner, the first of Israel’s spoils in the conquest of Canaan were supposed to be dedicated to God (Joshua 6:17–19), but when Achan took some of the spoil for himself, the Scripture says he had taken “the accursed things” (6:18; 7:1, 11–15), and he was put to death as a consequence (7:18–26).
Our wealth is either devoted or accursed. We live in a wealthy nation. The median annual household in America brings in over $50,000 a year. The poorest families in America would be among the wealthy in a place like Afghanistan, where the median annual household income is less than $1,000. This wealth can be a great blessing when we devote it to God as many early Christians did (Acts 4:34–37; 11:26; 24:17; cf. Proverbs 3:9–10), but when it is used improperly, it can be a curse. Such was the case with Achan, and such is the case with the man who hoards wealth and becomes its captive (Ecclesiastes 5:10–15). Wealth is a fine servant, but a cruel master.
Our worship can be either devoted or accursed. While it may not seem possible for worship to be accursed, the truth is that God often saw Israel’s worship as vain and futile because their hearts were not right in His sight (Isaiah 1:10–15). Jesus likewise accused the Pharisees of offering vain worship because it proceeded from the lips, but never from the heart (Matthew 15:7–9). The offering that Nadab and Abihu made was an accursed thing because it was not offered according to God’s instructions (Leviticus 10:1–2), and so it was with the incense offered by the band of men who rallied around Korah the usurper and perished with him in the rebellion (Numbers 16). We must make sure that our worship is offered “in spirit and in truth” lest it be a curse upon us.
Our lives can be either devoted or accursed. Paul speaks of the need to dedicate our lives as sacrifices to God (Romans 12:1–2). Those who fail to surrender their lives to the Lord are under the curse of sin and death (Romans 3:23; 6:23). There are also those who dedicate themselves to God and then turn to use their lives for profane purposes, and the latter end is worse than the first (2 Peter 2:20–22). May we never forget that we belong to God! Instead of bringing a curse upon ourselves, let us resolve to dedicate ourselves heart and soul to the God of heaven.