A living sacrifice
A living sacrifice: Will you surrender yourself fully to God?
This week’s lesson may be a real challenge for you, as it has been for me. In the part preceding Romans 12, Paul explains the doctrine of salvation. Now he continues and tells how both new and mature believers should live. Let us look at his advice, or rather his stern warning, to the church in Rome and to believers of all ages:
1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 2And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God. – Romans 12:1-2
He stars by beseeching them. This word does not just mean to ask something in a casual way, but rather to earnestly require it. What does he need believers to do? That they present themselves, in other words the way they come into the presence of God, specifically their bodies, representing their entire being (body, soul, and spirit). We do not just come into the presence of God during a worship or church service, but since God sees everything we do, everywhere we are, we always present ourselves to Him. In what way are we presented?
We are to present ourselves as a living sacrifice. A sacrifice is something you make, in which you relinquish ownership of what you had. When Israel brought living sacrifices to the temple, they gave up their ownership. If an animal was lead on a rope, it was taken off the animal’s neck as a sign that it no longer belonged to them. In the dispensation of the law, the sacrifice was proof of the person’s willingness to part with something that was probably valuable to them. It was then given to the priest who performed the offer to God.
The animal was alive when it was brought as a sacrifice. In the new dispensation of grace, you are a living sacrifice when you part with those things you think you need and give it over to God. Jesus has already been offered as the perfect substitute for our sins. What we owe Him now, is our lives.
The sacrifice is holy. You cannot offer an unclean sacrifice. Thus, you cannot offer yourself in a condition of sin. All sins must first be confessed, turned away from, and covered by the blood of Jesus Christ. If you are offering your body as a living sacrifice that meets God’s standard of holiness, this means your body should not be used for anything that is unholy. This is a great challenge for us. Think about it – your body is a temple:
19What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. – 1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Here Paul addresses the church in Corinth where, despite being reborn, they were still living in sin. Things that they did as heathens, including gross sexual immorality, was still part of their lives. Paul warns them that the body they reside in is also the place in which the Holy Spirit took up residence when they came to the faith. God’s holiness and our unholy lives cannot occupy the same space.
A sacrifice is acceptable to God only if it is holy. Knowing our inability to live blameless and holy lives, He made a way for us to attain the holiness He requires, by offering His own Son as a sacrifice for our sins. In the dispensation of the law, the animal(s) to be offered had to be set apart and they had to be perfect – without any blemishes or defects. If not, they were not acceptable. You have been set apart from the world, and you can be holy!
Paul says all the above is a reasonable service. The word reasonable here means logical and service refers to our ability to minister. It shows that we are active in the process. We evaluate what we do, and reason the cost.
Paul then pushes the argument further. We are not to be conformed to this world with its sin and wicked ways. The verb is in the passive voice, which means the act of conforming is done to us. The world changes us if we are not careful, and then we are helpless to do (active voice) anything about it. Note the part form in the word. To form is to shape something into the way someone or something wants it to be. The devil wants to form you to fit the standards of the world. He does this through the world and allows circumstances to change you for the worse. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, to conform means to behave according to the usual standards of behaviour that are expected by a group or society. The standards and behaviour of the world are what we see all around us today, and it is in a condition of moral, physical, social, and mental decay.
Instead of being conformed to the world, we must be transformed. Again, the verb is in the passive voice. It is not you that transform yourself, but studying the Word of God, and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in your life, that transform you. Therefore, it is important to read, study, and memorise Scripture. To be transformed does not just mean to change. Again, using the dictionary meaning here, transformed means to completely change the appearance or character of something or someone, especially so that the person is improved. God transforms us completely when we yield our bodies (body, soul, and spirit) to Him.
How are you transformed? By the renewing of your mind. In step with the transformation, we must change the way we think. Actions start as decisions made in the mind. The temptation starts in the mind, draws away the person’s attention, grows, and results in sin. The end thereof is spiritual death. Paul warns us of what James describes:
14But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. – James 1:14
Once we have allowed our minds to be renewed, we will prove the result. To prove means what others see in us. What we show and how we act outwardly, is the proof of the inward change we allow(ed) to take place in our lives. We can also use the word demonstrate. What do we demonstrate? We demonstrate that good, acceptable, and perfect, will of God! All three of these conditions are the result of allowing ourselves to be sacrificed, parting with the self, the natural man we used to be (1 Corinthians 2:14) and allowing God to change us to become the spiritual man He wants us to be (1 Corinthians 2:15).
Conclusion
I face the same struggles that you do, every day, which is why I am aware of the dangers and can share this with other believers. This coming week, read Paul’s letter to the Romans, and then focus on Romans 12:1-2. Confess those areas in which you know that your body was not a living sacrifice that was good, acceptable, and perfect. Then look forward be what God has called you to be, a living sacrifice.