Thursday, October 31, 2024
Living Sacrifice – Romans 12:1-2 Submitted by Kay Crumley
Many of us are familiar with the practice, in the Old Testament, of the Israelite worship centered around sacrifices. They would come together for times of celebration to worship the God of Israel. They had not met all the requirements of the law of Moses so were required to offer an animal or grain offering as a sacrifice to atone for their sin. These were a firstborn, unblemished animal, or the first fruits, the best of the crop. Their sacrifice to Him should always be the best, not anything of low quality. However, we no longer make sacrifices because the final sacrifice ever required was given when Jesus died on the cross for the payment of our sin. He covered all our sins with His perfect, unblemished body. The Message version of the Bible puts it this way in Hebrews 10:14 It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people. By that single offering, he did everything that needed to be done for everyone who takes part in the purifying process. Each person who has believed, repented, and are following Jesus has taken part in the final purifying process.
As we read Romans 12:1-2 the opening word is ‘Therefore’ which requires us to ask, ‘what is it there for? That leads us to go back to Chapter 11 to find out what Paul had been teaching. Paul made sure that in every city he entered he went first to the Jewish community, the synagogue, to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to them. They were descendants of the original ‘chosen’ people, the descendants of Abraham. As a fellow Jew, he had a great desire for them to accept the truth of Jesus’s identity as the Messiah, His death, and resurrection so they be members of the family of God through Jesus Christ. However, the Jewish leadership and many others had rejected Paul’s message. Their hearts had been hardened. As a result, the gospel went to the Gentiles, who Paul was a messenger to, and they had been brought into the family of God. We are like branches of another kind of tree being grafted onto the tree that is the tree of life whose roots are God. We are part of His family and receive His blessings and mercy while the branches that fell off, the unbelieving Jewish people, are awaiting redemption.
So, because of that, in Chapter 11, Paul is telling the Gentile believers how they are to live. Since we have received the mercies of God, we are to give us our own selfish desires and live a life pleasing to God. Psalm 50:14 Sacrifice a thank offering to God and fulfill your vows to the Most High. Our very being is to be an offering of thanksgiving to Him as we humbly honor Him with our obedience. We are to be totally surrendered to Him alone.
1Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship 2 Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
Then once we are surrendered to Him, we must make some changes. Verse 2 is about transformation. We can not live like our culture dictates but according to the Word and will of our roots, our foundation. The good news is that someone else is doing the work of transformation for us. God does the work of renewing our minds. We are no longer branches of our current societal behaviors. We have been grafted into the tree whose roots are God. Our life source is Him, His character. The example we have is Jesus Christ. We must come to know Him intimately. His character should be so ingrained in our minds and hearts that we know what to do that will bring honor to Him. He brings our thoughts in line with His won so that we think God’s thoughts after Him. 1 Corinthians 2:16 For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND and PURPOSES OF THE LORD, SO AS TO INSTRUCT HIM? But we have the mind of Christ [to be guided by His thoughts and purposes]. Amplified Version
God has a purpose and plan for each of our lives. One that finds us when we are fully surrendered. The rest of the Book of Romans explains that purpose, it isn’t just about us.
