I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind,
that by testing you may discern what is the will of God,
what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12.1-2
As a young man, Jonathan Edwards wrote the following in his journal one morning:
I have been before God, and have given myself, all that I am and have, to God; so that I am not, in any respect, my own. I can challenge no right in this understanding, this will, these affections, which are in me. Neither have I any right to this body, or any of its members - no right to this tongue, these hands, these feet; no right to these senses, these eyes, these ears, this smell, or this taste. I have given myself clear away and have not restrained anything as my own…I have been this morning to him, and told him, that I have given myself wholly to him.
Such searching words! They remind us of Paul’s exhortation in Romans 12 - an exhortation which appears to fly in the face of everything the world says is in our best interests.
What could possibly motivate us to make such sacrifice? Two truths provide the motivation. First, let us remember the power of God’s mercy. Listen to Paul’s words in Romans chapter 3: “by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight.” Again, “[we] are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” And again, Paul says, “we hold that no one is justified by faith apart from works of the law.”
Do you hear what Paul is saying? He’s saying that God, the Judge of men and angels, accepts believing sinners as righteous for Jesus’ sake! How can God do such a thing without denying His own justice? He can do so because He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, into this world to act as our Representative and Surety (one who assumes responsibility for another’s debt). What must we do? We must trust in Jesus’ blood and righteousness. His atoning death has reconciled us to God! His record of righteousness God is pleased to accept as our own!
What security this good news gives! If a Christian thought he could lose his salvation and place in God’s love, wouldn’t our primary motivation for obedience be fear to save ourselves? But fear-based obedience forces us to look downward and inward. It can lead to unhelpful introspection. Fear forces us back on our own resources. Yes, it can move us to great feats at first, but eventually it exhausts us. It can leave us powerless through discouragement.
When we are secure in God’s mercy and when we have the confidence that He has justified us freely for the sake of our Representative and Surety, Jesus, we receive power to obey within this relationship where God perfectly accepts us. We are free to present ourselves to Him in love as living sacrifices.
Second, let us remember the pleasure of God’s mercy. Paul says we present ourselves to God, by His mercies, as living sacrifices who are holy and acceptable to God. The word “acceptable” also means “pleasing.”
Child of God, you are “holy to God.” God has uniquely chosen you and set you apart from the world to be His own possession for His own use. What a privilege it is to say I no longer belong to myself - I belong to God. The God of this world loves me, He knows me, and He has chosen me for His purpose. What higher calling can you aspire to?
And child of God, you are also “pleasing to God” because of God’s acceptance of you in Christ. God accepts you and loves you as His child. The love that God the Father has for His Son, Jesus, is the love He has for the believer. That is why the Father did not spare Jesus, His well-pleasing Son, so that He might make the believer His beloved son or daughter! It is the believer’s privilege to glory in God’s pleasure in him. In the words of Isaiah: “as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you.”
God’s pleasure in us stimulates our pleasure in Him for all His undeserved mercies. Because God is pleased with us in Christ, we desire to live in a way that pleases Him. Imagine a father watching his young son play baseball for the team. The father has spent hours with the young son teaching him the fundamentals of sound batting. If the son blows it and strikes out the father’s love for him is not diminished. But because the father loves him, he delights in his son’s progress and ability to play well. Knowing that, the son longs to hit a home run - not because his father will love him more, but because his father does love him and delights in his progress.
And so, we too, glorying in God’s choice of us as His own, and assured of His pleasure in us, make it our aim no longer to please ourselves, but to please our loving Father to the point of sacrifice. We love him! As Jesus was raised to new life, so we too walk in new life in Him. We live the resurrection.
Bill Massey, Interim Senior Pastor
