Romans 12:1-2 I 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. {2} And 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.

God In His Mercy Gave Us The Sacrifice

In the ancient world under the Old Covenant, also known as the Mosaic Law, the system of “atonement” or the covering of your sins was done by animal sacrifice. This practice was started by God in the Garden of Eden to show mankind how horrendous sin is. God told Adam:

Genesis 2:17 (KJV) of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

Adam could have any fruit from any tree but the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God knew that Adam would go for it, just as the parent who tells the child “Yes, there’s cookies. But no, you can’t have any till I say.” It isn’t long before the child plots on how he will get the cookies. So it was with Adam.

God made a promise to Adam, and
God keeps His promises.

“IN THE DAY THAT YOU EAT THEREOF, YOU SHALL SURELY DIE”. When the great General Joshua prepared to meet his Maker, he reminded Israel:

Joshua 23:14 (ESV) … not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed.

God keeps His promises. Not one GOOD THING God promised has ever failed. Not one BAD THING God has promised ever failed. He told Adam:

IN THE DAY – The very day you disobey Me. Immediately.
YOU – No one else, Adam. YOU. When YOU do it.
EAT THEREOF – choose to disobey Me, and do the forbidden.
YOU SHALL SURELY DIE – Without pause, death comes!

Adam didn’t believe that God perfectly keeps His promises. He thought there was a little wiggle room. There’s not. What God has said, He will do. This is why the Bible says, “the FEAR of the LORD is the BEGINNING of KNOWLEDGE” (Proverbs 1:7).

When Adam sinned, his “eyes were opened”. He immediately died spiritually, and was – according to the promise of God – supposed to die physically. “Thou shalt surely die”.

But God did not kill Adam and Eve. He cursed them, but He did not kill them. Did God fail to keep His promise? No. Adam must die for his sin. He has died spiritually, and must die physically. And yet, “God Who is rich in mercy” (Ephesians 2:4), picked another avenue for Adam and Eve, for humanity. The Bible says:

Genesis 3:21 (ESV) the LORD God made for Adam and for his wife garments of skins and clothed them.

This was the first animal sacrifice. Either Adam must die, or an innocent must die in his place. There was no innocent Man, so an animal died. God “covered” Adam and Eve’s sin with the skin of the innocent animal. This covering is a picture of what God would do through Jesus Christ. The Bible says:

1 Peter 1:18-21 (ESV) … knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.

The Lamb slain in the Garden of Eden for Adam’s sin was a “type” or a foreshadowing of what God had intended from the beginning. The Eternal Son of God, Jesus Christ, would come into humanity from eternity. The co-Creator of all things (“for by Him all things were created both in the Heavens and on earth … by Him all things consist” Colossians 1:16-17) would one day step into His own creation. He would be born on a woman, live among us as a Perfect Man, and die for our sins as “the Lamb of God Who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).

The lamb slain in the Garden to cover Adam’s sin is a precursor to Jesus Christ slain on Calvary for our sins. By one man sin entered the world – and death reigned. But by Jesus Christ sin and death were vanquished (Romans 5:17). The Bible says:

John 3:15-18 (ESV) whoever believes in Him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only {Begotten} Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. 18 Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

There is only one way to be right before God, and that is to receive the sacrifice of Christ as your own. The Bible tells us that in Heaven,

Revelation 21:3-4 (ESV) the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be His people, and God Himself will be with them as their God. 4 He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.

The only ones who are in Heaven are those who have fallen in love with Jesus, who have given their lives to Him as Lord and Savior. In Heaven we will have the embrace of God. The Bible says that “He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away”. What does that mean?

I have seen mothers standing in courtrooms when their children were sentenced for some crime they committed. These mothers, grandmothers, great grandmothers stand up and plead with the Judge for the life of their children. They beg for leniency. One day many who are born again will stand before God, and wonder where their children are. They will look at Jesus, and ask, “Where’s my boy, my girl?” And the Lord will say:

“I never knew them. They had to depart from Me, for they were WORKERS OF LAWLESSNESS” (Matthew 7:23).

The parents will say, “But they went to Church. They paid taxes. They gave a tithe. They never committed crime. They were good citizens.” And God will say “they never did the works of God”. And they will say, “What are the works of God?” and God will say:

John 6:29 (ESV) This is the work of God, that you believe in Him Whom He has sent.

Your loved ones who die without Jesus will not be in Heaven, though you are. The ones who go to Heaven love Jesus. They have given their lives to Jesus. You may say, “But why can’t my unbelieving relative be in Heaven with us?” The answer is simply,

God promised. God is faithful. God is holy, & just.
The only way to God is through Christ (John 14:6).

If your loved ones are not in Heaven, you can cry and weep, but God can only “wipe away every tear from your eyes”. He promised. God is faithful. So, what can I do to reach my family for Christ?

How Can I Reach Those Around Me
For Christ?

Romans 12:1 I 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.

IF you are saved by faith in Christ,
IF you have confessed with your mouth that he is Lord,
IF you have believed in your heart He is risen from the grave,

THEN you are “children of God by faith in Christ Jesus” (1 John 5:1; Galatians 3:26). That’s what the Apostle is alluding to when He says:

Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, BRETHREN

Word Study: The word “BRETHREN” is the Greek adelphos, which means “brothers and sisters, fellow believers, members of the same Family”. We who are saved are united together by the Blood of Jesus Christ. The word adelphos literally means “from the same womb”. We who are saved are born again into the Family of God. The Bible says that:

Ephesians 2:18 (KJV) For through {Jesus} we both have access BY ONE SPIRIT UNTO THE FATHER …

1 Corinthians 12:13 (KJV) For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.

Believing in Christ, receiving Christ as dead men and women, God has covered us with the Blood of Christ. We are His, and He is ours.

Acts 4:12 (KJV) Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

So how can we convince others that Christ is true. How can we lead our loved ones to Jesus? We are to act as God’s Children. We are to:

Romans 12:1 (KJV)present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service.

In the Old Covenant, the priests offered animal sacrifices to God to act as covering or “atonement” for sins. Every sacrifice offered by the priests was offered “without blemish” (Exodus 29:1; Leviticus 1:10). The sacrifice was to be “killed before the Lord” (Exodus 29:11). The “blood was to be sprinkled on the people” (Exodus 24:8) as the priest reminded the congregation “Behold, the Blood of the Covenant”.

When Jesus Christ died on Calvary as the “Lamb of God” (John 1:36), the animal sacrifices ended. The Levitical Priesthood ended. However, we are under a new priesthood. Jesus Christ is our High Priest, as we are told in:

Hebrews 3:1 (KJV) Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus;

Hebrews 4:14 (KJV) Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

Our High Priest is Jesus. So who are the priests? WE ARE. Not fancy preachers wearing fancy collars, with fancy titles like DOCTOR or FATHER. The Bible says:

Revelation 1:5-6 (KJV) … Jesus Christ, [who is] the faithful witness, [and] the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, [6] And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him [be] glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

When Jesus saved us, Beloved, He “MADE US KINGS AND PRIESTS UNTO GOD AND HIS FATHER”. What do we sacrifice? Animals? No, for the Lamb of God has come once and for all for sins. What do we sacrifice? We sacrifice OURSELVES, just as Jesus sacrificed HIMSELF.

present your bodies a living sacrifice

How do we reach the lost around us? How do we reach our children for Christ. We become LIVING SACRIFICES. We don’t literally kill ourselves, but we lay our lives down for Jesus.

Beloved, a compromising waffling Christian cannot lead a loved one to Christ. When you look exactly like the world and Christ has no visible impact on your life, people see your Christianity as a “lucky rabbit’s foot” or a silly superstition. When angered, and you refuse to forgive your enemy, what you have is no more than a “made in China” knockoff.

When you tell your children about Jesus, but put greater emphasis in life on your hobbies, your job, your possessions, or your bank account, you convince no one. Children can spot a hypocrite a mile away! Why do so many young people leave the Church when they become of age, walk away, and never return? Because they saw nothing in you that convinced them that Jesus is alive, and Lord of all.

Romans 12:1 (KJV)present your bodies a living sacrifice, HOLY, acceptable unto God, [which is] your reasonable service.

God is not asking you to be “holier than thou”. Jesus was upset by the Pharisees. God is upset by the “holier than thou” crowd. God said of Israel and the Pharisees:

Isaiah 65:2-5 (ESV) I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; 3 a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and making offerings on bricks; 4 who sit in tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat pig’s flesh, and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels; 5 who say, “Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.” These are a smoke in my nostrils, a fire that burns all the day.

The Pharisees, Scribes, Herodians and Chief Priests made a game out of God’s Law, twisting it to suit their own fancies. If you didn’t live the Law according to the way that THEY SAID (not what God said), then they shunned you. “We are holier than thou”. God said, “These are a smoke in My nostrils!” When God says, “Present your bodies as living sacrifices, HOLY, ACCEPTABLE UNTO GOD”, He’s not saying we should be holier than thou.

We are not to be HOLIER THAN THOU, but WHOLLY IN CHRIST.

We are to live our lives so as to honor Jesus, to glorify God, to magnify His Kingdom. We are to do our best – and when we fail – run back to Jesus’ arms. The Bible tells us:

Galatians 5:16-18 (ESV) But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

Pastor John Piper said of this text:

“If the Christian life looks too hard, we must remember that we are not called to live it by ourselves. We must live it by the Spirit of God. The command of love is not a new legalistic burden laid on our back; it is what happens freely when we walk by the Spirit. People who try to love without relying on God’s Spirit always wind up trying to fill their own emptiness rather than sharing their fullness. And so love ceases to be love. Love is not easy for us. But the good news is that it is not primarily our work but God’s. We must simply learn to “walk by the Spirit.”

Walking by the Spirit means to strive to do as Jesus commanded by His power. The old time Pastor Horatius Bonar said it even more clearly:

“The secret of a believer’s holy walk is his continual recurrence to the blood of the Surety, and his daily [communion] with a crucified and risen Lord. All divine life, and all precious fruits of it, pardon, peace, and holiness, spring from the cross. All fancied sanctification which does not arise wholly from the blood of the cross is nothing better than Pharisaism. If we would be holy, we must get to the cross, and dwell there; else, notwithstanding all our labor, diligence, fasting, praying and good works, we shall be yet void of real sanctification, destitute of those humble, gracious tempers which accompany a clear view of the cross.”

It all goes back to our High Priest, Jesus Christ. We are saved by His sacrifice. We imitate His sacrifice in our lives. When we have enemies who attack us, Jesus tells us:

Matthew 5:44-48 (ESV) Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48 You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Lay your life down willingly, as Jesus laid His life down willingly. “DENY YOURSELF, Take up YOUR CROSS and FOLLOW HIM” (Luke 9:23). Imitate the Master. This is what will reach the world, the imitation of Christ. The children should look like the Father. Do you look like Jesus, dear Christian, in your walk? This is not unreasonable. But “your reasonable service”.

Stand Together Against Worldliness

Romans 12:2 And 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.

Too many who profess Christ are doing this sdrawkcab {pro. Strawcab}.

That’s “backwards” spelled backwards. Too many professing Christ are CONFORMING to the world, but not being TRANSFORMED. As a result, they have no idea “what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God”. We spend hours on social media, and minutes on the Holy Bible. Beloved, I despise it when I hear preachers quip,

“When I went to seminary, I was taught to make the sermon ABOUT Jesus and ABOUT 10 minutes long!”

That, to me, shows NO RESPECT for the Word of God. How can you be TRANSFORMED in your mind if you spend HOURS on television and social media, but MINUTES in the Word of God. You cannot. It is impossible.

Godly transformation comes from Scriptural meditation.

The malaise (discomfort, illness, uneasiness whose exact cause we seem to not know) of the Church today is because we are spending too much time CONFORMING and not intentionally TRANSFORMING. You are not saved by your works, but once saved you are children of God who are called to work for Him.

Period.

One day some of you will die, and, like the rich man of Luke 16:23 will lift up your eyes in Hell. You will cry out for relief, but there will be none coming.

And in Heaven, God will “wipe the tears from your dear mother’s eyes”.

Beloved, we are not saved by works, but our works prove our salvation. Salvation is a God imparted, Holy Spirit enacted gift of Grace that comes on you when you surrender your life to Christ as Lord and Savior. Once saved, God calls us to “REASONABLE SERVICE”. What is that? “PRESENT YOUR BODIES AS LIVING SACRIFICES”. Your willingness to follow Christ your High Priest, to be Priests who sacrifice yourselves for Him, this is evidence of a transformed life. The stepbrother of Christ writes:

James 2:17 … faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead

God created us in Christ to “do good works” (Ephesians 2:10). The Apostle said, “work OUT your salvation with fear and trembling, FOR IT IS GOD WHO WORKS IN YOU, both to will and to work for HIS GOOD PLEASURE” (Philippians 2:12-13).

When you come to Christ by faith, the Holy Spirit changes you. And daily, the Holy Spirit will bid that you follow in Jesus’ footsteps. This is what will reach a lost and dying world. Not a denomination, not a creed, but a living faith where people see Jesus in you.

May God lead us all this way. Amen.