10-14- ‘01 A Living Sacrifice
A. Armstrong
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.
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.
In the 11th chapter of Romans, we learned of about the mercies of God extended to the Gentile world.
In verse 32 & 33
For God hath concluded them all in unbelief, that he might have mercy upon all.
O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unreachable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!
I personally do not understand all the ways of God. They are too great for me to comprehend. I feel like the Psalmist who said…
Ps 139:6
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.
And the last verse of chapter 11 says this…
For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whom be glory for ever. Amen.
I feel that if we are going to get the most we can out of the first verse of chapter 12, we must at least pick up this last verse of 11.
First it says… ALL THINGS ARE OF HIM…
We see in the beginning God created…
And in John 1 we read… ‘without him was not anything made that was made…’ of course this refers to the fact that Jesus was in the beginning the Word. But in it we still find that everything had it’s beginning in God- everything was made by him.
Man has become very pompous in his thoughts that he should exclude his creator from them, and deny the one who created him. All things in existence can be traced back to God.
And THROUGH HIM….
Not only do all things have their beginning in God, but they continue by God.
2 Pet 3:7
7 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store,
Our very preservation is by his mercy.
And TO HIM…
All things exist for God. We read in …
Revelations 4:11
Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and FOR THY PLEASURE they are and were created.
Proverbs 16:4
4 The LORD hath made all things FOR HIMSELF:
Col 1:16-17
16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and FOR HIM:
And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.
So Colossians also actually says all things are of him, through him, and to him.
So our lesson opens up with these words…
I beseech you therefore by the mercies of God…
Because of the mercies that has been before outlined…
Because of all that he has written to them up to this point in this epistle.
Because we have been created FOR HIM. Because our continuing is by his grace. Because he has had mercy on us in reconciling us to him through Christ. Because he has delivered us from the bondage of siN;etc...
THAT YE PRESENT YOUR BODIES A LIVING SACRIFICE, HOLY, ACCEPTABLE UNTO GOD, WHICH IS YOUR REASONABLE SERVICE…
Note here that God is not only interested in your inner man, but he also desires that we are yielded to him in the flesh.
When we belong to God, we belong to him body, soul, and spirit.
To present your body to God, is to yield the flesh you are in to His will…
Rom 6:12-13
12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
13 Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, AND YOUR MEMBERS as instruments of righteousness unto God.
Rom 6:16
16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
1 Corinthians 6:20
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.
Is this too much for God to ask?
Some people seem to think so. Some think that all they owe God is their mind; their believing in him. But the word tells us that to give him our bodies also is not above the call of duty. It is only reasonable. This tells us that holiness is not just a heart condition.
[Personally, I am tired of people using that old saying as an excuse to sin in the flesh.]
As it is through the body that all the evil that is in the unrenewed heart comes forth into palpable manifestation and action, so it is through the body that all the gracious principles and affections of believers reveal themselves in the outward life. The Christian must never forget that as corruption extends to the whole man, so does sanctification.
1Thes 5:23
23 And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Doing all that we can in the service of God is not above and beyond the call of duty.
I think that sometimes we think we should receive praise for the things that we do in service to God, but Jesus said…
Luke 17:10
10 So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do.
It is reasonable service to give our bodies as a living sacrifice…
That ‘living’ indicates it is in action. So that means that we sacrifice ourselves in SERVICE to God. As Christians in the army of God, we are called into active duty.
Our response to the salvation of God ought to be this- presenting of ourselves to Him. To say… “I am no longer my own. I have been bought at a great price.”
It is interesting to note that the word ‘service’ comes from the word ‘latreuo’ [lat ryoo o] which means not only service, but worship.
Yielding our bodies to God in service is actually a form of worship. And indeed, worship alone- without obedience in service- is not of much value. Neither to God or the worshiper.
To worship God with the lips alone is not what God intended.
When worship is true, it goes beyond words and is transformed into action.
WHAT KIND OF SACRIFICE DOES GOD WANT OUR BODIES TO BE?
Living-
Gal 2:20
20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me:
It is Christ living in the soul by faith that makes the body a living sacrifice.
Holy -
This should not be surprising to us. Pure sacrifices were the only kind God would accept… and under the new covenant, he doesn’t expect a lesser sacrifice, but a better.
Rom 11:16
16 For if the firstfruit be holy, the lump is also holy: and if the root be holy, so are the branches.
1 Cor 3:17
the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.
Eph 1:4
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
Eph 5:25-27
….Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
Col 1:21-22
21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:
1 Pet 1:15-16
15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
1 Pet 2:5
5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.
2 Pet 3:11-12
11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,
12 Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God,
How can we preach or teach anything less than what is so evidently required? I would say, looking at all these scriptures, there is sufficient proof that God will have a holy people.
Matthew Henry said...
They must be holy. There is a relative holiness in every sacrifice, as dedicated to God. But, besides this, there must be that real holiness which consists in an entire rectitude of heart and life, by which we are conformed in both [heart and life] to the nature and will of God: even our bodies must not be made the instruments of sin and uncleanness, but set apart for God, and put to holy uses, as the vessels of the tabernacle were holy, being devoted to God’s service. It is the soul that is the proper subject of holiness; but a sanctified soul communicates a holiness to the body it actuates and animates.
ACCEPTABLE -
This is the end to which we should strive- to be acceptable unto God. If we fail in this, if we come up short in this, - how awful!
2 Cor 5:9-10
9 Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him.
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
Acts 10:35
35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
Heb 12:28
28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear.
All this is our reasonable service. We have talked shortly about this. But I also want to look at another aspect of reasonable service.
Not only does this impress us with the fact that what God has required is not too much to expect of each and every one of us, but we can also have an understanding of why it is required.
Though God could demand ‘blind obedience’, yet he has given us much reason and understanding of why he requires a vessel that is yielded to His will. One man put it this way...
God does not impose upon us any thing hard or unreasonable, but that which is altogether agreeable to the principles of right reason.
He has enabled us to understand - that what he requires of us, is for our good. Nothing that God requires of us is meaningless. It is all for the purpose of ‘finishing that good work in us.’
We talked earlier about the fact that all things were created for his pleasure….
Eph 1:5-6
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
Phil 2:13
13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.
II Th 1:11-12
11 Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power:
12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
And Jesus gave us this precious knowledge…
Luke 12:32
32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
Understanding these things, gives us good reason - makes it rational to submit ourselves fully to the will of God.
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.
‘Conformed’- means ‘fashioned like; fashioned according to’
This does not say to us … you should not… it says BE NOT.
Don’t be fashioned after this world…
I Jn 2:16-17
16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
We ought to fear to be like the world. It is going to pass away. It has the seeds of corruption in it. The world is under the curse of sin.
Why should the church desire to be in any way conformed to this world? It should not! All that is conformed to this world is headed for destruction!
Therefore it is imperative that the Christian be separate from the corruption of the world. It is imperative that we…
Rom 6:4
walk in newness of life.
Rom 7:6
should serve in newness of spirit,
Rom 13:14
14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Eph 4:21-24
22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Eph 5:8
walk as children of light:
Col 1:10
10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing,
Col 3:10
10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
1 Pet 4:2
2 [That he] no longer should live the rest of [his] time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.
[Live the rest of our time to the will of God.]
So we are to be NOT conformed to this world.
Not only are we not to conform to this world, but to be separated from it…
2Corinthians 6:17
Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Not only are we to be unconfirmed to the world, but quite the opposite… But BE YE TRANSFORMED…
Transformed speaks to us of a former state and then a new state…
The word ‘transformed’ in the original is ‘metamorphoo’ [or]metamorphose.
We are all familiar with that idea.
The caterpillar goes through a complete change and when he is transformed, you cannot find in him what he use to be. He is a new creature. He has gone from crawling in the dirt eating leaves to a completely new state that flies far above where he once crawled. He goes from a leaf eater to a sweet nectar drinker.
I think God created him as a sermon of what happens to a man made new is Christ….
2 Cor 5:17
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
The new man no longer crawls around in the muck and mire of this world, but now sits in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. The new man doesn’t feast on the the slop of the world anymore, but drinks in the new wine and tastes of the good things of God… Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Once a the transformation takes place, you don’t find the butterfly trying to go back to its former lifestyle. He doesn’t try to incorporate leaf eating into his meal plan. He has been made now for better things.
This transformation takes place by the renewing of our minds…
Phil 2:5
5 Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
If we are going to be transformed, then we are to go from what we were to something else… What?
Col 3:10
10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge AFTER THE IMAGE OF HIM THAT CREATED HIM:
Eph 4:23-24
23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man, which AFTER GOD is created in righteousness and true holiness.
1 Pet 1:14-16
14 As obedient children, not fashioning yourselves according to the former lusts in your ignorance:
15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.
So we are transformed to be fashioned in the image of God.
When God created man, he made him in his image and in his likeness. But man lost much of that state because of sin.
God was still holy, but man was not.
God was still righteous, but man was not.
God was still so loved, but man did not.
The nature of God in man was lost. He had lost that divine nature.
But Jesus came to reconcile man to God. That is, to restore him to the former relation that he had to God. To bring us back to son-ship.
2 Pet 1:2-4
2 Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,
3 According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue:
4 Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
So, we are to be transformed. And how shall this be accomplished?
BY THE RENEWING OF YOUR MINDS…
Eph 4:23
23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
We call the heart that which is actually the mind. When we say someone has had a change of heart, we don’t mean they got a heart transplant. It means they now think of things differently than they use to. It is the mind that is the seat of the affections and what we are begins in the mind.
The Bible says…
Heb 4:12
12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
If we are transformed, we have new thinking, new reasoning.
Our thoughts and intents have been renewed after the mind of Christ.
The mind of man has been affected by sin. It desperately needs to be renewed. The mind is far from perfect. It is basically worldly, that is... Selfish, centered on this world and this flesh.
Scripture is clear about the corruption of man’s mind. The human mind has been tragically corrupted by man’s selfishness and sin. Man’s mind has become vain, empty, and futile in its imaginations.
Romans 1:21
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”
The meaning of the heart being darkened here is plain… they no longer had understanding. Their minds were darkened.
Man’s mind through sin became carnal and full of enmity against God.
Romans 8:7
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.
There must be a renewing of the mind!
Man’s mind has become blinded by Satan lest it believe the glorious gospel of Christ.
2Corinthians 4:4
In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
A mind that has not been renewed cannot be transformed into the image of God.
How can this renewal take place?
Rom 10:17
17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
This is a work of the Spirit, for it is through the born again experience that we are made ‘new creatures.’
It is as we walk in the ‘word’ [in obedience] that we …
2 Cor 3:18
…are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.
And in doing so, we prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.
Another word for the original ‘prove’ is ’discern’.
That is significant because we cannot discern what the will of God is without the renewed mind. This is evident in the world today. Is it any wonder that we hear some today say that God would not really let any soul go into hell? That God doesn’t really require what the Word says he does?
How can they know without that NEW MIND? They cannot discern the truth. They do not know what is good. They do not know what God will accept and what he will not. They are convinced that he accepts everything.
The reason why the believer is to be transformed is extremely significant. The believer must prove (dokimazo) the will of God. To prove the will of God is both to find and to follow God’s will.
If a person’s mind is not renewed and focused upon God...
· how can the person ever find or discover or know the will of God?
· how can the person ever follow or obey or do the will of God?
The only conceivable way a person can ever find and follow God’s will is to focus and keep his mind upon God and upon the things of God.
Note also how the will of God is described. Meditating upon the threefold description stirs a person to crave after God’s will. God’s will is said to be...
· good (agathon): beneficial, rich, bountiful, suitable, moral.
· acceptable (euareston): pleasing, satisfactory, welcomed.
· perfect (teleion): without error or mistake, flawless, complete, absolute, free from any need, short of nothing, completely fulfilled.
God doesn’t have 3 separate wills. His will is three-fold.
In summary, victory over the world is gained by the believer renewing his mind more and more.
The believer must focus his mind upon God and the things of God.
Col 3:2
2 Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth.
