Romans 12:1-2 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Over the past few days, I’ve been discussing the will of God and how to walk out His will daily in our lives. The Lord’s general will involves the development of our character and the ways in which we relate to Him and to our fellow man. Much of this is the same for every believer. But each of us is unique, and each has a potential life vision unlike any other. God has an individual will for every soul that belongs to Him, an individually shaped destiny which varies according to our gifting and calling and purpose in His Body.
Not every believer knows or even desires to walk fully in that vision, calling, or destiny. At times we may try to think about or shape a vision for our lives, but the scripture says that we ought to be able to test and approve what is God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will. How do we do this?
First, Paul urges that we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice. What does this mean? It means that we make a conscious decision to devote our entire lives to the Lord, holding nothing back, to give ourselves to Him without reservation. The Old Testament sacrifices were animals which were totally offered to God and usually were burned on the altar in fire. Their aroma was pleasing to Him, as their flesh was consumed by the fire. As living sacrifices, we remain alive… but given over, as though we were burning on His altar. Our life is not our own, but is devoted to His purpose and pleasure. This is a conscious decision, a choice which every believer is urged to make. The Lord is then free to shape our lives, our experiences, our discipline, according to His perfect will and purposes for the best possible result.
Paul expands on this decisive act of devotion, saying we must not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our mind. So the act of devoting our life to Him involves a decisive renunciation of the ways of thinking and the values of this present world. (Much could be said about this.) And it also involves a process of renewing our thoughts and values according to the thoughts and values of our Lord. These, then, are the conditions which the apostle gives that we may be able to test and approve what is God’s good, pleasing, and perfect will for our lives.
It’s often said that “God has a wonderful plan for your life.” To me that has always sounded a bit “robotic”, as though I were a rat who needed to find His way through the maze of some “Cosmic Scientist”. But now I know that God’s “plan” for me is anything but mechanical. Rather, it involves the profound realities of my unique individuality; things that He has placed in me and no one else, such that He can beautifully express Himself through my life, my personality, my gifts, relationships, and unique position in the world. Indeed, it is a “wonderful plan”. But in order for Him to shape this destiny, He requires my unreserved consent, my offering… of MY BODY, a LIVING SACRIFICE.
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[worthy_plugins_devotion_single_body]Richard Wurmbrand, a Romanian Jewish Believer and an amazing man of God, spent 14 years in communist prisons where he was tortured brutally for his faith and then lived to tell about it. In his book, The Oracles of God, he writes about acquiring inner peace and tells the following powerful story.
Once upon a time, Aesop wrote, the beasts and the fowls were engaged in war. A doublehearted bat was trying to belong to both parties. When the birds were victorious, he would fly around telling everyone he was a bird, and when the beasts won, he would walk around assuring everyone that he was actually a beast. His insincerity was soon discovered and the devious bat was rejected by both the beasts and the birds. From that time on and forevermore, the bat would be banned from the light and would be only allowed to appear openly at night.
In the sermon on the mount, Yeshua said, “You are the light of the world,” and commanded us to let our lights shine that we may give glory to our Heavenly Father. This world is becoming more ungodly and dark, and by deep contrast, the saints of the Lord will shine brighter! A candle in a bright room isn’t particularly significant or easy to notice. A candle in the darkness shines like a lighthouse and offers the only source of guidance for movement.
Is it me, or is the world going nuts? Have we’ve entered the “Twilight Zone”? However, the Bible gave us an understanding of what the last days would entail. We are witnessing the groanings of creation, the literal birth-pangs of the “Day of the Lord”, we also must be awakened and prepared for the coming HARVEST.
Charles Spurgeon was a minister often accused of being “controversial”. One day a friend of Spurgeon’s remarked, “So, I hear you are in hot water again.”
“No, I’m not the one in hot water,” …
As I’ve been speaking across the United States, I’ve been stressing the need for our spiritual foundation to be solidified, and how important it is right now for believers to be grounded on the rock that doesn’t move!
In the midst of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln called Vicksburg "the key to the Confederacy", and told his generals, "We do not yet have the key in our pocket!"