Rom 12:1 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
Romans chapter 12 is one of the most practical chapters in the whole Bible. If you take the whole chapter, you get this manual for practical Christian living. Who knows, one day I might write a short devotional on this chapter. It’s not a coincidence that Paul starts this chapter by talking about being a living sacrifice. If you are going to follow Jesus, you are gonna have to sacrifice your time, money, friendships, and much more. This may sound unappealing, but it is the least we can do considering all that Jesus has done for us. In fact, Paul calls our sacrifice an act of spiritual worship.
A living sacrifice is something that gives but isn’t extinguished. Think of the burning bush that Moses encountered. What drew him to it was that the bush was burning, but it wasn’t being consumed. There are several principles here. First, sacrifice for Jesus isn’t a one-time thing. It happens over and over again. Second, our sacrifice brings life. The secret behind sacrifice is that it is life-giving. When we lay down our lives, we discover that it opens us to a whole new world. Finally, a living sacrifice is all of you. Jesus isn’t asking for part of you; He is asking to use all of you.
Our sacrifice is an act of worship. Worship is giving worth to someone who deserves it. Jesus deserves everything we can give Him and more because of the mercies that He extended to us. When we offer ourselves up to be used by Him, we are participating in an act of worship. It’s us telling God that while we don’t have much to offer, He can use everything. God then takes that and works a miracle through it.
If we can start our day with a mentality of being a living sacrifice, it will change our outlook. We will be less prone to think of what we want and more of how we can help. When we start to think of how Jesus can use us and how we can be a blessing to others, it does a dramatic shift. We become less worried about our troubles. Thinking less about those frees up our time. When God does use us for His purposes, it brings joy to our hearts.
