Presenting Our Lives
Scripture Text: Romans 12:1-2
Introduction: Is there any encouragement in your life today…..or even how you live your life? Do you think that your behavior has any impact on those around you? More importantly, does your life have any purpose?
Propositional Statement: I want you to do something radical today! I want you to present your Life! Presenting Your Life means that you are encouraged, that you are not conformed to this world; but that you are transformed; which means that you ultimately display God’s glory in our life. Do others see good in you; do they see life in you? You see, while the first eleven chapters of Romans primarily deal with our standing and security in Christ Jesus; Romans 12 begins with the application of that righteousness in our lives. What should be the result of God working in your life?
I.Be Encouraged! verse 1. (Paul urges us through the mercies of God to….) Mercies are the equivalent to His tender compassions. (I will mention these mercies more later.)
Present your bodies as a sacrifice. In ancient times, the idea of a sacrifice would be clear in the minds of Paul’s readers. All throughout the Scripture, beginning in Genesis, we see all kinds of ceremonial sacrifices. But, what Paul pictures here is a living sacrifice, as opposed to a dead one. For Christians, the radical thing that Paul asks you to do here is offer yourself as a living sacrifice. F. F. Bruce comments that “the sacrifices of the new order do not consist in taking the lives of others, like the ancient animal sacrifices, but in giving one’s own.”7
Being a living sacrifice means: “How do you live your life?” It is the whole of your being….everything you think, say, and do is devoted to serving God?
Why?.... because of the mercies of God! (Ephesians 5:2 tells us that we should "walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma." (NASB95) )
The Greek language in these verses explains what kind of sacrifice Paul is talking about: he says it is:
1.Living-Romans 6:13 says, "and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God." (NASB95)
I know you are probably thinking that being a sacrifice does not sound like a good thing.
Illustration: David Livingstone, a missionary to Africa once wrote: “People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. Can that be called a sacrifice which is simply acknowledging a great debt we owe to our God, which we can never repay? Is that a sacrifice which brings its own reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny? It is emphatically no sacrifice. Rather it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering, danger, foregoing the common conveniences of this life--these may make us pause, and cause the spirit to waver, and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing compared with the glory which shall later be revealed in and through us. I never made a sacrifice. Of this we ought not to talk, when we remember the great sacrifice which He made who left His Father’s throne on high to give Himself for us.”
David Livingstone. (from http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/s/sacrifice.htm)
2.Holy-Not only should the sacrifice be living, but it should be holy. In the book of Isaiah, we see many have tried to sacrifice without obedience and right hearts. Peter says that we should abstain from worldly lusts. But, holiness is not only about being good; it is about being devoted to God. Peter calls those who are included in this devotion “a holy priesthood.” In the Old Testament, only a particular order of priests could offer a sacrifice for other people. But because of Jesus’ sacrifice for us; we are now able to offer a ‘holy service’ to God everyday with our lives. 1 Peter 2:5 says, "you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." (NASB95)
3.Acceptable- simply means that it is pleasing to God. We should never bring less than what is our best! Malachi 1:2 makes this point about an offering being acceptable. This verse shows God reaffirming his love for His people and; and what is their response to His love. "“I have loved you,” says the Lord. But you say, “How have You loved us?”" (NASB95) Instead of bringing something acceptable to the one who loved them, they brought ignorance! What a tragic response….
B. And then, as though obvious, Paul defines the sacrifice in two other ways: First, it is to God and second, it is reasonable.
1. to God. The God. There is only one!
2. It is reasonable, or in other words, it makes sense. The only basis of a living sacrifice is Christ’s sacrifice on the cross! Hebrews 10:12-14 speaks to this truth: "but He (JESUS), having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, sat down at the right hand of God, waiting from that time onward until His enemies be made a footstool for His feet. For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified." (NASB95) The only reason that we can bring a living, holy, and acceptable sacrifice is because of what Jesus did on the cross.
Transition: Not only should we be encouraged through the mercies of God as we present our bodies in service to Him; but we should also not be conformed to this world….but conformed to the image of Christ.
II. Do not be conformed! verse 2. Conformity means looking different on the outside; than you are on the inside. Is what is in here (point to heart); displayed out here?
Conformity to the ‘world’ or ‘age’ (depending on your translation) in this passage is a reference to what is in opposition to Christ Jesus. Galations 1:4 says, JESUS "who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father," (NASB95) The ‘world’ is simply where we live! “J.B. Phillips catches the meaning of this exhortation in a powerful paraphrase: “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold” (PH). The world exerts all sorts of pressures to force us to adopt its ways of thinking. But believers are not Jell–O. We don’t have to conform. We can be transformed from within by God.”
A. And certainly, Rome was not unlike our world. It had a population of over one million people and was a huge trading port. The influences of the time: Huge temples and forums to Greek gods. Polytheism flourished! The question may be: “Do the influences of the world make you look different than what you believe here (point to heart)?
Illustration: Em Griffin in his book The Mindchangers describes an experiment done by Solomon Asch with groups of 12 people. They were brought into a room where four lines of unequal length were displayed. They had to decide which two were the same length and publicly vote for their choice. Person after person after person (11 in all) voted for the wrong line--because they had all been told to ahead of time. The one individual who was in the dark couldn’t imagine how in the world all these seemingly normal people could all choose the wrong line. When it was his turn to vote, he had to decide, "Do I go with what I know my senses are telling me, or do I go with the crowd?" 1/3 of those tested caved in to group pressure and changed their vote to agree with their peers. Em Griffin, The Mindchangers, Tyndale House, 1976, p. 193ff http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/c/conformity.htm
B. Paul describes a people who conformed to Greek worship. Paul describes people who were giving away their heritage and identity; to a contemporary Greek society. In fact, one of the reasons for the destruction of Jerusalem was a loss of identity by the people who lived there.
Transition: We should not be conformed to the world; but be transformed through the renewal of our minds.
III. Be transformed! verse 2. The Greek form means that we are continuing to be transformed. It is not a one-time thing, but a present continuous action! 2 Corinthians 3:18 says, "But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit." (NASB95)
A. Transformation means that we are changed from the inside out. The word used in Scripture is metamorphosis; which was the word used when the disciples seen Christ as he was transfigured. They saw who Christ was as he displayed on the outside; what was on the inside.
Paul had a personal experience of transformation from Saul to Paul. He moved from a life of hate to a life of grace. He was a man who stood by at the stoning of Stephen and dragged Christians to prison. After Paul was met by Jesus on the road to Damascus, people marveled at Paul’s transformation: we read "All those hearing him continued to be amazed, and were saying, “Is this not he who in Jerusalem destroyed those who called on this name, and who had come here for the purpose of bringing them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul kept increasing in strength and confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus by proving that this Jesus is the Christ." (Acts 9:18-22, NASB95) What makes a man change like that? His desires were changed from the inside –out! In Romans 15:15-16; Paul says that the only reason he is able to minister is because of the grace of God in his life. The question for us might be: “Has God created that renewal in your heart and mind?” And in following, “is it apparent to others around you?”
B. Further, the Bible says that we are transformed: By proving what the will of God is. (the word WHAT in the Greek asks the question: “What is the will of God?” In other words, “When you are transformed, you realize the desire, purpose, and intention of God in this world.” You answer this question, “What is the will of God?” with your life. According to verse 2 of Romans, it is good, acceptable, and complete.
1. The will of God is Good. Goodness or righteousness should lead to action.
2. The will of God is Acceptable. Ephesians 4, implores us to live lives “in a manner worthy of your calling.” The question might be: “How much are the mercies of God worth to you?”
3. The will of God is complete. In Hebrews 9:13-14 says; "if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?" (NASB95) Because of what Jesus did on the cross, the will of God can be complete in you. Is that transformation possible in you?
Conclusion: How do you present your life?
Are you a living sacrifice? Do the tender compassions of God compel you to live life in a holy and acceptable way in God’s eyes?
In the first word of Romans 12: (Therefore) is encompassed all the mercies of God; more specifically God’s mercy and compassion shown in the sacrifice of His son.
Hebrews 13:15 says that we are offering up a sacrifice of praise because Christ was offered up for us! The idea of a living sacrifice should always bring to mind an ultimate price paid! The sacrifice of Jesus, so that we might live!
Do you avoid the influences of the world? How do you Present Yourself? Is your whole life a display of righteousness. Does the urging by a dear brother like Paul, compel you to live a life in Christ Jesus as opposed to anything else?
Finally, is your life transformed? Is the good, acceptable, and complete will of God being manifested in your life?
3. What do I want you to do?
First, read your Bible…especially passages concerning Christ’s sacrifice. I so want you to discover the tender compassions of God. Much of the Bible speaks to the great cost that was paid that you might be free!
Secondly, don’t be a victim of conformity.
And finally, be transformed. If you don’t see a change on the outside, reconsider whether there has been a change on the inside.
Have you heard the hymn?:
LORD,
Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord to Thee;
Take my moments and my days,
Let them flow in ceaseless praise.
Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love.
Take my voice and let me sing
Always, only, for my King.
Take my silver and my gold,
Not a mite would I withhold;
Take my will, and make it Thine,
It shall be no longer mine;
Ever, only, all for Thee,
Ever, only, all for Thee.
Does your life reflect the prayer: May I present my life as a living sacrifice!
