Have you ever had to give up something that you really, really loved? Something that had a hold on you, and you had a hold on it. I mean this was something you went to bed dreaming about, and woke up in the morning smiling at just the thought of it. Something that had been a part of your life for a long time, just long enough that it made it hard for you to give up and let go. Maybe you’ve went to the doctor and found out that your cholesterol level is too high. High cholesterol can be a result of eating too much saturated fat, and so now the doctor says you have to lay off the butter, and to stop mixing all that cheese in your grits. These are things that you love to eat, but if you want to lower your cholesterol, you must make a sacrifice if you want to change or improve your condition.
There are some of you who have friends that you run with, but the problem is you’re running everywhere they go, instead of them running everywhere you go. And you’re finding yourselves running with them to Gigi’s on Saturday night, but they can’t run with you to church on Sunday morning. Yeah I know about Gigi’s, when I moved here in 1999 I was in house a few times, they weren’t leaning with it, and rocking with it like they’re doing now, but I was in the house! (Just to clarify pastor…) But some of us have some friends that we need to let go, if we expect to make a sacrificial transformation.
Young people, I know you love watching television and playing your XBOX & Playstation when you get home from school, but 99% of the time you’re given homework to do; keyword is home, that means your work is meant to be done at home, not the next day before class. This is why some of you are not doing so well in school, it’s not because you’re not smart, but you have placed the T.V. and video games before your homework. You have to give up that which you love, in order to change and bring those grades up. I wasn’t going to go there, but men, some of you need to put down the video games too, because when you come home from work, some of you have children and spouses that need your attention more than Madden 2007. EA Sports, it’s in the game, but family time is in your hands.
A sacrificial transformation, we’ve mentioned some things that are physical, but what we really want to highlight this morning is a sacrificial transformation that’s spiritual. And when we learn how to sacrifice in the spiritual, not only will we begin to transform spiritually, but physically things will fall in line as well.
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In the canonical text, Paul wrote this letter to the church at Rome, because he had plans to visit them one day. Paul didn’t want to just pop up on the scene, so in this letter he prepared the church in Rome to receive his doctrine.
• This letter to the church contained God’s Holy Word, which Paul didn’t just believe in, but it was what Paul was preaching as well. There are some people who strongly believe in something, but they can’t back it up with their actions.
• If I go to purchase a BMW, and keep in mind this is an example because I don’t have BMW money, but if I go to purchase a BMW, I don’t want to see my salesman go home at the end of the day in a Lexus. In other words, we should be able to practice what we preach.
Paul’s letter dealt with sin, salvation, spiritual growth, the sovereignty of God, and service. And in our selected text, Paul helps us to understand what is involved in a sacrificial transformation. When Paul finished carefully outlining his beliefs and God’s Word, he said not only to the church at Rome, but to every Christian today, therefore! In other words, everything that Paul has said in this letter up unto this point, what is it there for?
• Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God,” what is that there for?
• Romans 5:8, “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,” what is that there for? Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord,” what is this there for?
• Romans 8:1, “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit,” what is this there for?
• Romans 11:36, “For of him, and through him, and to him, are all things: to whombe glory for ever. Amen,” what is this there for?
These scriptures, and many others that Paul wrote in his letter from Romans chapter one, to Romans chapter 11 are there for us to understand God’s mercy to sinners, and that God sent His Son to die on the cross for our sins. Therefore, or because of that, Paul urges believers to properly respond to God by presenting their bodies as living and holy sacrifices in such a manner that they are acceptable and pleasing to God. So the first thing that is involved in a sacrificial transformation is a sacrifice. If we expect to go through a transformation, we must first make a sacrifice. Nothing can change, if nothing has been given up.
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Look what Paul says in verse 1, “I urge you, brethren and sisteren, by the mercies of God.” Paul isn’t commanding us, because God doesn’t force Himself on no one, but Paul strongly advises and encourages believers in Christ, by the mercies of God—His love and compassions toward us—which should motivate us to offer a sacrifice to God.
• That sacrifice Paul says is the presentation of our bodies to God. In the Old Testament, the priest brought offering and faced it toward the Most Holy Place, in this way it was brought before the Lord. Animal sacrifices are no longer required, but what God wants is for us to sacrifice our bodies.
I think we need to understand what a sacrifice really is. A sacrifice involves giving up something that is really valuable and important to you, for somebody or something that you consider to be of more value or importance. In other words, a sacrifice is surrendering to or giving up something that we really would rather not give up, but because of that which we are giving it up for is more important than what we are giving up, we make a sacrifice.
• I know you love that butter and cheese, and you really don’t want to give it up, but remember the doctor said your cholesterol is too high. So since you consider your health and well being to be more important than butter and cheese, you make a sacrifice and give them up.
So, we’re asked to offer, surrender, and give up our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. Why our bodies? Why not our money? Hmmm, what can God do with our money? I mean money by itself can’t do anything for God. Think about, we’re asked to present to God a living sacrifice. If the sacrifice has to be living and not dead, then our bodies are all we have to offer to God. We live in our bodies, which completely encloses our emotions, our mind, our thoughts, our desires, and our plans. Therefore, the body represents the total person, and is an instrument by which all our service is given to God. Paul had already made it clear in Romans 6 that our bodies shouldn’t be used as instruments of unrighteousness, but instead we should yield them to God to be used as instruments of righteousness.
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Next, we observe that a sacrificial transformation not only involves a sacrifice, but the sacrifice must be holy and acceptable to God. In the Old Testament, when sacrificing an animal, the priest would kill the animal and place it on the altar. In presenting our bodies as a sacrifice to God, we’re not dealing with anything dead, but a living sacrifice and the problem with our bodies being that living sacrifice, we sometimes may find ourselves walking away from the altar following our own desires. When we walk away from the altar to follow our desires, then our sacrifice is no longer holy or pleasing to God. When we use foul language because someone almost cut us off the road on 635, then our sacrifice isn’t holy and acceptable. When someone does us wrong, and we refuse to forgive them, then our sacrifice is no longer holy and acceptable to God.
To be holy and acceptable, we have to present our bodies to God as living sacrifices each and every day, completely surrendering to Him our desires, so that they are holy and acceptable to God. Christians are servants of God, and daily our question for God should be, “How can I serve you today Lord?” When we present our bodies as living sacrifices that are holy and acceptable to God, it becomes our spiritual service of worship.
• In this particular passage, worship refers to any act done for God. Anything you can think of, if it’s done for God, it’s a service of worship. It is also a spiritual service, spiritual used here can also mean “reasonable”. So to present our bodies as living sacrifices that are holy and acceptable to God is the only reasonable way to respond to His mercy. I mean when we think about all God has done for us and His great sacrifice that was made for us, the least we can do is surrender our lives to Him.
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A sacrificial transformation. Earlier we said that in order to go through a transformation, a sacrifice must first be made. Now that we understand that it is our entire lives that God wants us to offer to Him, we want to also understand the transformation process that goes hand in hand with our sacrifice. If our sacrifice to God is to be holy and acceptable, then a transformation must also take place. When we begin to be transformed, we’ll find ourselves walking away from the altar less. When we begin to be transformed, we’ll bite our tongue more often while in traffic. When we begin to be transformed, we won’t have to blow much dust off of our bibles.
But in order to begin the transformation process, we must learn which pattern to follow. In verse 2, Paul says, “And do not be conformed to this world.” As Christians, we are called to a different life-style than what the world offers. You see the world offers a life-style that looks fun on the outside, but its life-styles can cause so much heartache and pain on the inside.
• More than ever, the world is reaching out, and is trying to get everyone to follow in its footsteps. Paul says that we should not conform nor adapt to the things of the world, because as Christians, when we offer our bodies as living sacrifices, what we’re actually doing is setting ourselves apart from our old life, so that we can be useful to God.
The challenge of the church is still the same today, and that is to outreach the world and conform it to God’s way. If you are born again, sanctified, and filled with the Holy Ghost, you have been called to a different life-style. Paul told the Corinthian church, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
• When you know that you are a new person in Christ, and those old things no longer has control over you, you’re then able to resist worldly pleasures. When we offer our entire selves to God, a change will happen in our relation to the world. Thank God that we’re not just told not to conform to the world, but we’re told how this should be done.
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Paul says if you want to be changed and transformed, it is done by the renewing of your mind. There was a cartoon I use to watch when I was little called Transformers. These Transformers would be something ordinary like a car or truck, but they transformed and changed into robots whenever it was time for them to fight. When they were done fighting, they would change back to a car or truck. Paul isn’t saying to just be transformed, but transformed by the renewing of your mind.
• You see if you’re just transformed, the problem is that you can transform back to what you use to be. But if you are transformed by renewing of your mind, then the transformation will be whole and complete because it happened from the inside, and it wasn’t just an outward change.
Remember we said that our minds are a part of our total person which we offer to God, and for our sacrifice to be pleasing and acceptable, we not only present our bodies to God daily, but the transformation process is more effective when our mind is also renewed daily. Paul didn’t say be transformed by the renew of your mind, but by the renewing of your mind. It’s a continuous process, because as long as we’re living we’ll always have some ways of thinking that need to be renewed.
• Let’s not forget that our thoughts turn into actions, so if we start with the renewing of the mind, we’ll notice that we won’t talk the way we use to. If we start with the renewing of the mind, we’ll notice that we won’t walk the way we use to. If we start with the renewing of the mind, we’ll notice that the club scene is played out, but it starts with the renewing of the mind.
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I’m about to sit down and be happy, even if I have to be happy all by myself. But the last thing we want to make a note of in the transformation process, is that when our minds become renewed, our spiritual vision becomes clear. Look how Paul concludes verse 2, when we’re transformed by the renewing of our mind, it not only makes our sacrifice to God holy and acceptable, but we are also able to prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
• With a renewed mind our spiritual vision is clear, because we don’t have worldly and fleshly desires blurring our vision. Through a renewed mind, God is able to reveal to us His will and plans for our lives.
When our minds are renewed and are becoming more like Christ, we will not only know what God’s will is for our lives, but we will want God’s will for our lives. A renewed mind allows us to know, do, and enjoy the will of God, and we will see that God’s will is good, that God’s will is acceptable, and that God’s will is perfect.
• In the will of God is where we want to be. It is outside the will of God when we experience trials and tribulations, it is outside the will of God when it seems like everything that can go wrong, does go wrong, it is outside the will of God that satan launches His greatest attacks.
• But with a renewed mind, we don’t have to worry about those things, because we have a promise from God that says all things work together for them good of them that love the Lord, and those who are called according to His purpose.
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A sacrificial transformation begins with a sacrifice. A sacrificial transformation involves a sacrifice that is holy and acceptable to God. A sacrificial transformation does not conform to this world, and things thereof. A sacrificial transformation involves the renewing of your mind. And, a sacrificial transformation causes our spiritual vision to become clear. How many of you want to go through a sacrificial transformation? If you’re not quite sure, let me help you out.
If you tired of falling to those same old temptations, it’s time for a sacrificial transformation. If it seems like no matter how hard you try, things just aren’t going your way, it’s time for a sacrificial transformation. If you been born again, but you just can’t feel the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, it’s time for a sacrificial transformation. If you’re struggling with what God’s will is for your life, it’s time for a sacrificial transformation.
