“Building A Life Of Sacrifice”
Building A Great Life – part 5
Today is week 5 in our sermon series, “Building A Great Life.” Now a great life is something that we all want – BUT it is also something, that will not and does not, happen automatically. UNDERSTAND - to have a great life you need to have the proper foundation, power, cornerstone & expression.
The foundation of a great life is faith…
The power of a great life is commitment…
The cornerstone of a great life is purpose…
The expression of a great life is service…
This morning we are going to talk about another essential ingredient to a great life, sacrifice, which is the heart of a great life
Our main text for today, and our memory verse for this week is Romans 12:1;
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.”
Today as we talk about a life of sacrifice we will see that a Life of Sacrifice – restores fellowship with God, brings what pleases God, is propelled by God’s mercy, reflects Christ the ultimate sacrifice and transforms the Christian and churches…
PRAYER…
The first point in your outline is;
A Life Of Sacrifice – Restores Fellowship With God
UNDERSTAND - God’s people have always brought sacrifices to God. Well, almost always. For you see, in the first 3 chapters of the bible there was no need for sacrifices – WHY? Because man had perfect fellowship with God. In fact, Genesis chapter 3 tells us, that prior to Adam & Eve’s sin – that in the cool of the day – in the evening, as the sun was setting, and as a gentle breeze began to blow, Almighty God walked in the garden with man.
Think about that… Just taking a walk, hanging out with the alpha & omega, IMAGINE - seeing God and hearing God as he is really is… It had to be so awesome and don’t forget that the garden was absolutely perfect – a paradise beyond our imagination, no sin, no sickness, no disease, no stress…no pain, no heartache.
BUT that paradise, that perfect fellowship, was destroyed when Adam and Eve sinned disobeying God’s command not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good & evil. And LISTEN - life for man has been radically different ever since… Man was kicked out of the garden – LISTEN to Genesis 3:24;
“After He DROVE the man out, He placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden a cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life…”
CIRCLE – “Drove”
Do you see that picture? They didn’t want to go… They belonged with God… It’s all they ever knew…The reality of leaving the garden and losing that intimate fellowship with God had to be devastating beyond words… AND after God drove them from His presence He placed 2 barriers between them and the garden – 2 barriers between them and intimate fellowship with God -- a cherubim and a flaming sword.
LISTEN - IF we are to ever have a great life we need to have that fellowship, we need to have that relationship with God, restored… But how? Through sacrifice…
In the very next chapter – in Genesis chapter 4 we read of Cain & Abel bringing the first sacrifices and offering to the Lord. And through out the book of beginnings we see - Noah, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob bringing sacrifices to the Lord. And much of the law that Moses brought down from thundering Mt Sinai – involved the bringing of sacrifices…(IN - Number 28 & 29 we see a listing of these sacrifices, whose purpose was to restore fellowship with God).
Daily - two lambs were to be offered one in the morning & the other in the evening.. The offering of each lamb was to be accompanied with a grain offering (flour mixed with olive oil) and a drink offering of wine poured out before the Lord – this was called a burnt offering…
Weekly on the Sabbath – two additional lambs were to be sacrificed
On the first day of the month – a burnt offering of two bulls, one ram, and 7 lambs was made…
On annual feasts – like pass over, Pentecost, the feast of Tabernacles, the Day of Atonement additional sacrifices were made as well….
UNDERSTAND – that ever since the fall – we see man making sacrifices to God… AND LISTEN – the bringing of sacrifices to god did NOT stop with the passing of the old covenant – FOR YOU SEE - though we no longer bring sacrifices to atone for sin, to pay for sin (Jesus took care of that once & for ALL) under the New Covenant sacrifices are still a part of God’s relationship with His people…
The word of God makes that point very clear…
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.” Rm 12:1
“..you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable To God through Jesus Christ…” 1 Pe 2:5
The first point I want you to understand is that a life of sacrifice restores, improves our fellowship with God… and if Adam and Eve were here today they would tell you that if you want your life to be great – you need to be in fellowship with God.
The NEXT truth about -
A Life Of Sacrifice – (is that it) Brings What Pleases God
“…offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God…”
CIRCLE – “pleasing to God”
“a holy priesthood offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable To God..”
CIRCLE – “acceptable to God”
AND KNOW THIS - under the Old Covenant God’s people could not bring whatever they wanted as a sacrifice – NO – they had to bring what was acceptable and pleasing to God. AND LISTEN - God spelled out in His word exactly what those sacrifices were to be…
YET – sometimes His people, still tried to bring whatever they wanted…whatever they felt was acceptable – (and that didn’t work out so good) Checkout the following verses…
“When you bring blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.” Mal 1:8
Do you see that picture? They did not bring God their best – they brought, blind – diseases and crippled animals…
AND Isaiah writes about another time when God’s people brought Him unacceptable sacrifices..
“Listen to the Lord, you leaders of Israel! Listen to the law of God, people of Israel. You act just like the rulers and people of Sodom and Gomorrah. I am sick of your sacrifices,” says the Lord. “Don’t bring me anymore burnt offerings! I don’t want the fat from your rams or other animals. I don’t want to see the blood from your offerings of bulls and lambs and goats. Why do you keep parading through my courts with your worthless sacrifices…”
Is 1:10-12 (NLT)
LISTEN – these 2 passages of scripture clearly teach that what pleased God was when the people brought Him their best, when they gave him the first fruits, when they gave something that cost them (like when David said in 2 Samuel 24:24; “I will not sacrifice to the Lord my God burnt offerings that cost me nothing…”) What pleased God is when they like Abraham who took Isaac to the mountain to sacrifice him, are willing to give up what they love most for God…
AND – what God also found acceptable was for their for their sacrifices to be accompanied by right living…
In the Old Testament God told the people what kind of sacrifices pleased him… The right acts accompanied by the right heart, the right life…
“The sacrifice God wants is a broken spirit. God, You will not reject a heart that is broken and sorry for sin…” Ps 51:17 (NCV)
AND LISTEN – God still, even after the cross, wants His people to bring Him sacrifices, sacrifices that please HIM and that he finds acceptable. And what God wants today, is not bulls, lambs and goats… what he wants is US…he wants you…at He wants is living sacrifices that are holy & pleasing to Him (and in just a few minutes we’ll talk about that means in practical terms..)
A Life Of Sacrifice – Is Propelled By God’s Mercy
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.”
CIRCLE - “in view of God’s mercy” NLT “when you think about what God has done.”
QUESTION – what is mercy? NOT getting what we deserve…
Paul in this letter to the Romans has talked a lot about God’s mercy…about us not getting what we deserve…In fact he spent the first 3 chapters telling them how bad they were… and this discussion ends with these words in the 3rd chapter;
“…for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement…”
In view of God’s mercy – we you think of what Jesus has done for you it should propel you to live a life of sacrifice…to give your best…to be a living a sacrifice.
BEFORE – we move onto the NEXT point, I want to us to actually take a few minutes to view what God’s mercy to you and to me, looked like… AND I’m reasonably confident that this brief picture will motivate, inspire and propel you to be live a life of sacrifice…
A Life Of Sacrifice – Is A Reflection Of Christ
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship.”
QUESTION – IF you really want to present yourselves to God as a living sacrifice – IF God’s mercy has motivated you to be an acceptable sacrifice - what do you do? What does a living sacrifice – look like in practical terms? HOW do we put feet on it?
Those are good questions – important questions. AND Paul in the rest of Romans 12 does a pretty good job of answering them. LISTEN _ from verse 2 through the end of the chapter Paul paints a picture of what a life of sacrifice, of what a living sacrifice looks like in the real world… IF you really want to be a living sacrifice, these are the things you need to do – and when you do them you will be a reflection of Christ, the ultimate living sacrifice..
NOW – we will hit these points pretty quick as we read through the rest of this chapter – BUT – I challenge you to spend some time reflecting on these in the days and weeks ahead. Maybe spend a day reflecting and focusing on each one…
If You Want To Be A Living Sacrifice…..
1) Don’t conform to this world;
READ verse 2;
I love how the JB Philips bible translates this verse – “don’t let the world squeeze you into it’s mold…” LISTEN – our world is trying to squeeze believers into it’s mold – it wants them to be just like them… AND if you look at the statistics of sexual immorality, divorce, drug and alcohol abuse, pornography – among those claiming Christ – there is no other conclusion to draw then that the world is doing a pretty good job of squeezing us.…
BUT those who live a life of sacrifice – LOOK at the world and they say, “Hey, you ain’t squeezing me baby…I’m not going to be like you/live like you” LISTEN – Living Sacrifices are noticeably different then the world – they live as aliens in a strange land – they are salt, they are light.
If you want to a LS…
2) Renew Your Mind
I love how the NLT translates that phrase, “change the way you think”
LISTEN – if you want to live a life of sacrifice you need to change the way you think… And Understand how you think is important because how you think – determines how you feel and how you feel determines how you act…
QUESTION – But how do you change the way you think?
WELL – you know that old computer adage, “garbage in – garbage out” LISTEN – it works the same with your mind – IF you want to renew your mind, if you want to change the way you think - you have to start downloading good stuff into your mind.
QUESTION – what kind of stuff are you putting into your mind? Paul gives a great guideline in Phil 4:8;
“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy think of such things…” Phil 4:8
QUESTION – can you think of something that always meets those requirements? That’s right the word of God….
Read verse 3
3rd if you want to be a LS…
3) Lay Down Your Pride
Or as Paul says;
“Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought…”
LISTEN – a living sacrifice refuses to think that he’s better than anyone else, he refuses to think that he’s arrived – a living sacrifice, is not proud BUT humble…
“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: ‘Who being in very nature God did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing taking the very nature of a servant….” Phil 2:5,6
CIRCLE – “made himself nothing…”
LISTEN – if Jesus, God the Son – made himself nothing, then certainly you & I can do the same… that’ what living sacrifices do, they lay down their pride…
CIRCLE the final phrase in the verse above…– “taking the very nature of a servant…”
This leads us to the 4th thing you need to do if you want to be a living sacrifice…
4) Serve In The Church
Read 4-8
Last week we spent our entire time together, talking about 12 reasons why you should give you life away in service to God and His church... those reasons were
You were created for service.
You were saved for service.
You have been called by God to service.
You have been gifted for service.
You are commanded to serve others.
It proves You belong to Christ.
Your church family needs your service.
Serving others is the way to serve God.
Because you owe everything to Christ.
Because service makes life meaningful.
You will be held accountable for your service.
Because your service will be rewarded for eternity.
A LS serves in the church – are you a LS?
NEXT – to be a LS…..
5) Give Generously
The NLT translates part of Romans 12:8 this way – “If you have money, share it generously…”
LISTEN – when we give God our money, when we share it generously, God views it as an acceptable sacrifice, check out these words from Phil chapter 4.
READ 4:15-20
“the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God…”
LISTEN – when you give to support the work of the kingdom God sees it as a fragrant offering/an acceptable sacrifice and he is pleased..… In just 1 week we will gather as a body to bring our miracle offering… A cash offering and a 3 yr pledge over our tithe and faith promise….it is going to be awesome – on that day a bunch of fragrant offerings will rise up from this place…
If you want your life to be a living sacrifice – holy and pleasing to the Lord…
Don’t conform to the world
Renew your mind
Lay down your pride
Serve in the church
Give generously
NOW – for the next several descriptions of a living sacrifice are going to come pretty quick… Paul fires them off at a rapid in Romans 12:9-16. There are 10 of them and we will talk briefly about them.
Read 12:9-16;
IF you want to be a LS…..
6) Live A Life Of Love
Paul writes; YOUR….
“Love must be sincere…”
LISTEN – love is awesome and it pleases God…Check out Ephesians 5:1,2
“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
UNDERSTAND – the love we are talking about here is an agape love – a love of the will – A love that like Christ’ and gives itself away, for the benefit of others…
“This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives (not physical lives) for our brothers…let us not love with words and tongue but with action and truth…” 1 Jn 3:16,18
LISTEN – a life of love is a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God…
NEXT a LS…..
7) Loves God – And -- Hate Sin…
Paul writes;
“hate what is evil; cling to what is good…”
NOW - the verb hate used here means to be horrified by evil - to stay away from it…
I think Proverbs 4:14,15 really captures what you are to do in regards to evil…
“Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on; turn from it and on your own way…”
LISTEN - those who are living sacrifices do not play around with what is evil – they do not make light of what is evil – they avoid it – they hate it, AND they cling to – they hold on very tightly, to that which is good… (And understand - when you cling to what is good – it is impossible to hold on to evil…)
NEXT – Paul says if you want to be a LS you need to:
8) Be devoted to other believers…
NOW – we understand what devotion means – we see people all around us devoted to all kinds of things - careers, hobbies, pleasure, the pursuit of money – WELL with the same kind of drive a living sacrifice is devoted to God‘s people…
QUESTION - was Jesus devoted to god’s people?
Next a LS is….
9) Always Pumped About The Kingdom
I love those words – “NEVER being lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor…”
LISTEN – a living sacrifice is always passionate about the kingdom – is always pumped about the church. When people hear you talk about Christ & His church do they sense great passion and zeal – do that sense that the Church is something that stokes your fire…
10th if you want to be a LS….
10) Be Joyful
LISTEN – joy is the hallmark of a living sacrifice… And understand this – joy is NOT an option for a Christian… In fact God commands you to be joyful….
“Be joyful always…” 1 Th 5:16
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again rejoice!” Phil 4:4
QUESTION – How can God command you to be joyful… How can you rejoice always?
The answer is found in Romans 12; “be joyful in HOPE…”
CIRCLE – “hope”
UNDERSTAND – it is the hope YOU have in Christ – it you being SURE of what you HOPE for (eternity with Him – a new body – a new home, no sin, death, disease, heartache..ect) that allows YOU to be joyful always – that gives YOU, what I like to call, “a before vacation’ attitude about life…
NEXT to be a LS….
11) Turn your trials into triumphs
Paul writes, “Be patient in affliction…”
NOW - a better translation of this word patient would be preserve. AND the word in the Greek, means much more than just passively enduring troubles when they come your way. It means to actively take hold of your troubles and turn them into spiritual victories… It means to choose to be a VICTOR not a victim…
12th to be a LS…..
12) Pray
Paul writes, “be faithful in prayer…”
The word translated faithful means, “to persist in, to adhere to, to busy oneself with, to be devoted to…”
LISTEN – a living sacrifice prays… A LOT…. WHY? Because a living sacrifice knows that through Christ they have access to the throne of grace – AND because of that access they receive mercy and find grace to help them in their time of need….
In Revelation we get an awesome picture of prayer…
“The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angels hand…” Rev 8:4
13) Practice Hospitality
The word hospitality means ‘a lover of strangers…. AND we have to practice this because it does not come naturally to most of us… AND UNDERSTAND - it will require some sacrifice to practice hospitality…to open up your home and lives to others…
The next characteristic of a LS….is to:
14) Affirm the feelings of others….
Paul writes, “rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn…”
QUESTION - did Jesus do this (affirm…) – what did he do at the tomb of Lazarus – he knew what he was about to do YET – Jn 11:35 says; “Jesus wept..”
LAST to a LS…. You need to…
15) Overcome evil with Good
READ – 12:17-21
LISTEN – it may not makes sense to us… it may not feel right – BUT God says that a living sacrifice overcomes evil with good… Check out what Peter says about Jesus…
“He did not retaliate when he was insulted. When he suffered, he did not get even. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly…” 1 Pe 2:23
Don’t conform to the world
Renew your mind
Don’t be proud
Serve in the church
Give generously
Live a life of love
Love God hate sin
Be devoted to other believers
Always be pumped about the kingdom
Be joyful
Turn your trials into triumphs
Pray
Practice Hospitality
Affirm the feelings of others
Overcome evil with good
AND LISTEN – when you do these things you will be a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to God – AND you will also be a reflection of Christ…
Now I know that this is a bunch of stuff, BUT it’s in all of the bibles each of us carry, AND it’s all part of presenting ourselves to God as a living sacrifice – I hope each of us will really take the time to reflect on what it means to be a LS……
AND UNDERSTAND – when you are a living sacrifice something awesome happens!!!
Which brings us to the last point in your outline…AND it’s a quick one…
A Life Of Sacrifice – TRANSFORMS Christians & Churches
God’s word say when we are LS…. We are transformed… It is the ‘metamorphoo’
From which we get our English word metamorphosis… A creeping caterpillar is transformed a soaring butterfly.
