The Living Sacrifice

In several of his Epistles Paul gently but earnestly uses the phrase, "I beseech you." This is the way God talks to us. He doesn't say, "I demand this!" Rather, He speaks to us quite tenderly. I beseech you therefore, brethren (12:1a).

"Therefore" always refers to a prior thought and links the present statement with it. This "therefore" takes us back to the comments on the love, mercy, and grace of God which have provided our election, calling, justification, and glorification. Because we're now justified, Paul urges, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service (12:1b).

"Reasonable" is translated from a Greek word meaning "logical." To commit my life to God for Him to direct is logical, because God knows the end of a matter from the beginning. God's wisdom is so much greater than mine. He has never made a mistake and never will. I have made many mistakes and still do. It makes good sense to seek His counsel and guidance and to give my life to His direction.

God could work apart from human instruments. He could use angels to do His work, and they could probably do a much better job. I wish He would use His angels instead of some of the hucksters I've seen on television. In any event, God has chosen to use people like you and me to do His work.

Rather than offer a slain sacrifice as in the Old Testament, you're to offer your body as a living sacrifice. Present your body as an instrument in God's hands, and He'll use you to accomplish His work in the hearts and lives of those around you.

And be not conformed to this world (12:2a). Immense pressures are working to conform you to this world's system. If you don't conform, the advertising agencies make you think that you're missing out on life. Peer pressure and the mores of society are powerful instruments in Satan's hands. Yet we're told, Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind (12:2b).

A great difference exists between "conformed" and "transformed." Earlier in Romans Paul said, "Ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his" (Romans 8:9). Paul was explaining the two sides of man's nature, flesh and spirit. Being "Transformed by the renewing of your mind" means that your mind is no longer occupied with the fleshly side of your nature.

Many people seek to relate man to animals, because they want to live like animals. Animals don't possess a spirit and live solely on a body-conscious level. So, the man who wants to feel free of any responsibility to God disclaims his spiritual capacities and proclaims himself a highly evolved animal. He's constantly searching for the missing link between himself and the ape. Natural man does have a missing link, but it's not between him and the animal kingdom. It's between him and God. Man, created in the image of God, has fallen from the spirit-controlled being he once was to the flesh-controlled creature he has become. Now God seeks to restore man into His image by the new birth.

Jesus said, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again" (John 3:6-7). The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace (Romans 8:6). By living on the spiritual side of life, your mind is occupied with the things of God. By this transformation from flesh to spirit, you're born again and your mind is renewed.

That ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God (12:2c). The desire expressed in many hearts is: "If I only knew God's will for my life." So many want to do the perfect will of God, but unfortunately don't know what it is.

Here Paul gives a two-step method for knowing the will of God for your life. First, present your body to God. Writing to the Corinthians, Paul asked, "Don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit?" (I Corinthians 6:19). God has made a claim on your body, and He wants you to yield it to Him so that it's under the control of His Spirit. Second, you must not be conformed to this dead world, but be transformed in your mind to the world of the Spirit. When you present your body as an instrument in God's hand, you become a nonconformist to this world of sin and you're transformed by His Spirit. Then you find God's will for your life.

I believe that God reveals His will to me daily. I get up in the morning and say, "God, today my life is Yours. My body is available for You to use as You see fit. Lead me, guide me, and work out Your perfect will in my life." God reveals His will to me, because I've asked Him and trust Him to do just that.

Too often we assume that God only reveals His will in exotic ways such as tinglings down the spine or fiery letters in the sky. When I entered Bible college, I learned that some students had seen visions or messages emblazoned in the sky calling them into the ministry. I didn't have any such experiences. Actually, I had the least spectacular call to the ministry of anyone in school. All I had was a desire to serve God by learning more of His Word.

After all these years I'm one of the few from my class still in the ministry. Many former classmates are selling cars or working in some such occupation. I sometimes wonder what happened to those fiery letters in the sky.

When we expect the will or call of God to come in dramatic ways, we don't anticipate the natural ways by which He so often leads us. Many times during the day God's hand is leading me, but I'm not even aware of it.

Some people expect a divine signal system to give them directions. "Turn left! Beep! Beep! Go forward" They're looking for the spectacular, so they bemoan the fact that they've never been led by God. In looking over my life's situations, I realize that God has worked out things with perfect timing. My hindsight shows me that my promptings to do a particular thing had come from God.

God leads us in natural ways. He said that He would write His Law on the tablets of our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:3). He places in our hearts the desire to do a particular thing. After we do it, we realize that the prompting came from God. It's wonderful to realize that we were listening to God, got His message straight, and played a part in a particular circumstance for His glory. The awareness of God's hand upon our lives is an overwhelming and humbling experience.

So often God leads us one step at a time. In the midst of a successful revival in Samaria, Philip was told by God, "Go down to Gaza, which is desert." Philip obeyed the prompting of God, and when he came to Gaza he saw the chariot with the Ethiopian eunuch. The Lord said, "Go near and join him" (Acts 8:26-29). The second step in the leading didn't come until Philip had obeyed the first. If he had disobeyed the first command, he never would have received the second. Thus, he never would have known what God's will was for him in Gaza. We often demand to know God's reasoning; but the revelation of His will to our lives is progressive, as we obey step by step.

For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith (12:3). Thinking more highly of myself than I ought is one of my greatest problems in serving God. In trying to find the reasons why God chose me, I sometimes think that He knew He could trust me. However, God uses me simply because He wants to. As a human instrument, I must beware the danger of accepting the glory that belongs to God. Lest I ever be puffed up because God uses me, I remember the instrument that He chose to speak to Balaam: a simple donkey (Numbers 22:22-33).

When God places the anointing of His Spirit on you as His instrument, people will oftentimes magnify you as someone special. You can't stop them, but you can refuse to accept their plaudits. When Peter and John were used by God to heal the lame man in the temple, the people gathered around Peter. They looked at him in awe, as if to say, "You must be a very holy man for God to use you. "

Peter pointed to the healed man and said, "Men of Israel, why do you marvel at this? Why do you stare at us as though we through our own power or godliness have made this fellow walk? This is the power of Jesus Christ demonstrated to you. Glorify Him!" (Acts 3:1-16).

Peter knew that he was a blunderer and a weakling. Jesus had told him, "The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matthew 26:41b). So when the Lord anointed and used him, Peter wasn't about to take any credit for it.

When God begins to anoint you, don't take the credit. Paul asked, "What do you have that you did not receive?" (I Corinthians 4:7b). If you've been given a talent, ability, or gift, why go around as though it came from you? If God didn't put intelligence in you, you'd be a babbling idiot. You can think and reason only because He has given you the ability. So never magnify yourself or your abilities.

Because of the beautiful inspiration of the Spirit, I'll occasionally deliver a really good sermon. Once, after an especially good one, I was walking toward the back of the church and the devil was on my shoulder. He said, "You gave a great sermon! You really blessed the people today!"

The Lord was speaking to me also. He said, "What did you give but what you received?" I said, "Nothing, Lord." He said, "Then you won't take credit for it, will you?" I said, "No way, Lord!" Whatever I have has come from God. Paul says that every man ought to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith (12:3b). Man has a tendency to exalt the idea of faith, and this can easily become a matter of spiritual pride. "God does such wonderful things through me because of my great faith." As though a man's faith was at the center of God's great work!

Paul said, "By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God" (Ephesians 2:8). You may say, "What? We don't get any credit?" No. God gave us the necessary measure of faith to believe in the grace that He was offering. If He hadn't given us that faith, we couldn't believe. We'd still be out in the dark, looking in.

Peter explained to the wondering throng how the lame man was walking and leaping: "Yes, the faith which is by Him" (Acts 3:16). The faith for the miracle had come by Jesus Christ. Peter wasn't even claiming the faith as his own. This is quite revealing in light of all the proddings we receive nowadays to greater faith. Faith is God's gift to us, and He has given to each man a measure of faith.

For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another (12:4-5). After going to such great lengths to bring Christians together, God must grieve over a body that is so divided, splintered, and antagonistic. Be thankful that your body isn't in the same shape as the Church body, where one eye wants nothing to do with the other because it doesn't see things exactly the same way. At times the body of Christ must look spastic with its fightings, jealousies, and divisions. How tragic to see members tearing one another down.

What does a non-Christian think when he sees the division in the body of Christ? He goes away with the impression that the body of Christ is sick.

Though it is one, the body has many members, and every part has a different purpose. We're members one of another. In a sense, the Holy Spirit is the nervous system coordinating the work of the body. Under His direction the parts work together smoothly to make a strong witness to the world. I thank God for the body's witness when the Spirit is directing it. As Paul wrote to the Romans, "Your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world" (Romans 1:8b). Our faith is known worldwide when the body is functioning properly. If only we'd forget our denominational allegiances!

I don't think that all Christians should meet in the same church. The variety of gatherings with the different modes of worship is important, as it meets the many particular needs within the body of Christ. However, we shouldn't develop our own exclusive club where we look down on others and say, "They don't worship or teach like we do." Remember, we're one body, and God uses each fellowship as a light to reach the world around it.

Everyone has a function within the body. The ear is as important as the mouth. God has called me to be a mouth, but if you don't have ears to hear, what good is a mouth? The body must have input as well as output.

Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us (12:6a). God gives each one a gift suitable for his ministry within the body. We often ask for gifts, as the Scripture says, "Covet earnestly the best gifts" (I Corinthians 12:31a). For a long time I desired certain gifts that I didn't have. I fasted, prayed, and promised to use them in the right way, but God hasn't seen fit to give them to me. The last time I talked to Him about it, He let me know what my gift was and told me to be satisfied with that.

"But Lord, I want the gift of healing. Think of what I could do with it!"

He said, "Charles, I called you to teach."

God impressed His answer upon my heart, and He told me that He had already bestowed upon me the more excellent way. I said, "Thank You, Lord. I'll take it." It's so exciting to be an instrument through which God shows His love!

If you have the gift of prophecy, then you should prophesy according to the proportion of faith (12:6b). What does that mean? Sometimes the Lord will give you an unusual prophecy and you may not have enough faith to speak it. "Lord, is this really from You? What if I speak it and it doesn't happen?" I've been in that boat many times. The Lord has given me prophecies on numerous occasions, but I didn't utter them due to a lack of faith. Once the unspoken prophecy had come true, I wished I had uttered it.

The gift of prophecy must be exercised according to your proportion of faith. Of course, you're putting your gift on the line by speaking. If you utter something in the name of the Lord and it doesn't come to pass, then you - not the Lord - made a mistake.

Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering (12:7a). We often make a mistake by thinking that the ministry means standing behind the pulpit. No, that isn't where real ministry takes place. True ministry means serving one another. Some people have a wonderful way of exercising this gift. Others exercise it so you feel obligated to them, because they keep reminding you of their service. Actually, all the gifts can be exercised in good or bad ways. We need the guidance of the Spirit in using His gifts.

Or he that teacheth, on teaching (12:7b). If your gift is teaching, I believe that you should be first and foremost a student. The Bible says that the Holy Spirit will bring to your remembrance "whatsoever I have said unto you" (John 14:26b). This means that you must have learned His sayings. Thus, the gift of teaching requires diligent study of the Word of God.

Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation (12:8a). Exhortation is an extremely important gift in the Church. Sometimes we need to be pushed in the right direction, like the little boy on the diving board. He wants to jump. Everybody is yelling "Jump!" But he's too scared. He walks off the board, then back on again. He needs someone to come up and give him a push.

The exhorter gives us a little shove in the right direction. He encourages us to trust the Lord, believe the promises of God, and open our hearts in worship and praise to Him. He exhorts us to action by applying the truths of God in our particular walk.

He that giveth, let him do it with simplicity (12:8b). Did you know that there is a gift of giving? Some Christians have this special touch from God. If that is your gift, "do it with simplicity." Otherwise, you can make your giving a complicated matter by wrapping strings around it.

There is also the gift of ruling. He that ruleth, with diligence (12:8c). A person with this gift should diligently govern those under his authority.

He that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness (12:8d). What a valuable gift! When I'm going through a bad time, I don't want to talk with someone who won't sympathize. I need understanding and comfort, so I look for a Christian with the gift of mercy. If you have this gift, exercise it with cheerfulness. Enter into the person's suffering and then lift him with the cheerfulness of the Spirit.

Let love be without dissimulation [be sincere]. Abhor that which is evil (12:9). One of the major weaknesses of the Church is a great tolerance for evil. We've practically established peaceful coexistence with the works of darkness. However, we're supposed to resist them. We need to hate evil and cleave to that which is good (12:9b).

Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another (12:10). Each verse in Chapter 12 is a complete message in itself and displays Paul's gift of exhortation in operation.

Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord (12:11). Christians must consciously do all things as unto the Lord. It hurts me when a Christian separates his business from his spiritual life. Once I did business with a fellow in the church. When I questioned him about the product, he gave me a line that I'd expect to hear from a con man. I also grieve whenever one of the sheep is cheated by another member of the church. The whole concept behind a business operated by a Christian is to serve the Lord. Whatever he does in word or deed should be for God (Colossians 3:17). You can't cheat a brother for the glory of God. Anyone guilty of this is deceived by his own greed. Many divisions sprout up within the body because of these unethical business practices.

Rejoicing in hope (12:12a). It's impossible to rejoice in all circumstances. However, I can always rejoice in the Lord, lifting myself above circumstances and fixing my eyes on Him. I can always rejoice in hope, because I can always hope that the circumstances will improve. "I can't get any lower, but the Lord will see me through!"

The Word of God never tells us to rejoice in circumstances themselves. Some people encourage us to do that, but it's unrealistic. I like practical Christianity, and that's what the Bible gives us.

Be patient in tribulation (12:12b). "Tribulation worketh patience" (Romans 5:3). As we said before, these two are often tied together. When we pray for patience, we usually experience tribulation. This teaches us the very patience we need.

Continuing instant in prayer; distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits. Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men (12:12b-17). This is Paul's exhortation to practical Christianity.

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men (12:18). I'm glad that Paul admits that this is sometimes impossible. Still, we must never be the cause for strife with others. Living peaceably with all men means that we overlook things, ignore statements, and pass off irritations. Sometimes it's much better to pretend that we didn't hear a certain remark. Unfortunately, some people spill out their poison louder a second time. Then we know that peace is impossible. In any case, we're never to curse or lash back at them. Certain people are crude, but that's no excuse for us to act the same way. If they want to have their say, let them. Don't recompense evil for evil.

Paul continues, Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head (12:19-20).

A Scripture may seem obscure because we're not familiar with the customs of the day. Heaping coals of fire on a person's head wasn't a cruel act. In biblical times people carried containers of charcoal on their heads. Sometimes they'd have to walk far to get live coals to start their fire at home. Heaping live coals on someone's head wasn't a curse but a favor.

Finally, Paul says, Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good (12:21).