Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from Rom 12:1 and following. Indeed, so far we have seen what God has done for us. The Lord has acquired all the rights over our lives. Let us present to Him what belongs to Him: our bodies, as a living sacrifice (in contrast to the dead victims of Judaic worship) so that He may act through them. But before serving, it is necessary for our renewed intelligence to discern the Lord’s will (read Col 1:9-13). Whatever appearances, it is always good, and pleasant, and perfect (let us weigh these words) by the mere fact that it is His will (v. 2; John 4:31-38). It is also important to monitor our thoughts and judge them, so that they remain thoughts of humility and not of own satisfaction, healthy and undefiled thoughts.
Rom 12:6-8 lists some gifts of grace: prophecy, service in the congregation, teaching, exhortation, administration, leading the flock… All these activities, some would say, do not concern me; they are for Christians of age and experience. Well! The last one in any case can be fulfilled by every believer, whatever his age: “he who exercises mercy, may he do it joyfully” (2 Co 9:6-9). In Rom 12:1-8, this was our service before God; rather, v. 9 to 16 list our duties to our brethren, while from v. 17 to v. 21 it is about our responsibility to all men. Each of these exhortations must be meditated upon and found application in our daily lives. For the authority of the Word extends as much to our family life as to our work, to the week as to Sunday, to the days of joy as to the days of sorrow (v. 15)… There is no circumstance in which we cannot and should not behave like Christians.
Verse 11 encourages us to be active. However, the various services placed before us: beneficence, hospitality (v. 13)… must all be summed up in the phrase “serving the Lord” (not our reputation). To please ourselves in what is humble and with the humble (v. 16), to endure with patience injustices or outrages (vs. 17 to 20), are attitudes contrary to our nature. But this is how Christ’s life will manifest itself in us as it manifested itself in Him (1:2:20-25). Doing good is the only response to evil that is allowed to us and it is also the only way to overcome it. Thus, this chapter 12 presents us with the believer rather in his position as a member of the body, as a child inside the house, while chapter 13 shows us, in a way, outside the house, in his relations with the government of this world and his instituted authorities of God. Whatever form these authorities take, the Christian must not oppose them, but be subject to them and give back to each one the honor due to him, especially since the night is very advanced and the day, in the light of which he must walk, is near and will manifest all things.
“I therefore exhort you, brothers, through the compassions of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, which is your intelligent service” (v. 1). These words take us back to chapter 6, where we are invited to surrender ourselves to God, as from among the dead being made alive—and our members to God, as instruments of righteousness (v. 13). We learned there that having died with Christ, we must walk in newness of life. In the following chapters, the apostle exposes the full extent of God’s compassions. Based on them, he exhorts us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, what he calls our intelligent “service”, because this is in accordance with the teachings of the Holy Spirit. Not only is our soul delivered from eternal death and belongs to God, but our body has also been bought at great price, although we are still waiting for His “real” deliverance (8:23). Therefore, our entire mind, soul, and body must be preserved without reproach to God (1 Thess. 5:23).
We are not subject to legal commandments that, as always, would doom our efforts to complete failure. Only divine grace and mercy can transform the believer internally and externally. Only on this basis can he, by a decision of the heart, present his body to God day after day, until the end of his life. The apostle calls this presentation “a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God.” Alive, in contrast to the sacrifices of the Old Testament that were put to death, holy in opposition to the worldly and legal character of these sacrifices, and pleasing to God, because God has his true place there and man also takes his own according to God’s thoughts. It is understandable that such a service, which has finished forever with all the exercises of a human religion and the observance of carnal ordinances and usages, is called our intelligent service.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
- The Duty of Self-Sacrifice
Mt 16:25 For he who wants to save his life will lose it, but he who loses it because of me will find it. Mt 19:21 Jesus said to him, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have, give it to the poor, and you will have a treasure in heaven. Then come, and follow me. Rom 14:21 It is good not to eat meat, not to drink wine, and to abstain from what may be for your brother an opportunity for fall, scandal, or weakness. 1 Co 10:24 Let no one seek his own interest, but let everyone seek that of others. 1 Co 13:5 she does nothing dishonest, she does not seek her interest, she does not get irritated, she does not suspect evil; Phil 2.4 Let each of you, instead of considering your own interests, also consider those of others.
- A Call to Personal Consecration
Ex 32:29 Moses said: Consecrate yourselves today to the Lord, even by sacrificing your son and brother, that he may bless you today. 1 Ch 29.5 gold for what must be gold, and silver for what must be silver, and for all the work which the workers will perform. Who still willingly presents his offerings to Jehovah today? Pr 23:26 My son, give me your heart, and may your eyes be pleased in my ways. Rom 12:1 I therefore exhort you, brethren, through the compassions of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, which will be on your part a reasonable worship. 2 Tim 2:21 If, therefore, anyone keeps himself pure, by abstaining from these things, he will be a vessel of honor, sanctified, useful to his master, proper to every good work.
- Unity in Christ
Rom 12:5 thus, we who are many form one body in Christ, and we are all members of one another. 1 Co 10:17 Since there is one loaf, we who are many form one body; for we all participate in the same bread. 1 Co 12:12 You know that when you were pagans, you let yourself be drawn to the silent idols, depending on whether you were led. Gal 3:28 There is no longer a Jew or a Greek, there is no longer a slave or a free, there is no longer a man or a woman; for all of you are one in Jesus Christ. Eph 4:13 until we have all attained the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, the state of manmade, to the extent of the perfect stature of Christ,
- Doing Good: Special Orders Concerning the Practice of Good
Ps 34:15 Get away from evil, and do good; Seek and pursue peace. Ps 37:3, 27 Trust in the Lord and practice good; Have the country for abode and fidelity for pasture. 27 Turn away from evil, do good, and own your dwelling forever. Lk 6:35 But love your enemies, do good, and lend without expecting anything. And your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is good for the ungrateful and for the wicked. Rom 13.3 It is not for a good deed, it is for a bad one, that the magistrates are to be feared. Do you not want to fear authority? Do it well, and you will have its approval. Gal 6:10 So, while we have the opportunity, let us do good to all, and especially to brothers and sisters in the faith. 1 Tim 6:18 Recommend that they do good, be rich in good works, have generosity, be generous; Heb 13:16 And do not forget beneficence and gift, for it is in such sacrifices that God delights. John 4:17 He who knows how to do what is right, and who does not, commits a sin. 1 P 2:15 For it is God’s will that by practicing good you silence ignorant and foolish men;1 3:11, 17 Let him walk away from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it; 17 For it is better to suffer, if that is God’s will, by doing good than by doing evil.
Of all the above, what God asks of us is not only to manifest our meekness towards all men, but also to bear witness to affection to our enemies and, having learned it from Christ, to feed to those who are hungry and to drink to those who thirst, so as to reach their hearts and consciences: “for in doing so thou shady coals of fire on his head” (v. 20), if this does not make him confused, he will bear the consequences all the more! In any case, the Christian, acting in this according to his new nature, must not allow himself to be overcome by evil, but must apply himself to overcome evil by good. Thus, he becomes an imitator of God (v. 21) who, in Christ, has overcome all the evil in us, and who delights, as long as the time of grace lasts, to act according to this same principle. What a joy it feels to win an enemy by this means, and perhaps to save a soul from death! This is what can only be felt by the one who has been granted a victory of this kind. No doubt, it costs to let oneself be wronged, to insult, to treat with contempt, but the reward will be all the sweeter the greater the struggle. Our prayers support you all in your efforts to show affection to your enemies and to show your gentleness to one another.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may be shining in my life right now.
Thank you Lord Jesus for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby watering point to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to react to any questions and comments you may have, before sharing with you tomorrow on “submission to authorities, mutual love, fulfillment of the law.”
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.