If we reflect on the first 11 chapters of Paul’s letter to the Romans, it becomes clear that God’s gracious work through His Son, Jesus Christ, and the gift of the Holy Spirit demands a response.
Chapter 12 opens by explaining what our appropriate response should be.
I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12.1-2).
A Living Sacrifice
A literal reading of the Greek text states that the presentation of our bodies as a sacrifice to God is our “reasonable service of worship.”
In the Greek language of the New Testament, two words are used to describe worship. The first refers to the act of bowing one’s head to the floor, as one would do before a king or God.
The second word conveys the idea of service. This “service of worship” can take the form of active service in God’s work or the priestly duties performed in the temple.
Jesus taught that offering our bodies as a sacrifice to God can be understood as seeking God’s kingdom and His righteousness above all else.
But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well (Matthew 6.33).
With this in mind, when we pray the opening petitions of the Lord’s Prayer, we are asking God to help us position our bodies in service to Him.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven. (Matthew 6.9-10)
We commit to living for the honor of His name, submitting to His kingdom, and seeking His will to be done in our lives, just as it is carried out in His heavenly realm.
There is an old preacher joke that says the problem with a living sacrifice is it keeps trying to crawl off the altar.
We can know what God has done for us and understand that our proper response is to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. We can pray the Lord’s Prayer every day, but at the same time, our will must be willing to do God’s will.
If not, we won’t be found giving to God our reasonable service of worship.
Transforming the World
From the very beginning, when God established the nation of Israel, His intention was for them to transform the culture around them. Unfortunately, as we see in the writings of the prophets, instead of influencing the surrounding nations, Israel was influenced by them.
When Paul writes to the church, he emphasizes that we are called to change the world, not let the world change us.
Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12.2).
Rudy Ross often highlights in our videos that the core issue humans face is iniquity—our flawed thought processes. This aligns with Paul’s teaching.
How do we experience a transformed life? It happens through a transformed mind. How do we become God’s representatives in the world to bring about change? By renewing our minds and transforming the way we think.
Dallas Willard uses the acronym VIM to explain how change occurs in a person’s life: Vision, Intention, and Means.
“V” – When we think about having a transformed mind, what is our vision? How do we picture this transformed mind? Willard suggests that living a Jesus-kind-of-life is an excellent vision to aim for.
“I” stands for Intention. Do we intend to take action? It’s one thing to have a vision, but are we committed to working toward it?
“M” is for Means. What practical steps will we take to achieve the vision of a transformed mind?
In light of what the Lord has done for us, choosing to live the kind of life Jesus exemplified and using whatever means necessary to achieve that is truly our spiritual act of worship.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross and I discussed this passage on YouTube today. It is on the Bob Spradling channel.
Real Voices 