Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. (Romans 12:1 NASB)
So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. (Romans 12:1 MSG)
Observation:
Until Jesus's death and resurrection on the cross, sacrifices always meant death. The Israelites would sacrifice a calf or a ram, etc, they didn't expect the animal to be resurrected. They knew the animal's death was necessary to cover their sin. But because of Jesus we can embrace sacrifice, because with sacrifice always brings new life in Christ. Or to put it a different way, with less of us there is more of God and His rule over our lives (John 3:30).
Paul is imploring the Corinthians to not go back to living their lives as they did before, as if they do not know Christ. Instead they (we) are to live in a constant renewal process; taking all that we are and all that we do to Christ and with expectant joy; getting excited about each day's adventure.
Application:
Trading my will for His is a daily battle, especially with the small stuff like the message version suggests. I don't ask The Lord when I should go to sleep, when and what I should eat and in a sense I'm withholding part of my life from Him. I am not a complete living sacrifice. Now is as great a time as any to develop the habit of being a living sacrifice with the small stuff.
Prayer:
Father, help me to cling to Your will in every aspect of my life. I know that the more I live as a sacrifice to You, the deeper I draw into Your kingdom.
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