LIVE LIFE HOLY & PLEASING TO GOD
[5-minute read]
Ask any Christian: where would you be today if not for God’s love, amazing grace, and salvation for you? In all likelihood, they will supply copious stories of how they experienced God’s timely goodness, intervention, and provision. These are impressive milestones that mark their faith journey. On a daily basis, however, most Christian life rolls back into the humdrum of human existence in which God takes a backseat in human conversations, decisions, and lifestyle choices. He is politely left out of the friendships He has blessed us with. He is not consulted at the jobs He gave us as His divine assignments. Our minds conjure God as one who is happy to step back until another setback emerges in our lives. We imagine that He is always ready to step in to help. Instead of a relationship, we treat God as a recovery and rescue mission.
Today, let’s unwrap, line by line, Romans 12:1 in which the apostle Paul brought home what Christian living is really about.
How shall we respond as believers?
“Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual service of worship.”
When Paul addressed fellow believers as ‘brothers and sisters’, he was standing on their side. The word ‘urge’ (NASB) also means ‘beseech’ (KJV) and ‘plead with you’ (NLT). It was a compelling invitation that followed what he proclaimed in the last verses of Romans 11:
33“Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable His judgments, and His paths beyond tracing out! 34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been His counselor?” 35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?” 36 For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.
Verse 36 makes it clear that we are created for God – not for our jobs, our spouses, our children, and not even for ourselves to do as we like. This means that our relationship with God needs to be front and center of all we do. It’s important to run regular self-checks before we slide into a relationship with God that is stoic, emotionally detached, and almost entitled. Tell-tale signs are when He is never consulted in big and small decisions when the Holy Spirit is never allowed to check our hearts (Psalm 26:2), and when we lose passion for God because we confuse the pressing demands on our time as living out His purpose.
How shall we respond to God?
“Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual service of worship.”
First things first, the word ‘living’ suggests the entirety of our day-to-day life. It is about living in such a way that our lives become a holy and pleasing life presentation where God is found in every happy, busy, successful, hurting and sad moment! This is what pleases God: to be invited into every conversation, every thought, every celebration, every creative process, and every time we apply the talents He has given to us. Talk about joie de vivre!
Conversely, we will be miserable if we think that life with an amazingly creative and loving God is all about following rules. Instead of trusting that He is in control of our lives, we imagine He must be a controlling God and we fail to see that it is He who gives us the wisdom to seek out valid information, discern bad influences and make good choices in life.
How do we live our life as worship to God?
“Therefore I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God,
to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God,
which is your spiritual service of worship.”
Paul asserted that the act of surrender to God is our worship. Worship is not a standalone act that gives us ‘good karma’ and it is more than singing together with other believers.
Although Romans 12:1-2 were written in an era before the internet, they carry substantial weight today because we live in a culture that glorifies self-expression - both on and off-line - and where people have an insatiable hunger for knowledge because they want to be in control. Paul introduced the idea of ‘spiritual service of worship to God’ which covers everything our hands choose to do, every expression our mouths choose to articulate, everywhere our feet choose to go, the thoughts our minds choose to dwell on, the convictions and arguments we set our hearts on, and if we use our voice to bring clarity or add confusion. If we think God is a controlling puppet master, we will feel powerless and lifeless. But if we learn to fall in love with Him and submit to His leading, we will not want to do anything without His involvement.
“Whatever you do in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father.” (Colossians 3:17).
If we look at what is unraveling in this epoch of human history, the risks of leaving God out of our lives simply won’t make sense.
This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR Session held on 29 October 2022.
