- Joined
- Oct 26, 2007
- Messages
- 11,641
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, [which is] your reasonable service. Romans 12:1 NKJV
Making yourself a living sacrifice is hard. The old way was easier: kill the animal, move on, do it again next week. But we must emulate the choice Jesus made at Gethsemane—not my will but Yours be done, Father. We don’t do it at the level He did; He suffered the separation of hell so that we will never have to.
Still, we must commit ourselves to Him and His ways each day, sometimes minute by minute. We’re crucifying our right to live as we choose—in many ways, there’s nothing less American. But there is nothing more like Christ. It’s a paradox of our faith: the more we surrender to God, the more freedom, He gives us to be our best selves.
We don’t have to like what He is asking; Jesus agonized at the thought of separation from the Father. But like Him, we believe. We trust Him, and if it feels a little like dying, take heart: it’s only the dead part of you that’s losing strength and control.
Prayer: Lord God, I choose to worship You by doing what Psalm 119:112 I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes Forever, to the very end.
Making yourself a living sacrifice is hard. The old way was easier: kill the animal, move on, do it again next week. But we must emulate the choice Jesus made at Gethsemane—not my will but Yours be done, Father. We don’t do it at the level He did; He suffered the separation of hell so that we will never have to.
Still, we must commit ourselves to Him and His ways each day, sometimes minute by minute. We’re crucifying our right to live as we choose—in many ways, there’s nothing less American. But there is nothing more like Christ. It’s a paradox of our faith: the more we surrender to God, the more freedom, He gives us to be our best selves.
We don’t have to like what He is asking; Jesus agonized at the thought of separation from the Father. But like Him, we believe. We trust Him, and if it feels a little like dying, take heart: it’s only the dead part of you that’s losing strength and control.
Prayer: Lord God, I choose to worship You by doing what Psalm 119:112 I have inclined my heart to perform Your statutes Forever, to the very end.
