I appeal to you therefore brethren, and beg you in view of (all) the mercies of God, to make a decisive dedication of your bodies – presenting all your members and faculties – as a living sacrifice, holy (devoted, consecrated) and well pleasing to God, which is your reasonable (rational, intelligent) service and spiritual worship. (Rom 12:1) – Amp.
THE APPEAL:
Sometimes the Almighty God, the Possessor of the heavens and the earth makes appeal to man to give Him what He would have taken as of right and none can query Him. Here we see one of such appeals and this one is key and cardinal. If ever you want to serve and worship the Most High in an acceptable way then you must listen to this appeal and hear it well and learn what to do to effect it. An appeal is a serious, urgent and sincere request. The verse above appeals and begs you. So God is urgently, sincerely appealing to you and begging you to do something. This ought not to be because He is too high above man and owns everything to be appealing to a man and even begging him. This gives this appeal a very serious dimension. God made man for Himself and there is something in man that seeks God and wants to worship Him. Even unbelievers have this desire naturally, that is why everyone worships one god or the other. However, if it is the true God that you want to serve and worship then you must hear this appeal and urgent begging from Him and take it seriously. Except you pay heed to this appeal, you must forget about serving Him.
And, please note seriously that this appeal is not to everybody but to brethren. Are you born again? is your name written in God’s register in heaven? Are you quickened who used to be dead in sins and trespasses? Let no man deceive you, it is not about belonging to a church or fellowship and having your name on their membership list and doing some activities you call service or ministry or ministrations. It is about whether you are a brother or sister; born of God and having eternal life and no longer practicing sin. John 8:34 makes it unequivocal, from the mouth of the Lord, that whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin (not of God). So have you repented from your sins and turned to Jesus who died, was buried and rose again for your salvation and new birth? If you have, then you have become saved and a member of God’s family and so a brother or sister otherwise you are a stranger and foreigner and He will not accept your service in whatever form it comes. So ensure that you are a bonafide brother and family member before you continue.
GOD’S MERCIES
Now the basis of this appeal is – in view of (all) the mercies of God. Chapters 1-11 of this book of Romans show the depth of God’s mercies that He has shown towards man in saving and delivering him from sin and the flesh and their many consequences. You need to appreciate these and fall down to thank Him for this mercy that has pulled you out of darkness into His marvelous light. Added to these are all the mercies He has continued to show you every day. He has not dealt with you as you deserve. It is on account of His mercies that you are not consumed. You need to recount these mercies sometimes so as to appreciate Him the more. If not for His mercies where will you be? We have all obtained mercies from Him and He wants to show us even greater mercies and to shower His grace on us and that is why He is making this appeal. We can never reciprocate or pay back these mercies but they are the basis for the divine appeal if our lives will fulfill the divine mandates thrust upon them. God will not appeal to a man whom He has not shown mercy and forgiven him and saved him. A man who has not known the mercy of God and appreciated it may not want to throw down his life for God and so may not heed this appeal.
Friend, has God shown you mercies? Can you count and recount some of them? If those mercies were taken away what would be your fate? Can you not see that if not for God’s mercies you would not even exist? So why don’t you give Him this life which He bought with such a great prize or do you want to waste it or the devil to steal it and squander it? It is too risky not to hear this appeal and carry it out because you will waste your life and waste God’s mercies.
OFFER:
…that you present…
Some other version say, to offer… some others simply say to give Him your bodies. Now all these words used are important and revealing. All of them have an underlying connotation of a contract. To present infers to lay before God what you want to give Him for His inspection and acceptance or otherwise. To offer means there is an offeror and an offeree. It is like a contract one makes an offer and the other party reserves the right to accept or not. So when God asks you to give Him your body or to offer Him your body, etc. It does not mean that He will accept whatever you offer/present/give to Him. He can accept and take it or refuse it.
So the instruction says it is as a living sacrifice. Living means it is supposed to be dead like the Old Testament animals that were killed and put on the altar to burn. This one is living because God wants it alive but it must be like the Old Testament sacrifice, wholly given to God, nothing held back. First it must equate to the one who brought it to be accepted from him. It must not be less than him. That is why someone can bring a pigeon and it is acceptable and another brings two (2) cows and it is not acceptable. That is why Jesus said that a poor widow who gave a farthing had given more than all the rich men who put in much into the box. He said that woman gave her all, all her upkeep, while the others gave what they could ‘throw away’ and it would not matter.
SACRIFICIAL
So, it must be worth you and it must be sacrificial, costly. It is not a matter of left overs but your life laid down or tied to the altar for inspection for acceptance or rejection. David understood this and declared that: neither will I offer burnt offerings unto the LORD my God of that which doth cost me nothing. (2 Sam 24:24)
It also connotes that the Owner can now use you for anything He likes and you will not complain or murmur or grumble or compare yourself to any other. As you offer yourself to Him you should understand that you have acknowledged His ownership and full rights over you and that He can now do whatever He likes with you and you will be yielding and still.
HOLY AND ACCEPTABLE
Again, it must be holy (devoted, consecrated). It must be set apart and without blemish. It must be clean and pure and wholesome, without aberrations or any corruption, etc.
It is these and other qualities that make ones offering acceptable. It is important to note this because many people think that God just accepts anything presented to Him. No, that is not true. It must be sacrificial, holy and acceptable. And it is not a one time and a once and for all offering. Once you are growing your offering must be growing to still be acceptable. This is why some people’s offering were acceptable some time back but today they are not reckoned with in God’s presence and affairs. Friend, you need to check whether what you are offering God is acceptable. And you need to do this from time to time if you want to keep growing. What you gave yesterday that was acceptable may no longer be acceptable now that you have grown. For example the 30 minutes you used to give God every morning for quiet time may no longer be acceptable now that you are a fellowship worker and have grown: may the LORD give you understanding so that you may do this right, in Jesus Name.
YOUR BODIES
Please note that it is your body that God is asking for with all your members and faculties. When you look at how the Old Testament burnt offering is killed and offered on the altar you will discover that it is cut into its different pieces or members. Likewise it is your body that God wants to use. His enemy used it before for evil and wickedness, now that the enemy has been evacuated the body is unemployed. He wants it for His own use but to give it meaningfully it must be laid piece by piece starting from the head down and named one by one. So one must bring his brain and intellect and lay it down and ask Him to receive it. Then his eyes, then his mouth and tongue, then his ears, etc. Then he must bring his hands with all in them; his silver and his gold. He must not withhold a mite. Then he must bring his feet and they must now be for the LORD to carry Him wherever He wills. Then his private parts, internal organs and all. Then he must bring his time, plans and all. Everything must be offered and placed on the altar.
A SWEET SAVOR
When all is properly laid and numbered and the intestines properly cleaned and put there; and the bile (bitterness) cut out, then you must wait for the response of the LORD from heaven. You see what the LORD is looking for is a pleasing odor, a sweet smelling sacrifice. It is a life that smells sweetly to His nose and emits a sweet aroma; a life that is well pleasing to Him. That is your first and reasonable service, your intelligent act of worship. Any other thing you will do should come after this if you want it to be acceptable to God. But for this odor to emit God has to set this sacrifice on fire otherwise it will decay and emit a putrefying odor. So, if God has accepted your offering then His fire will soon come upon it and as it burns it will produce an aroma that will affect God and man. This is the first and reasonable service that God demand s of you. Evangelism, giving, visitation, etc, will only come after this or on top of this if it will be acceptable to God and rewarded.
So, friend, have you laid down your life for God as a living sacrifice? You need to stop all your numerous activities and make this offering and decisive dedication first. Remember that it is voluntary and never forced or by compulsion. Let nobody cajole you or compel you or threaten you into laying down your life at His feet. It must be out of love for Him for His many mercies towards you. A life not presented to Him He will not touch and such life will waste. I appeal to you, my dear brethren and beg you in view of His mercies to now offer your bodies to the Owner as a living sacrifice so that He will set it ablaze and use the members as instrument of righteousness.
God bless you as you go to burn and shine for His cause. Amen.