{"id":11046,"date":"2016-02-14T06:15:09","date_gmt":"2016-02-14T11:15:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dougbittinger.com\/thoughts\/?p=11046"},"modified":"2025-04-21T01:56:38","modified_gmt":"2025-04-21T05:56:38","slug":"11046-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/11046-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Sacrificed Alive"},"content":{"rendered":"

Romans 12 verses 1 and 2 hold a wealth of information when we take a close look at them.\u00a0 It begins \u201cI <\/i>beseech<\/b><\/i> you<\/i>\u201d: I<\/i>, being the apostle Paul writing to the church in Rome.\u00a0 Beseech<\/i> means to beg, implore, urgently request.\u00a0 \u201cI beseech you <\/i>therefore<\/b><\/i>,<\/i>\u201d:\u00a0 Therefore is a conjoining word or hinge-pin that ties what the speaker in about to say back to something he just said, so what was he just saying?\u00a0 Paul has spent the past few chapters talking about how Christians are saved by a genuine love for God and faith in Jesus, not by adherence to a set of rules and behaviors.\u00a0 So he’s saying, \u201cBecause God has set us free from the Law (and the condemnation of unbelief) through the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus, I beg you<\/i> by the <\/i>mercies of God<\/b><\/i>\u201d: <\/i> Paul is able to write to them, to impart his knowledge, because God has been merciful to him, \u201c…that you present your bodies a <\/i>living sacrifice<\/b><\/i>\u201d.<\/p>\n

\"Baal
A temple to Baal<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sacrifice is something that Paul’s original audience knew well.\u00a0 Most religions of the time involved sacrificing something to a deity.\u00a0 Even the Hebrews sacrificed livestock, grain, and wine, to Jehovah.\u00a0 Pagan religions extended their appetites to the children of their adherents and to virgin women. \u00a0 Sacrifice was carried out in a variety of ways: throat slitting, stabbing on an alter, burning alive, but in all cases, sacrificing a life meant death.\u00a0 So this statement of being a living sacrifice<\/i> would have come as a contradiction.\u00a0 How do you offer yourself as a sacrifice to God AND remain alive?<\/p>\n

\u201c…present your bodies a living sacrifice, <\/i>holy<\/b><\/i>, acceptable to God<\/i>\u201d: the word holy means \u201csanctified\u201d, \u201cconsecrated\u201d or \u201cset apart for service to God\u201d.\u00a0 To be a living sacrifice, you must be acceptable to God, that means consecrated for His use, \u201c…which is your <\/i>reasonable service<\/b><\/i>.<\/i>\u201d<\/p>\n

In Luke 17 Jesus tells a story about faith and servitude, by asking his audience whether a slave sees to his own needs before those of his master.\u00a0 While a slave can choose to disobey, the treatment he gets from his master is directly related to the performance of his duties.\u00a0 Jesus points out that just as a slave is expected to perform his duties, servants of God are expected to fulfill their duties.\u00a0 Matthew 2<\/a>5<\/a> and Luke 16<\/a> say that being faithful with a few things or small things will cause you to be entrusted with bigger things.\u00a0 R<\/i>easonable service<\/i>, then, is the baseline performance that God expects of us not some lofty goal we should consider working toward \u2026 someday.<\/p>\n

\"BundtBack to our verse, \u201c…which is your reasonable service.\u00a0 And do not be <\/i>conformed<\/b><\/i> to this world<\/i>\u201d.\u00a0 A Bundt pan is a odd-looking type of cake pan.\u00a0 You pour your better in and bake it.\u00a0 When it’s done you turn it over and tap the pan to drop the cake out onto a plate.\u00a0 The cake is ring-shaped with ridges and rolls along the top and sides, matching exactly the shape of the pan.\u00a0 That is \u201cconformed<\/i>\u201d.\u00a0 \u201cAnd do not be conformed <\/i>to this world<\/b><\/i>,<\/i>\u201d: this does not mean the planet we live on, but the society or the age in which we live.\u00a0 Non-believers have their own ideas about what is right and what is wrong, and rarely do they line up with the precepts of God.\u00a0 We are not to be shaped, molded, conformed, by the prevailing thoughts of our society.\u00a0 We are to be conformed to God’s will.<\/p>\n

\u201c…and do not be conformed to this world, but be <\/i>transformed<\/b><\/i>\u201d: transformed does not mean that you slice up that bunt cake and arrange the slices on a plate.\u00a0 It may look a little different, but it’s basic shape is still the same.\u00a0 Transformed is a caterpillar going into a chrysalis a worm and coming out a butterfly.\u00a0 \u201c…transformed by the <\/i>renewing<\/b><\/i> of your mind<\/i>\u201d: not just cleaning up our act but a complete change.<\/p>\n

I was once the live-in superintendent for an apartment building.\u00a0 It was my job to collect rents, fix things that broke and clean up vacated apartments in readiness for a new tenant.\u00a0 In most cases this meant painting the walls, shampooing the carpets and giving the kitchen and bathroom a good scrubbing.\u00a0 That was not renewing, that was touching up.\u00a0 Renewing was the time a resident so thoroughly trashed the walls in one room that I had to pull down the wallboard, install new drywall, tape and plaster it, then repaint: that is renewing<\/i>.<\/p>\n

To render reasonable service<\/i> to God, we must no longer be conformed,<\/i> through our worldly ways, but be transformed<\/i> into a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17<\/a><\/strong> \u201cTherefore if any man [be] in Christ, [he is] a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.<\/i>\u201d) by renewing<\/i> our thoughts and habits to bring them into compliance with God’s will. Why?<\/p>\n

\u201c…by the renewing of your mind, <\/i>that you may<\/b><\/i> <\/i>prove<\/b><\/i> what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.<\/i>\u201d\u00a0 What would it take for me to prove something to you?\u00a0 If I tell you that I’m convinced of something, would you believe it?\u00a0 If I told you I saw something on TV, would you believe it was true?\u00a0 Probably not; most people want evidence (proof) before they are convinced.<\/p>\n

If believers tell people that God is gracious and loving and Jesus saves us from condemnation, but we live just like the rest of our society, watch the same shows they watch, go to the bars with them, tell the same jokes, and moan and complain just like they do, what evidence is there that the believer is any better off or different from them?\u00a0 God wants the world to see Jesus in us.\u00a0 To do that, we must live a life in compliance with God’s will by emulating Jesus as closely as we can.<\/p>\n

That rarely happens all at once.\u00a0 There is no instant brain wash at the moment of salvation.\u00a0 But as a new believer sets their mind on following Jesus and allowing the Holy Spirit to teach them, they change their old habits.\u00a0 They do well with small things and are rewarded with bigger things.\u00a0 If they persist, their maturity in Christ results in an unshakable faith and the kind of spiritual gifts that leave no doubt that God is with them.\u00a0 But first, we must be willing to be sacrificed alive.<\/p>\n

The remainder of Romans 12 tells us exactly how we are to accomplish our reasonable service<\/i>.\u00a0 I offer it here without further comment:<\/p>\n

Serve God with Spiritual Gifts<\/em><\/h3>\n

3<\/sup>\u00a0For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. 4<\/sup>\u00a0For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function, 5<\/sup>\u00a0so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. 6<\/sup>\u00a0Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith; 7<\/sup>\u00a0or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching; 8<\/sup>\u00a0he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.<\/em><\/p>\n

Behave Like a Christian<\/em><\/h3>\n

9<\/sup>\u00a0Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good. 10<\/sup>\u00a0Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another; 11<\/sup>\u00a0not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; 12<\/sup>\u00a0rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer; 13<\/sup>\u00a0distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.<\/em><\/p>\n

14<\/sup>\u00a0Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15<\/sup>\u00a0Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16<\/sup>\u00a0Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.<\/em><\/p>\n

17<\/sup>\u00a0Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men. 18<\/sup>\u00a0If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men. 19<\/sup>\u00a0Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, \u201cVengeance is Mine, I will repay,\u201d[a<\/a>]<\/sub> says the Lord. 20<\/sup>\u00a0Therefore<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIf your enemy is hungry, feed him;<\/em>
\n If he is thirsty, give him a drink;<\/em>
\n For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.\u201d[b<\/a>]<\/sub><\/em><\/p>\n

21<\/sup>\u00a0Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.<\/em><\/p>\n

Footnotes:<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Romans 12:19<\/a> Deuteronomy 32:35<\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Romans 12:20<\/a> Proverbs 25:21, 22<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Scripture taken from the New King James Version\u00ae. Copyright \u00a9 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Romans 12 verses 1 and 2 hold a wealth of information when we take a close look at them.  It begins “I beseech you”: I, being the apostle Paul writing to the church in Rome.  Beseech means to beg, implore, urgently request.  “I beseech you therefore,”:  Therefore is a conjoining word or hinge-pin that ties … Continue reading “Sacrificed Alive”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55],"tags":[78],"class_list":["post-11046","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-matters-of-faith","tag-christian"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11046","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11046"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11046\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20303,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11046\/revisions\/20303"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11046"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11046"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pineymountainfoster.org\/thoughts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11046"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}