“I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, offer your bodies as a living sacrifice—set apart, honoring God. This is truly the way to worship him.” Rom.12:1
Heavenly Father, I’m not sure if there’s one verse that does a job of defining the dynamics and delights of the Christian life. Who are we as believers? We are your beloved children—those upon whom you have had great mercy, and to whom you have given the incalculable riches of your grace (Romans 1-8). Hallelujah, and thank you.
How then shall we live? By keeping your mercy in clear view—that is, by starting every day remembering whose we are, and who we are by your kindness and power. This means we’ll never be too preoccupied, astonished, or “smitten” with Jesus. His once and for all sacrifice for us has totally saved us (Heb.9:23-10:18). We can (and will) become more like Jesus; but we’ll never be more saved than we are as 2024 begins.
The sacrifice we now offer you—the kind of worship of which you are worthy, isn’t a sacrifice that gets us more, but one that praises you more. It’s as shocking as it is liberating—we can’t be more pleasing to you than we already are in Christ; for Jesus is “our righteousness, holiness, and redemption” (1Cor.1:30). But we can honor you a whole lot more.
We honor you by living a “set apart” life—not giving Jesus a part, even the most important part in our lives. We honor you by living as those who joyfully belong to Jesus—body, soul, and spirit—mind, emotions, and will. Father, until you finish making us like Jesus (Phil.1:6), intensify our passion and delight to honor Jesus with everything we have and are. We’re married to him; Jesus isn’t on our “side.” So Very Amen.