And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Romans 12:1-2 NLT
It’s Sunday. If you’re a Christian, I hope you’re headed to church – the gathering of the holy ones, the saints. Paul was begging the saints in Rome to give their bodies to God as an acceptable sacrifice. How do you do that? A sacrifice is something you offer to God that costs you something. One way to offer your body is to be obedient by taking it to church and worshiping he Lord with it even when you don’t feel like it. It’s one thing to say your body belongs to the Lord, it’s something else to put action with your words.
One of the great benefits of offering your body you get a chance to be transformed. Paul said, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world.” I could list a few of those thoughts and behaviors, but you know what they are. You know when you’re acting just like the unbelievers around you – quit it! In order to do that, you have to let God transform you by altering the way you think. This doewn’t happen by chance. It doesn’t happen by laying on the couch and watching television. It happens by getting around people who will hold you accountable, by listening to the Word of God, and by serving others when you don’t feel like it. Period.
It’s Sunday. Don’t let another day go by without taking action to separate yourself from the world and learn to know the will of God for you. As you present your body at church this morning, ask God to change the way you think. It will be good and pleasing and perfect.
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