Living Sacrifice
Devotions for Growing Christians
Living Sacrifice
Romans 12:1 - “I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God which is your rational [or intelligent] service.”
Read Exodus 3:15-18; 8:25-28; 10:8-11 and 10:24-26.
We sing and talk a lot about serving the Lord. At retreats and re-dedications we present ourselves as "living sacrifices" to the Lord. But all too often the “living sacrifices” climb off the altar. They’re never offered!
In Romans 12:1 God strongly urges us to present our bodies to Him - as our rational or intelligent service! There can be no real service for Christ until we are willing to present ourselves as a sacrifice. We must be holy. We must be acceptable. Satan knows Romans 12:1 and he knows that there’s not much value to the sacrifice if he can keep a Christian life from being "holy and acceptable." If it’s not, all our Christian service is just a lot of singing and talking. Satan knows that God’s kingdom doesn’t advance in this world by song and talk and promises. It advances by living sacrifice.
Satan’s Tactics
In the Exodus from Egypt, God wanted His people to leave Egypt and travel three days into the wilderness to serve Him by offering sacrifices (Exodus 3:15-18). But the enemy, the Pharaoh, did everything in his power to keep the people of God in Egypt - far from the appointed place of sacrifice and service. God gave us this account in His Word to show us how the enemy of the Christian operates. He wants to prevent us from presenting ourselves as "living sacrifices." Pharaoh tried four different tactics to keep the people from leaving Egypt and sacrificing to the Lord their God - and Satan uses the same four tactics today to dissuade Christians from offering themselves as living sacrifices to the Lord.
Tactic 1. "Go sacrifice to your God in the land."
In Exodus 8:25 Pharaoh said you can sacrifice, but don’t leave Egypt. In the Bible, Egypt often represents the world - the anti-God attitudes and actions of our culture. The devil approves of sacrifice as long as it is "in the land of Egypt." The world is where our enemy is king - even in the "religious world." Satan encourages empty “religion." He applauds the works and actions of individuals who seek self-glory under the pretense of religious service. Satan knows that we all have a vacuum in our souls that can only be filled with the living God. If Satan can fill a soul's void with the religious activity of the world, he is still king of that life.
True Christianity is not religion, but a living relationship with God through Jesus Christ. And the Lord's command is that we leave the “land of Egypt” and go "three days' journey" to sacrifice (v27). The three days suggests the journey of our Lord through death and resurrection. That's what "living sacrifice" is all about. Have we travelled with the Lord through His death and resurrection? Are we committed to Him to the point where we have "died” to self - and have "risen” with Him to a new life? (See Colossians 3:13.) Or are we content to play at pretend Christian service in the land of Egypt?
Tactic 2. "I will let you go that you may sacrifice to the Lord your God in the wilderness; only you shall not go very far away."
Pharaoh’s second tactic is in Exodus 8:2. If Satan can’t keep us in “Egypt,’ he’ll try to keep us close to Egypt! Here all the deceptions of the enemy are readily available to suck us back in, and destroy our testimony. A borderline Christian is not a living sacrifice! A student who fellowships and prays with Christians one night, but parties with the world the next is not a holy and acceptable sacrifice.
Even unbelievers know that this is not rational or intelligent Christian service. They smile at the hypocrite who says Jesus is Number One in his or her life - and then fails to do what Jesus commands. Jesus calls us to go on a three day journey into the wilderness. It’s a lot easier to live near the pleasures and treasures of Egypt than to live as a sacrifice in the wilderness - but it’s what we’re called to do. (See Hebrews 11:24, 27.)
Tactic 3. “Only the men can go.”
Pharaoh’s third tactic to get the people of God to compromise is found in Exodus 10:11: The men can go sacrifice, but they must leave their families behind. Pharaoh knew that if he held onto the wife and kids, dad wouldn't be able to serve the Lord efficiently for long. If Satan can’t get us to stay in his territory, his strategy is to tie us to his territory by our closest relationships.
The devil has been very successful with this tactic. Many young adults have blown it in this area. They purpose in their hearts to present themselves as a living sacrifice to God - but then they end up presenting themselves to someone else. The lesson is obvious. 2 Corinthians 6:14 says, "Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers." If you’re to be married, the Lord already has a Christian partner for you. Presenting yourself to anyone other than God's choice is unacceptable. A living sacrifice is willing to wait.
Tactic 4. "Go, serve the Lord; only let your flocks and your herds be detained."
Pharaoh's final attempt is found in Exodus 10:24: You can go and sacrifice to your God, but leave your possessions behind. How subtle! Leave your livelihood in Egypt! Satan knows that if our careers, our interests, and our possessions are left in his realm, he still has control. We may think that we’re strong and separated Christians, but if one of our deepest motives is to get ahead in this world - on the world’s terms - then our “flocks and herds are still in Egypt.”
There is only one answer: "Not one hoof shall be left behind!" (v26), Leaving Egypt completely, in total commitment, as a living sacrifice, raises some nitty-gritty questions. Am I planning my career to get me ahead in this life? Or have I presented my career as part of my "living sacrifice" to the Lord? Are my guitar and my home and my car used to serve the Lord - or are they "hooves that are still in Egypt”? Until the "flocks and herds" leave Egypt, there can be no sacrifice (v26). Until then, Christian service is only song and talk!
Worship, relationships, career, interests and all must make the journey. Everything about us must bear the stamp of our new resurrected life in Christ. This kind of Christian service is holy and acceptable to God. This is living sacrifice!
- Dave Reid