Bible League: Living His Word I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.Under the terms of the old covenant sacrifices of atonement for sin were required to be made. The sacrifices consisted of animals that had been slain and that had been dedicated and offered to God. These sacrifices were not ultimately adequate as a means of atonement and had to be, as a result, repeated on a regular basis (Hebrews 10:1-4). They merely foreshadowed the ultimately adequate and once-for-all sacrifice of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Since the sacrifice of Christ, the old covenant animal sacrifices are no longer required. Given that animal sacrifices are no longer required, is there any sacrifice left to make by those who are Christians in virtue of saving faith in Jesus Christ? Since Christians have been bought with the price of Christ's sacrifice and are now slaves to Christ (I Corinthians 7:22-23), the only acceptable sacrifice we have left to make is the sacrifice of our own selves. These sacrifices are not, therefore, the sacrifices of dead animals, but "a living sacrifice." Instead of dedicating and offering dead animals to God, we dedicate and offer our own live selves in service to Christ. What does a living sacrifice, the sacrifice of our own selves, actually look like? The verses that follow our verse for today give us an idea of what the Apostle Paul had in mind. We are living sacrifices when we do not conform to the evil that is in the world and when we are transformed by the renewing of our minds (Romans 12:2). In other words, we are living sacrifices when we deny ourselves and take up our cross and follow Jesus. A living sacrifice is a life lived the way Jesus wants it to be lived. The living sacrifices that we make should be "holy and acceptable to God," just as the animals of the old covenant sacrifices were supposed to be without defect of any kind. And our living sacrifices can be holy and acceptable, because we have been made holy and acceptable by the blood of the Lamb. Every time we do something that truly reflects who we are in Christ Jesus we are a living sacrifice. Let everything we do, then, reflect our status as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingPsalm 136-138 Psalm 136 -- Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his loving kindness endures forever. NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Psalm 137 -- By the rivers of Babylon we sat down, wept, remembered Zion. NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Psalm 138 -- I will give you thanks with my whole heart. NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading 1 Corinthians 9 1 Corinthians 9 -- The Rights of an Apostle NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion But the time is coming—indeed it's here now—when you will be scattered, each one going his own way, leaving me alone. Yet I am not alone because the Father is with me.Insight The disciples scattered after Jesus was arrested. Jesus accepted their statement of faith even though he knew their weakness. He knew they would have to grow into people whose words and lives matched even to the point of death. Challenge He takes us through the same process. How well are you living out what you say you believe about Jesus? Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Exodus 25:6 Oil for the light.My soul, how much thou needest this, for thy lamp will not long continue to burn without it. Thy snuff will smoke and become an offence if light be gone, and gone it will be if oil be absent. Thou hast no oil well springing up in thy human nature, and therefore thou must go to them that sell and buy for thyself, or like the foolish virgins, thou wilt have to cry, "My lamp is gone out." Even the consecrated lamps could not give light without oil; though they shone in the tabernacle they needed to be fed, though no rough winds blew upon them they required to be trimmed, and thy need is equally as great. Under the most happy circumstances thou canst not give light for another hour unless fresh oil of grace be given thee. It was not every oil that might be used in the Lord's service; neither the petroleum which exudes so plentifully from the earth, nor the produce of fishes, nor that extracted from nuts would be accepted; one oil only was selected, and that the best olive oil. Pretended grace from natural goodness, fancied grace from priestly hands, or imaginary grace from outward ceremonies will never serve the true saint of God; he knows that the Lord would not be pleased with rivers of such oil. He goes to the olive-press of Gethsemane, and draws his supplies from him who was crushed therein. The oil of gospel grace is pure and free from lees and dregs, and hence the light which is fed thereon is clear and bright. Our churches are the Saviour's golden candelabra, and if they are to be lights in this dark world, they must have much holy oil. Let us pray for ourselves, our ministers, and our churches, that they may never lack oil for the light. Truth, holiness, joy, knowledge, love, these are all beams of the sacred light, but we cannot give them forth unless in private we receive oil from God the Holy Ghost. Daily Light on the Daily Path Revelation 12:10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, "Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.Revelation 12:11 "And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life even when faced with death. Romans 8:33,34 Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; • who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Colossians 2:15 When He had disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them through Him. Hebrews 2:14,15 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, • and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. Romans 8:37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. Ephesians 6:11,17 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. • And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. 1 Corinthians 15:57 but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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