ANSWER

In Romans 12:1, Paul says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (NKJV). Paul’s admonition to the believers in Rome was to sacrifice themselves to God, not as a sacrifice on the altar, as the Mosaic Law required the sacrifice of animals, but as a living sacrifice. The dictionary defines sacrifice as “anything consecrated and offered to God.” As believers, how do we consecrate and offer ourselves to God as a living sacrifice?

Under the Old Covenant, God accepted the sacrifices of animals. But these were just a foreshadowing of the sacrifice of the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Because of His ultimate, once-for-all-time sacrifice on the cross, the Old Testament sacrifices became obsolete and are no longer of any effect (Hebrews 9:11-12). For those who are in Christ by virtue of saving faith, the only acceptable worship is to offer ourselves completely to the Lord. Under God’s control, the believer’s yet-unredeemed body can and must be yielded to Him as an instrument of righteousness (Romans 6:12-13; 8:11-13). In view of the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus for us, this is only “reasonable.”

What does a living sacrifice look like in the practical sense? The following verse (Romans 12:2) helps us to understand. We are a living sacrifice for God by not being conformed to this world. The world is defined for us in 1 John 2:15-16 as the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. All that the world has to offer can be reduced to these three things. The lust of the flesh includes everything that appeals to our appetites and involves excessive desires for food, drink, sex, and anything else that satisfies physical needs. Lust of the eyes mostly involves materialism, coveting whatever we see that we don’t have and envying those who have what we want. The pride of life is defined by any ambition for that which puffs us up and puts us on the throne of our own lives.

How can believers NOT be conformed to the world? By being “transformed by the renewing of our minds.” We do this primarily through the power of God’s Word to transform us. We need to hear (Romans 10:17), read (Revelation 1:3), study (Acts 17:11), memorize (Psalm 119:9-11), and meditate on (Psalm 1:2-3) Scripture. The Word of God, ministered in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, is the only power on earth that can transform us from worldliness to true spirituality. In fact, it is all we need to be made “complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16, NKJV). The result is that we will be “able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” (Romans 12:2b). It is the will of God for every believer to be a living sacrifice for Jesus Christ.

Billy Strachan

Gentle praise music

When Christ, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

Colossians 3:4 

Songs 1: Who Is Like The Lord 2: Battle Song 3: He Will Deliver Us 4: Thanks Be To Our God 5: Christ Our Life 6: From Glory To Glory 7: Show Your Kindness 8: Cry For Humility 9: Your Loving Kindness 10: O The Grace That Saves 11: Behold The Lamb 12: Those Who Are Christ’s 13: Search Me 14: Let The Children Come 15: Faith Is The Victory 16: We Are Glad 17: I Will Waite (Live)

About the Music

In 2001, when I was 25 years old, I experienced a dramatic change in my life. I grew up in a Christian home and went to church regularly but I had never experienced genuine repentance. Although I professed to know God, I denied him with my actions and was a slave of sin. My pride prevented me from recognizing my need of Jesus because I thought my form of godliness was enough. Through sickness in my life, and a dramatic change in my brother a few years earlier, the Lord broke me and softened my heart so I could hear the word of God and receive it on good soil. The Lord convicted me of getting rid of things in my life that led me into sin as the scripture says in Matt 5:30 “If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you”. Once I made this decision at 25 years old, I found myself weeping and repentance had begun.

After the kindness of God led me to repentance, scripture started to come alive and I started to write songs from the verses that were speaking to me as the Spirit brought melodies. One of the first songs I wrote was “Fire of God” which was actually written during the very early days when the word of God was beginning to convict my heart and I was longing for change in my life.

In 2005, Darren and I decided to record some of the songs the Lord had given to us and others in the body. We were singing these songs in our fellowship and many were quite encouraged by them. Our desire is that others would come to a repentance and first love of Jesus. We pray the scripture in these songs would touch the hearts and be used by the Lord to draw many people to Him and glorify His name. Freely we have received, and freely we give.

Blessings in Christ Jesus our Lord,

Jason