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“Therefore, present your bodies as a living sacrifice.” With these words, Paul scribes in the book of Romans and inscribes on the heart of Christians throughout the ages one of the most memorable images found in all of our Scripture. And these words also mark a shift in Paul’s letter. In the previous eleven chapters, The apostle wrestles with deep, and often dense, Theological questions, questions that were of major import to the Jews and Gentiles that comprised the church in Rome. What is the righteousness of God? What should be the place of law of Moses? How do you understand the righteousness of God? What is scope and purpose of God’s grace and what does it mean to be justified by faith? But here in the 12th chapter, Paul turns his attention from the theological to the practical, from a discussion of how Christians understand the faith to how Christians live the faith. And the first recommendation he makes, the first suggestion he gives, is for the members of the community “to offer their bodies as living sacrifices.” This is certainly language that the Jews and Gentiles would have known, having themselves given sacrifices – animals, the first fruit of the crops, and other burnt offerings – to the divine. And while the language of sacrifice may not be a significant part of our everyday language, I’ve heard a fair amount of it in the past few weeks. You probably have too if you’ve been following the Olympics. “I sacrificed everything on the track today – for myself and my teammates.” “We’ve sacrificed everything for our daughter – Our time, our family, even our home – So that she could come to this place and win a gold medal.” Sacrificing, giving up, surrendering – If you’ve been watching the games, you’ve heard the stories of sacrifice. There are many of them, including Michael Phelps, who’s being called the star of the summer games. Over the last four years, Phelps has sacrificed his life, doing almost nothing except swimming, sleeping and eating. Now I have to say that eating 9,000 calories a day doesn’t quite sound like a sacrifice to me, but then I read the schedule of swimming practices and exercise he did that required him to replace the fuel he had burned during his training sessions! Phelps gave up his friends, his outside activities, all in the hopes of reaching his goals. And perhaps it was all those sacrifices that propelled him in that one final stroke that enabled him to reach the wall .01 second ahead of his Croatian competitor in the 100 meter butterfly. When we think of sacrifice, We often think of situations like Michael Phelps. We think of letting go and giving up, something that involves difficulty and even deprivation. And that surely is one meaning found in our culture – in athletics, when we go on a diet, and yes, even in our church and Christian faith. There may be times when God calls us to sacrifice in that way an in that manner, but in our Scripture lesson this morning, Paul invites us to think differently about sacrificing. For Paul, sacrifice is more than the post-Olympic swimming mantra: “channel your inner Phelps!” It’s more than a focused, tunneling down, With a narrow vision and strict disciple. Paul encourages Christians to live a life of sacrifice as that is wide open. Sacrifice is looking up and out and around us so that we can receive: the grace of God, the presence of God, the gifts of God. Sacrifice is embracing all that God has done and is doing for us in our lives. Sacrifice is alive, living, growing, and it’s not so much about winning and losing or necessarily goal oriented. The kind of sacrifice Paul is talking about is different than what we saw at the Olympics. For what happens – After all those years of training and discipline – if you drop the baton, Or don’t stick your landing, or make too large a splash on your dive or run out of energy at the end of a race? I actually heard an announcer say “well, it seems all that sacrifice meant nothing in the end.” Not so, friends, not so for the Christian who presents herself, Who presents himself, as a living sacrifice. We know our sacrifice is more than just one moment in time. Because every moment is an opportunity for Every one of us – No matter our age, No matter our station, No matter what we’ve done or haven’t done in the past – For us to present our bodies as a living sacrifice. The word comes from two Latin words: “sacra – fice,” literally to “make holy” our lives and our world. No matter where we are – At the beach, In the grocery store, Sitting in an office or sitting in a pew, Waiting for a bus or waiting for a friend, We can present our bodies as a living sacrifice. Whenever we make a meal, or make a phone call or make love, And do it with a sense of gratitude and openness to God’s presence, Then we present our bodies as a living sacrifice. And bodies, for Paul, are not just our physical bodies. To be sure, It does include our physical selves – Our eyes and ears, Our noses, Our arms and our legs and our feet. But you know, sometimes as our bodies age, they don’t work like they used to. But Paul’s notion of body is broader – And includes our feelings, our thoughts, our strengths, Our desires, our hopes and our dreams. It includes everything we have and everything we are. And that is what we give to God – Our whole selves, Just as we give to those we love best and most in the world. “Therefore, present your bodies as a living sacrifice.” Paul tells us this is “spiritual worship.” Now many of you have told me how important Sunday morning worship is to you and for you – And it is for me as well. It is a time to lift prayers and praise to our God who loves us and calls us daughters and sons. Worship is a time to renew and refresh, A time to be comforted and challenged by the prayers we pray, the hymns we sing, the anthems we listen to, and the offerings we share. Sunday morning worship is a time to let the Word of God – the living, breathing Word of God break into our hearts. And today, This living breathing Word of God – proclaims to us a different understanding of worship. The apostle Paul talks about spiritual worship – And exhorts us, friends, To remember that worship is not just for an hour – Or an hour and fifteen minutes – one day a week. Spiritual worship is what we do and say, day in and day out, hour by hour, month by month, year by year. What Paul says is that spiritual worship is not attending church every week. Spiritual worship is not studying your bible every day or every week. Spiritual worship is not putting some money in the offering plates. All these things are good and well; And I’m not advocating that we stop doing them. But spiritual worship, Paul tells us, is the giving of our full selves to God and letting God transform us. Listen again to what Paul is saying here, friends. Transformation comes not through our own efforts, but through the work of the Spirit. Transformation comes to us as a gift of God, Not as the result of our efforts. Paul says, We don’t change ourselves, God changes us when we give ourselves – And let’s remember that Paul expects the gospel to change our lives, The way we think, the way we act, the way we make our way in the world. Paul knew first hand that the good news of Jesus Christ changes lives and sets you on a new path. He knew that it could knock you off a horse and turn your life around in ways that you could never imagine. I can’t help but wonder if we’ve lost a bit of that expectation in these days. Do we believe, do we trust, that God can bring, That God will bring about a change in us, And through us, to the world? Or perhaps a more appropriate question is: Do we even want God to transform us, Renew our minds, and give us new ways of thinking and acting? It seems, friends, that God is in the transforming business – And we may be in the conforming business. We are comfortable with the way things are, We’ve let the world’s values shape us and shape our community. I’ll tell you, I like my life the way it is. My life at home, my life in the church, my life as a disciple. But Paul challenges us here, friends. It’s good and necessary to have a foundation, But if we’re so rooted or stuck to that foundation that we aren’t able or willing to see or to do something new, Then Paul would say, I think, that we are not living the gospel of Christ Jesus. And so what would happen, friends, If during this week, We gave ourselves to God in the way Paul describes? What would happen if we opened our selves – Body, spirits, souls – to God’s transforming grace while eating breakfast, or during a time of prayer or greeting a friend or stranger on the street or putting our kids to bed? How would, how will, God change us? “Therefore present your bodies as a living sacrifice, Acceptable and holy to God; This is your spiritual worship. May it be so and may it be soon. Amen and amen. |