RENEW YOUR MIND
Going Deep into Romans 12:1-2
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. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
- Romans 12:1-2 (NKJV)
"Acceptable to God"
As you recall from earlier in our study, we are meant to be presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice. But this is not a call to get yourselves all done up in your Sunday best outfits!
When we come into Christ, thankfully God accepts us as we are. However, He does not intend to leave us as we are. We are called to "grow up in all things into Him who is the head - Christ." (Ephesians 4:15)
We don't judge a child for being child, anymore than we judge a teenager, or adult for being where they are in life. Unfortunately, American society tends to focus more on the achievements and ambitions of the one growing, rather than embracing the process of growing in itself, and submission to the one teaching.
However, there is always room to learn, grow, and for the Christ Carrier, "to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called." (Ephesians 4:1)
As long as we are in this world, the calling of God on our lives never ceases. There is no final point of perfection where we no longer have anything to do or give to the Lord.
Ephesians 5:16-17 cautions us to redeem the time because the days are evil, and finishes with a direction on how we can redeem that time, by understanding "what the will of the Lord is."
So as long as we are walking this earth, and whatever state we are in, with whatever time we have left, we should be understanding what the will of the Lord is.
What does all this have to do with being acceptable to God? Well, since we are always being called to grow in Christ, and we never achieve a hypothetical state of perfection, being acceptable to God can not be about a particular mark that we achieve. It is rather, in our yielding to our own will, and seeking the will of the Lord, that must be acceptable to God.
This is not about ambition, but rather, our level of submission to His will being done on earth as it is in heaven.
If we are babes in Christ, but yielded to Him, that is acceptable. If we are mature disciples in Christ, yielded to Him, that is acceptable.
A good picture of this is observed all the way back in the Old Testament of Genesis 4, with Cain and Abel. Abel's offering of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat, was respected by God, whereas Cain's offering of the fruit of the ground was not respected.
In verse 7, speaking to Cain, the Lord asks "If you do well, will you not be accepted?" Hmm, interesting. Both brothers; both providing offerings to the Lord; but only one was considered acceptable.
In the New Testament, Hebrews 11:4 also reviews the difference between Cain and Abel's offering to God, stating that Abel's offering was done by faith, and therefore a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain's. This ties one being acceptable to God, not based on what is offered, but rather based on the faith of the one providing the offering.
Later in the same chapter, verse 6 also concurs "but without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
To be acceptable to God, is to please God. To please God, one must have faith that He is God. AND that God rewards those who diligently seek Him. Diligently seeking God can also be described as diligently seeking God's will.
More specifically, the beginning of Matthew 6:33 instructs that we should "seek first the kingdom of God" which essentially means that we should prioritize that the King's will is done in His kingdom!
This is not performance-based living. The call is to redeem the time, seek and understand what the will of the Lord is, and yield to His will and way for your life.
This is acceptable to God.