“I BESEECH you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God” (Romans 12:1-2).
“Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?” (I Corinthians 3:16).
“What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of Go, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s” (I Corinthians 6:19-20).
“Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:” (II Corinthians 3:2).
“Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).
Everything in this world that is seen is a reflection of the unseen. “While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal” (II Corinthians 4:18). God acknowledged that fact when He, who knows everything, said in Genesis 4:6, “And the Lord said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? And why is thy countenance fallen?” “A wicked man hardeneth his face…” (Proverbs 21:29).
Paul instructed Timothy, his preacher boy, that he must know how to behave himself in the house of God (I Timothy 3:15). This would explain the seeming contradiction between the book of James and the book of Romans. There is no controversy between faith and works. They are very compatible doctrines. James is saying that as man views man, that he must be justified in man’s sight by his works and not his faith. The book of Romans is teaching man is justified in the sight of God by faith and not works.
People can only look on the outside in order to draw a conclusion about that person. If we are children of God then it only makes sense that we must conduct ourselves in such a manner as to represent our Lord properly. This in no way is an endorsement of what evangelicals call “lifestyle evangelism.” We are commanded to go into the entire world and “preach” the Gospel.
The only instance in the Scriptures where someone is won “without the word” is I Peter 3:1 where it says, “Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;” Family members are the most difficult of all to win to Christ. The reason is very simple they know too much about us to believe us.
The importance of presenting our bodies as a living sacrifice is necessary in order to do the very practical work of God. The only body the Holy Spirit has is the body of the believer. If the Gospel is to be taken to the world then it will be through the body of the saved. The only tongue the Holy Spirit has is the tongue of the saved. The only feet the Holy Spirit has are the feet of the saved. The only eyes the Holy Spirit has are the eyes of the saved. If the hungry are to be fed, the naked clothed, and the lost to be saved it will be because of some believer who carries the Holy Spirit to those in need.
THREE STEPS TO FULFILLING THE MULTIPLE WILLS OF GOD IN LIFE
There are many wills of God in our lives because there are many areas of responsibility. Each bears its own reward or consequence. If we are not the spouse we should be then loss of the marriage is a possible ending. If we are not diligent about our finances we could end up in bankruptcy court and end up with bad credit. If we fail as parents we end up bailing our kids out of jail. If we disobey the great commission then someone will end up in Hell. In each area God has a will and it’s up to us to discover it. Obedience is the vehicle that will carry everyone to success. Disobedience carries with it a built in consequence.
THE BODY – The main will of God is the first step to dedication to the multiple wills of God and that is presenting the body to God as a living sacrifice. The position of the body is the position of the soul. The body telegraphs to the world and to Satan our heart. Satan cannot read our minds, but he can read our body language. God is not asking us to die for him, but rather to live for him in our bodies. I have not always been what I should have been, but I have always been where I should have been. A preacher’s wife said to me one time after preaching that she thought I was preaching in the flesh. That is so silly! That’s like saying about writing that you should not let the pen get involved in the writing. If a spook shows up to preach next Sunday I will make a door where there is not door in that auditorium. The pen cannot write by itself, neither can you serve God without your flesh.
THE MIND – The first step is to present your body as a living sacrifice. Then that which the body chooses to allow to enter into the eye and ear gates affects the mind. When one stays home from Sunday school they are still going to Sunday school. It happens to be CBS, NBC, ABC, ESPN, or FOX networks; but someone is going to enter the mind because of the presence of the body in front of a TV. If they miss Sunday night preaching they still are going to be preached too by someone whom they have chosen by presenting their bodies to them!
THE WILL – The first step is to present ones body as a living sacrifice to God, which in turn allows the mind to be affected. As a result of this then the will of that person is fashioned and formed into an eventual act of the flesh. We are all influenced by people and their purposes. That is why it is critical to run with the right crowd. If a person stays home from church on Sunday night. He probably will end up sitting in front of a TV and before long he will become convinced that he too could win the next “Bass Tournament” if he will just call the 800 number on the screen and buy that DVD on fishing. The next thing you know he is on a lake fishing instead of being in church.
CONCLUSION
The first step to completing the wills of God is the step of presenting ones body as a living sacrifice to God. When you are always where you should be, then you will give God an opportunity to renew your mind and will in order to serve God with zeal. You go to work when you do not want to in order to have a paycheck. The truth is the pay from serving God is far more important that a weekly paycheck. The main will is the will concerning your physical body.