Our Offering

We are children of sacrifice. Our sacrifice also creates a distinction between us and others. We are the only living creatures who are living sacrifices unto God.

Romans 12:1

I beseech ye therefore brethren by the mercies of God that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God which is your reasonable service.

As children of God we should live with the understanding that our bodies belong to God. So whatever He chooses to do with them, He may. Our bodies are no longer instruments of our own device but rather now the tool that God uses to establish His testimony in the earth. Many are in error because they have not satisfied verse 2 of this same chapter.

Romans 12:2

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.

When we conform to the world, we give in to the world’s way of living, laying aside our vocation for a life void of worldly confrontation. But we must not conform. We should stand out in this world never bowing to its gods and never compromising our salvation to fit in with a dying world. We are now alive unto God so we sacrifice opportunities to vent our own will. We sacrifice our position in certain situations. We sacrifice our emotions that the purpose of God may be fulfilled in us. For this some call us crazy: we have sacrificed their respect for us. For this some depart from us: we have sacrificed our fellowship with them. Some of us had dreams that conflicted with God’s purpose for our lives so we sacrificed those dreams and took up our cross. Yes, we are creatures of sacrifice but all that we have sacrificed cannot compare to what we have gained. So in us there is no regret for what we have lost. In us is no remorse for the decision we made to follow God. We are spiritual, misunderstood by the world because we are as pilgrims passing through it believing in a God they do not know or recognize. Our Father has required that we give Him everything. For the believer this is not a difficult task. We see ourselves as poor in spirit, having nothing without God. We have not deceived ourselves to believe that there is any life outside of Him but have come to the realization that He is our survival so we look to Him in all things. To the unbeliever this is most difficult, virtually impossible. I recall my time as an unbeliever. In that state, I bought into the concept, “You only live once,” which implies life is too short to miss any opportunity to fulfill the flesh. This way of thinking made coming to God so hard for me because all that I could see was what I had to give up. But God in all His wisdom knew how to allow the very things I was trying so desperately to hold onto, to become a great offense to me so that I would decide to let them go and choose Him.

Now when I look at the life God has given me, I have no desire for the things I once saw as a great sacrifice. I write this so you may see the positive side of sacrifice. Whatever you shall lose for the sake of Christ, there is something far greater to replace it in God. Our connection with God creates a relationship that brings such peace and comfort not to be compared with any other relationship we have experienced. This is why a true believer would not trade their relationship with God for anything this world has to offer. The unbeliever finds his or herself constantly trading their relationship with God for the things of the world. This is seen in their choice of a spouse or mate. One may have been raised in God, working diligently in the church but one day find themselves attracted to someone who is not a believer. I have seen many take their own salvation and put it aside that they may enjoy such a relationship. God will allow the relationship to run its course which usually leads to disappointment and hurt for the one who was supposed to have known God. After the relationship the person searches for their salvation again, oftentimes not remembering where they left it. As children of God we must be content in knowing God knows what is best for us. He knows the desires of our heart and if those desires are good and lawful, He will give them to us in His timing. When we do not trust this, we often make irrational decisions for our lives and end up with those who were never for us, creating a bond with them that we can never escape either by marriage or a child. Everyday going forward is spent looking back wishing we would have waited on God. Remember we said nothing we sacrifice for God can be compared to what He truly has for us, even if what we are laying down is the ideal of what we feel is best for our lives.

ARE YOU THE DISTINCTION?

1 Thessalonians 4:4

That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour.

The believer knows how to keep himself no matter what state he finds himself in. If God commissions Him to wait, he waits. He never questions God’s love for him or God’s motives. These qualities of being led by the spirit, living within the boundaries of the faith and being a living sacrifice unto God are what distinguish us from the world. Are you the distinction?

Michael A. Thomas, Apostle of the Lord, Jesus