“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.” Romans 12:1 (NLT)
God wants us to live life to the fullest, but the only way we can experience and live this life is by pursuing a lifestyle of authentic worship. In Biblical times they would sacrifice animals, their own lambs, but there wasn’t anything really personal about it. Then God made it really personal- real – raw amazingly authentic, by sending His only Son to be executed as a sacrifice for each of our individual sins, our personal rebellion. Real – authentic love for us.
So what should our response be? Authentic, real, raw, loving worship to God? What does this look like?
1.. Authentic worship begins an overflow of gratitude for what God has done for you. Gratitude is our core motivation for real spiritual success. It is our deepens, most sincere, most real self. Gratitude shows who you really are more than anything else. What are you thankful for? What should you be slowing down and savoring in gratitude? Are you taking anything Christ has done for you for granted? Slow down and spend a little more time in gratitude to God each day. Thank Him moment by moment.
2… Authentic worship involves surrendering ownership of yourself. As a kid I would hear, “Stick em up!” in the cartoons and someone would inevitably give up and raise their hands in the air, in surrender. This is why many raise their hands as they sing in worship. It is vulnerable and a sign of surrender. Daily, this is to be expressed by surrendering your will to Christ. Yielding does not come naturally to the human spirit. We are made tenacious and ferocious in the pursuit of our own will. The human condition is that people rebel against God continually, but authentic worship for the Christ Follower is a daily acknowledgement of personal surrender to Christ Jesus as the King of your life.
3.. Authentic worship is presenting your most sacred to God. No, not your iPhone, keys to your car or house, the tv remote, but your body. “Give your bodies” to God. There is nothing more sacred than your body. We clean, cover, and care for them daily. But there is nothing more inclusive about us than the term, “body”, which includes our entire being, mind, will, emotions, and our physique which carries all of these around to places they should be or should not be. Authentic worship is surrendering every area of your body, mind, will, emotions, etc. to god as the owner and the One deserving of our honor.
Assess yourself. How would you think God would be pleased with how and what you are doing with your body? Thoughts or secret thought life? Emotions – are they out of bounds with anger, greed, rage, fear, and anxiety? Is your will and decisions leading or pushing you away from God?
4.. Authentic worship is focused only on what God thinks, not others.
Inevitably the thought of our bodies leads us to comparisons over weight, looks, shape, style, and fitness level. God looks at your heart. I find it very hypocritical for the self-righteous guy who doesn’t drink but eats a gallon of ice cream each evening, but he doesn’t have a problem judging others because they drink some. Jesus actually taught us to judge ourselves, not others.
You don’t have to live for the approval of others. We are living for an Audience of One, His approval alone. No one can give you a list of what you should and should not do with your body to perfectly please God
5.. Authentic worship is a pleasing sacrifice to God. Your surrender of yourself and devoting your entirety to honor God is more pleasing than anything else you could offer God. No sacrifice of money, material goods, or even the blood of an animal can compare to a person yielding their life daily to follow Christ.
The problem with these “living sacrifices” is that they tend to get up off the altar and wander off. Maybe you have listened to the voice of your will, not God, and wandered off from Him. Come back today. He is ready to authentically forgive the person who is real with Him about their struggles. He understands. He is ready to receive your authentic worship as you choose to honor Him daily.
Father, I confess my life has not been fully honoring You. I chose today, now, to yield my life afresh to You. Thank You for Your forgiveness, grace, and mercy to me. Help me as I seek to honor you in all things today. Amen.