Romans 12:1 “Therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your spiritual worship.”

The attitude of humble obedience to God, the way of Jesus, is foreign to the world we live in, but it’s not foreign to your soul. Quite the opposite: it’s how you and I have been created to live. Jesus embodied this in his birth, his life, and even in his death.

Out of humble obedience, Jesus gave up his rights and his privileges.

Out of humble obedience, Jesus gave up his authority over others.

Out of humble obedience, Jesus gave up his life.

And we have a hard time giving up a parking spot! Or our favorite seat in church.

Of all the ways that God could have arranged for Jesus to give up his life, it happened on a Roman cross. Most of us see a cross in some way, shape, or form almost every day. We put them on walls in our homes, build them on top of mountains, place them by the side of interstates, and yes we wear them around our necks, we even tattoo them on our bodies. Yet there’s a danger in overseeing the symbol of the cross might lose its meaning for us, even though ironically most of us see one every single day. Because the cross had a very powerful meaning for anyone who lived in the first century. That’s why those of us who want to live as followers of Jesus in the 21st century must ask ourselves this question:

Are you willing and able to Give up something For God today? 

True Christianity calls us to Sacrifice, Pastor Larry