Brother Gary Wednesday Evening 7/1/15

Brother Gary Wednesday Evening 7/1/15

The attitude Paul had when he wrote Romans 12 was not a bully thought or a hammer thought.  He had experienced a lot of things in his life.  He had come from being religious, he had come from having a bad attitude toward the servants of Christ, he had come from deception in the thought that he didn’t have a problem with throwing them into jail, and he was there when Steven was stoned.

He had a marvelous conversion.  In conversion, he was and we are changed from being evil and hard to being humble and caring.  God worked with Paul when he was out by himself, and he worked with him with the saints working with him.  Then when he was used of God he had a mighty care for the brethren in Christ.

Rom 12:1  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.

Paul saw the benefit of being a living sacrifice.  The world is full of the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.  Lust wants an immediate satisfaction.  There are a lot of times in our life when we want what is in our mind right now.  But there is something so wonderful about being a living sacrifice.  The very next word is holy.  That word brings a reverence to our mind, heart, and spirit. 

Our body holy:  there are things that would plague our mind, “Wouldn’t it be nice to have this or that?”  The issue is not if it would or would not be nice, but wait on the Lord and stay holy.

Eph 5:2  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

We understand what a great sacrifice Jesus was: holy, undefiled, separate from sinners, perfect Lamb of God; He offered himself a sacrifice for all of our sin.

A sweet smelling savor:  as we take two steps forward, as we all know, it is important that we have goals and plans.  It is important that we have things to accomplish every day.  It is also important that we say, “God I am a living sacrifice, I had planned…”  Then if God chooses something else, it is such a sweet smell to have the attitude, “God I want to do what you want me to do more than accomplish my agenda.”

Gen 8:20  And Noah builded an altar unto the LORD; and took of every clean beast, and of every clean fowl, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

Gen 8:21  And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

Gen 8:22  While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

After the flood, a brand new world with only righteous people, Noah built an altar.  We have an altar, it is Jesus.  Noah sacrificed clean offerings on that altar.  The Lord smelled a sweet savor.

During Lilac season, we walk the alley.  The savor and smell of those Lilacs!  The sweet smell of your sacrifice is acceptable to God.

Paul could have been way up the ladder in his day, but he chose differently.  He met Jesus, had a changed life, found the value of being sanctified, and found the value of being a living sacrifice. 

When he was shipwrecked, headed to Rome, or other places, obstinate times would come.  There was a time they were in a ship and the wind blew against them and they didn’t get anywhere.  There are times when we feel the elements are working against us.  Through it all He learned the value of being a living sacrifice.  He wrote to the Romans, “Present your bodies a living sacrifice.”

Sin is mean and destroying.  It is wonderful how being a living sacrifice doesn’t leave the marks of sin.  Holy, acceptable:  isn’t it wonderful when you feel, “My plans got changed, praise be to God.”  How sweet that is to God.

Deu 33:1  And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.

The blessings from the man of God.  (Moses left us a lot of blessings.)  Speaking of God:

Deu 33:3  Yea, he loved the people; all his saints are in thy hand: and they sat down at thy feet; every one shall receive of thy words.

Isn’t it wonderful to know that you are loved?  Some don’t hear from their kids, but isn’t it wonderful to know that God loves us? 

The man of God had a blessing to give that started with, “God loves His people.”

Deu 33:26  There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun, who rideth upon the heaven in thy help, and in his excellency on the sky.

It is wonderful to know the true God.  There are all sorts of counterfeit or imitations.  There are those that refuse and reject Him.  But nothing can keep us from knowing and enjoying the true God.

Deu 33:27  The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.

He is an eternal God.  There is a place of refuge.  We will encounter strong storms.  There will be times that you feel that the wind is blowing to help, there will be others when it seems that everything is working against us.  That is the reason that we need a refuge.  We need a place to go to get out of the storm. 

Underneath are everlasting arms:  there will be times when we need God to carry us.  Moses was almost ready to die.  These are some of his last words:  underneath are the everlasting arms.

He who had seen God work in marvelous ways.  He could still remember Pharaoh and his army perishing in the red sea.  He said, the enemy will be thrust out.  Don’t give in.

God has a happy people:

Deu 33:29  Happy art thou, O Israel: who is like unto thee, O people saved by the LORD, the shield of thy help, and who is the sword of thy excellency! and thine enemies shall be found liars unto thee; and thou shalt tread upon their high places.

That doesn’t mean that there are not things in our life that are grievous or cause pain.  But we know that God is God and knowing Him brings happiness into our lives.