During his reign, King Frederick William III of Prussia found himself in trouble. Wars had been costly, and in trying to build the nation, he was seriously short of finances. He couldn't disappoint his people, and to capitulate to the enemy was unthinkable. After careful reflection, he decided to ask the women of Prussia to bring their jewelry of gold and silver to be melted down for their country. For each ornament received, he determined to exchange a decoration of bronze or iron as a symbol of his gratitude. Each decoration would be inscribed, "I gave gold for iron, 18l3." The response was overwhelming. Even more important, these women prized their gifts from the king more highly than their former jewelry. The reason, of course, is clear. The decorations were proof that they had sacrificed for their king. Indeed, it became unfashionable to wear jewelry, and thus was established the Order of the Iron Cross. Members wore no ornaments except a cross of iron for all to see.
What are we willing to do for our King, Jesus Christ? The faithful steward will follow His King with a willing heart to great personal surrender, sacrifice, and separation.
Take a look at the context of the book of Romans. “I beseech you therefore.” To what is the “therefore” referring? Why does the apostle Paul beseech the believer? The answer is found in Romans 11:33-36 and throughout the book of Romans. Follow the pathway every human being must walk: eternally condemned because of our own sins, justified because of God’s amazing sacrifice on our behalf, assurance we are eternally secure in Jesus — and these truths bring us to the conclusion of dedicating our lives to the One who saved our souls!
Romans 3:20, 28…the therefore of condemnation
Romans 5:1-2 …the therefore of justification
Romans 8:1…the therefore of assurance
Romans 12:1…the therefore of dedication
Now look at the context of the previous verses.
1. Look Deep! Who He is….
11:33 - His wisdom, knowledge and judgment are greater than ours
11:33 – His ways beyond figuring out ourselves
2. Look Up! What He can do…
11:34 – we aren’t His counselor…He is our counselor
3. Look Here! How much He has…
11:36 – Everything is of Him, through Him, and to Him
A Willing Surrender
Romans 12:1 pleads for the church to “present your bodies a living sacrifice.” We all know what “sins” are but let me focus for a moment on hindrances. Hindrances are those things that may not be sins, but still keep you from living a life totally surrendered to God.
Imagine you are at a track meet, and they’re lining up for the 100-meter dash. Everything’s fine except for one contestant. Instead of the regular shorts and track shoes runner’s gear, he’s wearing a snowmobile suit and galoshes. Now that’s probably not against the rules, but he’s not going to win, if he even survives the race.
What hindrances might be in your walk with God? What may be weighing you down and keeping full surrender to God in the distance? When was the last time you took a life inventory?
Does IDOLATRY (anything that takes the pace of God) keep surrender out of reach? Sports, hunting, shopping, family, work, etc…
Does BITTERNESS keep surrender out of reach?
Does GREED keep surrender out of reach?
Does ENVY keep surrender out of reach?
Does PRIDE keep surrender out of reach? I know better than my parents; the Bible isn’t current; I have a better plan for life!
2. A Willing Separation
Romans 12:2 continues with instruction for the followers of Jesus to “not be conformed to this world.” The world is not our standard for rule and practice. The University of Houston was commissioned to do a 10-year study on the Founding Fathers and their writings to see their intentions and if they intended America to be founded on Christian Principles and the Bible or complete separation from religion….
One example was Blackstone, whose law books were considered the basis upon our Supreme Court and Judiciary System were built, and were the Law Books of Reference for almost 120 years. Blackstone quoted so many Bible verses in his law books that a law student named FINNEY was saved and became a great evangelist......from reading Blackstone’s Law books. So they found that 94% of the quotes of the founding fathers were either directly or indirectly from the Bible.
It is time for the believer to be a warrior for His Savior. It is time for the believer to turn from that which is destroying the church and our nation, and to turn to God…to separate ourselves back to Him!
The believer ought not to shy away from quoting scripture, memorizing scripture, and reading scripture – He must embrace it as his life blood!
The believer ought not to hide his public prayers and dependence on God almighty -- He must declare such dependency with even greater conviction!
The believer ought not to deny the reality of God in his life when confronted. It must be abundantly clear to whom the believer belongs...abundantly clear with his time, talents, and treasures!!
The WORLD calls the believer to separate FROM God…GOD calls the believer to separate TO Him. From whom are we taking our marching orders?
3. A Willing Saturation – “be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind”
The final important plea for followers of Jesus in Romans 12:1-2 gives a vital game changing ingredient - “renewing of your mind.” Think about it this way, as many cooks there are in the kitchen, there will be as many opinions on the best way to prepare a meal. Some will say everything must have spices and generous portions of salt – yet others will say salt isn’t good and must be avoided. Some will say anything saturated in butter is heaven! Some will say to saturate foods needing butter only with coconut oil! The results may vary according to personal taste, but will definitely get a strong response when saturating something in anything!
A saturation of God’s Word on the heart of man will produce a response so strong that the outcome will be nothing short of a transformation! So, why should I memorize scripture?
THE AUTHORITY - II Tim. 3:16 – scripture is “God-breathed” …and affects all areas of your life
THE SUCCESS - Joshua 1:8 – “success” is only related to meditating on the Word in scripture
THE PROTECTION - Ps. 119:11 – this book will keep me from sin or sin will keep me from this book
THE HELP - Ps. 119:9 – this is how God helps me clean up my act
THE CHOICE
Ps. 40:8 – delighting to do God’s will is connected to having the law of God in my heart
Ps. 119:16 – I can choose to make His Word my delight
Ps. 1:2 – a truly happy man will meditate on His Word day and night
Are we as the children of God, RENEWING our minds or are we RUINING our minds?
Look at the rest of Romans 12. When we choose to be a willing sacrifice for God, a willing separation to God, and a willing saturation of God’s word, we will be the difference we long to see in the world!
12:3 – Practice humility and recognize our talents are by God’s grace
12:4-8 – Use our God-given abilities to serve Him
12:9 – Pursue love with hypocrisy, embrace what is good, and hate evil
12:10 – Honor one another
12:11 – Fervently serve the Lord
12:12 – Choose hope, patience, and prayer
12:13 – Help the needy and nurture hospitality
12:14 – Bless our persecutors
12:15 – Rejoice and weep with those who rejoice and weep
12:16 – Live in harmony with one another
12:17-19 – Repay no one with evil, but live in peace with everyone
12:20-21 – Overcome evil with good
I was not one of his fans personally, but for many NASCAR fans, the death of racing legend Dale Earhardt at the 2001 Daytona 500 is still fresh in their minds. On the final lap of the race, he crashed into the wall at a speed of around 180 miles per hour after being tapped from behind. I remember seeing the accident on TV and it did not seem to be too bad at first.
The autopsy report stated that he died of blunt force trauma to the head. It has been suggested that he may have survived the crash if he had been wearing a special safety device called a HANS or Head and Neck Safety Device. At the time, however, he had decided against using the device. He complained that it restricted his movements too much. His neglect probably cost him his life. The HANS was a voluntary act that Dale chose to reject. (Adapted from Michael Owenby, Carrollton GA.)
The Lord is calling His children to a voluntary act of surrender, separation, and saturation. This voluntary willing act will grant the believer greater desire and depth in his relationship with Jesus.
How do I become a willing steward? Yield your will (present your body a living sacrifice), confess your sin (be not conformed), and saturate your mind (by the renewing of your mind).