The Call

Posted by John Crosland Jr on Dec 22, 2008 in Daily Bread | 4 comments

This verse is packed full of meaning and I could write a lot about it. However, for your time and mine I will only focus on a few main points.

One thing that must be noted is the “Therefore” that is at the beginning of the verse. This is referring to all of Romans up until this point. The bulk of which is teaching on the Christian faith.

This verse is a call for our commitment to God. However, it is not a passive commitment. Instead it is one that is active. A good analogy for this would be an altar call. After the teaching a call for a decision is made during which people make a decision to offer themselves.

The language of this verse is of advice not commandment. The reason for this is that God cares more about the heart of the servant rather than the actions. Our actions mean nothing, they are but rubbish Paul says in Philippians 3.

His appeal for us to offer ourselves willingly is based upon the mercies of God. It not only is the reason that we offer ourselves. It also provides the way in which we are capable of offering ourselves. Without the grace of God we only have our actions and we have all fallen short, Romans 3:23.

Before studying this verse, I thought of worship as something that only happens on Sunday mornings when the band is playing. However, that is not the case. We worship God everyday by being set apart (holy) for Him. We sacrifice our wants and desires to focus on what he has asked of us. This is what pleases the Lord.