In the Scripture passage from Sunday, January 31, (Romans 6:12-14) Paul said, “Do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.” Presentation has to do with who you offer yourself to. In fact, if you think about it, that’s what worship is – loving God and offering yourself to Him. When we pass the offering plate, it’s just one way you have of offering yourself and the substance of your life to God.
Paul is saying to us that if we present ourselves to God, we will become more like God. On the other hand, if we present ourselves to sin, we will become more sinful. We have a tendency to think that what really matters is what we do. But doing is always caused by something else. It is that something else that presentation addresses.
This passage of Scripture teaches that we will all be determined by what we present ourselves to. In other words, if you think all the time about money or work all the time to get money, it’s going to be very difficult for you to be generous or people-centered. If you think all the time about drinking, it’s going to be very difficult for you to stay sober. If you think all the time about being sophisticated, it’s going to be very difficult for you to be down to earth and available to the people around you. So what you present yourself to, who you hang out with, what you spend time thinking about, and what you value in life are going to be the great determining factors of your life. It’s no wonder that people who set these ungodly values are surprised by their ungodly actions when they really meant to do something else. Good news. If you present yourself to Jesus Christ repeatedly, guess what will happen then? That’s right. You’ll become more like Him, and you will do His will more readily.
When we are born again we are given the power of the Holy Spirit so that we will be naturally drawn to God and have the ability to relate to Him. Yet, many of us who have that natural ability don’t use it. We’re like a person who has the capacity to be a great pitcher but never picks up a baseball or picks one up only to toss it around the yard from time to time. If you are born again, you have the Holy Spirit. You have the ability to present yourself to God over and over again and to find increasing joy in it. Do you take advantage of the opportunities we offer here at the church to present yourself to God or are you just coming to Sunday school and church? Is it a duty or is it an opportunity for you to draw near to Him and present yourself to Him?
The Scripture says, “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4:8). This is the same as saying, “Present your bodies to God as an instrument of righteousness” (Romans 6:13). That is, present yourself with the desire that God would use you for a righteous purpose.
