"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing, and perfect, will." -Romans 12:2

The first article of this two-part series discussed the motivation to sacrifice and the definition of sacrifice, as presented in Romans 12:1. This second article will center around verse 2 as it relates to the process of sacrifice and the results of sacrifice.

The Process: The process of sacrifice includes a rejection of sin and an acceptance of righteousness - a refusal to conform and a decision to be transformed. Tradition religion has always emphasized the former while neglecting the latter. The results have been appalling. People have tried excluding the evil without totally committing to Jesus. In fact, the filling of our lives with Jesus is the means to keeping Satan out. Colossians 3 describes the pros as "taking off" and "putting on." The person who cleans out his life and leaves it empty invites seven demons who are worse than those he expelled! (Mathew 12:43-45)

Being conformed to the world involves far more than overt sins. Jesus is always searching out our hearts to see what our attitudes and values really are. James wrote, "you adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God" (James 4:4). A literal translation of the last sentence would be "anyone who wishes to be a friend of the world…" In other words, a person could secretly desire to hold on to the world's value and be just as guilty as if he had overtly followed these values. We will find ourselves destroyed if we outwardly conform to God's commands while inwardly conforming to Satan's offerings. The heart will ultimately come out and win out. We must deal with sin in our hearts if we are to reject the world. Confess and crucify it!

After refusing to be conformed, we must volunteer to be transformed. The original word is the root from which we get our English world "metamorphosis." The change involved in a metamorphosis is profound. It is the difference between a caterpillar and a butterfly! God does not want people who are a little different in a few areas - he wants new ones (2 Corinthians 5:17). He calls us to be "transformed into his likeness with ever increasing glory, which comes from the Lord" (2 Corinthians 3:18)

This transformation has Christ as its model, for we are to imitate him in character and behavior. Thus, there must be "great" change, as the song from Jamaica puts it. The change also is to be a continual one, for none of us ever arrives at absolute Christ-likeness. However, even though the changes are continual, we should avoid the conclusion that change in any one area is to be gradual. Too many of us settle for changing slowly, when in fact, a radical repentance would result in rapid changes. If you end up growing out of a sinful or immature feature gradually, never let that be your heart in the matter. Our heart's desire must be to change radically, quickly, and continually.

Praise God that he does the transforming! He forgives the sin; he provided the Spirit; and yet we must cooperate with the process by keeping our minds renewed, always keeping them set on him (Colossians 3:1-2). We continue to "work out our salvation with fear and trembling because God is working in us to will and to act according to his good purpose" (Philippians 2:12-13). What we cannot do, he absolutely will do, if we allow him free reign in our lives.

The Results: The results of our sacrifice are totally satisfying - we can test and approve God's will and see that it is good, pleasing, and perfect. It is not simply good; nor even better than most paths of life; it is the best available life. But no one can prove it intellectually - it must be tested out in obedience and submission. A similar progression is seen in John 8:31-32, where belief leads to holding to the truth, which in turn leads to knowing the truth, which finally results in freedom. No person ever knows truth who does not first know Jesus on an experiential level.

Sacrifice is a scary word. Surrender, even to God, is an unnatural decision from a human perspective. And yet death (to self) results in life which is life indeed. We become willing to yield our lives, our health, our family, our finances, our future, and our plans totally to him. We are willing to accept what we need rather than what we want. In essence, we allow God to be God in our lives as we make an emotional break with being in control. Sacrifice is an issue of trust, and trust is what faith is all about, and "without faith it is impossible to please him" (Hebrews 11:6). Sacrifice is not a lofty ideal; it is the standard of following Jesus. Are you doing it? Will you be a living sacrifice and an example to everyone around you? We need to have a church full of disciples who are living this way!