A LIVING SACRIFICE

The universe is a big, big place. But how big and how do we know? For centuries, men have used a variety of tools and methods to answer the questions, "How far?" and "How big?" Generations of scientists have looked deeper and deeper into the vast expanse of space and found it wider and broader than they ever fathomed.

In our journey with God, the same can be  said about salvation. As we read the Bible, men continually asked Jesus, "How big?" and "How far?" How big is God's love for me? And How far away is that love? When the rich young ruler asked, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" he was asking those questions. 

He'd gone to church all his life, trying to do the right thing. He'd kept the Sabbath faithfully, going to synagogue and listening to the rabbis. But deep down inside, he knew something was missing. Going to church and going through the motions as a good Jew somehow wasn't enough. He needed to know how big is the love of God and how far away it was. He just had to know, so he came running up to Jesus, falling at His feet and asked, "What shall I do? How can I know that I'm saved?"

This man had a lot going for him. He was rich. He was a man of responsibility. And even though he was young, people looked up to him. But it still wasn't enough. He longed for Jesus to place His hand upon his head and bless him as He'd just blessed the little children. He longed for the assurance that he had eternal life.

It's kind of strange that a Jew would wrestle with this, isn't it? After all, they had the word of God. And that word was saturated with the saving message of how to have eternal life. Plus they had the sanctuary service-- a living enactment of how God was working for them, to save them from their sins. But somehow, the rich young ruler didn't get it! He still didn't have the answer to his burning question, "How can I  have eternal life?" 

You know, truth can be staring us right in the face. But it's still possible not to see it. Because sometimes, our experiences cloud what God is trying to show us or to tell us. If we're holding onto sin, to something we know isn't right, we won't see how big or how close our Father's love is for us. We won't have the assurance that everything is right between us. And we'll find ourselves in the same place as the rich, young ruler--wanting to be saved and yet not knowing how. 

The rich, young ruler's problem was money. He valued his wealth for what it was and for the life that it gave him. He loved the prestige and power that money brought. He loved the fine clothes he could buy and his rich home with all his many servants. But he didn't see how his love for money was squeezing God out of his life. He was going through the motions of following God but there was no room for Him in his heart. And God can't share our heart with another. Unless we give Him our all, He knows He can do nothing to save us. And this All-Out devotion to God was missing in the rich, young ruler's life. He was missing the most essential riches of all. 

"Christ read the ruler's heart. Only one thing he lacked, but that was a vital principle. He needed the love of God in the soul. This lack, unless supplied, would prove fatal. His whole nature would become corrupted. That he might receive the love of God, his supreme love of self must be surrendered" (From Heaven with Love, pg. 347). And this is the very first step in having eternal life. Before we follow Jesus, we must give up what is holding us to this world. 

I'm sure that this young man often brought a lamb to the temple, to offer as a sacrifice for his sins. Did he look at that lamb and think that his own sin was the reason for its death?Did he ever realize what the death of that lamb signified? For not only did it point to Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29),  but it also pointed to his own life. 

God wanted him to experience death as he came to the altar of sacrifice. A death to sin and a death to self. In a sense, God wants us to become a living sacrifice. Can you hear the Lord speaking to your heart through the words of the apostle? 

"I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service" (Romans 12:1). 

As you see Jesus lifted up on the cross of Calvary, you're hearing these words. Jesus says, "I beseech you. I urge you with all the love I have in My heart. Please come to me and be saved! I came to have mercy on you. I came to take your place as payment for your sins. You can have My life in exchange for yours. I will take your sin and you can have My righteousness." 

"For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin FOR US, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:17). 

What incredible mercy! The love of God is so very, very big! Even bigger than the vast stretches of space. It is beyond our deepest thoughts and most eloquent words. And that mercy is for each one of us. No matter what we have done or not done, God's mercy is available to every one of us.

It isn't far away. It's as close as we want it to be. The love of God can fill our hearts to overflowing. We can be filled with "all the fullness of God" (Ephesians 3:19). We can have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16). His righteousness can become ours (2 Corinthians 5:17). And we can have the assurance of eternal life! Even Moses would tell us, "The word is very near you, in your mouth and in your heart" (Deuteronomy 30:14). It is as near as you want it to be.

But it isn't free. Now don't get me wrong. God makes it available to us. Jesus is the only way to find salvation. But it cost Him something, didn't it? It cost the life blood of Jesus! He was willing to pay the ultimate price for our salvation. He gave everything to make it possible. And it's the same way for us. We can't earn salvation. We can't give money to buy it. The rich young ruler couldn't plop down a bag of gold to buy eternal life. And all the good he'd ever done wasn't enough to pay his way into heaven. 

And yet...there IS something we must give in order to have eternal life. We must "present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God" (Romans 12:1). We must come to the altar and lay down our polluted hearts and give up everything for Jesus. The 1st step on the way to eternal life is to surrender self. We must bring ourselves to Jesus--soul, body and spirit-- in order to receive ALL that the Savior longs to give us! 

Only Jesus can draw us to the altar of surrender. He says, "I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you" (Jeremiah 31:3) And how He longs to draw us! He will give us hungering hearts for the love that comes through Jesus. It can be as close as we want it to be!

"If we do not resist this drawing, we shall be led to the foot of the cross in repentance for the sins that have crucified the Savior [our own sins]. Then the Spirit of God through faith produces a new life in the soul. The thoughts and desires are brought into obedience to the will of Christ. The heart, the mind, are created anew in the image of Him who works in us to subdue all things to Himself" (Desire of Ages, pg. 176). 

The story of the rich young ruler ended so sadly. He resisted the drawing of Jesus. He walked away--truly poor--because he wouldn't give up his riches. Jesus wasn't a priceless treasure to him. But his story doesn't have to be ours if we will come to the altar of surrender and lay everything down for Jesus. Come just as you are and He will give you more than this world can ever give! 

Present your bodies as a living sacrifice to God.  "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God--what is good and acceptable and perfect" (Romans 12:2, NRS). And most of all, so you can know the love of God is big enough to save you.  And it's close enough to make you one with Jesus.