Crawling Back onto the Altar Today's Three-minute Bible Study Print, Study and Apply Title: Crawling Back onto the Altar------------------------------------- Date: 10/3/2002 Keywords: "living sacrifice" Welcome to eXXit, the web site designed to help you stand strong in the face of sexual temptation. For the first six days of October, our three-minute Bible studies will key on central issues related to life in Christ. The verses we'll look at may not explicitly relate to the subject of sexual temptation, but they will (hopefully) help all of us to stand firm as we "go back to the basics." Passage: Romans 12:1* I urge you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. Questions 1. Name some of the blessings you have received from God because of your faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross.   2. What does the apostle Paul urge Christians to do in Romans 12:1? On what basis?   Practical help In the Old Testament, Jewish people repeatedly offered sacrifices to God. These sacrifices, among other things, showed their commitment to live according to God's requirements. One unifying element in each of the Jewish sacrifices was this — the animal was dead! But Paul wants to see each and every Christian crawl up on the altar while alive. It is as an alive sacrifice that we are to live out a radical commitment to the Lordship of Jesus. He has been outrageously gracious to us — so we live (sometime we die) for Him. Now, as has been noticed by many Bible students, the problem with living sacrifices is that they can slither and slide off the altar. True. But, if that happens, they can also march themselves right back up on the altar! Let's each ask ourselves now: In light of the mercies of God (your forgiveness, eternal life, relationship with God, possession of the Spirit, membership in the Church, etc.) have you climbed up on the altar and committed yourself to sacrificially living for Jesus? Yes? Great! Have you slipped off the altar recently? Maybe through involvement with Internet porn, you have wandered away from a sacrificial life. Jesus is calling you back to the altar — the place where life is to be found — to live out your gratitude to Him in sacrificial service. eXXit homepage Index of three-minute studies Copyright 2002 by eXXit *"Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission." ---