Scripture
A Living Sacrifice to God
1And so, dear brothers and sisters,[1] I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.[2] 2Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
3Because of the privilege and authority[3] God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.[4] 4Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.
6In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
9Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10Love each other with genuine affection,[5] and take delight in honoring each other. 11Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.[6] 12Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. 13When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
14Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. 15Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. 16Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!
17Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.
19Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”[7]
says the Lord.
20Instead,
“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”[8]
21Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.
Translation notes (8)
- 12:1a Greek brothers.
- 12:1b Or This is your spiritual worship; or This is your reasonable service.
- 12:3a Or Because of the grace; compare 1:5.
- 12:3b Or by the faith God has given you; or by the standard of our God-given faith.
- 12:10 Greek with brotherly love.
- 12:11 Or but serve the Lord with a zealous spirit; or but let the Spirit excite you as you serve the Lord.
- 12:19 Deut 32:35.
- 12:20 Prov 25:21-22.
A Living Sacrifice to God
2Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
Being people of integrity like Daniel starts with our thought patterns. After all, we process our situations and make decisions based on our minds and how we think. As a result, if we want to live with integrity, we must carefully guard our minds and live differently from the rest of the world.
The apostle Paul understood the importance of protecting our minds. He wrote in Romans 12, "Don't copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God's will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect" (verse 2). Rather than living like the world, Paul taught readers in this verse to live differently than the rest of the world. How do we live differently than the rest of the world? We do this, according to Paul, by “changing the way [we] think” (verse 2). We change our thinking by focusing our hearts and minds on God and His kingdom. We pray. We read Scripture. As we do these things, God protects our minds. Something else happens as well. We become people of integrity because having renewed minds means that our actions match what we claim to believe. We are not flipping back and forth between God and the world. We are solely devoted to Him.
Let’s resolve to follow Paul’s instructions in Romans 12. Let's refuse to be conformed to this world, but instead be transformed by God and His word. This means taking the things we watch, listen to, and think about seriously. Instead of the things of this world, we are to focus on reading Scripture, listening to worship music, and praying. This, my friends, is how we become people of integrity. You see, as we focus our minds and our hearts on Him, He transforms us.
Moving toward action
How can you renew your mind by focusing on God and the things of Him today? It can be praying, listening to worship music, or memorizing Scripture. Choose to set your mind's affection and your hearts' attention on Him.
Going Deeper
Romans 12:1-21
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