My brothers, I appeal to you, by all the mercy of God, to dedicate your bodies as a living sacrifice, consecrated and acceptable to God.—Rom. 12: 1 (Moffatt).
Christianity calls us to a life of faith and service.
We are not here merely to get on in the world and make a comfortable place for ourselves. It is dishonoring to God to live a selfish and self-centered life. If we would honor God, we must be constantly extending our love, thoughts and activities to our neighbors and fellowmen; we must share in Christ’s redeeming work; we must make it our first business to promote and build the kingdom of God in the world.
The most successful man is not the man who makes the most money. I know many men whom I consider successful. Many of these are not very successful in making money. Others of them are quite successful. But their chief interest is not money. They regard money as but a means to an end. Their greatest satisfaction is in doing things for others—Their families, their neighbors, people in need, the community, benevolent causes, the cause of Christ. They are men dedicated to service—to them business is but a means of service.
The Christian faith, sincerely adhered to and practiced, makes a tremendous difference in our lives. It gives us a new reason for living. It gives us a new confidence in the triumph of good over evil, right over wrong, truth over falsehood, love over hate. It gives us a new idea of God and our relation to Him. It inspires us with a new sense of duty and responsibility. The result is that it makes us better parents, better neighbors, better citizens, better servants of humanity.
We must show our Christian faith by a genuine dedication to the Christian concept of life and service. We must respond with our whole heart and soul to Paul’s appeal to dedicate our bodies as a living sacrifice, consecrated and acceptable to God.
It all sums up to this—Christian life is a dedicated life.
Christianity is under attack today from atheistic forces. Because of this, we need more than ever to dedicate our lives to Christ and His cause. We must hold fast to our belief in God, and go on to prove our Christian faith by consecrated Christian life and Christian service.
