Becoming a Living Sacrifice

Good morning to all of you, and to all those listening on the telecast. They always say, never to follow children. I not only have to follow children, I have to follow a tribute. In fact, if Mr. McNeil would have spoken a little longer, we could have just all gone home. Appreciate that very much. This week we did lose a good man in President Luker. He's the second boss that I've worked for that died in service to God.

My sermon today is entitled, Becoming a Living Sacrifice. It's not really about Mr. Luker, although parts of it are obviously inspired by him. Certainly he lived that title in his life. Turn, if you would, to Romans 12.1. The Scripture I often quote to myself when things seem a little difficult. Verse 1 of Romans, Paul writes, I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice.

Holy, pleasing to God, or acceptable to God, King James has it, which is your reasonable service. We are to be a living sacrifice. At this time of year, we often think about sacrifice and the death of our Savior, as we're told to, rightly so, the Passover, our source of life. We turn to Luke 22, if you would. We see Christ praying in the garden, waiting, knowing what's before him. In verse 40 of Luke 22, it says, when he was at the place, he said to them, Pray that you enter not into temptation.

Before he even went to pray himself, he thought of them, that you don't enter into temptation, his disciples. And he left them, and of course he asked God if he could take this cup from him. But then again he wanted God's will, not his own. In verse 44, it says, And being in agony he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was great drops of blood falling down to the ground.

It was an intense prayer. He knew what was coming ahead of him. But then he finished. In verse 45, When he rose up from prayer, he came to his disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, and he said to them, Why do you sleep? Rise, pray, lest you enter into temptation. He was worried about his disciples, even as he was about to suffer the most suffering event of his life. He was in incredible, going to have incredible pain he was facing.

He knew what was coming, and he sweated blood, waiting for that. I doubt that you or I have ever sweated blood. There was a time in my life when I probably came about as close to that as I ever will. It was about 1980. It was a day not unlike many others in my life.

We were traveling in Mr. Armstrong, and this time we were in the Ivory Coast, a French colony on the belly of Africa. He was now independent. He was visiting some leaders there. We were in the capital, a city called Abidjan. It was a busy place, about five million people population, third largest French-speaking colony in their city in the world.

It was the capital, although the capital has since moved from that time. We were there in a strange country where they spoke a strange language in several different strange languages. English was not their native tongue. We were in a hotel that was reasonably nice by their standards, although comfortable but not so clean as we would think about it. The world was not as nice a place back then as it is now.

But it was interesting because it was an important seaport, a cultural hub of western Africa. You could get almost anything there. They had a special market they were known for, known as La Plateau Market. The Plateau District was the economic district of Abidjan.

They had a huge open market that I wanted to go visit and look at the various things because I like bartering and I didn't have much money and it was always fun to look at all those little things that they made in those countries and at great prices. I asked the concierge though to tell about going to the market and he asked if I was going alone. I said no, I was going to take my wife. He said, I'll be very careful. I said why? He said there's a big slave trade in Abidjan.

Well, Michelle was beautiful and it made me think maybe I shouldn't go. But we were a team and being her prince, I thought we'll go anyway, which we did. My wife hadn't heard this, or she may not have gone. But she probably wondered why it kept her so close to me at the market, hung onto her hand and didn't let her out of my sight. It was a beautiful market bustling with people and a lot of great things, all sorts of carvings of ebony and ivory and things that you could buy. Unique things. I got a couple butterfly wing pictures there and everybody trying to sell you little knickknacks here and there. There were a lot of gods carved up in the people. They had all sorts of mixed religions, mixtures of witchcraft, Christianity, Islam, and some people superstitiously practicing all of them to make sure they covered all the gods, so to speak. And there was no problem at the market. We enjoyed seeing it. No one tried to kidnap Michelle and we packed our purchases and went back to the hotel. Part of my job, not our job actually at that time, was taking luggage. I've been doing this for seven years before Michelle flew. And it was interesting because we were loading the luggage to leave the next day and I was inside this bus that was going to carry it all. Michelle was outside. When the bellman signaled to the driver that was the last piece of luggage, and the driver closed the door and started driving off with me on board and Michelle outside, I screamed at him to stop. Areté, areté! I understood enough French to ask him to stop. But by the time I stopped, I looked out the window and Michelle grabbed by the hand and put in a taxi. And the taxi had taken off and done a U-turn and got in the opposite direction from where we were going. My thoughts were pretty intense at that point because I didn't know where the taxi was going. I began sweating and praying and thinking about what might happen. Ready to give my life to go see her. On that hour and a half drive to the airport, I mentally was readily, I was mentally ready to sacrifice my life to find her if I had to. I wouldn't have gotten on the jet.

If she wasn't there. I was ready to sacrifice my life. It was interesting because Christ, as he was preparing to sacrifice his life for all of us, faced a excruciating death. But yet, this was only the pinnacle of a life of sacrifice for him. It wasn't the only event. It was a sacrifice. Turn to Isaiah 53. If we look at this, we'll read part of it probably at Passover, but when you think about the fact, Jesus knew these verses. He knew what was going to happen to him. We don't know what's going to happen to us when we're called, by God, as we enter life. In Isaiah 53, verse 2, it says, "...he shall grow up before him a tender plant." That's a root out of dry ground. He has no form nor comeliness, and when we shall see him, there's no beauty that we should desire him. There was no special beauty, not like the world's gods. You look at the carvings over in the Pantheon and stuff. All the gods and goddesses were beautiful people. Verse 3, "...he was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. We hid us and wear our faces from him. He was despised, and we esteemed him not. Certainly the religious leaders of that day were jealous of him and hated him to the point they killed him. And his disciples, themselves who loved him, ran away when he was taken and deserted him.

For as far as surely as born our grief and carried our sorrows, yet we have steamed him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. It wasn't his fault. Of course, the world would probably say, well, he probably deserved it. Bad things do happen. But he didn't. He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities. The chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes were healed. Jesus knew this was him. He knew he'd be beaten so we could have healing. Like sheep, we've all gone astray. We've all sinned. We've turned everyone his own way, and the Lord has laid on him this iniquity of all of us. He suffered our punishment.

He was oppressed. He was afflicted. But he didn't open his mouth. He didn't complain. He didn't think it wasn't fair. He has brought us a lamb to the slaughter. That's a sheep before the shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. And we like that, and we suffer, and we want everyone to know our pain and the wrongs that have been done to us. There was one who was totally wronged.

He was taken from prison and from judgment. Who shall declare his generation if he was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgressions of my people? He was stricken. He died young.

Nobody wants to die young, but that was his cross to bear. He made his grave with the wicked, and he did with the two thieves, and with the rich and his death in the tomb of a rich man.

Because he has done no violence, neither was any deceit found in his mouth.

Verse 10, Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him.

Is that Paul Wright? The living sacrifice pleasing to God?

It pleased the Lord to bruise him. He has put him to grief. When ye shall make his soul an offered percent, he shall see his seed. He shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. Why did it please him? Because, verse 11, he shall see the travail of his soul. He shall be satisfied. By his knowledge shall my righteous servants justify many.

He shall bear their iniquities. He did it to bear our iniquities so he could justify us.

Therefore I will divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the squirrel with the strong, because he has poured out his soul to death. He was numbered with the transgressors, and bear the sin of many. But he made intercession for the transgressors. Christ epitomized Romans 12.1, presenting his Bali as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.

Yet he looked like a normal person, said there was no beauty. We are to be like him, to have the faith that he had, to have his mind. And if so, we will have some of the same problems we face as we try to live like him. For the most part, we are not beautiful. There are few cute people among us. There are some of us who may have been pretty when we were younger, but we've long since lived past that. And now we're wrinkling and sagging and having gravity take its place with us. We may call it mature or distinguish, but like my son says, dad, you're getting old.

Yes, that's true. We will be hurt, deserted by fence, perhaps, at times. Turn to 1 Peter 2.

As we near the end, some of us, perhaps, may even have to die as Christ did, or we will be falsely accused. Verse 19, 1 Peter 2, verse 19, For this is grace, if we're conscious toward God, anyone endures grief, suffering wrongfully. We will suffer wrongfully. That's good, God says. We only have this one life to be a living sacrifice and be like Christ, pleasing to God.

Verse 20, For what glory is it if you patiently endure while sinning and being buffeted? Yes, if we sin, we deserve it. But if you suffer while doing good, which is what we're supposed to do, and patiently endure, this is the grace from God. We have to endure it. Grace equals suffering falsely, with humility, not being angry, not seeking revenge, not causing division, not trying to marshal the troops around you to see how you've been wronged. And it's sad. Why should we get other people emotionally upset because of something that we should be taking patiently in faith and not hurting others? Verse 21, For were you not called to this?

Yes, suffering, accusations, different trials in life, maybe health trials, etc. For Christ also suffered on our behalf, leaving us an example, that you should follow in His steps.

He who did no sin, nor was a gout found in His mouth, when He was reviled did not revile and return, when He suffered did not threaten, but gave Himself up to He who judges righteously. Do we let God judge other people? Do we hold our tongue? All too often we don't.

Verse 24, He bore our sins, His own body, on the tree, that, dying to sin, we might live to righteousness by whose stripes were healed, quoting from Isaiah. Yes, we may even be put to death as for earlier Christians that sometime in the future. Thank God we're in a country that's free right now, but we don't know what's ahead as the world falls apart. Dying is a sacrifice, but it's not a living sacrifice, it's a terminal sacrifice, one that if you've been a living sacrifice brings you into His Kingdom. We may be despised and hated for our beliefs as the world gets more and more accepting of things and its true values, and eternal truths are put to the side. I'm sorry to see one of the congressmen who was against homosexual marriage changed his mind because of his son, which is fine. He should love his son, but there are eternal truths. There are things that God says are right and wrong.

We love the sinner, but we don't love the sin. We don't change the position of sin for personal gain. We know where to lay our burdens on Christ, but sometimes we can help each other carry those burdens, whether it's giving time and service or money or just prayer.

We have examples today of people who have sacrificed. I'm always encouraged. Some of the ladies came to our house. We're talking about some of the trials that their children went through. One of the ladies whose daughter was the star of their volleyball team at 6.18 p.m. when the sunset locked off the court because it was a Sabbath. Her team lost because she couldn't finish.

She faced some trials because of that, obviously, but there are others. There's a girl in the Philippines who kept the feast holy days and was beaten in front of the whole school for her bliss. We see those things happen. Oftentimes, though, they proved to be a light and a shining example for the rest of us to see.

We face our own trials and we will be tested. Sometimes we learn from our failures or we gave up or did something wrong. Some of the biggest failures on earth are listed in the Bible.

Peter denied Christ three times. It's interesting when we face those trials. Sometimes we should have helped, and we didn't. I was reminded of a friend of mine in Texas who got called in and disciplined for hitchhiking, which we were not allowed to do. He happened to be with a female friend who had a car and they were in town and the car died and he had to get back, so he hitchhiked. Funny, as part to me, was the fact that the person that turned him in didn't pick him up. It makes you wonder how much helped, how much Christianity was there in that.

God has to know our character for eternity. He's offering eternity.

Will you serve him for eternity or will your character change?

He has to know that we've always trusted God and always will trust God, that God is always fair. One of the evangelists told me of a situation where he cast out a demon. Before he did, he asked it, why did you rebel against God's perfect government? And the answer he was given through the man's voice was, because God wasn't fair. God wasn't fair. Is God ever not fair? Our perception may be, perhaps, that something in our life isn't fair.

But the Satan wasn't fair. Just look at his falling. Ezekiel 28, we turn there and then we'll read a couple verses in Isaiah 14 to describe Lucifer, Satan's fall. He had the opposite of Christ's attitude. Ezekiel 28 verse 12. He talks about the king of Tyre and says, so says the Lord Jehovah, you seal up the measure, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

Certainly no human has had that. You have been in Eden, the garden of God. Certainly he wasn't talking about any king of Tyre, and that had to be Lucifer. Every precious stone was recovering. The ruby, topaz, diamonds. He was beautiful.

The workmanship of your tambourines and your flutes was prepared in you in the day you were created. He had the look. He had the voice. He won every show on TV. He was the American idol, so to speak, of the universe as God had created him.

You were the anointed carob that covers, and I put you in the holy height of God.

Where you were, you have walked up and down the midst of the stones of fire. And you were perfect in your ways the day you were created. He was a created being by God until iniquity was found in you. Why? By the multitude of your goods, they have filled your midst with violence. He collected things. He saw things rather than character.

You have sinned. So I cast you down from the heights.

In Isaiah 14, it says a few more things there.

How are you falling from heaven? Verse 12 of Isaiah 14.

O Lucifer, son of the morning, how are you cut down to the ground, which did weaken the nations? Yes, he's caused a lot of the troubles that we face. He's tried to stop everything good.

For you said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven. I'll exalt my throne above the stars of God. I'll sit on upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north.

He wanted to be God. He wanted position, and he was beautiful. Verse 14, I'll ascend above the heights of the clouds. I will be the Most High. Satan is about I, about me, about things, about material, about power. The opposite of what Christ came, the opposite of what Isaiah 53 showed that Christ would suffer. When I look at Christ's prayers, he gave for us. It's mostly about us, not him. How many times did he say to God the Father in his prayer, protect them, keep them, give them your love for one another and for you? Is your attitude toward Christianity about you or about others? In Abidjan, it was not an unwilling sacrifice I was willing to make. It was my wife, my bride. We are the bride of Christ. He was doing it for his church, for his Father, and for his plan of salvation. It was about them to make sure they could make it. They would be safe. God picked you. He wanted you. How do you know if you're a disciple? Now turn to John 13. We'll read a few verses here. We'll read a Passover. How does he know? Verse 34 of John 13.

I give you a new commandment that you love one another. It wasn't really new. It was always from the beginning loving one another, but yet the Ten Commandments were, don't kill. Didn't say, you shouldn't hate, although you shouldn't. But as long as you didn't kill, you weren't subject to the penalty of law. For now, you have to show love to not be subject to those penalties.

As I have loved you, you should also love one another. And by this shall you know you're my disciples, if you have loved one toward another. John 14, verse 13. Again, whatever you ask in my name, I'll do it. It's for you. I'll do it so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. It's about glorifying God. Verse 15, if you love me, keep my commandments. It's how you prove your love to God, keeping His commandments. Verse 19, or John 14, because I live, you shall live. He wanted them to live. He wants you to live. He wants me, He wants all of us, to live for eternity.

Verse 21, He who has my commandments and keeps them. He it is who loves me, and he who loves me shall be loved by my Father, and I will love Him and reveal myself to Him. He wants you to be as He is. Verse 23, if a man loves me, he'll keep my word. My Father will love Him. We will come to Him and make our abode with Him. He'll be there in your house, in your life, in your thoughts.

But He who doesn't love me and does not keep my words, and the word which you hear is not mine, it's the Father's worth. There are those who don't understand. But Peter, of course we read in John 21 a few chapters over when Peter was out fishing and God called him together. Peter denied Christ three times, and Christ asked him three times, Simon, do you love me? Do you love me? And his answer, oh yes, I love you. Christ kept asking, and He kept telling, Peter, feed my sheep. Feed my sheep. But feeding is more than just preaching at them. Feeding is more than that. Christ preached. He also healed. He comforted. He fed. He had compassion and mercy. He helped. When we have God's love in us, we will do those same things to other people. We'll dedicate our lives to helping others to serve us.

I look at my 60 years of history. I look at the church. Men who were there to feed the sheep, to help and to comfort, to nourish and unify. Sadly, we see a lot of people who didn't follow Christ's advice, didn't have the humility that they needed, and so we had many splits, starting back in the 40s and 50s and 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, and in this century as well. And every time I saw a split in my life, I always heard the same words. It wasn't fair. Something wasn't fair. This wasn't right. Perhaps it wasn't. But think of that statement in itself. It wasn't fair. Is that statement selfless or selfish?

Is that statement giving or getting, as we heard so often?

Does it show a willingness to suffer wrong?

Does it show a trusting relationship with God and His ability to solve things?

Was it fair to crucify Jesus Christ? No. Was it fair for the apostles to suffer and die?

Are some of the things that we go through fair? No. They don't seem that way.

But in those trials, if we take them patiently, we build the love of God and the faith to know that God will heal or help or give us comfort or peace if He doesn't choose to heal us.

Was it fair for God to ask Abraham to offer Isaac? Turn to Genesis 22. Because God does prove us by things that don't seem fair.

Abraham waited years.

Shall and I waited 12 years to have our son. Abraham waited forever.

It seemed until he was 100 years old.

Verse 1, it says, God did prove Abraham at this time. He was testing him.

He told him to take his son, your only son that you love, even Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there for a bird offering upon the mountain. I'll tell you. What a test. And Abraham did it. He left. He went. He took his son. He took the wood, his servants. And Isaac knew what was going on in the sense that they were going to go sacrifice. I'm sure he'd seen his father sacrifice many times before.

Verse 7, Isaac spoke to his father and said, Father, his father said, I'm here, son. And Isaac said, Behold the fire in the wood, but where is the lamb for the bird offering? He didn't know it was him at that time, obviously.

And Abraham, I'm sure with tears in his eyes, said, God will provide. And he kept going. In verse 9, Abraham came to the place where God told him and built an altar, laid the wood and bound Isaac, his son, and laid him on the altar on the woods.

It doesn't say Isaac fought him. Isaac seemed to be willing to trust his physical father, as his physical father trusted his gods. What did our baptism and commitment mean to us when we went to the grave, the watery grave, and rose up? Was it hollow?

Abraham, you know, of course, rose the knife to his throat and was stopped by God.

And God said, Now I know that you fear God. Now I know. He had already gone through leaving Ur of the Chaldees, leaving his homeland, going through the wilderness, visiting different places, having his wife taken from him, and God giving her back, having conquered the kings who took lot in captivity, having waited for a son, having a son born.

But now I know, because it takes a lifetime for God to test each of us, to know that no matter what direction Satan comes at us, that we're going to look to God and serve each other and love each other. It's interesting because God gave the promises again to Abraham in verse 15 and 16.

Verse 17, that in blessing I will bless you and multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, as the sand which is upon the seashore, and your seed shall possess the gates of its enemies, and in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed because you obeyed my voice.

Indeed, we are blessed physically with those promises, but also with Jesus Christ, his descendant.

Indeed, also is that not parallel to the physical and the spiritual? Aren't we the seed of God, the first fruits, because of that sacrifice? Turn to Zechariah 8, the scripture we read at the fall feast, but I choose to read now. Because will not the nations of the earth be blessed because of our obedience as well? When we get to help Jesus Christ? Does the physical Abraham not parallel the spiritual church in some ways? What must we do? Zechariah 8, verse 16. These are the things that you shall do. Speak you every man the truth with his neighbor. How many times have we heard lies? What damage does it cause? Execute judgment of truth and peace in your gates. Truth and peace.

Let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against your neighbor.

Love no false oath, for all these are things I hate, says God. Thus says the Lord.

There'll be many people come in many cities. Verse 23.

It says, In those days which shall come to pass, the ten men shall take hold out of the language of the nations. Shall even take hold of the skirt of him that's a Jew, saying, We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you. And certainly if we live our life as a living sacrifice, God is with us now, and he'll be with us then as we teach others.

Christ knew what he would have to do for humanity. When he was taken that night, Christ knew, but his disciples didn't. For them it was a normal feast. They had done it for all the years they were with him before, for three years, and nothing had happened before.

What did they think? Peter tried to fight, cut off the ear of the soldier, but then when Christ stopped him, I can't defend ourselves, we better run. So they all ran. They were helpless, they ran away. Christ died for the ungodly, for the sinners. We're told that in Romans 5. Romans 5 verse 6, for when you are yet without strength in due time, Christ died for the ungodly. That's you and I. When he called us, that's where we were. We still sin, hopefully less, unless each year. Verse 7, for scarcely a righteous man one will die, but for a good man some would die. But God, commending his love toward us, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

Hopefully, for us as former sinners, getting better, becoming more perfect each day.

Turn to John 4 if you would. Let's look how Christ approached one relationship.

The relationship with a Samaritan woman in a well. It's interesting, if you look at that story, Christ starts his conversation with the woman with, give me a drink of water. It's interesting how Christ talked to people, the methods he used to just start up a conversation.

Surprising people, because the Samaritan woman's answer is, well, why are you talking to me? You're a Jew. I'm a Samaritan. You're not supposed to talk to me. Not only that, I'm a woman. Not only that, I'm here in the middle of the day by myself, and the woman usually went in the morning as a group to get water. Was she there by herself because people knew who she was and what she was?

Because Christ talked to her and he said, where's your husband? He's with you. Someone to protect you. And he said, I have no husband. Well, that's true. You had five and the one you're with now isn't your husband. Wow! Kind of revealing when someone comes up to you and tells you everything about you that you don't know that they know. This is a foreign stranger to her and he knew this stuff.

But yet he didn't condemn her. Didn't say, oh, you dirty person, I can't talk to you.

It was interesting. Was she there alone because she was despised by our own community?

And yet Christ didn't rant and rail on her. He didn't despise her. He informed her.

He knew what she was in that sense, but he didn't condemn her.

But she went in verse 25, we read, the woman said to him, I know the Messiah comes, which is called Christ. When he has come, he will tell us all things. And Jesus said to her, I had to speak to you and me.

Wow! Then came his disciples, verse 27, and they marveled that he spoke with this woman.

This is against protocol. This isn't politically correct.

Do we try to be politically correct or do we do what we know to do, regardless? The woman left her pots there and ran to the city and said to the men, Come, see this man who has told me everything that I did. Is he not the Christ?

She was pretty believing. Do we despise the sinner, the ugly, the different?

Do we despise people that aren't as comely? Do we look at things like Satan did?

Look at things and beauty. Turn to 1 Corinthians 1, if you would, verse 26.

Because Christ died for the weak, for the despised, for the unkempt, the distasteful. He spent time with the lame, the deaf, the blind, the poor, the lepers. Why?

God's calling was not because of earthly position and beauty and advantage or wisdom.

Verse 26, For you see your calling, brethren, not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called. God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. He has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty, and the base things of the world, the things which are despised. God has chosen, yes, things which are not, to bring to naught things that are. Why? Verse 29, that no flesh should glory in his presence. When things, quote, aren't fair, it's about self and glory, about getting what you think is rightfully yours, something you earned, a position or whatever. But is that for us to decide, for me or for you or for God? Verse 30, but of him are you in Christ Jesus. You may suffer wrongs, as he did. Who of God is made to us wisdom? That's where we have any wisdom, is from him. And righteousness comes from him. Sanctification comes from him. And redemption comes from him. God does it, not us. When we do anything right, it's his glory. As it is written, verse 31, he that glories let him glory in the Lord. It's not about us. James 2, verse 5, has a similar thing.

God has not chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith. He chose those to be rich in faith. He may be poor, but we inherit the kingdom he promised to those who love him. That's who God chose.

Verse 6 of James 2, but you despise the poor. Do not the rich men oppress you and draw you before the judgment seats? Yeah, they do. They'll take advantage. Verse 7, do not they blaspheme that worthy name by which you're called? If you despise, you shall favoritism. If you blaspheme God's name.

If you fulfill the royal law according to scriptures, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. And then you do well, because you'll help them. You'll see them as your wife, your family, your children, in service and in help. Verse 9, but if you have respect to a person, you commit sin. Most people don't think of that. This world of sin. They look at it as getting ahead, being in the right place at the right time, winning. But you commit sin and are convinced of the law as transgressors. For so are we to keep the whole law, yet offended at one point, he's guilty of all. We can insult the heirs of God, of his kingdom, by neglecting or overlooking those who need help now. They are among us, and indeed we should be a living sacrifice, helping others, as Christ did, a family because of God's Spirit. Part of his body. Sure, it may be difficult to converse with some that are so different than us. Sometimes it's hard, but that's what we're called to do. We may still be tainted with human judgment instead of godly wisdom. Are we indeed a living sacrifice, as Christ was? We should be treating everyone fairly, with mature. And if you do, you're mature spiritually. If you keep your eyes on the relationships you should have with God and with men. Paul in 1 Corinthians 12 talks about the less honorable parts of the body.

Not everyone's a head, not everyone's a foot, not everyone's an arm.

And why did he say that? Turn to 1 Corinthians 12. We shouldn't think of those things that are less honorable in the body if we shouldn't look down on anyone. You think of your own body, the example he gives pretty clear. You stop going to the bathroom for a week or two, and you're going to be pretty thankful. You've got a way to put food in and a way to get it out. It makes a difference.

Verse 25 says that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care, one for another. Whether one member suffers, all the members suffer with it. When one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. You are the body of Christ and those members, you and I, each fit in that body. And we're told to esteem all people because it's about relationships.

Philippians 2 tells us that, to esteem each other. Philippians 2 verse 1, if there is therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any bowels of mercies.

Verse 2, fulfill you my joy, that you be like-minded, having the same love being of one accord of one mind, with nothing done through strife or vain glory. That's what Satan had, strife, vain glory.

Gloryed in his own beauty, and what he had. But in the lowliness of mind, let each esteem the other better than themselves. Christ washed feet. He was esteeming his disciples, even though he was God, doing that. There's nothing too low, too dirty for us not to help, for others.

Verse 4, look not every man on his own things, but every man on the things of others.

Looking for ways to serve, for ways to give, for ways to help.

And then the Scripture card, let this mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.

We have to have those concerns, that human touch. We should plan our feasts around relationships.

God has invited you and all those he's called to that wedding feast. In Luke 14, if you turn there, read a few verses there. God's invited you.

Notice the ones who see themselves as important or with other things to do as selfish. The ones who see this unfair, not according to their timing, what their needs are, they don't make it. Verse 12 of Luke 14, he said to him that they, excuse me, then he said also to him that made him, when you make a dinner or supper, call not your friends, nor your brethren, nor your kinsmen, nor your rich neighbors, lest they also bid you again and recompense you. They can pay you back. When you make a feast, call the poor, the maim, the lame, the blind, and you shall be blessed, for they cannot give back to you. God will give it back to you.

Certainly you have your friends over as well, but you're exclusively your friends.

We're family and everybody's included. Verse 15, it says, when one of them that sat with him heard these things, he said, Oh, blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God. True statement, but he gave him a parable after that. Verse 16, a certain man made a great supper, and bade many, and sent his servant at the supper to say to them that were bidden, Come, for all these things are ready. And they all with one consent began to make excuses. One bought some ground. I got to go take care of it. The other one said, you know, I bought some yachts, and I have to prove them. Let me be excused. Another one I married somebody. I've got to go. I can't come. What kind of excuse do you have? What makes it not right for you to come? Are you going to have excuses? There's no legitimate ones. And the servant came. Verse 21, showed his master. The master said, Hey, go out in the streets, the lanes in the city, and bring in the poor, the maim, the halt, the blind. All the religious leaders of the time wouldn't come to the dinner. The servant came back, said, It's done. He told them to go out again. There's still room.

Go out to the highways and the hedges and compel them to come, that my house can be filled.

And he says in verse 24, For I say to you, none of those that were bidden shall taste of my supper. We have to treat everyone with respect. Don't get distracted by what the world measures as game, and you won't forget God. Offer to help the needy, and the sick, and the lame, and the less fortunate. We are those people that are invited to that supper.

When I think of Denny Luca, his love of people, of all people, his desire to help the addicted. She was on the film, the people that had problems that are very, very difficult to overcome. The weak, the lonely. It shows he accepted that invitation to God's supper.

When Denny gave us his three years that he intended to retire and give to his family, it was a living sacrifice. And thankfully, he did get back in time to see his family.

But, God, he knew he was complete. He knew where his salvation rested. He knew his hope was in the resurrection. He accepted his invitation. Will you accept yours? You're invited, and we're all from different backgrounds. I think of my mom from Daybrook, West Virginia, a town of about 100 people, who was widowed. My stepfather from drain, Oregon, a tiny little town. Not much bigger than my mom's. Some of you hear from funny places like People's Ohio or Bugtussel, Kentucky or Toadhop, Indiana. Some pretty odd names around here. And perhaps some odd people, and maybe a few city slickers from Cincinnati or LA or New York.

But we're all invited by God, because he called you. He called you to be that living sacrifice. You know, if you die for your country, you get a purple heart. If you become a living sacrifice for God, you gain eternity.

And there is some suffering at times. But like Denny quoted in his thing, Romans 8, 18, the sufferings aren't worthy to be compared. We have to see it as an honor that we get to suffer, to do those things which prove that we trust God more than we trust ourselves, or trust the things of this world, that we love God more than others. Nothing can compare to what Christ did for us, but in our small way, we have to be like Him. Indeed, I felt helpless as I neared the airport in Abidjan. I didn't see my wife there as we drove up. The taxi wasn't there. And I ran to the aircraft and ran up the steps, and there was my wife on the plane, smiling, doing her job, not knowing I'd sweated blood and died on the car. Didn't really tell her what had happened at that time until later on. I wasn't in any mood. She was unaware of the distress I'd gone through. The taxi had taken her by a different route, and she had gotten there safely. But I'll never forget how helpless I felt that I could do nothing. God was not helpless to spare His Son. He loved us and chose to let Him do what He did for our salvation. Obviously, my wife was not kidnapped from the slave trade. She's here today. I didn't have to waste time marching across the Sahara into the less savory parts of the world. But you and I do have to chase our Savior where He leads us, wherever that is. And you and I don't know where that is, but we belong to Him. That's what we did and said when we got baptized and we gave our lives to Him. My job then was to carry the luggage. Christ helps us carry our luggage, our baggage, if we let Him, if we trust Him, if indeed we love Him and we love each other. God doesn't ask me or you to give our children's life like Isaac, like He did Abraham, but He asks us to give our own life.

I can't wait to see Christ's smiling face when we're resurrected to see Him and when we're placed on board His plane, under His jurisdiction, under His direction in the Kingdom.

I love all my brothers and sisters that I've met around the world, all of God's people.

They're different and unusual. They speak different languages. They dress different, but they're wonderful people, people that I yearn to be with in God's Kingdom.

This Passover, I would ask the same as Paul asked when he said, Brethren, by the mercies of God, present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, pleasing to God, which is your reasonable service. Let us truly love one another, this Passover season, by becoming a living sacrifice.