Romans 12:1 “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, through the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” I memorized this verse a long time ago and have included it in Bible study several times. Today it really struck me that it’s not clear if Paul means he is appealing through God’s mercies or if he is saying that through God’s mercies we are to present our bodies as a living sacrifice. (The ancient Greek texts have no punctuation to give clues.) Both views are worth pondering.
An appeal through God’s mercies is a call to remember God’s mercy. I should be willing to present my body to him as a living sacrifice because God is merciful; He is far kinder to me than I am to myself. (He has no mistaken views about how “good” I am, and never says, “I can’t believe you said/did that!”) He knows what my future holds and how best to prepare me for it. Placing my life at his disposal is not contrary to my own self-interest—he actually has a better understanding of what’s best for me than I do.
An appeal to present my body to God through his mercy is a call to remember that I do not do this as an act of my will, but as an act of God’s grace working in me. In reality, without God’s grace I cannot give my life to him as a living sacrifice—and will have no desire to stay on the altar as one. Without God’s grace my life will not be a sacrifice that is “holy and acceptable” to him.
God’s mercy, shown by his grace and the gift of Jesus, motivates me to live for him and is essential to my being able to do so.