Your spiritual service: the will

Romans 12:1-2 says, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”

The next element of our spiritual service is the will. The construction of the original language teaches that, when a Christian’s mind is transformed, his thinking ability, moral reasoning, and spiritual understanding are able to properly assess (prove, discern) everything and accept only what conforms to the will of God. A heart in love with the world is ill-fitted to appreciate the benefits of living according to the gospel. The reason why the heart is renewed is so we can do the will of God; it is best fitted to appreciate and understand His will (John 7:17).

Three terms are used to describe the will of God. “Good” is what is pleasant in its character or constitution and beneficial in its effect (cf. Luke 10:42; 2 Corinthians 5:10). “Acceptable” again borrows from Old Testament sacrificial language to describe the kind of holy living that God approves, a “living sacrifice” that is morally and spiritually spotless and without blemish (Leviticus 22:20). “Perfect” has the idea of being complete or mature; of something’s being everything it should be.

Our will should desire only what God desires and lead us to do only what He wants us to do in the way He wants us to do it (Isaiah 55:7-8). Our imperfect will must always be subject to His perfect will (Matthew 26:39, 42). Dedication leads to discernment and discernment leads to delight in God’s will. An intimate connection between discerning the will of God and making oneself a living sacrifice is shown by the use of “acceptable” in each case (cf. Philippians 4:18; Hebrews 13:16).

Kyle Campbell