WHAT WILL YOU BRING?

        “Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is — His good, pleasing, and perfect will.” -- Romans 12:1-2

       Every time I read these verses, and especially at this time of the year, I think back to the holiday classic, “The Little Drummer Boy.” If you remember that story, an orphan boy and his animals find themselves traveling in the company of the three wise men en route to visit the new-born Christ.

       As the story closes, the little drummer boy finds himself at the manger and watches as the three wise men offer their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh to Jesus. Embarrassed by his lack of a gift, the little drummer boy offers the only thing that he has — himself. He does so by playing a song for the baby, and he exclaims that as he played, Jesus smiled at him.

       Sometimes I wonder what I can bring Jesus that will make Him smile at me. I wander through the stores, looking for just the right gift for family and friends and realize that there is nothing I can buy and nothing I can bring that Jesus doesn’t already have. The Bible tells us that He owns every beast of the forest and the cattle on a thousand hills . My conundrum is the same as that of the little drummer boy — “What can I bring a King?”

       The Apostle Paul, writing with the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tells us here what the Lord desires, what will make the Lord smile at us — ourselves. Paul makes it clear that this is a voluntary offering. It is not commanded. It is not demanded. It is urged, it is encouraged, as a gift worthy of a King.

       Paul tells us that by offering our bodies as living sacrifices to God, by giving Him our entire being — our body and our mind and our spirit — that this will be an act of spiritual worship. This will be a gift that is holy and pleasing to God.

       What does it mean to offer yourself as a living sacrifice? It means that you decrease and God increases in your life. It means that you step off the throne of your own life and you exalt God in all facets of your life — physical, material, and spiritual. This also means that you demonstrate your love for God by loving your neighbor as yourself, by giving to others agape — unconditional — love.

       We all have something to offer to God and to others. We are all gifted with talents and skills. We have all been blessed in various areas. Some of us have been blessed financially. Some of us have been blessed with abundant time to participate in ministry. Some of us have been blessed with administrative skills. We all have something to bring to the altar. We all have something to offer to others as a way of sacrificing to God.

       When we offer ourselves to others in this way, Paul tells us that we are worshiping God. We are telling Him that He is worthy of our love and our praise and our adoration. And, when we do this, we bring a smile to God’s face. What a worthy gift to bring to a King at Christmas!