Present

“I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”  Romans 12:1

Present – When I was a child in elementary school, every morning the teacher took attendance.  This was not an informal process of simply counting heads or looking for empty seats.  Each name was read aloud and each child was expected to say, “Present” and raise his or her hand. It was an acknowledgement of willingness and conformity.  Children presented themselves to the teacher for instruction. 

The image that Paul gives us comes from his time.  If we lived in the first century, we might present ourselves before Caesar.  More likely, we would present ourselves before a judge. Even today before a legal proceeding begins, the judge asks if the parties are present and accounted for.  Paul wants us to see the same images when we think of standing before God.  That is the sense of this word – paristano – to stand before someone.

Did you notice that this is something that we must do?  Just like raising my hand as a child, I must stand before God ready and willing to receive His commands.   There is an Old Testament theme here.  Many people in the Old Testament actually performed this action when they responded to God’s call with the phrase, “Here I am, Lord.”  

This thought contains an unusual presentation.  Paul tells us to present our bodies.  Now how else could you present yourself?  We are embodied in this life.  We don’t exist as some sort of spirit captured in a body.  We are our bodies.  So, when we present our bodies before God, we are really saying, “Here is my embodied self, ready and willing to take Your instruction.  Tell me today what you want me to do with my body for you.”

My friend, Dr. Ben Lerner, has a best seller called Body by God.  But Paul wrote the first “Body by God” book.  He knew that God wants us to give Him our bodies, minds and spirits.  It’s an all-inclusive package.  God’s classroom instruction covers the whole deal.

Today:  Have you raised your hand today and said, “Present”?  Are you ready to live out God’s instructions in your body?