Saint Paul’s letter to the Church in the city of Rome contains many of the cardinal doctrines of the Christian faith. Out of the thirteen of his letters found in the New Testament, this particular one is the most widely read and revered source of teachings of Christianity. Paul draws an important inference from the doctrinal truths that he explained in the previous section in Chapters 1-11. He starts with the word “Therefore” so as to highlight teachings that he discussed in this previous section. He points out to readers the new kind of life in Christ to which they are called to.
Paul wrote: “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).
This letter of Paul has two sections. The first section is dedicated to doctrinal teaching, and the second section exhorts his readers to translate those teachings into actions. In the very first verses in Chapter 12, Apostle Paul exhorts the new believers in Christ to live lives that conform to their beliefs. So, in Chapters 12-16, Paul writes to the Roman church exhorting them to live lives worthy of their calling. He emphasises that doctrines should match up with duties, word with work and belief with behaviour. We ought to apply our learning in our daily life in order that we can live our lives meaningfully.
Firstly, Paul urges his readers to sacrifice their bodies as “living sacrifice” for the sake of receiving God’s mercy and grace. It means that we need to kill all our evil desires— our lust, greed, pride, arrogance, selfishness and any kind of carnality and egotistic wilfulness. That is how we can live a life that God approves. From time immemorial, mankind has used innocent animals like bulls, sheep, goats, birds, camels and etc. as ransom to expiate their sins that they have committed. Here, we have Paul exhorting us to sacrifice all these befitting this kind of new life in Christ. In his Epistle to the Corinthian Church, Paul says, “If there is anyone in Christ he is a new Creation” (2 Corinthians 5:17).  Our bodies are supposed to be the temples of God. God can dwell in our bodies in his Spirit (Romans 8:9) that are cleared from all the worldly and sinful desires. We are to say ‘No’ to all the fleshly desires. We have to kill the ‘animal’ inside us and live an entirely new life in the power and Spirit of Christ.
Secondly, we are not to live our lives conforming to the pattern of this age or selfish world. One of the things that make one’s religion pure and faultless is keeping oneself away from the sinful world. That is how we can use our bodies to serve others and glorify and praise God. Our bodies will then be instruments of righteousness. Before Christ’s intervention in our lives, we used our bodies sinfully; now we are to live the new life of service and dedication to God.
Thirdly, Paul also talks about renewal of our minds. We are to get our minds transformed and renewed. Our minds and hearts are very mysterious, they are prone to wilfulness. We need to get an inner transformation by God’s power so that we can dedicate our thoughts, words and deeds, becoming change-agents for others. This word is similar to the word ‘transfigure’. The Gospels (Matthew 17, Mark 9 and Luke 9) record an event where Jesus was transfigured. The English word ‘transform’ in Romans 12:2 come from the Greek word ‘metamorphosis.’  This speaks about a process of inherent change. In nature, this is seen in the process of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly within a cocoon.
Finally, the apostle Paul exhorts us to submit our will to God’s holy and good will. He reminds us that no will is better and holier and nobler than God’s will for our total wellbeing. Christianity is submission of our will to God.
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The writer is a Christian Theology teacher and Church leader