Romans 12:1-2 Mercy is when we don't get what we deserve and get what we don't deserve. It is when a landlord has every right to put us in the street, but he gives us more time. It is when we deserve to be put away for ten years but were given probation instead. So many times, throughout the Old Testament Israel was shown mercy for the sake of Abraham or David. Neither the actions of the nation nor the lifestyle of the people deserved mercy, but the door of mercy was open because of the faithfulness of these two. Today that door of mercy is open because of the faithfulness of the God/Man Christ Jesus. In His flesh He was faithful to the point of death on the cross He died a death He did not deserve on behalf of and in place of us who without exception, deserve eternal damnation. That is what Paul is talking about in these verses, the open door of mercy through faith in Jesus Christ our Lord. When a sacrifice is given, all rights of the original owner and of the sacrifice itself are given over to the one to whom the sacrifice is made. Usually the life of the sacrifice was given in place of the one who brought it. In view of God' s mercy we can offer our bodies as living sacrifices"; not to die, because Jesus already did that, but to live from a whole different perspective. The God who shows mercy becomes sole owner and controller of our lives. The offering of ourselves in this way is what true spiritual worship is all about. It is holy and pleasing to God. The pattern of this world system is no longer to be the pattern for our lifestyles, but our lives are to be transformed by the renewal of our minds. Ours is the submission, His is the process of the renewal of our minds.

Submission to a Merciful God