Dear Friend,

When God saved me, He put me in Christ on the cross. I died with Him, I was buried with Him, and I rose from the dead with Him as a new person in Christ.

“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

The history of every Christian can be looked at as being in two volumes: “The Old Life in Adam” and “The New Life in Christ.”

Volume 1 of my life is “The Old Life in Adam.” This life began when I was born into Adam’s family. What is in Volume 1 of my life? The pages of this volume are filled with my sins and failures. There was nothing for God in this life. My old life in Adam ended in my death with Christ.

Volume 2 of my life is “The New Life in Christ.” This began when I was born again into Christ’s family. When Christ rose from the dead, I rose with Him as a new person in Christ. This is my new spiritual position. This is the way God sees me. I am “accepted in the Beloved.”

What is in Volume 2 of my life? The pages of this volume are filled with the perfections of Christ and my blessedness as being in Him. This volume will never end! I will reign with Christ forever!

To whom does my new life belong?

My new life belongs to God. In my old life I was a slave of sin and Satan. But the Lord Jesus loved me and redeemed me with His precious blood.

What should I do with my new life? I should present it to God to do His will. The Bible says,

“Let not sin reign in your mortal body…but yield [present] yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead…” (Romans 6:12-13).

No one can serve God with the old self-life. God cannot use that life at all. But I died to that life, and I present myself to God as “alive from the dead.”

The apostle Paul wrote,

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).

What is “consecration”?

Consecration is the giving of my life to God to do His will instead of my own will. It means that I present my body to Him as a “living sacrifice.”

The animals which were offered to God in the Old Testament were killed. They were dead sacrifices. God does not ask me to place my body on an altar to be killed. Instead, He asks for a “living sacrifice.” This means He wants me to live for Him.

The sacrifices in the Old Testament were “pictures” or types of the Lord Jesus. When a lamb was offered as a sin offering, it was a type or “picture” of Jesus dying on the cross for our sins. But there was another sacrifice which had nothing to do with sin. It was called “the burnt offering."

What did the burnt offering represent? It represented the Lord Jesus offering up His life to the Father to do His will. This sacrifice represented consecration, and it was very precious to God. From the burnt offering sacrifice, we can learn many things about consecration.

Consecration is voluntary.

The burnt offering sacrifice was voluntary. The Bible says,

“If any man bring an offering to the Lord…If his offering be a burnt sacrifice…he shall offer it of his own voluntary will…” (Leviticus 1:2-3).

This tells us that consecration is “unto the Lord,” and it must be voluntary. Though I belong to the Lord, He does not compel me to consecrate my life to Him. Instead, God says, “I beseech you by the mercies of God….”

Consecration is to the Lord.

When I consecrate my life to the Lord, does this mean I am giving my life to be a preacher or a missionary? No, it does not have to mean that. I do not consecrate myself to be a preacher or a missionary.

I consecrate myself to the Lord to do His will, wherever He wants me—in an office, in a school, in the home, or wherever He may send me. God is the One who decides what He wants me to do and where He wants me to serve Him. Whatever God chooses for me is sure to be the very best for me.

Consecration is the offering of a whole life to God.

God permitted four kinds of creatures to be used as burnt offering sacrifices. People who were wealthy brought a costly animal such as a bull; those with less wealth brought a sheep; and those who could not afford either of these brought a dove or a pigeon. But in each case, it was the offering up of a whole life to God. God could not accept anything less than a whole life.

What does this tell us about consecration? It tells us that consecration is the offering up of my whole life to God. I cannot give God part of my life and keep part for myself. This would not satisfy God, and it would not bring satisfaction to me either. All my joy and blessing in the Christian life depend upon my giving God my whole life and holding back nothing.

Consecration is final.

Once an animal was placed on the altar as a burnt offering, it could not be taken off the altar. It was “holy unto the Lord.” The Bible says, “…every devoted thing is most holy unto the Lord” (Leviticus 27:28).

Once I have dedicated my life to God, I cannot take it back. God expects my dedication to be a once-for-all giving of myself to Him. If I have sinned, I should confess my sins to the Lord and receive His forgiveness. But it is not necessary to “rededicate” my life which has already been given to Him.

Consecration is continual.

God required that the priests offer a burnt offering to Him each morning and each evening, day after day, continually.

What does this tell us about consecration? It tells us that our consecration must be continual. My consecration begins with the act of giving myself to the Lord, but it does not end there. I must live out my consecration all the days of my life.

Why should I consecrate myself to the Lord?

I should give my life to the Lord because I belong to Him. I was a slave of sin and Satan, and the Lord Jesus redeemed me. The Bible says,

“Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit…and you are not your own? For you are bought with a price…” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).

These verses tell me plainly that I am not my own. I have been bought with a price. I belong to the Lord. What was the price the Lord Jesus paid for me? The price was His own precious blood. The Bible says,

“…you were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold…but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Peter 1:18-19).

The Lord Jesus has redeemed me; He is my Lord and Master; I belong to Him. Since I belong to the Lord, it is only right that I give myself to Him. The question is not “Do I belong to the Lord?”, but “Have I given to the Lord that which belongs to Him?”

A dedicated servant of the Lord said, “If you have been redeemed by the precious blood of Christ, don’t talk about giving God your money, your time, your talents, or your life. It all belongs to Him; just quit stealing!”

Consecration is simply recognizing Christ’s ownership of me and saying to Him, “Lord, I am Yours by right, and I wish to be Yours by my choice.” The Bible makes it clear that this is the “reasonable service” of every child of God.

The motive for consecration

My motive for giving myself to the Lord is the love of Christ. The Bible says,

“For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died: and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them, and rose again.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15).

The result of consecration is that I die to my own plans and ambitions: I live to do the will of God. The Lord Jesus is our perfect Example. He did not come into the world to do His own will or to become great in the eyes of men. He came to do the will of His Father. That meant dying on the cross for us. God now says to us,

“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5).

Do not think that you will become a world-famous preacher or evangelist if you consecrate yourself to the Lord. The Lord Jesus Himself was rejected by men, and we are His servants. Jesus said, “The servant is not greater than his lord…” (John 13:16).

When I consecrate my life to the Lord, He can show me the work which He has for me. My greatest joy and satisfaction will come when I find God’s will for my life and do it. Think of the joy of meeting those in Heaven whom you have led to the Lord.

Think of the joy of standing before the Lord Jesus in glory and hearing Him say,

“Well done, good and faithful servant…Enter into the joy of your Lord” (Matthew 25:21).

What is your answer?

The Lord is saying to you, “I beseech you by the mercies of God” that you consecrate your body to God to do His will. The Lord could rightfully command us, but He says, “I beseech you.” Beseech is a love word. God wants us to give our body to Him, not because we must, but because we love Him and want to serve Him.

If you hold on to your life, you will miss God’s best for you. When you meet your Savior face-to-face, will you be prepared to tell Him why you never surrendered your life to Him? God’s purpose is that you may prove for yourself that God’s will is “good, and acceptable, and perfect.”

Do you understand what God is asking of you? Have you seen that you and all that you have belong to Him? Will you give God His property? Have you seen that God is asking you to present yourself unto Him “as alive from the dead”? God is asking you to present your body “a living sacrifice” to Him to do His will.

Have you considered the Lord’s mercies to you? Out of the millions of people on the earth, He chose you, and He has blessed you with all the riches of Christ. Has the love of Christ so touched your heart that you want to give yourself to Him? Study carefully the following statement of consecration. If this is your decision, we encourage you to print this PDF, sign your name and date on it, and keep it as a personal reminder.

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King Saul made David a captain in his army and would not let him go back to his father’s house. David behaved himself wisely, and Saul set him over the men of war. Saul and David traveled together.

The Lord was with David and helped him do everything well, and all the people loved him. As Saul and David came into the cities, the women came out with songs and dances to praise them. But they praised David more than Saul. The women said, “Saul has slain his thousands, but David his ten thousands.”

This made Saul very angry and he became very jealous of David. One day while David was playing his harp for Saul in the palace, an evil spirit came on Saul. Saul had a spear at his side. He grabbed it and threw it at David, intending to kill him. But David saw it coming and jumped out of the way just in time.

David had to flee for his life. For most of the next seven years, Saul was hunting for David, trying to kill him. Many mighty men gathered themselves to David, and he became captain over them. David was in a most difficult place. God had rejected Saul and anointed David to be the next king over Israel. But Saul was still king, and David recognized Saul as God’s delegated authority over him.

Though repeatedly chased by Saul, David addressed Saul as “my lord,” or “the Lord’s anointed.” One day while seeking David, Saul entered a cave alone to rest. Unknown to Saul, David and his mighty men were in the innermost part of the cave.

David’s men told him that the Lord had delivered Saul into his hand. They urged David to kill him so he could be king. But David would not rebel against God’s delegated authority.

David said to his men,

“The Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, God’s anointed, to stretch forth my hand against him, seeing that he is the anointed of the Lord” (1 Samuel 24:6).

David respected God’s authority. He would not rebel against God or His delegated authority, the king.

Later, another occasion came where David had an opportunity to kill Saul. Saul, along with 3,000 men, was seeking David in the wilderness. At night David and his nephew, Abishai, found their way into Saul’s camp. Saul lay sleeping with his spear stuck in the ground by his pillow. Saul’s general and the rest of the soldiers were sleeping around the king.

Abishai said to David, “The Lord has delivered your enemy into your hand this day.” He begged David to let him kill Saul with the spear. But David said,

“Do not destroy him: for who can stretch forth his hand against the Lord’s anointed and be without guilt?” (1 Samuel 26:9).

David stood absolutely for God’s authority. He would rather be obedient to God than save his own life. God was pleased with this.

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