“I urge you therefore, brothers, by means of the mercies of God…” Therefore, says Paul. Therefore, in view of everything we’ve seen together, in view of the mercies of God that I have painstakingly labored to document for you, in view, really, of chapters 1-11, you must present your bodies as living sacrifices to God, rejecting the old, embracing the new.
Our life in Christ is entirely a response to the revealed mercy of God. There is no other foundation for a holy life. There is no other foundation for Christian living.
The mercies of God are, in short summary, God’s actions to refuse ‘works’ as the foundation of relationship with him; that God has summarily refused to accept any payment for his gifts, since to pay would make God a debtor, God an obligant, would cheapen our salvation. God’s mercy is that He has made the way of salvation for us without compromising any of His own power and majesty in the process.
And now, in response to this waterfall of mercy, we offer ourselves. When we comprehend the majesty of the gift, there is nothing else we can do. When we truly comprehend it, it is the only response imaginable.
Toolshed Meditations 