1. PERSONAL CONSECRATION ROMANS 12:1-2

2. Consecration—To devote or dedicate to some purpose; to set apart as holy. This what God has done to us as Christians. I Peter 2:9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people. II Corinthians 6:17-18 Therefore "Come out from among them and be separate, says the Lord. Do not touch what is unclean, and I will receive you. I will be a Father to you, and you shall be My sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.'' This consecration must be personal. Galatians 6:5 For each one shall bear his own load. Romans 12:1 That you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God.

3. God Requires Consecration Matthew 22:36-37 "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?'' Jesus said to him, " `You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' We must love with all our affections and desires set on Him. What does it mean to love God with all your heart? Colossians 3:1-2 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. Matthew 6:21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. Where is your heart?Where is your treasure?

4. What does it mean to love God with all your soul? Love God with all your spiritual nature. Your soul is of more value than all the world. Matthew 16:26 "For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” What does it mean to love God with all your mind? All of your intellectual powers must be brought into subjection to the truth of God. Romans 1:28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper. We should always be thinking of God & godly things.

5. Psalms 1:1-2 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat of the scornful; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. James 4:8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. We must surrender our entire being to the will of God. We use our entire being to bring praise, honor, and glory to His name. To love God with all our heart, soul, and mind means: This is what we need to do to personally consecrate ourselves to the service of the Lord.

6. Does God Have Right To Demand Consecration? YesWhy? He is our creator. Acts 17:24-26 God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands. Nor is He worshiped with men's hands, as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things. And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their habitation. He gives us what we need. Matthew 6:33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

7. I John 4:9-10 In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. He is preparing a better place for us. John 14:2-3 In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. He loves us supremely. Romans 5:8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

8. I Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. He provides for our escape from Satan. James 4:7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. I Corinthians 15:57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

9. What Will Consecration Do For Us? It will cause us to do our best. In obeying His commandments. John 14:15 If you love Me, keep My commandments. John 15:14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. I John 5:18, 21 We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him. In keeping ourselves. Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen. I Corinthians 9:27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.

10. It will protect us from the world. I John 2:15-17 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever. II Peter 3:10-11 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness? I John 5:19 The whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.

11. We will live a Christ-like life. I Peter 2:21 For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: Philippians 1:21 For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

12. It will make us like Him. We are transformed to conform. Romans 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. Romans 8:29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. I John 3:2 Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.

13. HAVE YOU CONSECREATED YOURSELF FOR THE SERVICE OF THE LORD?

14. Given by David Hamlin on 5-31-09 am Hollister, Missouri church of Christ www.hollisterchurchofchrist.orgwww.hollisterchurchofchrist.org