1. “We make known to you...the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia, that... the depth of their poverty abounded unto the riches of their liberality” (2 Cor. 8:1-2).
We often think that consecration is giving something to God, but according to the apostle’s word, consecration is the grace of God given to us. The liberality of the churches in Macedonia was the grace of God that had been given to them. God gives us grace within so that we can have a consecration without. Because the grace of God operates and supplies us within, we experience the act of consecration without. Thus, the act of consecration is grace received from God.
1. “They gave themselves first to the Lord” (2 Cor. 8:5).
God wants us, not our money (12:14); therefore, the first thing that we should consecrate to the Lord is ourselves. The churches in Macedonia gave themselves first to the Lord and then offered up everything that they had according to God’s will. We must offer up ourselves first; otherwise, our consecration has no value. In 1948 in Shanghai, a wealthy man wanted to buy us a bus from America to use for the gospel. However, we were concerned that he had not given himself to the Lord, so we could not receive it. Christianity has misrepresented God in the matter of consecration, placing more emphasis on money than on the person. This is a terrible shame! It is not pleasing to the Lord. The Lord wants man, not the things of man. We must first offer ourselves to the Lord and let the Lord gain us before our things will be acceptable to Him.
2. “Present yourselves to God as alive from the dead” (Rom. 6:13).
We must present our resurrected new man in Christ to the Lord, not our old man. Our old man was crucified with Christ and terminated. In Christ, we are those who are alive from the dead. In our standing in resurrection, we should present ourselves to God so that God can gain us in His resurrected new creation.
1. “Present your bodies a living sacrifice” (Rom. 12:1).
We are in our bodies. If we want to give ourselves to the Lord, we must present our bodies to Him. If we do not, our consecration is abstract and vague; it is not substantial or practical. In order to work for God, we must substantially and practically present our bodies to Him for His use. This is the way to be a consecrated person living to God.
2. “Present...your members as weapons of righteousness to God” (Rom. 6:13, see also v. 19).
It is not enough to present our bodies a living sacrifice in a general way. We must specifically present our members to God as weapons of righteousness. Each of our members should be presented to God for His use through our consecration. They should not be used as weapons of sin or the world. For example, if we use one of our members to sin, such as wearing an improper article of clothing, we allow our members to be weapons of sin or the world. Through consecration we must bring all our members back from sin and the world and give them to God for His use to do righteous acts and to serve Him. In this way, we glorify God in our members, which is to glorify God in our bodies.
1. “The firstborn” (Exo. 13:2).
The firstborn speaks of God’s redemption (v. 15). God has the right to gain what He has redeemed. Therefore, we should present the firstborn to God. Furthermore, the firstborn represents what is strong. We should present what is strong to God.
2. “Your only son, whom you love” (Gen. 22:2).
The only begotten is the unique one; the beloved is the most dear. We should consecrate these things to God. If our consecration does not touch what is most precious to our hearts, it is too superficial. We should present our unique and most beloved thing.
3. “The first of the fruit” (Deut. 26:10).
We should consecrate the first of the fruit, that is, the things that are first. We should not present the things that are last to the Lord.
4. “The best” (Num. 18:12).
We should present the best to the Lord. The Lord always touches our best things. He always contends with us over the things we consider best and important. There was once a mother who had three sons. The eldest was very bright, so she told him to study medicine. The second son also was bright, so she told him to study business. However, the third son was very stupid, so she told him to enter a seminary and become a preacher. It should not be this way. The best should be offered to God. Mr. George Müller once stayed in a brother’s home, and he noticed that this brother rose up very early every morning to touch the Lord. He asked him why he needed to get up so early. The brother said that in the Old Testament God required people to offer the fat of the offering, not the dung. (The fat was the best part of the offering, and the dung was the worst.) We must give our best time to the Lord. Indeed, we should consecrate the best to the Lord.
5. “Your substance” (Prov. 3:9).
Since our person is consecrated to the Lord, our substance, our money, should also be offered up. If we do not present our money, there is a problem with our consecration.
6. “All” (Luke 21:4).
We should offer up our all. Throughout the ages, the Lord has used those who offered up their all. They spent their money and strength for the Lord and the gospel. If a person truly loves the Lord, he must love Him to such an extent that he puts forth everything for the Lord. If we love the Lord, we will not hold anything back. When the Lord comes, all things must go.