Our Calvary Women’s Bible Studies are working through the book of Exodus right now and I have so appreciated this study. Throughout this book we see God reveal himself to the people of Israel – first as He asserts Himself over all the powers of Egypt and delivers them from slavery, and later as He teaches them what a life devoted to worship of Him looks like. As the Jewish worship practices are established, God’s holiness and inability to tolerate sin comes into view and we see the concept of consecration become a regular exercise.

To consecrate something simply means to make it holy. To take something that was previously sinful and of no use and to remove its offensiveness and make it useful. In the time of the Israelites in Exodus, consecration happened through a process involving many different things from washing, abstinence, and fasting to sacrificing and anointing. There was a great deal of preparation involved for those intending to meet with God. Their sin had to get out of the way before God could meet with them.

Fast forward a couple thousand years, and Christ’s sacrificial death pays the price for sin once and for all. If we are in Christ, we have been consecrated, or made righteous, by the blood of Jesus, and are now positionally unoffensive and useful to God (2 Cor. 5:21).

But God is not content to stop there.

Hebrews 10:14 tells us that Christ “made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” Our holiness journey does not stop when we first profess Christ. Jesus teaches that those who claim to be his disciples should “deny themselves and take up their cross daily” (Luke 9:23). Paul teaches that we are “created in Christ Jesus to do good works” (Eph 2:10). Our ongoing actions are evidence of our faith in Christ.

When God brought the Israelites out of Egypt, He established a new way of living for them that would set them apart from the pagan nations around them. Their lives were expected to look drastically different and so testify to God’s sovereignty and strength. Similarly, as Christ-followers, we are called to a new way of living that is drastically different than what’s expected by the world around us. As believers, we are commanded to “not conform” to the evil practices around us, but to pursue holiness (1 Peter 1:14-15). And we know from Exodus that holiness requires consecration.

Pursuing consecration today is all about making space for God to work in and through us. When our lives are filled with sin that distracts and weighs down, we cannot be used by Him. Just as the Israelites went through a preparation process to be useful to God, so we also must continually go through a process of surrender and repentance in our pursuit of holiness. It’s not always easy. Sometimes it hurts. Sometimes it involves sacrifice. Sometimes it challenges our comfort zone. But it’s always worth it. Because He is worth it.

As you listen to “Make Room” this week and as we sing it together during our corporate worship time, I’d encourage you to ponder this concept of consecration. What is getting in the way of God working in your life? What is God challenging you to let go of in order to be more useful to Him? This song is a call to clean house as we chase after the upside-down life Christ has invited us to pursue. Are you ready?

Looking for some music to enrich your personal worship throughout the week? Check our Calvary Worship Favorites playlist on Spotify. It’s an assortment of songs that we sing on the regular during our Sunday worship services.

If you want to get a taste of what we’ll be singing on any upcoming Sunday, check out our This Sunday At Calvary playlist. This list is updated weekly with the songs we’re planning to lead at the upcoming Sunday service.

Make Room

Here is where I lay it down

Every burden every crown

This is my surrender

Here is where I lay it down

Every lie and every doubt

This is my surrender

And I will make room for you

To do whatever you want to

And I will make room for you

To do whatever you want to

Shake up the ground of all my tradition

Break down the walls of all my religion

Your way is better

Here is where I lay it down

You are all I'm chasing now

This is my surrender

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Evelyn Heideriqui | Josh Farro | Lucas Cortazio | Rebekah White
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