Conformed to this World

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:1-2 ESV

What Paul has in mind here is this: When you look at the first verse, Paul is exhorting the believers in Rome to become living sacrifices. By this, the apostle means that we are to give our lives (bodies) in full service to God. This is not an exhortation to service for one's own greatness, but rather, a plea for the believers to give themselves entirely to God, no matter WHAT He asks, great or small.

The next verse is the obvious alternative to this. Paul is pleading with the believers not to be conformed to this world (the Greek used here is "aiowni", which essentially means "Age"). The world system is based on greed and lust of the eyes. Essentially, the world (or age) tells us that the very values embodied by Christ (love, faith, mercy, gentleness, humility, service) are to be shunned in favor of looking out for ourselves, putting ourselves above others, and valuing our desires more than God's.

The system of Christ is an upside down version of the world. Rather than putting the spotlight on ourselves, Christ asks us to put the spotlight on others. Giving ourselves the limelight, heeding our own desires and devices, is the very definition of "conforming to this world."