Romans 12

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.
According to Old Testament law, an animal would have to be sacrificed by a priest in a very complex manner so that their transgressions could be forgiven. But it was made clear multiple times that God wanted a genuine love and obedient heart from us. We can often go Church and offer tithes with it feeling forced. Many of us can act more like Cain's who's offering to God was rejected because God wants us, not animals as living sacrifices. Sacrificing ourselves would mean to lay aside our desires and ambitions to exalt the one who truly deserves praise.

2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Church culture might have changed throughout the centuries, but the gospel has never. With todays acceptance of gay marriage, us Christians are pressured to agree with everyone else or risk being labelled as a bigot. This brings me back to the time when I had picked and chose on what I agreed with in the Bible. I used to have many pagan ideals that would make logical sense towards todays standards. I'm grateful today that I have people who have a single minded obedience to Christ and set the Gospel as their ultimate authority. Because of the men and women God has used to guide me, I realised that who the hell am I to bring God down to my own standards?

20 On the contrary:

“If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
    if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.” 

This type of living seems impossible. Todays mainstream media worships the idea of justice and fairness, however everyone's definition of these things are different. As a result of our human nature, we justify acts of violence or hatred thinking it was "the right thing to do because he/she started it". Instead of this, Paul is informing us to much rather forgive our enemies as it could break a cycle of retaliation, they could possibly see the error in their behaviour and turn from their selfish intentions.