Romans 12:1-5
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Last week we wrapped up . In summary, through grace, God made salvation available to Gentiles. We see that God’s mercy is for everyone (all Israel - or the entire family of Abraham which includes all believing Gentiles along with believing Jews), and that it’s not something we can earn or brag about. The Jews, had they not rejected the gospel, but instead embraced it, might assume they were entitled to it, unlike the Gentiles. God solved a major issue, and we couldn’t possibly advise God to find a better way to do it.
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Last week we wrapped up . In summary, through grace, God made salvation available to Gentiles. We see that God’s mercy is for everyone (all Israel - or the entire family of Abraham which includes all believing Gentiles along with believing Jews), and that it’s not something we can earn or brag about. The Jews, had they not rejected the gospel, but instead embraced it, might assume they were entitled to it, unlike the Gentiles. God solved a major issue, and we couldn’t possibly advise God to find a better way to do it.
Today, we’re going to be reading from , so if you’d like to hop there in your Bibles, go ahead and do so; we’ll also have the passages displayed on the screens. Up to this point, Romans has lived up to its reputation as being one of the most theological books in the Bible. However, while the first eleven chapters have focused on theology and doctrine, we should be careful not to simply treat what we’ve learned as though it was simply an academic exercise, or even something that has shaped our thinking. Everything that Paul has been teaching is intended not just to be believed, but practiced. And as we’ve scaled the mountain of theological study these first eleven chapters, we will now wrap up our journey with these last five chapters focused on the practice of what we’ve learned. We’re not necessarily done with the theology, but rather building on it with the focus on the practical.
Let’s pray.
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1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.
6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10 Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. 11 Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. 12 Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. 13 When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. 15 Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!
17 Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. 18 Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.
19 Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”
says the Lord.
20 Instead,
“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”
21 Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.
1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.
3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.
1 So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. 2 Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.
Basically, this is what our response to God’s grace ought to be. Suddenly, starting in , Paul has shifted from the theological to the practical. The And so… is the beginning of describing how we are to respond to God’s mercies (all he has done for you). At the core of this response is that rather than blend in with the culture, we stand out. You may have heard this described as counter-cultural. Not that everything about the current culture is inherently bad - (although it essentially represents rebellion against God, corruption, and death). But that we should not blindly fall into the seduction of an easier life, as blending in will always be easier than standing out. In other words, rather than letting the present world around us dictate how we are to live, we are to wrestle with a way of thinking in the present age that is quite a revolutionary concept - that is, to live according to the age to come, which is already breaking into the present age. This is the living sacrifice of our bodies - our whole self - laying down the rebellious, sinful nature and taking on the new life that we receive in its place.
I was recently away at a youth leadership bootcamp called Project Timothy. One of the events we participated in was to work in volunteer teams at an organization called Feed My Starving Children. The team I was on was one of several that was responsible for producing and boxing MannaPacks. Someone was responsible for scooping rice, vitamin powder, dried veggies, and soy protein into a funnel, where beneath another was responsible for placing a bag beneath the funnel to catch all the ingredients. Next, someone would take the filled bags and seal them with a machine. Finally, they place the bags on a table, where another person organizes them into piles and fills boxes.
We were all briefed on how to do each job by watching an instructional video that gave detailed, step-by-step instructions, prior to entering the production area. One thing that you might already know about me is that I have a relatively short attention span. There are so many things buzzing around in my mind that it can sometimes be challenging for me to focus on any one thing for very long. Anyone here relate? So, the last job they show you how to do is to organize the packs and then pack a box. And by then, do you think I’m still paying attention to the video? Or the verbal instructions they tack on? And, which job do you think I end up getting?
The Message
At first, I blindly follow what I see other packers doing. Along the way, I’m probably missing a few steps, but I’m catching on. But, as I get more and more comfortable, I realize that I’m coming up with some ideas that are really going to help not only keep pace with the other teams, but actually increase our whole team’s efficiency. Initially I don’t say anything, and just continue to quietly do my part. There are some people on our team that I don’t know, and I don’t want anyone thinking I’m being bossy, or trying to take over everything.
But finally, I first start to adjust my process because I’m getting frustrated. I come up with a system that works, and then communicate that with the bag sealers. Once we get on the same page, I start communicating a few more ideas and before long, we are producing almost double what the other teams are producing, and chugging along quite happily.
Verse 2 - the way to becoming the new person that God wants us to be starts with the way we think - our minds. Interestingly, many opponents of Christianity have indicated that it is a crutch. We don’t think for ourselves, and blindly follow. However, Paul is suggesting that we actually do need to think - and let that thinking - influenced by the future age, which is already breaking-in, shape how we live in this present, evil age. Ironically, fitting in by examining the surrounding culture and copying it is doing the very thing Christianity’s opponents accuse its followers of doing. In fact, when we read in verse 1 that this is truly the way to worship him - some versions read “this is your spiritual act of worship”. Here, spiritual is translated from the Greek work logikos, which points to being informed, or having understanding. So, rather than offering ourselves blindly, like animals brought to slaughter, we offer ourselves intelligently and willingly - which is the worship that is pleasing to God.
It’s like that moment where I made the choice to not simply go with the flow, or blend in, but instead to think for myself. Obviously I’m not trying to say that those other teams were evil, but what the heck - apart from having a short attention span, I’m also highly competitive!
Take a moment to reflect on this question: is there any part of your life that is not surrendered to God, but instead conforming to the current culture?
What are some reasons that we might
3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. 4 Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function, 5 so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong to each other.
Romans 12:
Finally, we are warned not to think too highly of ourselves. There are not “elite Christians” that are somehow more loved by God, but rather we are all part of the same body. What Paul is revealing with the illustration of the body, is the way we are called to function as the church. We’ll read more about unity in the next chapters, but Jew and Gentile are to come together in Christ. We’ve talked about this before - many of us might not normally be connected together in community other than we share the same faith in Jesus. It’s our common faith that unites us, though we each may have different backgrounds, interests, abilities, etc.
When we think about this present age, there is a world all around us that tends to try and force the church into disunity. The prevalent issues at hand have resulted in that community becoming fractured, churches splitting, relationships being severed, and faith wavering. However, the warning here is that we must be transformed by the renewing of our minds, in the offering of true worship, so that as we continue to learn lessons of unity (the theology), we put those lessons into effect (the practice).
What is something you disagreed about with someone recently? How might the current culture influence disunity? What can we do to instead cultivate unity?
6 In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. 7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. 8 If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.
9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. 10 Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. 11 Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically. 12 Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying. 13 When God’s people are in need, be ready to help them. Always be eager to practice hospitality.
Let’s pray.
Bless those who persecute you. Don’t curse them; pray that God will bless them. Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with each other. Don’t be too proud to enjoy the company of ordinary people. And don’t think you know it all!
Never pay back evil with more evil. Do things in such a way that everyone can see you are honorable. Do all that you can to live in peace with everyone.
Dear friends, never take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. For the Scriptures say,
“I will take revenge;
I will pay them back,”
says the Lord.
Instead,
“If your enemies are hungry, feed them.
If they are thirsty, give them something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap
burning coals of shame on their heads.”
Don’t let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good.
Is there any part of your life that is not surrendered to God, but instead conforming to the current culture