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Religious
Called To New Life In Christ
ROMANS 12:1-8 (KJV)
Scriptures
Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bod- ies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not con- formed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and accept- able, and perfect, will of God.
3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, ac- cording as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
4 For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith;
7 Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching;
8 Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with
cheerfulness.
Background
Chapter 12 is a turning point where Paul moves to dis- cuss what the response of the Christian ought to be to such marvelous Good News. We will find that God demands no less than all of us. Each of our gifts were given to us by God not for our own benefit, but for His glory and for the edifica- tion of the body of Christ. This is not to repay Him for His grace, as such a repayment is impossible. Instead, the full- ness of our joy and the shining of His glory is found in our obedience and use of our gifts.
from different areas of human life.
So verse 2 gives us the source of motivation and strength for such an endeavor. Paul tells us not to be con- formed to this world, meaning the world is not to shape us, nor is it to dictate what we do, how we feel, or what we say. Instead, we are to be trans- formed by the renewal of our mind, an interesting turn of phrase because it is passive. The one who does the trans- forming and renewing is the Holy Spirit, as He reveals God’s will to us.
Gifts To The Body (vv. 3–8)
In the previous chapter, Paul encouraged the Gentile Christians not to boast be- cause they were grafted in “contrary to nature” (Ro- mans 11:24). Here, both Jewish and Gentile Christians are encouraged not to boast in any particular gifts. There are no spiritual gifts that are more inherently “useful” than oth- ers.
Similar to 1 Corinthians
12, Paul uses the analogy of the body to describe the church: We are not disjointed people in a gathering, but rather we are, as Paul point- edly puts it, “members one of another” (v. 5). This means that if someone is united to Christ by faith, he or she is our brother or sister, regardless of background, education, lan- guage, or anything else. When a believer suffers, we mourn. When one succeeds, we re- joice. This also means, how- ever, that our greatest concern is not ourselves. Our gifts were not given to us for the sake of self-importance. Instead they are meant for the edification of the body.
The gifts that Paul lists in verses 6-8 are all other-cen- tered: Prophecy, service, teaching, giving, leading, and acts of mercy all seek to enrich the life of the hearer or recipi- ent. Each also has practical significance. Prophecy reveals the Word of God; service, giv- ing, and leading help people in their practical endeavors; acts of mercy help physical, emo-
tional, and spiritual health; teaching shapes the minds of the hearers for God’s glory and for the good of those involved. In each of these endeavors, the apostle encourages us to ea- gerly use our gifts.
Conclusion
We worship God by offer- ing ourselves as sacrifices. No act of service is too “low” or unimportant for us as Chris- tians and no matter the act of service, we ought to engage in it joyfully. When our minds are shaped by the Holy Spirit, we are reminded of Christ, who, though He was in the form of God, did not consider His Godhood to be a reason not to take on flesh and get into the muck and mire of daily human existence.
All of the gifts Paul listed call for sacrifice, which hap- pens by the exercising of our spiritual gifts. Spiritual gifts are for the unity and benefit of the church, to be all that Christ intended her to be.
A Living Sacrifice
(Romans 12:1–2)
In chapter 12, switches to a direct address as if to say, “Now that I’ve ex- plained the Gospel, it’s time to explain how you, as a believer, ought to feel and act as a re- sult.” Thus, Paul offers his ap- peal: that believers present their bodies as “living sacri- fices.” When Paul refers to our bodies, he does not merely refer to only our physical bod- ies, but rather our entire selves as embodied individuals. In other words, God does not merely want our bodies to be working for His glory, He wants our hearts and souls en- gaged as well.
Such a demand is entirely reasonable from a God who sent His only Son to die for sinners. This was God’s com- mand in the covenant He made with Israel (Deuteron- omy 6:5). But it is not an easy one to fulfill, especially when multiple demands come
Paul
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