Greetings and Introduction (1:1–17)
Mankind’s Universal Sinfulness (1:18–3:20)
---Our Condition Apart from Christ (3:10-20)
Justification (3:21–5:21)
---Provided in Christ by Faith (3:21–31)
---Abraham is an Example of Justification by Faith (ch. 4)
---Justification Guarantees Blessings for the Righteous (5:1–11)
---Imputed Righteousness from Christ in Justification — the New Adam (5:12–21)
Sin’s Dominion Broken and We are Captured by God (ch. 6)
Believers Dead to the Law’s Condemnation, Not Yet Made Sinless (ch. 7)
---'Simul iustus et peccator'
Those Living by the Spirit Prove Victors over the Flesh (ch. 8)
God Demonstrates His Righteousness and Mercy in Election (chs. 9–11)
---God’s Righteousness Established in History (ch. 9)
---God’s Righteousness Received Only by Faith (ch. 10)
---God’s Righteousness Revealed in Jew and Gentile (ch. 11)
Paul is moved to worship and adoration of God for His sovereignty in salvation and for His actions in Grace … at the end of Chapter 11 Paul writes:
Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and His ways past finding out! “For who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has become His counselor?” “Or who has first given to Him And it shall be repaid to him?” For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen
Briefly then Justification and God’s saving Grace in your life is why Paul says “therefore” in the following verses.
Chapter 12:1-3What God revealed in the first 11 chapters we now begin to see worked out in lives. What is it that justification should produce in you? Worship as we saw in Paul’s praise of God and a submission of yourselves as living sacrifices. This is your worship. Your soul should be moved to worship in this way if you are thinking rightly. It is appropriate to worship in this way because of the Grace that has been poured out on you. You are told to fight against being conformed or shaped by the world. You are supposed to fight for a renewal of your mind. We learn (by experience in pursuit of God) to discern His will and to recognize “good”, “acceptable”, and “perfect”.
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.
Here is where the Laodiceans fell short (and lots of others). In Revelation 3:14 and the verses that follow we find that the Laodiceans were neither hot nor cold and Jesus tells them they are about to be rejected as a Church. We know we have an assurance of our individual salvation but God is under no obligation to keep moving in a place that apathetic. We must ask God for mercy when we see our church or nation heading in this direction and do our best to keep our hearts pure before God’s face. The natural reaction is to look for a new program or change the order or style of worship. That is just like rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic. We need a miracle for a fellowship at that point and not new sales techniques. The really tragic thing is that programs can give an illusion of success in numbers while the Holy Spirit moves out the door.
It is ironic and perhaps telling of our hearts in the way we quote the Scripture, “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me (Revelation 3:19-20).” The verse is often quoted in evangelism and I’m sure was in the Will Thompson’s mind when my least favorite hymn was written (Softly and Tenderly Jesus is Calling). In context, the verse has nothing to do with evangelizing the unsaved. It is written to the church at Laodicea. They were lukewarm. They were well fed and fat and sassy. As it says in Romans 11: 9, “their table had become a snare to them.” It is written to believers who must move contrary to the spirit of their age and seek God with all their hearts while others in the Body of Christ do not seek God with all their hearts. I beg you by the mercy of God to become a living sacrifice. Don’t live a sick weak Christian experience when Christ can feed you and renew your mind. The way the culture of the United States glorifies sin is bad but the way the Church fails to respond to God is a greater tragedy. He promises if you’ll pursue Him in your sanctification that He’ll respond and if you can stand against the lukewarm in your age and in your church then the promise is in Revelation 3:21, “The one who conquers, I will grant him to sit with me on my throne, as I also conquered and sat down with my Father on his throne.”
Romans 12:3-8
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; the one who exhorts, in his exhortation; the one who contributes, in generosity; the one who leads, with zeal; the one who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness.
What are you going to do with the gifts given you by God? He breathed life into you when you were dead in your trespasses and sins. He has promised to keep you and now what will you do? Sleep in the light or run with patience the race that is set before you? There is a bunch of sleeping and discouragement in the Church. The enemy of your soul wants you bundled up in discouragement and/or asleep in the light of the Gospel. We have different gifts to use in service. You must find your place in the Church to obey God and to fulfill your reasonable worship. Yes of course you will be fulfilled and enjoy the fruits of the Spirit but that is not to be your motivation. You were taken from the kingdom of darkness and made a Child of Abraham and it was all by the Grace of God. You need to let that truth drive you to seek God’s place for you in the Body of Christ. God has given you purpose and it is grounded in your brothers and sisters in Christ.
Tom Brady is quarterback of the New England Patriots. He was interviewed by Steve Kroft on 60 Minutes for CBS. Brady’s team is one win from an undefeated season. If they win the Super Bowl it will be the first undefeated season in 35 years. He won Super Bowl MVP twice and been to the Pro Bowl 4 times. He dates actresses and supermodels and makes millions of dollars a year. In his interview he said:
"Why do I have three Super Bowl rings and still think there's something greater out there for me? I mean, maybe a lot of people would say, 'Hey man, this is what is.' I reached my goal, my dream, my life. Me, I think, 'God, it's got to be more than this.' I mean this isn't, this can't be what it's all cracked up to be."
When Kroft asked him, "What's the answer?" Brady responded, "I wish I knew. I wish I knew. I love playing football and I love being quarterback for this team. But at the same time, I think there are a lot of other parts about me that I'm trying to find."
Sometimes a striking contrast is what we need to see. Brady has very little sense of meaning in his life. Another victory won’t mean anymore than the last one. He is a fantastic quarterback but so what. He’s gained the whole world but, by his own words, has a lost soul. There are probably plenty of Patriot fans who hope he won’t let it trouble him at least until his football career is over.
God has purpose for your life. Any Christian regardless of resources can give an answer to a question of purpose superior to that of Brady. It isn’t a question of our ability but of Gods.
Listen to just a little of a poem titled, “The Hound of Heaven” by Francis Thompson (1859-1907) in which Thompson describes the way in which he ran from God but how God, as the Hound of Heaven with unhurrying chase and unperturbed pace ran him down.
I fled Him, down the nights and down the days;
I fled Him, down the arches of the years;
I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways
Of my own mind; and in the mist of tears
I hid from Him, and under running laughter.
Up vistaed hopes I sped;
And shot, precipitated,
Adown Titanic glooms of chasmed fears,
From those strong Feet that followed, followed after.
But with unhurrying chase,
And unperturbèd pace,
Deliberate speed, majestic instancy,
They beat--and a Voice beat
More instant than the Feet--
"All things betray thee, who betrayest Me."
Thompson was a smart guy who lived in the late 1800’s but he had some health problems and ended up addicted to heroin. He was homeless and would send poems in for publication but without a return address because he didn’t have an address. Some editors tracked him down and tried to care for him but things didn’t go very well. Eventually he damaged his brain on heroin and was essentially a vagrant. He died from tuberculosis when he was 48. Now his poem, “The Hound of Heaven” has blessed many for many years and will continue to do so. He had nothing except some paper and a pencil. Almost no resources were available to Thompson but God used him anyway. Do think a Sunday School class in 100 years will have a reason to be talking about something that Tom Brady wrote or said this year? Unless he changes his ways then the best he can hope for is that he might be the answer to a sports trivia question. Tom Brady, the Laodicean Church, and the American Church have wealth and blessing in common and they are neither hot or cold just lukewarm with respect to God.
Our behavior as God’s children is supposed to be different than our behavior before our salvation. We are blessed by God with a purpose to our blessing. We are to take the physical and spiritual gifts of God and spend them as God directs on others.
Romans 12:9-13
Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
We are not supposed to be generating a hypocritical love but on the contrary we are to release God’s love. God’s love isn’t dependent on a feeling. God loved us while we were unlovable. It was Grace and mercy. We can, in God’s strength, display Grace and mercy while functioning in God’s love. People don’t have to be lovable all the time. Pat works at the Food Pantry once a week and we talk about some of the folks that are blessed in this Mercy Ministry. They aren’t all wonderful or even thankful. We don’t need them to have a certain demeanor for us to bless them. We are to reject evil and love good things. Popular media has developed a fascination with evil and the effort to be on the “cutting edge” is putting some violent perverse stuff into the living room. We need to be very careful about what we view as entertainment since God has told us to abhor what is evil. We are to be disgusted by evil and not fascinated by it.
Showing brotherly affection and honor toward each other is also something we are commanded to do. This is a command of God and not a suggestion. So you really should be asking God how that Scripture applies to you and how you can obey God. In contrast to the Laodiceans, you are commanded be zealous and fervent in spirit as you serve the Lord. Well what if we don’t “feel it” right now? Then how about asking for forgiveness and God’s grace to be poured out so that we won’t sin by having a cold heart?
We rejoice in hope because we know that we will live forever with God. That hope helps as we face tribulation and keeps us constant in prayer. As we live within the Body of Christ we will clearly pay attention to those around us seek to minister to their needs. We seek to show hospitality. Things as simple as our breakfast in Sunday School become spiritual disciplines if we seek to do it in Jesus’ name as we are supposed to live our entire lives.
Romans 12:14Guys have a tendency to spend more effort on what this Scripture doesn’t mean rather than what it means. This is stated pretty clearly and it is at least a little funny that we are so worried about what it doesn’t mean. In the time it was written Christians were being placed in prison, were losing property, and losing their lives. So yes you are to bless those who persecute you. It is a very good spiritual discipline for you to pray for those who persecute you. God will judge those who attack you. This is a command not a suggestion. I remember I was sharing one time about the importance of blessing those who are persecuting you and we had a person who just flat said that they pray for God to beat the daylights out of people who persecuted them. So rather than obey God they decided to pray contrary to the command of God. I know that I waste plenty of time but praying that God would honor my prayer when I pray contrary to His revealed will is just too dumb of a way to spend your life.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
Romans 12:15This should be obvious to us (and generally is) but sometimes we do respond in an inappropriate manner. In an effort to encourage we may fail to mourn with someone who is in an appropriate time of mourning. On the other side we may fail to rejoice with those who have been blessed in some way. We need to be happy when we see our brothers and sisters blessed. I really can’t watch “American Idol”. However, I caught part of a show the other day and Simon said something interesting. Folks would wait outside for their family member or friend to audition and when they are successful there is screaming and hugging and all sorts of carrying on. After one especially loud display after a person’s successful audition, Simon said that he couldn’t imagine being happy for someone he knew in the same way that we are all over the United States. I feel sorry for anyone so self absorbed that they are only happy when they succeed and I’m certainly happy that there are enough Americans around to rejoice with those who rejoice. It is revealing when we don’t rejoice with those who rejoice.
Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
Romans 12:16-18What a recipe for a healthy church fellowship! However, with recipes you can pick a different one each time you cook and these attitudes in Romans are not optional or elective. These verses are commands and not a menu for you to look over and consider for adoption. So as long as it involves only personal preferences and doesn’t depend on Scripture and the commands of God … your effort should be to live peaceably with all.
Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be conceited. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Please realize that you are never asked to compromise Scripture. Paul makes it abundantly clear that when the Gospel is involved it is time to stand up and hold fast to the truth. The general principle is that you only dig in your heels when it comes to the essentials of the Faith. Justification, atonement, sanctification, and the person and work of Christ as taught by Scripture do not depend on you and they are not negotiable.
Romans 12:19-21These are some serious commands. God tells us to never avenge ourselves. That is hard because we always seek to avenge ourselves. The only time we don’t is when we didn’t get the opportunity. Once again we are, by nature, more concerned about what we can get away with than what we are commanded to stop doing. Keep in mind that the attacks that were facing the first century Christians were more serious than most Christians in our nation ever face. If you had a friend or family member martyred in the Roman arena then I think you’d find this command more challenging than when you suffer by being cut off in traffic or the victim of poor service at a restaurant.
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
If we are going to live like children of our Father then we need to respond to our enemy’s the way God responded to us while we were still His enemy. While we were sinners rebelling against God, He saved us. Most of us don’t even acknowledge that we have sinned when we fail to comply with the commands of this chapter and yet our Father loves us and cares for us. How dare we have a problem with Him telling us that we need to leave vengeance to him and to be kind to our enemy?
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