Men's Bible Study - "Proving..." - Romans 12:2b

“Proving what’s good.

Annoucements:

Thank y’all for being here.

Week 2 in our books, if you didn’t get one you can back there.

Men’s work day.

Title of our Study is “It’s My Turn”

We are going to spend the next week looking at Romans 12:1-2. The invitation to be a living sacrifice.

Over the next four weeks we are going to talk about (1) Spriitual motivation. (2) Spiritual Realization, (3) Spiritual Transformation, and (4) Spiritual Revelation.

This message is:

1. For believers

2. A call to action

3. Built on foundation for what’s already been said “therefore by the mercies of God…”

But it goes even deeper than this. Chapters 1-11 describe the means whereby the actions called for in chapters 12-15 can be carried out. Chapters 1-11 also provide the motivation for doing so. Not until chapter 12 are we equipped and prepared for the application of chapters 1-11.

Recap last week:, we saw:

The Approach from Paul

Approaches with Good Motives

“I beseech you…”

He humbly implored believers.

Approaches God’s Men

Brethren...

The Appeal from Paul

In View of God’s Mercy

We talked about the motivation for us offering ourselves is “in view of the cross.:

God’s mercy includes:

Love

grace

the Holy Spirit

peace

faith

comfort

power

hope

The Action

be available

be alive

And last week we talked about Romans 12:1b… in a message titled:

It Only Makes Sense

The Presentation of a Living Sacrifice

“present” - yield to yourself

It requires a few things:

A Place

a Priest

A Provision

The Practice of a Living Sacrifice

The Spiritual Dos

Prayer

Praise

Surrender the Will

The Spiritual Don’ts

Don’t be lazy

Don’t be a pervert

A Daily Reset

Renounce the World

Denying Conformity

Defining Conformity

The danger of Conformity

Evidence of a false regeneration

You really aren’t changing

It adjusts your standard of Holiness

Renewed by the Word

Romans 12:2 KJV 1900

2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Illustration...

You will be transformed by the renewing of your minds.

As we offer/present ourselves daily, and decide

1. The Promise of Transformation

You are being transformed!!

transformed - metamorphoo: be changed, be transformed

We should become so much different!

These dramatic images are a picture of how different the believer is to become as, day after day, he or she is being transformed by the renewing of the mind.

a. It happens over time

Instead of being conformed to the present evil age, believers are to be transformed into the image of God insofar as knowledge and behavior are concerned. Paul has already stated that it is God’s ultimate goal for believers “to be conformed to the likeness of [God’s] Son” (Rom. 8:29)

Kenneth Boa and William Kruidenier, Romans, vol. 6, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 365–366.

b. It takes intention

What does Romans 8:29 say?

Romans 8:29 KJV 1900

29 For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

In this verse, “conformation” is of a different sort than the warning against being conformed in Romans 12:2...

We are warned about being shaped into the patterns and schemes of the world and system in which we live.

On the other hand, Paul says we should be “made like” Christ in Romans 8:29.

The first word for conformed is about exterior structures which are not permanent.

The second suggests we are conformed to Christ in essense or in form.

2. The Process of Transformation

by the renewing - anakainosis: the act of reestablishing something in a like-new and often improved manner.

of your mind

There is another force working to change you! The Word of God!

notice:

3. The Purpose of Transformation

notice: