Renewed Minds

Introduction

Through the fall we are working through the three themes that came out of our discussions in the Mission Edge Church process in the spring. When we came together as a church to try to discern God’s leading for the future the word “connection” kept coming up. We summed up our thoughts in a vision statement that says we will seek to be a people who connect to God, each other, and our community.

We’re in the “connecting to each other” section for the second week. Last week the book of Colossians had some thoughts on how the church can be a second family marked by peace and unity. Today we look to the book of Romans for some thoughts on the roles within the Church and the actions and attitudes that make it a positive community. And these good things require – according to today’s passage - the renewing of our minds.

I listen to a lot of podcasts as I do the dishes or pack lunches or mow the lawn or various other things that occupy my hands more than my brain, and lately I’ve found that a lot of very different authors and scholars and commentators are wondering if societies like ours can keep going the way they’re going much longer. Today we have an abundance of material goods. We have technology that can help us overcome all kinds of problems. There are opportunities like never before for people to pursue so many different paths through life. Our ancestors from even a century ago, let alone two or three, would be stunned at what is possible in 2023.

But our ancestors might also be stunned by how we think about certain things, and not in a good way. I came across this quote from the philosopher Aristotle and just sat with the contrast to the direction of our culture today: “Every man should be responsible to others, nor should any one be allowed to do just as he pleases; for where absolute freedom is allowed, there is nothing to restrain the evil which is inherent in every man.”

That’s a controversial statement in a modern world where absolute freedom is becoming the top priority. Having largely removed God from the public consciousness I think we’ve ended up with a society where many people don’t feel that they owe one another very much, and don’t think they should have to endure anything painful. Sacrifice has gone out of style.

Instead much of our thinking has become very short-term. What will make me the most happy, or help me avoid pain in this moment? That’s what I’ll do, regardless of what that might mean down the road. Do you know someone who thinks this way?

So what’s going to happen as our world changes even faster, technology gets more and more powerful, and people become increasingly unwilling to sacrifice for a higher purpose and are less capable of simply doing hard things?

I’m not going to offer a prophecy about the future, but I think it will, at the very least, be bumpy. But there’s hope – because God so loved the world He sent His Son so that whoever believes in Him can have eternal life.

The Church is in this world to live the Jesus way, and help others see that this way is much better than the current thinking of our culture. We have the Bible and the Spirit to show us the way to live in this age. The question is whether or not we are willing to sacrifice anything to actually to live as followers of Jesus, or whether we will just go along with the wider world.

Romans 12 is a powerful chapter to speak to this question – it tells us what it looks like to have the renewed mind of a Christian and how that plays out in churches. Churches are the alternative community we are called to build, for our own sake and as a refuge for people who are looking for something better because they’ve realized that the world’s way doesn’t deliver on its promises.

Renewing Minds

Today’s passage has three main sections, so I’ll start with just verses 1 and 2. Romans 12 starts with a big “Therefore”, because this is a major transition in the book. The first 11 chapters focused on the theology of God’s redemption by Jesus Christ. Paul makes a detailed case for how we are sinners, condemned by the law of sin and death, and helpless to change this. But God rescued us, in the words of Romans 8 “by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering… Christ Jesus who died – more than that, who was raised to life – is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.”

In this teaching we are also repeatedly told that there is this battle raging between the flesh and the Spirit, or between the things of this world and the things of God. “The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace… The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law nor can it do so…”

These ideas get picked up right away when we move into Romans 12, where the practical and ethical aspects of all of this become the focus. So the “therefore” kind of means “If we believe that God has done all of this for us in Christ, we must do what He says. Here’s what that looks like…”

Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God – this is your true and proper worship.

The language of sacrifice connects to the sacrificial system of the Old Testament. To place an animal on the altar at that time was a way of showing your dedication to God. But now, rather than taking a life to offer as a sacrifice, we’re told to give ours. It’s making the decision to dedicate your life, in full, to God. All that I am, and all that I have, I dedicate to God in view of his mercy toward me.

Faith is journey, one where growth is sometimes very gradual, but it’s a journey that requires a decision. Will I offer my very self to God from this moment on?

And sometimes we need to remind ourselves of the decision we’ve made. As Rick Warren once wrote, the problem with living offerings is that they tend to crawl off the altar!

There is that tension between the mind governed by the flesh and the mind governed by the Spirit. What we believe and the way we train ourselves to think are vital. 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 of what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Followers of Jesus must not be squeezed into the world’s mold. God loves this world, but for now evil has power over it. Our world’s values and goals are not aligned with our growth and godliness. The Church is not supposed to fit in.

Christians are called to be “salt” and “light”, people who purify and enlighten their cultures. To do that we are called to let ourselves continue to be transformed by the renewing of our minds.

This requires what one scholar calls “spiritual input” from God’s Word, prayer, and Christian fellowship. Or, as we’ve been saying, connecting to God and each other!

Consider for a moment about the amount of input the world gets into the way you think – how many advertisements and shows and videos and songs and news programs and articles and conversations reach your mind each day to pass a little bit of the way the world thinks? Thanks to technology the world has never had such constant access to our minds as it does today.

Once you’ve done a little math on that, think about how much “spiritual input” you get in a typical day. How much Bible engagement, or theology input, or times of prayer or silence or meditation or worship? I’m not saying that it’s a fair fight and that you have to have more hours of spiritual input than the world’s input to be a good follower of Jesus.

But if the world gets almost all of your attention in a given day and God gets next to none, then you will not likely experience the renewing of your mind. And that means you won’t even be able to tell the difference between what is of God and what is of the world.

Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. This comes through being transformed by the renewing of our minds.

That’s the foundation the rest of today’s passage is built on. You offer your life – not a bit of your time and attention and identity – your very self as a living sacrifice. Go “all-in” to use a poker term, and reject the world’s way of seeing and doing things. Open yourself up to God’s input and let that transform your mind so that you can recognize God’s will, which is always good for you and those around you.

Part Of The Body

Next, from verses 3-8, we have a bunch of commands and instructions for people who choose to do this, particularly when they join together in religious community.

First up – down with pride.Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. You probably don’t want me to quote dozens more Bible verses telling us how dangerous and destructive pride is, but they’re in there. Being humble doesn’t just mean “not being arrogant”, it involves having good self-understanding.

It’s good to know what you’re good at, and give God the glory. And it’s important to know what you’re not good at, and not to pretend otherwise! Besides giving a sense of peace and confidence this also allows you to work well with others.

And we should desire to work well with others within the Church, which the Bible describes as a body with different parts working in harmony. We all belong to Jesus, and He connects us together into a body with many members [parts] who belong to each other.

For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

Our passage then speaks of some of the gifts given to different parts of the body to allow people to cooperate in important ways that the Church needs. Several lists like this are included in different New Testament letters and none of them are exactly the same, but they demonstrate some of the key functions found in the body of Christ.

Prophesying comes first. A prophet, in the New Testament context, was someone who had the level of faith and spiritual discernment to speak for God in certain ways or certain times. That’s the kind of gift that also requires considerable wisdom and good character.

Next we see some gifts that you might expect: if it serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

I’m not going to do in-depth explanation of all of these. I think you have a pretty decent idea of what practical service to others might look like, whether that’s driving someone to the grocery store or ushering at church.

Encouragement can be choosing to regularly uplift someone – like being a church buddy – or calling around to give a boost to anyone who sounds like they are feeling down.

Leadership is not meant to be a flashy calling – it’s really just serving, but with more responsibility, which calls for making every effort to be careful and competent.

Showing mercy is helping the afflicted – working at the homeless shelter or helping with food bank donations, visiting the sick and dying, or caring for an aging family member. The key addition here is to do it cheerfully, not grudgingly.

The only thing I’d add to this, is that no member of the body of Christ lacks gifts. There are no Christians who cannot, God helping them, serve humbly or teach capably or encourage others or give generously or show mercy. Any Jesus-follower who has dedicated themselves to God, every living sacrifice, can and will do some of these things in the world and in the life of the church according to their capacity.

If you believe what the Bible tells us Jesus has done for us – if you have experienced the reality of God’s grace in your life – these things flow rather naturally. But, and this is important, sometimes acting this way before you’re convinced about Jesus or before you’ve sensed God’s grace and presence in your life, helps put you on the path to experiencing this.

This passage describes behaviors that those who truly believe will want to act out. But they are also behaviors that can be acted out first to help lead someone to the gift of faith. Or they are behaviors that can help re-awaken dormant faith. By doing what you were created to do, and doing it alongside people of faith, you may start to think about some things differently, and see God at work in a new way.

The question isn’t whether you have a role to play in Jesus’ Church – you do. The question is whether or not you are doing it. And, once again, it doesn’t have to be flashy or dramatic or all-consuming. But any Christian in a church should have a sense of what their service is to that part of Christ’s body.

They hopefully know the value of their presence – that simply showing up matters.

They should know the importance of prayer – prayer for the church, its leaders, its ministry efforts – and this can be done regardless of physical capabilities.

They have practical ways they contribute to what is happening – making the coffee, turning off the lights, fixing the sticking doors.

They know that their giving matters – both to the church’s ability to do its work and as an act of faithfulness befitting a living sacrifice – someone who has dedicated their whole life to Christ.

How do you function as part of the body?

Love

On to the last section, verses 9-13. And, just like last week, the vital importance of love comes up. It’s all empty words without love for God and one another.

Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.

Be devoted to one another in love. Honour one another above yourselves.

There are two forms of this love I would hope to find among followers of Jesus. One is the love that produces genuine warmth and affection – the kind that makes you feel good when you show up and know that these people love and care about me.

The other kind is the love we chose to stick to, even when we’re fed up with someone. It’s the love that refuses to bad-mouth them to others, that tries to preserve relationship in times of difficulty, that gives second chances, or that speaks up for someone’s good qualities even when you are in disagreement. Honour one another above yourselves.

Next: Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Spiritual fervor and zeal are passion words, these are about how much our faith animates or motivates us. And notice where this passion comes from – not from enthusiastic worship or inspiring teaching but from “serving the Lord.” Participating in the work of the church and serving God as we go through life sustains spiritual fervor.

Now verse 12: Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. This is something to tie back to the renewing of our minds, because these instructions don’t mesh with the times we’re living in. Joyful in hope and patient in affliction are not the attitudes I see very much of when I walk around town or listen to our media.

I sense of lot of fatigue and worry. A lot of people are dreading what the future might hold, whether that is old age, economic struggles, or war and climate change and whatever else might be coming. They’re not feeling joy and hope for a good future. And, because of that, it’s harder to bear pain and loss.

Today people want therapeutic answers to their issues – give me the counseling, medication, vacation, or distraction. I need to stop feeling this pain or discomfort.

Those things all have their place, but life just doesn’t allow for us to avoid suffering. Sometimes we have to experience it, try to make sense of it, and grow through it. Which takes patience.

Christians believe that there is always reason for hope. God may intervene to change even the most dire situation. And, ultimately, we trust God to make all things new – to redeem His creation and, as Tolkien once put it, “make everything sad come untrue.”

This allows us to have joy in our hope for what is coming, even as we wait. Prayer empowers us in doing this – not conforming to the pattern of our world but being transformed by the renewing of our minds.

Last verse for today: Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Help your church family when they need it. Make space for others – invite them to your home or out for a meal or to do something together. Look for ways to include those who aren’t well connected.

These sound very basic, but don’t underestimate their importance. I see a lot of Christians who get really fired up about fine points of theology and what the Bible says about this very specific thing and about certain political and social issues to the point that they are devoting a lot of time and energy toward these things. And it makes me wonder if that’s leaving anything for charity and hospitality, which the Bible tells us over and over again are vitally important and expected of any true believer.

In Matthew 25 Jesus teaches about people who imagine themselves to be His followers but don’t practice charity and hospitality: “I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me… Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me. Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”

Conclusion

I’m not sure how to present a conclusion to this apart from raising the question: which way will you choose to live?

One way is the way of this world. Our culture misuses science to tell us that we are random accidents and everything is ultimately meaningless. So think mainly about yourself and think short-term. What will bring pleasure today? What will avoid pain or discomfort today? That’s what’s good and right for me, and I should be free to do whatever I desire.

The other way is the way of Jesus. It’s a way that declares that you, and everything else, is the creation of a loving God who cared enough about humanity to enter this world in the flesh as a sacrifice for our sin. And, having taken up His life again He gave us the promise of eternal life. God will redeem all things.

The Church seeks to live according to what Jesus taught, finding freedom not in doing whatever we want, but in doing what is actually good for human being to do!

If you want to live the world’s way, it’s easy. Do whatever seems good to you. Adopt whichever of the world’s values feels right. If those things don’t work out, blame others, I guess.

If you want to live Jesus’ way, in view of God’s mercy, offer yourself as a living sacrifice – this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…

Serve others and the church as God has gifted you. Love like Jesus loved. Honour one another above yourselves. Find joy in your future hope, and be patient in suffering. Be charitable and hospitable. This is the way.

What I really hope people won’t try to do is something in between. There are Christians who live as if there is a middle way, something half-way between being a living sacrifice and conforming to the pattern of this world. That’s where you value you identity as a Christian and probably go to church some of the time. You probably have some family tradition of faith. You think certain Christian values are good, or at least better than the world’s values. Maybe you do believe the Easter story.

But you’ve never actually put your life on the altar. You’re holding on to your freedom to do things your way, so you’ll pick and choose what to believe and how to behave. That’s not being a follower of Jesus. At most it’s being a fan of His. This can feel like Jesus’ way, but it’s actually just the world’s way with a decorative cross around its neck.

There’s no being transformed by the renewing of your mind – it’s just you calling the shots with no idea what God’s will is. There’s no deep connection to the body of Christ by willingly using your gifts or being devoted to the rest of the community in love.

There’s an expression that goes “Jesus is either Lord of all or not at all.” This “middle” path is saying “not at all.” The transformation and satisfaction and spiritual strength that human beings can have, that I think we need to thrive, come when we stop holding back, when we give up our veto power, and decide that we will dedicate ourselves to Jesus.

Two thousand years of Christians have known this. Let’s not forget now. Because if we forget we will never connect to one another in love and service to form a church worth blessing. If we forget then we can’t be a place of refuge for people who want a better way.

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. Do not conform to the pattern of this word, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will able to test and approve of what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.