Romans CH 12

A Little Recap

In this Chapter

He’s going to give us examples of what it means to Serve God with our physical body ,

with Spiritual Gifts and How those compliment the Body of Christ

Then finally He’s going to tell Us what its like to Behave Like a christian

In chapter 10 we learned about Salvation; and How one is brought unto Salvation

In other words How someone accepts Christ

The Jews believed that it was by their works rejecting Jesus as the Messiah

But Paul taught us that Salvation was a gift through our faith and belief that Jesus died on the cross

these both are contrary to one another

Then ch 11 We read that Not all the Jews were Lost ; there was a remnant left of Jews that believed that Jesus was the Messiah

Their rejection of christ was not the end ; it was going to be used for Gods Glory , it was not the final ending

So this Leads us into CH 12

Again Paul is going to paint these pictures using our Bodies , and spiritual Gifts ; then He’s going to explain to us what its like to Behave Like a christian

Lets begin

keep in mind He’s speaking to the Jews and the Gentiles that know the Lord

SACRIFICE

Romans 12:1 “1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”

As believers we need to understand that our bodies here on earth are not ours

they are a sacrifice to be used for God and His glory and for His kingdom

this is a really awesome topic because as humans and our human nature we think we own ourselves

being a believer calls us to be a living sacrifice to the Kingdom of God the opposite of what we naturally think

Offering our bodies to God and dedicating them to Him is a form of worship ;

this is a great topic that were going to camp out on for a few minutes.

What do we do with our bodies here on earth ?

when reading this i was thinking about it and all the many ways we use our bodies for the world

the world uses an earthly body for many wrong reasons

we see people abusing their bodies and giving into the flesh when they should be using their Bodies for the Lord

so lets brake this down a little bit

Paul gives us some really awesome application in the first two verses

(VS1) Earthly bodies sacrificed to the world ;

earthly bodies are abused with alcohol

with partying

with drugs

with pornography

with selfish ambition

with food ! what we eat and put into our bodies; How good are you to Gods kingdom if you are a medical nightmare because you didn’t take care of your health ?

how can you be of good use if your laid up in the Hospital ? or stuck at home on a breathing machine

obviously some things are true medical conditions but other “conditions” are self inflicted

earthly bodies are abused in the pursuit of becoming rich

earthly bodies are abused with sexual sin

earthly bodies are abused in the work place

earthly bodies are always being abused in some way or another that doesn’t Glorify God

we do things that don’t help the kingdom rather they affect the kingdom

when you look at the way we treat our bodies it’s all for earthly gain

What can I get out of it ?

How is it going to satisfy my flesh ?

Ill do this for that ,

People are willing to do stupid things for Money ; look at how the world glorifies people offering their bodies as sacrifices to the world

we glorify women that show their bodies in a way that is very sensual

look at commercials on tv and ads online , all of it is the exact opposite of what God is calling us to do

People are willing to act like animals if it means they will gain earthly riches and Gods word is very clear about this

Mark 8:36–37 “36 For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? 37 Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?”

what are you willing to do to your body for earthly treasures ? are you willing to do the same for God ?

Another thing we can talk about from this one verse that for what ever reason has become controversial is abortion

I don’t understand why its controversial

the whole “MY BODY MY CHOICE”is the exact opposite of what Paul is saying here, we are a sacrifice to God in this earthly vessel

As a christian when you develop your walk you realize how much your body is not your body

God is the giver of Life and the sustainer of Life

Psalm 139:14 “14 I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.”

John 1:3 “3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.”

Colossians 1:16–17 “16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.”

We don’t get to decide who lives and who dies , God does

He created us and we should be willing to offer our self for service to Him

1 Corinthians 6:19–20 “19 Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? 20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.”

Our bodies are a temple and they are not ours ! we have to take care of it for the Kingdom of God.

Ill end this with this if you were to borrow a friends car, How would you treat it ? would you drive it like you stole it or would you drive it like its a Lambo ? I would Hope you respect the vessel thats not yours

we have the ability to offer ourself as a sacrifice to God because of His mercy on us

Romans 12:2 “2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

this verse is carrying out how we are to offer ourselves as a sacrifice to the Lord

remember the sacrifice of our body here on earth is worship to the Lord

the world will always try to get us to be like it

but the opposite of the world we live in is to be “transformed by the renewing of your mind”

the way you don’t allow yourself to be conformed to the world is to constantly be washing your mind with Gods word

Gods word is the only thing that has the power to transform someones mind

our thoughts and actions easily are consumed by the world but Gods word has the ability to rewire that

you just have to sacrifice what ever that looks like in your life to the Lord

when we are renewing our mind; it will be evident in our life because you will be Living in the will of God

the more we sacrifice ourself to the lord , the more clear his path for our life becomes

Serve

Romans 12:3 “3 For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith.”

Our minds are renewed , now what ?

We serve God

but when we serve God we stay in our Lane

Paul Says “ not to think of Himself more Highly than he ought to think”

We are all guilty of doing this

if we are serving God we should be Humble about it

Pride has a way of sneaking in even in an area that God has blessed for His members such as spiritual Gifts

When we serve God , if we make it about ourselves then we will go down a road of thinking to Highly about ourselves

we can develop an entitled attitude about who we are because we know God has gifted us in an are or with a certain spiritual Gift

Just because we have spiritual Gifts doesn’t mean we are spiritually mature

we have to be honest with ourselves when it comes to How God uses us

our pride thinks we are greater than we are

but thats what Paul is warning us about here

think “soberly Minded”

we can not leave room for pride when it comes to serving the Body

Ive been helping in Ministry for 6 years now ; when people get this wrong and make it about themselves they get weird

they get bitter , and they become entitled; and people who stay in their lane can see right through it

Just because someone has the gift of teaching doesn’t mean they should be a pastor

Just because someone is gifted in a certain area doesn’t mean they are gifted in all areas

Pauls going to affirm that in vs 4

Romans 12:4 “4 For as we have many members in one body, but all the members do not have the same function,”

Romans 12:5 “5 so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.”

as members of God there are a lot of us

each one of us has a special function , not the same function

so with all of us that are gifted in different areas and have different functions/ purposes

we are made one with the Body of christ and we all belong to each-other as His Body

Christ is our common ground and our standard when it comes to serving God

Romans 12:6 “6 Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, let us prophesy in proportion to our faith;”

Romans 12:7 “7 or ministry, let us use it in our ministering; he who teaches, in teaching;”

Romans 12:8 “8 he who exhorts, in exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness.”

Gifts are given to us by the Grace of God

by His choice not ours

His gifts are not given to us because we’ve been a good christian , its simply because He chose to give them to us

1 Corinthians 12:11 “11 But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills.”

thats why when you see people promote themselves in ministry it gets weird

if God has a calling on your life you will know

if he doesn’t and your placing yourself in those areas you are not called it never ends well

it’ll just get weird

but Lets brake some of these down

Prophesying ; prophesying isn’t always telling the future , it is knowing who God is and telling people who God is

we have to be careful with this one because it can be easy to throw Gods name around

vs 7 Ministry ; serving others , we should serve others well

we should have a heart to serve not be burdened by serving

thats when you know someone is serving outside of what God has called them to do.

Teaching ; teach well ; James 3:1 “1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.”

yes as christians we should all be able to teach to some degree, but again that doesn’t mean you will be a pastor or that you should be

(Expound)

Exhorts Or (Exhortation) in other words building someone up not bringing them down

Hebrews 3:13 “13 but exhort one another daily, while it is called “Today,” lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin.”

you can correct someone with exhortation

for example instead of saying the bush boys suck at baseball i can say hey, your really good at hitting , let me help teach you to pitch.

exhortation is a hard one at times

He who Gives ; people who are givers have a great understanding that it is better to give than to receive

it is a blessing and a compliment to the body of christ

Acts 20:35 “35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

He who Leads ; lead responsibly; every great leader at some point had to learn how to be a submissive follower

again leading is something that can be corrupted by us thinking too highly of ourself like Paul said in vs 3

leaders who don’t lead responsibly lead with pride and selfish agendas

that wont work in the body of christ for long

if they aren’t pointing you to Jesus and are exploiting people because of their leadership position they got it wrong

(Expound) Leaders that don’t point to Jesus

He who shows Mercy

showing mercy is to be done with the right heart , with a kind heart

Behave

Romans 12:9 “9 Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil. Cling to what is good.”

true love is not hypocritical ; it doesn’t say one thing and do another

stay away from evil and hate evil ; you develop a new way of thinking and you learn to hate sin and Love God

cling to what is good , what is good ? God word and his promises to us

Romans 12:10 “10 Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another;”

have good manners towards each other

when we have this heart that is being developed by renewing our mind , we shouldn’t look at other believers and be anything other than kind and affectionate

our kindness and affection should be genuine not fake !

its awkward when people are fake true love toward each other is what God wants amongst His body

Romans 12:11 “11 not lagging in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord;”

don’t be lazy , be diligent in your walk with the Lord

be affective for the body

Lazy christians don’t expand the body of christ

Hard work pays off

at the end of life we all want to hear the words from Matthew 25:23 “23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’”

Romans 12:12 “12 rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation, continuing steadfastly in prayer;”

having our hope with the view of heaven in mind

we have the hope of heaven even during tribulation ; Hard times shouldn’t get in the way of the hope we have

always pray ; the power of prayer gives us communion with God and Gives us Hope !

Romans 12:13 “13 distributing to the needs of the saints, given to hospitality.”

help fellow believers , christians are servants , again our bodies are living sacrifices to the Lord

we get to worship God through helping others

these things are a blessing to us and to the Lord

hospitality , bring people into your world , its showing love to strangers

love is an action not just a feeling

Romans 12:14 “14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.”

hating people is not what we are called to do

we are to love them unconditionally

praying for those who persecute you will change your heart toward them

Romans 12:15 “15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”

being considerate of others

if we go back and look at what Paul said again to transform our mind we will develop a love for others and we will be considerate of them

their feelings is apart of that

regarding the feelings of others again is a form of love and proof that God is working in the transforming of your mind

Romans 12:16 “16 Be of the same mind toward one another. Do not set your mind on high things, but associate with the humble. Do not be wise in your own opinion.”

Imitating Jesus is what this is saying , What Did Jesus do ?

He was a humble man , he wasn’t a proud

Jesus wasn’t running around with pride telling everyone what he was going to do

He loved people, especially ordinary people , He wasn’t hanging out with Kings and queens

He was having dinner with tax collectors

and then don’t be a know it all

Just because we have google and youtube doesn’t mean we know everything

Romans 12:17 “17 Repay no one evil for evil. Have regard for good things in the sight of all men.”

two wrongs don’t make a right

you will never win someone over if your repaying evil for evil

Proverbs 17:14 “14 The beginning of strife is like releasing water; Therefore stop contention before a quarrel starts.”

make a good reputation for yourself as being someone who doesn’t start stuff , be someone who is honorable

Romans 12:18 “18 If it is possible, as much as depends on you, live peaceably with all men.”

Be at peace with everyone

do what ever it takes to be at peace

the opposite of peace is conflict

conflict in life does not allow you to live in peace !

Romans 12:19 “19 Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord.”

Vengeance is the Lords

God is in control of all things , Battles are won by running to the Lord

He is the one who will bring vengeance

Vengeance through the lord is better than vengeance through man

God is Just and we have to trust that

Romans 12:20 “20 Therefore “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; If he is thirsty, give him a drink; For in so doing you will heap coals of fire on his head.””

Kindness kills evil

if you are kind to your enemy it will destroy the hardness in their heart and make them your friend

of course it doesn’t always happen over night but continual kindness and love will win over the heart of a hardened person

Romans 12:21 “21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Do good to conquer evil

again when you do good, evil Has no Place

So as christians as believers , as Vessels for Christ

we are to Sacrifice our Bodies for the Kingdom; recognizing that we have these bodies to be used for the Work of God

then we are to Use these bodies and our Minds that are renewed by Gods word , to SERVE in the body of christ with the Gifting’s He has given us.

And then Finally we are to BEHAVE like Jesus, People are watching, God Sees us