A Member Of The Body Of Christ

Children’s Bible Page 1233

During the month of January, we are focusing on covenant renewal as members of this church, and I’m going to talk about what that means more today.

You know, I say a lot around here that in trusting the gospel, God does not only save us from our sin, but He adopts us into His family - the church.

Let me begin this morning with a bold statement: the Bible knows nothing of a born again believer in Jesus Christ who is disinterested, disconnected, or at best very casual toward God’s church.

The Bible does not say what sometimes our Christian culture says when it comes to the church.

Our culture says that you can love and follow Jesus apart from the church.

Many Christians believe you can have a good and vibrant relationship with Jesus apart from the church.

There would even be many so called mission minded Christians who work for mission agencies or college campus ministries who believe they can fulfill the mission of God better than the church can, and that the church is actually a hindrance to the mission of God.

But I want you to grasp this and never forget it: the church is not a building, and the church is not a religious social club, and the church is not a provider of spiritual goods and services for those who find it helpful to their spiritual lives.

No, the church of Jesus Christ is a people.

The church of Jesus Christ is the people who have responded to the glorious gospel of God’s grace and forgiveness by repenting of their sin and trusting in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.

The church is the people of God, all who have been saved by His grace and adopted into his family.

That’s why the Bible calls the church: the body of Christ, the bride of Christ, the household of God, the family of God, the flock of God.

Now, because God’s church is the adoptive family of all who genuinely put their faith in Christ, we realize that there is this reality of the universal church.

What we mean by that is every genuine born again believer is part of the family of God universally, no matter where you find yourself in the world.

But, the universal church is only part of the reality of the church we see in the Bible.

In God’s word, we also see all over the place that God’s universal people come together in what we call the local church.

And every local church is defined by a group of baptized believers who regularly gather together under the authority of God’s word and the Lordship of Jesus Christ in order to worship Him through preaching, prayer, singing, baptism, and taking of the Lord’s Supper.

And the Bible prescribes two biblical offices for church leadership which are the pastor/elders and the deacons.

Elders are to serve the church by teaching, protecting, leading, equipping and caring for the local body of believers.

Deacons are to lead out in service to the practical needs of the local body.

And, because God has set up local bodies of believers in this way, every genuine believer should be a member of a local church.

Now, for anyone who would say, “Well, becoming a member of a local church is not important. The Bible never commands me specifically to become a member of a local church.”

I just want you to consider two quick things.

One, if God sets out church leadership such as pastor/elders and commands believers to submit to their leaders, if you do not need to be a member of a local church, does that mean you are called of God to submit to the leadership of every single Christian leader in the world who calls themselves pastor?

Also, when the book of Hebrews tells pastors that they will give an account for the souls under their care, does that mean when I get to heaven, I am going to be accountable for the souls of every person I ever met, every soul that ever attended one service I preached at, every soul period?

Well, no, it means I will give an account of those who are a member of the local church I am called to oversee and love and care for under the authority of Jesus Christ, the chief shepherd.

And listen, I know as some of you are hearing this, you are probably thinking, man, it’s easy for a pastor to stand up in the pulpit and tell everybody that they ought to submit themselves to church leadership and his authority, what a scam!

But listen, one thing I want to acknowledge is the fact that I understand that church can be extremely scary and difficult.

It is scary to commit yourself to a group of people who will sometimes hurt and disappoint you.

It is scary to submit yourself to leaders who are humans just like you are and who are certainly not perfect just like you are.

Church is tough for me sometimes!

But here is what we have to be sure of: we have to be sure that God is good and His word is true, and no matter what God takes us through in this life, he promises that ultimately it will be for our good and his glory.

And being hurt and disappointed by others is sometimes the very things God uses to grow us in Christlikeness and dependance on God and not ourselves.

And if the local church is God’s idea, then who are we to say we will not be members of it?

Also, our church is committed to having a plurality of elder pastors to sharpen one another, teach one another, and hold one another accountable.

We also seek to stick to the word of God in our teaching and preaching and major on what the Bible majors on and minor on everything else.

Okay, with that said,

We are going to look at Romans 12:1-8 for a few moments, and I am going to lead us to make application from these verses to our covenant membership as we focus on covenant renewal in the month of January,

So would you follow along with me?

Romans 12:1–8

1 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. 2 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.

3 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. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. 6 Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 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.

1. Offer Yourself As A Sacrifice To God

Notice, God through Paul is making a strong appeal in these verses, just like I am seeking to make a strong appeal to those who are Christians but are not church members to consider becoming members, and those who are members to take your covenant membership with a renewed excitement, joy, and commitment.

Yet, we must see that the foundation of this appeal is laid upon the mercies of God.

God could have appealed based on his holiness, or his power, or the fact that he is the Creator of all things, but God in great love and grace appeals to us based on his great mercies.

If you think about the book of Romans, the first eleven chapters have expressed in brilliant detail just how broad, and high, and wide, and deep the love of God is and how super abundant God’s grace is toward those who have been saved through faith.

I know, we as a church have only gotten through chapter 5 so far in our series, but even then, we have seen the stunning nature of the magnitude of God’s grace and favor that He has placed on us through lovingly sacrificing His Son in our place for our sins.

So, when God makes this appeal to us, it is not an appeal from a ruthless taskmaster who just wants to get everything He can out of you,

And it is not an appeal from a heartless judge who bases his love toward you based on if you have done more good than bad,

No, when God makes this appeal to us, it is an appeal from a loving Father who was willing to sacrifice His own Son in order to love you, forgive you, save you from sin and death, and adopt you into His family for both now and eternity.

So, what is this appeal from the most loving Father who wants the very best for you?

Present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

This kind of language of presenting our bodies before something has already been used in chapter 6, where Paul says that we used to present ourselves before sin, yet now we must by God’s grace, present ourselves before righteousness.

Because think about it: we are all always living for and sacrificing for something.

In our sin, we live and sacrifice in order to gain things like pleasure, control, power, money, and reputation.

Yet, now that you have been saved from your sin and its destruction, present your body to live and sacrifice for God and His worship.

By God’s grace, make your number one priority in life to live holy and acceptable to God.

Another way to say it is our purpose is to live in a way that glorifies and pleases God.

This is your spiritual worship.

Before you met Christ, you presented yourself to sin and worshipped and sacrificed for your own sinful desires leading to death and destruction.

But, now that your gracious Father has saved you from sin and its destruction through the death of His son, now present yourself fully to please God and sacrifice for Him.

This is so good for you, because it is the very thing God created you for - to find all of your needs met and desires satisfied in God alone as you live to glorify and please Him!

Jesus made it simple for us when He said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”

Keeping God’s commandments pleases Him, and we have the opportunity every moment of everyday by the grace of God to please him by obeying his commands.

Do you have a job or are you a student in school?

Colossians 3:23–24

23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

Do you have a wife?

Ephesians 5:25

25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,

Do you have a husband?

Ephesians 5:22

22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.

Have you heard the gospel message for your salvation?

Acts 2:38

38 And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Listen, the point I am making is that sometimes we put off pleasing God by obeying His commands, because we say things like, “I just need to wait for God to tell me what He wants me to do. Oh, if only God would make clear to me what His will is for me then I would do it.”

But, listen, God’s will for you is not something that is lost and needs to be found.

God’s will is that you trust him for salvation through the cross and resurrection of Jesus, then by His grace, obey His commands.

I promise. There are enough clear commands in the New Testament to joyfully fill the rest of your life as you live in the pleasure of God.

Verse 2 helps us dive further into what it looks like to live a life pleasing to God.

First, we stop being conformed to the patterns of this world.

Let’s think again on being a covenant member of God’s church and how the patterns of this world’s thinking keep people from being obedient.

Listen to this quote from a pastor named Alfred Poirier:

“Our failure to see local church membership from a covenantal perspective is ultimately the result of buying into the lie from the Enlightenment period that faith is merely a private affair between our hearts and God. We have little sense of the corporate dimension of our faith, our responsibilities toward our brothers and sisters, our respect for church authorities, or the earnest care we ought to have for wayward Christians. Whatever the church may seem to us when we gather together on Sunday to worship in our solemn assemblies, at heart we are loners, each turned inward and traveling our separate ways. In short, we are a people who give no significance or value to body life, much less covenant membership, if we give it any thought at all.”

You see, we are so naturally conformed to the world that we are tempted to think about church the same way we think about being a member at a golf club or a gym.

If I choose to take the time, and if I think it will be good, enjoyable, and beneficial for me, I will go, but if I find something better to do or if it becomes too costly, I’ll just stop.

It’s really up to me. I’m the captain of my own ship here.

Back to verse 2, 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.

It pleased the Lord to save you from your sin and into God’s family - the church.

So when it comes to church, our question should not first be - is this enjoyable and beneficial to me?

The first question should be: is this pleasing to God?

The world does not understand giving up your rights and autonomy.

The world doesn’t understand submitting yourself to the care, counsel, leadership, and authority of others.

But these are things pleasing to God.

It is not easy or convenient to get baptized in front of the church.

It’s awkward and uncomfortable.

I want us to consider that when Jesus obeyed His Father and submitted himself to dying in our place for our sins he found joy in it, but it was anything but comfortable and convenient.

It did not make sense to the world, but for the joy set before him, He endured the cross.

When you say yes to pleasing God by obeying Him in baptism, God uses you as a dramatic picture of His gospel as a witness to His church.

You are buried as Christ was buried, you are raised to new life as Christ was raised.

You are affirmed in your faith as you make your faith public before the people of God.

Offer yourself as a sacrifice to God.

2. Think Of Yourself With Sober Judgment

Verse 3 - 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.

I love how Paul keeps referring back to the grace of God given to us, because as I preach a message like this one, I understand you could be sitting there saying to yourself, “Man, these are the kinds of sermons pastors love to preach.”

Be more committed to the church because it makes the pastor look good when he has a committed church.

Give money to the church because that money pays the pastor’s salary.

Get baptized because then the pastor can boast of more baptisms at the next denominational meeting.

I hope anyone who has been around here anytime at all knows we truly believe this is God’s church, and we are very careful not to guilt people into anything.

And we certainly want to be careful not to boast like we have achieved anything.

It is only by God’s grace that I stand here and preach His word to you.

It is only by God’s grace that He will empower you to obey Him.

Paul says next, by God’s grace, do not think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.

It takes humility and sober judgment to say, “I’ve got to do things God’s way, not my way.”

It takes humility and sober judgment to say, “I need to be a member of a local church. I need to be held accountable. I need to submit to some spiritual leadership. I need to grow in applying the gospel to every area of my life. I need to be served by the gifts of others in the body, and I need an avenue to serve the body with my gifts.”

I need to be willing to let others speak into my life, my marriage, my parenting, my attitude, and actions.

What does Paul mean when He writes, each according to the measure of faith that God assigned?

Well, first of all, while placing faith in Jesus is a personal necessity in order to be saved, you are placing your faith in a faith that has been held by many others throughout the world and throughout history, so you belong to a great church and legacy of others who are in the faith.

But also, as you consider the context of what Paul writes just after this verse, when you place your faith in Jesus, God gifts you spiritual gifts in measure.

Not everyone has all the gifts and certainly no one as all the gifts in full measure.

Instead, we are interdependent on one another in order to experience the fullness of Christ and service to His mission together.

We don’t want to be co-dependent where we demand certain things of each other or we will not be able to fulfill our covenant commitment.

But, neither are we independent of one another, believing we can experience the fullness of Christ and life on our own.

Instead, we are interdependent of one another as we all bring to the table the faith and gifts that make us a whole healthy body of Christ.

So, think of yourself with sober judgment.

Finally,

3. Serve The Church As A Member Of The Body Of Christ

Verses 4-5: For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, 5 so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another.

Just as the members of our physical body all do unique functions, they are all interdependent on one another in order to keep the whole body alive and functioning properly.

And we are individually members of one another.

While this can be applied to the universal church, it also has to be applied at the local level where we all come together and bring our unique gifts in order to strengthen one another.

Not only that we are members of one another.

Which means, we are linked to one another, held accountable to one another, take responsibility for one another.

When one suffers, we all suffer.

When one rejoices, we all rejoice.

Verses 6-8: Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; 7 if service, in our serving; the one who teaches, in his teaching; 8 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.

So, we as members of the church have different gifts in order to serve the church.

You know, one thing we do here at Christ Covenant Church is that we don’t allow anyone who is not a member to serve in our ministries.

And listen, that has nothing to do with trying to be exclusive or stuck up or anything like that.

Honestly, practically and pragmatically, it makes things more challenging because we could always use all the help we could get.

But we do it because we would never want anyone to think that they can earn the favor of God by serving the church, no salvation comes first.

God’s grace comes first, God does everything necessary to save you from your sin and into God’s family the church.

I’m certainly not saying you can’t be saved if you are not a member of a local church, I’m not saying that, but I am saying that it is members committed to the body through their public profession of faith, their baptism, and their covenant commitment that opens the doors for all the joys and privileges of the body, and serving is one of the main joys and privileges church.

We also do it because those who serve understand that we are individually members of one another, and we are held accountable to one another and we submit to the leadership of Christ and the leadership of the pastors under Christ as long as they are in line with God’s word.

There is safety and unity in a serving body who has formally committed themselves to these biblical truths.

You know, I think it is helpful to understand that all believers have a spiritual gift and all the gifts are needed to function in Christ’s body.

In the different places in the Bible where there is a list of spiritual gifts, all the lists are a little different, and none of the lists mention all of them.

It seems this is intentional so that we would not focus ourselves so much on one certain gift, but that we would honor all different kinds of gifts that God has given different people to serve God’s church and its mission in the world.

But notice from the text, whatever ways you are passionate about and gifted in the church, go all in!

Paul says to serve with zeal and with cheerfulness!

The true nature of the church makes no sense to the world!

It’s why I say in the Foundations class, if you have not experienced the transforming power of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the church would be the absolute worst club you could ever be a part of.

It’s a club that is going to prioritize the glory of God and the needs of others over yourself.

It’s a club that calls you to sacrifice and serve.

But, in Christ, being a member of God’s church is the most privileged and blessed place you can be, and God is going to use His church to help you grow your faith, exalt Christ, be equipped to follow Him and minister to others, and be a part of taking the gospel to those in our neighborhoods, our state, and around the world.

So how do you desire to grow in God’s grace through the covenant this year?

(Talk about a few ways in covenant)

(If you need to know Christ)

Elder at couch