003-Romans 12:1-2: God-Centered/UP

Hey Francis, is Ryan Smith? Pastor comments re Church. Hope that you're having a good day today. And today is Monday play the snow having a good time. It is cold out there, but we are in a series here in our in our broadcast. We're calling this says we're walking through the book of Romans backwards actually, and the title of our series is the is the best of Romans replacing power and privilege with peace and the concept here as we don't want to keep the Vicious Cycle a power being replaced with more power. But by offering a different way a third way of living if you will and Paul is teaching his understand Jesus teachings in this but Jesus teachings was this constant through peace. Does that look like right and how is that practical that's kind of what we're wrestling with an Aldis in the end. We talked about that yesterday an hour a little deeper into some of this as well the last who learned that this came through. This was concept of peace came through and buy clothing yourself with Christ said to be able to love in this radical way you had first clothe yourself with Christ for Paul. This is all about a a live theology theology. How do you live now? How what is how has your life changed now? Not what is it going to look like in the future wasn't going to look for all eternity. But this this book is about what it means to be present Romans Paul teaches this live theology for Paul. This means being transformed to be more like Jesus and so close. Yourself you close closed closed yourself with Christ this concept that you are changing that you are called to be something more about strive to be perfect. Right? Cuz sometimes when we talked, we we hear people say that you that you're to live this way to turn off just on the table and shoot ourselves in the foot the beginning. This isn't about perfection quotes about being something different being more what you were created to be his so you'll for somebody so, you know, William say okay or something a little bit different. It's even though it's a college to Perfection. It is still colonists to something radical something different than what the world has to offer. What does it mean to be transformed like Christ in chapters 12 through 16. Paul doesn't really like A B C or D. But he does he does get markers and what it looks like to be transferred through heat transfer like Christ knows there's three chapters in Fallujah been around common thread for a little while. You're going to hear a theme that we use a lot is not made up by us. But something greater and deeper god-centered. I met your life is focused towards something greater than you for anything. This world something spiritual something to buy is the concept of God or Yahweh.

Jesus concept of the triangle and now and so today the concept is the relationship with the Divine with god with Yahweh. And so for Paul to be god-centered, it looks like this run use Romans 12 1 through 2 to kind of dinosaur is therefore 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 patterns of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you'll be able to test and approve what's God's will is his good pleasing and perfect will and so this concept of a being God centered at least two verses in the first one the first thought on how to be God singer to work on your Is this idea of sacrifice? You know in the first one you see the word Living Sacrifice and so to offer our bodies as Living Sacrifice. What is this come from first to offer your bodies a Living Sacrifice you have to first recognized that there's a transforming power out there not because of you but because of God write it says so in there it says in view of God's mercy or God's mercy and grace and mercy actually plural and so it can actually it should be by the mercies of God and so sacrifice happens we sacrificed because of God's goodness to the undeserving today idolatrous to the disobedient to the symbol for the God has mercy first. And then sacrifice can happen not because of who we are how great we are because of what God has done. Is so we going Paul introduces this idea of Living Sacrifice This Is A New Concept. This is a radical remember when this was written in what's going on. He's talking to the the the church the home churches in Rome during the Roman Empire a charge right is so Roman people understand the concept of sacrifice for them. It was usually the offering of animals are grains to gods and in the local shrines are temples put in a Christian sacrifice in in this concept the sacrifice that Paul's introducing is embodied is an embodied way of life offered to the invisible, but the ever-present God so is his actual living that you're offering your actual body as a way of life.

Is your sacrifice so when you speak when you listen when you Embrace eat drink love have sexual relations guide children offer wisdom work Garden pay taxes offer visible expressions of care respect approve disapprove pray for Tissa Peyton fellowship and worship instruction instruction this list to keep going and when you do these things your sacrifice is your embodied life you're living life. It's what we talked about sacrifice. He says that this is your your spiritual act of worship your proper activewear surfeiting this concept spiritual almost seems like we're getting out the embodies challenges. What will worship in spiritual are is it from many people worship is is only the singing portion of the Sunday Services, right? But this verse is saying are embodied daily life is our worship is replacing ordinary Roman acts of sacrificing their home or on the public altars with Christ form lives. And so as being God centered we begin to 2 to give our bodies as a Living Sacrifice and then inverse to he he talks about his concept of the Transformers that you're transformed by the renewing of your mind. Now, this word transformation has come into our English language as the word metamorphosis know if you can see this this picture on here that metamorpho. There is the word metamorphosis is that concept of change exist in science Hall over as his ideas this change and for us and it's his chain from and so and there's our mind is always being challenged to be change brightness of the world. The outside world to change your mind. So it exerts pressure from within but the Holy Spirit changes your mind power from within the world controls your thinking. Arcan floor, but if God controls your thinking you're being transformed and so did the other Center is allowing your mind back to the first allowing your mind to be transformed by the renewing our research for you to be transformed by the renewing of your mind. You swim in your mind. How do you do that? How do you do that offer? Maybe for practical ways to represent them to you the idea what it means to have to have a transformed mind on. How do you do this in the in the first one? First concept is that you cooperate with God not against God so having and being God Center of focusing on the earth. You recognize that there is something Divine that there is something greater out there and that you are going to allow that to have impact on you. Right on and there's different stages of that right there. Some people who recognize that there is a God, but I don't know that he really has any of application my life and this this transformation is being recognition of the Divine but also the submission to I'm going to start to allow my life my mind to be impacted by God by Yahweh and I'm going to allow it to have influence over me the second one and there's something greater. You also recognize that maybe your life has not been what it should be right at the things that you're doing. No matter what God you recognize that what I have been doing may need to be corrected may need that I may need to be reviewed that I may need to be disciplined. Did you hear that with humility? And that's the hard part of releasing the things that we do in our lives that seems the things that seem to be working. Do we recognize that there might be something greater out there and we've said that with humility your whole being with the word of God for some this might be too churchy, you know, this this isn't about necessarily memorization of scripture, but it is his concept of saying I need to fill myself with something. And it needs to be something that comes from God is so for now. We definitely have scripture. There's other ways to see scripture in this world through nature know things as well. But the one pursuing why do we have is that is that for the word of God and so finding your way to be filled with a spending more time in God's word not as a form of punishment, but this idea that I want I want to cooperate more God. So I need to find out what he's saying and we can see that through his the fourth one is that you watch carefully what you let your mind dwell on writing. So when you hear this in the past, we've always said you can't listen to that rock and roll music or that rap music whatever we can watch those types of movies or TV shows whatever.

Yes, those things matter. Those are things that you will need to come to grips with the really what this I want to challenge with to think here is this idea? watching carefully what you let your mind dwell on more on things like

punishment for revenge or hate or what things you think you are writing this idea that if I if I allow my mind to stay focused on what that person did to me. Or what I'm going to do back to them. Or or maybe I I I want to focus on I want to make sure that I get mine in this world and them on how to make more money or or how to get ahead at my job if I'm focusing on those things. Did my mind begins to dwell on it affects who I am. So there's something about that. Not just that we don't just pay attention to the songs in the movies or TV shows. That's that's kind of it. That's more. What do we let our minds dwell on would lay down in bed or when we're alone or when we're exercise? What it what are those things that keep those thoughts are they the ones that that the god that I'm getting to know wants me to focus on things. I think they will give you a way to start to understand the concept of a being transformed by the renewing of your mind alive confirmed by Jesus has three markers, right? And that's where we go back to our triangle the up the Inn in the out. I remember as we talked about this is this is lived theology. Right? This is the thing that we do now is so the first markers and what kind of kind of moving to some application thinking about. What is this? What is this? What is it challenges to be and I want to I want you to see that that this passage rooms for 142 is challenging us. I don't read it all together one more time and mercy to offer your bodies as a Living Sacrifice. Holy and pleasing to God. This is your true proper worship do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you'll be able to test approve what God's will is his good and pleasing and perfect will see when you're God sent. It says you're no longer conform to the pattern of this world, but you're being transformed so that you can see you God's will that you can see something greater that's happening here. And one way that I've heard this a challenge for us is this concept of this is a horrible picture that I put in here.

This concept is are you a thermometer or you a thermostat? Right? And so if your thermometer just tells you what the temperature of the room is but a thermostat set the temperature of the workroom. So this idea if you're coming to the power of this world your thermometer, you're what the world is saying if it's what this is colonists to be a god-centered. We are allowing our minds to be Transformer off our bodies as living sacrifices. We become thermostat to set the temperature around us thermostat or thermometer, you know, what's going on around you or do you change what's around you in? That's what it means to be god-centered.

Is that a challenge? What's that look like for you as well that we talked about in in common thread that I want to I want to dress right now. I'm it's kind of outside of what it means to be God Center, but I think this is in this Romans 12 1 through 2. You're going to see this concept. Is that a lot of ways that people have taught to become a part of God's Church her to be part of our church that there's that there's a there's East three words believe behave along and they're all important words, but how they're presented. The order presented in is important. So I want I want to kind of say that I think in the past many churches have had put the concept that you first that you need to believe that you need to you need to believe in God and what you believe you're going to start acting right and what you start when she believed what you behave then you belong to God's church, then you can be a part of who we are and what you have your life in order then you belong I don't say this Romans 12

God's mercy off your bodies and then your mind will be transformed. And so I want to suggest that the order should be that first in order of God's mercies is that you belong to you are already my child. And since you belong start acting right start doing we are about to see if that's what is if you look at the developed is his disciples his Apostles that he says come and follow me into the come follow me and then he starts doing things with him. And as they start doing things did you see that their lives that they start believing? It's really not until after Jesus died and how to make a belong behave believe as seen in the apostles lies and I want to suggest that is what God is is wants us to be about as well as a church is Common Thread that is people recognize. Because of God's mercies we belong that we are his children and then we should start doing we should start behaving to start things happen our belief system our minds begin to be transformed. And so this is something I want kind of leaves your feet that did that is a concept that we are common threads practice is is the order of belong behaved believe that's why you see so many times we ask people to do to start doing things as quickly as possible not because they believe it's really the right things. But because they are already part of Incredible family that God has invited them into there is a transformation there is this idea what it means to accept Christ and and that kind of stuff as well. But even be before that there is a concept that I am that we are children of God podcast about replacing power. Privilege in that as we become Gods their lives.

I want us to remember that that you table flip theology that goes we transform like Jesus and to be transfer my Jesus you start with having your life god-centered. Were you focused on your up and sew from Romans 12:1 and to be safe to do the way that we can focus on her up is by offering our lives as living sacrifices and renewing our minds and what we talked about Sunday was his idea that those are daily decisions of giving yourself to something greater. So it's in what we do and how we think so the challenge for you is as how how do you do this? How do you grow in Europe? How do you how do you begin to offer your body as a Living Sacrifice? And how do you renew your mind? What are those practical ways? And so we have a place of discussion in our faith life at half that we use. If you're listening to this podcast, you're not part of that email me or contact me on in our Facebook page and we can get you into that. It's free. It's just a great way to continue to do this discussion, but the challenge now is how You grow in your up. How do you grow in becoming a Living Sacrifice? How do you become how you growing in the things that you do and in developing those to God and how do you grow it? What it means to renew your mind to to give your thought to be transformed by what God is offering you.