Different Strokes

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Introduction

What are the books every Christian must read?

Of course, Scripture, but what else?

Many would say:

“Desiring God” by John Piper

“Pilgrims Progress” by John Bunyan

“The Cost of Discipleship” by Dietrich Bonhoeffer

There’s one book that would be on almost every list: “Mere Christianity” by C.S. Lewis

Up until this week, I have never read it

I own it, but never read it...

As I’ve been preparing for this message, I’ve been considering the local church

What does it look like? Who does what? What is it for?

Then in the middle of chapter 3 in Mere Christianity, I came across this quote

He’s talking about Christian society in general

But using the description of the church in how to get there:

C.S. Lewis: “It tells us that there are to be no passengers or parasites: if man does not work, he ought not to eat. Every one is to work with his own hands, and what is more, every one's work is to produce something good...”

2 words really stuck out to me: “Passengers” and “Parasites”

Passengers are people that rely on someone else to get where they want to be

Parasites are things that get what they want by taking from others - usually against their will

It seems the Church is full of people who are passengers and parasites

And it seems many Church leaders encourage that as well

But if passengers and parasites in the church are wrong, what is it supposed to be?

We often spend a lot of time talking about what’s wrong

But maybe not as much time describing what right would look like

YouVersion: Different Strokes

We’re in Romans 12:1-8

So far in this series, we’ve been answering 4 questions

Answering 4 questions:

Why do we need salvation?

Because we’re sinners, and sin leads to death

How did God provide salvation?

By sending His Son to die that death for us

How can we receive salvation?

By accepting the gift - we don’t earn it at all

What are the results of salvation?

Our relationship with God is restored - we have new life

This is where works come in

We don’t do works to earn God’s grace

God’s grace enables and motivates us to do works

Today, we’re going to see what that looks like...

How our salvation should make us anything but a passenger or a parasite

Romans 12:1 (ESV)

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.

There is a lot going on here to talk about!

Who?

First, this is an appeal - that means it comes down to our will

Worship isn’t something that God forces us to do

God calls us to make a choice to worship Him

So YOU choose to worship God

How?

The mercies of God is what makes us want to do this

It could be out of fear of His power

It could be to gain His favor - although that won’t work

It could be because we feel guilty

But Paul is asking to do it because of God’s mercies

What have we seen in our series as far as His mercies?

He has justified us sinners

He has adopted us into His family

He brought us under grace, rather than the Law

He elected us to eternal salvation

He promised that no one can take His promises from us

On and on!

Paul says, “I encourage you to worship God for those reasons!”

And I’d say those are good reasons!

God’s mercy is wild - there is nothing like it

What?

Offering your whole body

This is like taking our body, and carrying it to the altar in the Temple to be sacrificed

But we don’t kill it like we do our old sinful selves

We offer our bodies as LIVING sacrifices

The serve God alive, rather than dead

That means it is a continual sacrifice, not a one time thing

These are naturally important things to us

There is nothing in the world you use more often to get your will than your body

So when we take it to the Lord, and say “Use it for what YOU want, no longer what I want...”

That is a significant act of sacrifice

Why?

Depending on translation - this is our spiritual, reasonable, rational or proper worship

The Greek word there is “logikos” - as in logic

If you’ll notice it begins with log - or rather lambda, omicron (sounds familiar?), gamma

Which also begins “logos,” which means word

1 Peter 2:2 ESV

2 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation—

That spiritual milk was originally written “milk of the word” - logikos

Here, this would be worship of the word

No matter how you translate it, offering your whole body as worship, is something we should do

Because it’s fitting, it makes sense, it’s what Jesus deserves and makes clear as the Word of God

Paul goes on:

Romans 12:2 (ESV)

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.

We could do an entire series just on these first two verses...

Look at how he starts this: Be different

But what if someone was already good?

Paul makes it clear, there’s no room for that! You have to change...

The world is there - trying to make you fit into it’s mould

It has an easy job, we are born into it, grow up in it, die in it

It puts a constant pressure on us

Stevenson A. Blackwood: “Now Jesus Christ was in the world. He was in contact with the world. He was amongst the Pharisees and the publicans and the sinners, but He was not of them. It was more a separation of spirit than a separation of body, and if we follow Him we shall find out what real separation from the world is.”

We are ambassadors - what do ambassadors do?

They go to another place, but they don’t belong to that place

They may learn the culture, get to know people from there, eat their food, etc.

But they aren’t from there - they aren’t there to represent the country where they are

They work for the interest of their own country

Even though they’re not in their own country

Same thing for Christians

You live in this world, but you don’t belong here

You can learn the culture, know the people, eat the food, etc...

But you aren’t for this place - you don’t work the desires of this place

You work for the interests of heaven - where your true citizenship is

Even though you’re not there yet, that is what you represent

So Paul says, don’t do things the world’s way

But renew your mind

The opposite of conforming to the world, is to have a new mind

Everyone who is of the world still has an old mind - Christian’s have renewed ones

Davd Guzik: “The battle ground between conforming to the world and being transformed is within the mind of the believer.”

That’s why 2 Corinthians 10 tells us to “take every thought captive.”

THEN the evidence of that shows up on the outside and proves the will of God

A change of mind causes a change in actions

And people who are looking for proof of God are watching us

Brennan Manning: “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”

Think about it: when a pastor has a fall from grace, people immediately stop listening

Some of my most favorite speakers have been found to commit horrible sins

And the world is quick to point the finger

Look at the private jets they’re flying in!

Look at the $400 sneakers you’re wearing!

If you believe in Jesus, let Him change your life - not just what you call yourself

Here’s basically what all that means

1. Worship begins in the heart and mind, and ends with your whole body and lifestyle

In our discipleship series, we called that C323 Living

Colossians 3:23 (ESV)

23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,

Everything about you is a change for worship

The way you raise your kids, the way you drive, the way you work, the things you watch, the things you say...

And it all comes from a thankful heart and a changed mind

Then Paul says this:

Romans 12:3 (ESV)

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.

As we get ready to talk about life in the church - Paul gives a reminder that we ain’t all that

We often think of spiritual people by the gifts we see them display

“Oh, you’re speaking in tongues! You must be super spiritual...”

“Oh, you’re teaching the word! You must be super spiritual...”

“Oh, you’re being hospitable to the poor! You must be super spiritual...”

Spiritual giftedness does not equal spiritual maturity!

2. Spiritual maturity requires an accurate self-view

Clint Murchison Jr. received a $200-million inheritance from his oil tycoon father - worth $1.4 billion today

He blew that money on starting the Dallas Cowboys, a pirate radio station, real-estate, restaurants...

By the time he died, he was filing for bankruptcy protection!

Let me ask you, did having a ton of money make him a good businessman or a good investor?

Nope! Why? He didn’t earn that money, it was a gift from him father...

Our spiritual “gifts” are also gifts!

Something God gives us - not because we’re great, but because He blesses us

You might have awesome spiritual gifts, but a lackluster spiritual status

You might be a spiritual Ryan Leaf, or a spiritual Tim Tebow

Don’t let the gifts that God has given you trick you into believing your are the one that earned it

Now that Paul got that out of the way, let’s look at why he said that:

Romans 12:4–5 (ESV)

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.

Each of us has a role to fill in church, but the same goal

Just like a runner:

His legs propel his body forward

His arms pump to counter the motion and encourage speed

His eyes maintain his direction and work with his inner ear to maintain balance in his brain

His heart pumps blood carrying oxygen from his lungs that breathe it in

All different parts, all different jobs - but they’re working together to run the race

Different jobs, same goal

That’s the way the church works too!

You might say it this way:

3. The body is about unity, not uniformity

There’s a quote that talks about how this works best

Often attributed to Augustine or John Wesley - sometimes even Greg Laurie - it was probably none of them

It seems to be assembled over time, this guy probably was the first to organize it this way:

Rupertus Meldenius: “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things charity.”

I think the church misses this way too much

I can’t tell you the aggressive conversations I’ve seen/been a part of over non-essentials

Anger over the finer points of Calvinism, Evolution, Eschatology, Yahweh v. Jehovah...

Those talks may be fun, or even of some importance - but not ESSENTIAL

And yet, we place those things above UNITY - and that is WRONG

It’s on the same plane as the Pharisees criticizing the disciples for picking grain on Sabbath

Jesus says, “Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”

They took something of some importance - Sabbath rest...

…And allowed the non-essential points of that to supercede the hunger of men

Men that the Sabbath was meant to serve

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen people argue against someone else’s gift to boost their own

A great teacher put down the hospitality of our homeless ministry because “anyone can do that”

Bullpucky! Yeah, anyone can serve a plate of food, but very few people have the passion to make it their life’s work!

When you see that person, their gift of hospitality should be celebrated as a gift from God!

A great evangelist puts down training the body because “sharing the word is more important than our own people”

Bullpucky again! Yes, sharing the word is important...

But who’s going to share it if they have no experience or haven’t been trained?

Dave Jacobs calls this being, “A mile wide and an inch deep”

A great servant criticizing a craftsman because “we don’t need nice things to worship God”

No we don’t need nice things, but when God gives talent to someone, we should celebrate!

Go to a birthday party and give someone a nice gift

How does it feel for them to go, “Uh! I don’t need this! You’re so wasteful!”

What would you think if we built a new sanctuary...

Let’s bring in imported lumber, we’ll carve angels and palm trees and flowers into it, and cover it with gold!

We’ll build all the walls from solid marble!

Put in olive wood doors, and make all of our mic stands, light fixtures and even door hinges out of gold!

You’d be like, you don’t need to that to worship God!

Except, that’s exactly what God designed His own Temple to be made from

Look at what happened when a woman poured expensive perfume from an alabaster jar on Jesus’ head:

Matthew 26:8–10 (ESV)

8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? 9 For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me.

Key word from Jesus there: To ME

Who are you to question the way one person serves God

Critical because it doesn’t match your passion, gifting or preference...

As Christians we have to grow up

If it’s essential, we must work to be united in truth

If it’s not, we must work to develop our own maturity and discipline

To allow people to be different from us

Why? Because our differences are a good thing

The Church couldn’t be the Church if we were all the same

Romans 12:6–8 (ESV)

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.

There are all sorts of spiritual gifts in the church - not just these ones

If you remember our Gifted series we started 2 years ago - almost to the day...

We looked through Scripture and came up with — gifts

We broke them down into categories:

Team gifts

Prophecy, teaching, serving, administration, apostleship, exhortation, giving, leadership, mercy, evangelism, shepherding, hospitality

Enabling gifts

Wisdom, knowledge, faith, discernment, craftsmanship, artistry and celibacy

Miraculous gifts

Tongues, interpretations, miracles, healings

If you’re a Christian, you have one or many of those gifts

And what we do with them is important

I’m not going to go into each gift - go back and look at our Gifted series for that

I want to make two points about what you do with them

Notice that list, the first thing that stands out is this

The TEAM gifts is the biggest list

But look at the ENABLING gifts

Does wisdom help others?

Does knowledge help others?

How about MIRACULOUS?

Tongues and interpretations?

Scripture actually says not to speak out loud unless there’s an interpreter - why?

So the people around you can understand what you’re saying!

Actually, all of those gifts help other people - a specific group of people:

4. Your gifts are for the church

That gift you have of teaching - isn’t for you!

That gift you have of administration - isn’t for you!

That gift you have of artistry - isn’t for you!

Those gifts have been given to use for use in the church

That’s why Paul says, “Let us use them!”

Here’s the last point, for those who have spiritual gifts and keep them to themselves

5. Don’t be a passenger or a parasite

Some people don’t feel good enough or worthy enough to serve the church

Some don’t even know what their gifts are - that doesn’t mean you don’t have them

There are lots of tests online to help you find your spiritual gifts

Once you know them, the church needs you

Not necessarily CrossPoint - maybe in the workplace, on the mission field, prisons, travelling to other churches, etc.

But the big “C” Church needs you, and when you curl up in fear without using God’s gifts He gave you...

You are robbing the Church

Ben Kowalewicz and Rivers Cuomo (End of Me - Billy Talent): “A brand new problem every time we meet, but the same old reason that the grass ain’t green… You quit your job, say your life’s so hard, but you can’t pay for dinner with a victim card... You win the lottery and still complain, we all know somebody that we just can’t change.”

This is where we get those two creatures that C.S. Lewis mentioned:

We have church parasites - the Church should take care of me

Always taking, never giving

Always needing help, never helping

Always complaining, never encouraging

They suck the life out of the church and think they deserve it

Then we have church passengers - I don’t need to do anything at all

I don’t need to know the word, that’s what the Pastors are for

I don’t need to reach the lost, that’s what the evangelists are for

I don’t need to serve, that’s what staff members are for

They just sort of coast along - there for the ride

Not sucking the life out, but not adding any in

Paul talks about this to the Thessalonians

It was the verse that C.S. Lewis was talking about at the beginning

2 Thessalonians 3:10–15 (ESV)

10 For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. 11 For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. 12 Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living.

13 As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. 14 If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. 15 Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.

If you are one of those people, you need to change!

I’m not talking about people who are disabled

I’m not talking about people that are in terrible circumstances

I’m not talking about people who are in a temporary season of need help or rejuvenation

Those are the people who likely don’t get the help they need because either

There is a parasite taking all the help away

Or there is a passenger not stepping up to help

If all you are is a leech or a bump on a log, you need to change

If your first reaction to that statement is to blame...

But my wife won’t let me

But the pastor isn’t doing his job

But my boss keeps making me

…Then there’s something you probably need to hear:

Andy Stanley: “People who blame things rarely change things. Blame is an unassailable change-avoidance strategy.”

If your first response is to blame, it’s probably because you simply don’t want to change

But I will tell you, change is possible

Look at what Paul has been saying, “Think of the mercies of God, let that CHANGE your mind, and thus CHANGE your actions!

It’s not about changing behavior, it’s about changing heart!

Isn’t that what we celebrate with Baptism?

The water doesn’t change anything, it’s an outward symbol that you have given God your heart

So HE can change it!!

Communion

And now, we’ll exercise just what Paul has been talking about:

He says to remember the mercies of God

Nothing embodies His mercies like Jesus giving His life on the cross...