Beloved, it’s a joy to open up the word with you tonight. Let us continue to rejoice and worship our Lord together as we’ve gathered here for that very purpose. Turn with me now to Romans chapter 12, verses 1 to 8, our scripture text this evening. Romans chapter 12, verses 1 to 8. This is in page 1097 in your Pew Bibles.
Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship, and do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.
For through the grace given to me, I say to everyone among you, not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think, but to think so as to have sound judgment as God has allotted to each a measure of faith. For just as we have many parts in one body, and all the body parts do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually parts of one another. However, since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, Each of us is to use them properly. If prophecy in proportion to one’s faith, if service in the act of serving, or the one who teaches in the act of teaching, or the one who exhorts in the work of exhortation, the one who gives with generosity, the one who is in leadership with diligence, the one who shows mercy with cheerfulness. thus the reading of God’s word. We have a God and father who deeply and profoundly cares and loves his church. So let us cast our cares upon him as we come before his throne of grace. Pray with me.
Our heavenly father, we are in awe of you. we come desiring to worship you in truth, because you are the one who can make all things new. You are the one whose mercies never come to an end. In you, we can trust that you keep your promises to us, even in times of difficulty. May we glorify you in our lives more and more as your people. Instruct us and edify us that we might build ourselves up in your most holy faith. You are the one who has promised to complete in each one of us what you have started. So we gratefully and thankfully come today in joyful anticipation in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
You’re cleaning out an old wooden desk that belonged to your great-grandfather. The desk is vintage and full of hidden compartments. And as you slide open each little drawer, you’re hoping to uncover something, an old note, a letter, some trace of the man that you have heard faithfully walked with the Lord. As you tug open one of the shallow drawers, you notice an envelope wedged in the back, yellowed with age, addressed simply to the children of the covenant. And as you carefully open and read it, you realize that you’re listening to the heartfelt counsel of one who loved and knew Christ. That is very much what happens when we hear this letter from the Apostle Paul.
In the opening chapters of Romans, Paul has carefully explained to his audience about the gospel, his mercies, our need, and the way he justifies both Jew and Gentile by faith. In chapters nine through 11, Paul has wrestled with Israel’s unbelief and the grafting of Gentile believers, demonstrating that God’s compassion extends to all into a single covenant people. And as we now come to chapter 12, the letter moves from explanation to instruction. Chapter 12 marks a clear turn as Paul moves into the area of ethics and Christian living.
So this evening, I want us to walk through this passage under four simple headings. First, a reputable counsel, verse one. Second, a renewed conformity in verse two. Third, a relational clarity, verses three to five. And finally, the regulated conduct in verses six to eight.
The strength of this appeal does not lie in Paul’s apostolic credentials. It is grounded in the mercies of God. This urging is not carrying the force of a subpoena or a mandate. It is an earnest exhortation that shows deference to the hearer and treats them as those who know the truth and can rightly respond. Present your bodies, a living and holy sacrifice is not being stated as a command. And yet because it rests on mercy, it comes with great moral seriousness.
Paul is not only saying that we should respond in this way because of the mercy God has shown to us, but also he himself can make this encouragement to the brethren on the basis of the mercy God has shown to him. this truth becomes even more encouraging as we reflect on who we once were. For Paul in 1 Timothy, he acknowledges that he was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and an insolent opponent. In other words, an arrogant and violent aggressor of the faith. And yet he obtained mercy. In that light, when each of us think about our own lives and how God’s mercy, in God’s mercy, he has made you and me a new creation.
This council to present our lives as a holy and living sacrifice is not so demanding, brothers and sisters. How do we present our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice? First, the word bodies here is denoting a corporeal substance. It is defined as a number of persons united in a common bond. And in our case, it emphasizes the life we share as members of Christ’s body, united in him. So when Paul comes to answer how we are to do this, Look with me at the end of verse one, which is your spiritual service of worship. Take note that this is in the plural.
He’s talking to all of us. We have come to know him more through his word. We know how holy our God is and through his commandments, what is acceptable in his sight. So we are left without excuse. The New King James Version uses the synonym, your reasonable service, which better encapsulates the tone that is being used. This is worship that makes sense in light of God’s mercy.
And if we know his holiness and his will, we can no longer claim we didn’t understand what he asked of us. knowing that God our Father has lavished upon us grace upon grace in Christ Jesus our Lord, that Christ gave himself up a ransom for us and having willingly died on the cross in our place.
Would you contend that you are under any compulsion to do this? To present yourselves a living and holy sacrifice? Or should it not be that we too are grateful for what he has done for us on account of who we once were? We were once enemies of God, but he saved us through his son. Shall we not desire to give him a reasonable service of worship? That brings us to our second point, renewed conformity. Observe with me verse two.
And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Let’s pause there. The tone now intensifies, and we are given two direct commands. When Paul speaks of this world, of course he’s not talking about getting away from society, as if to live off the grid in some forest. He’s talking about those things you and I have loved doing in the flesh before we were drawn by the Spirit to Christ. Things like putting ourselves first, treating sin lightly, living as if our plans and pleasures were ultimate. Negatively, we are instructed not to be conformed to this world.
And positively, we are told to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. Remember that Paul is speaking here to a believing audience. This epistle as a whole addressing all God’s beloved in Rome who are called to be saints, Romans chapter one, verse seven. This distinction is important to keep in mind because like those saints who were addressed back then, we also have come to know the mercy and truth of God in Christ. And so we cannot plead ignorance. We should know better than to drift back into the world’s pattern. So the real question, beloved, is not whether we still feel that toll. We certainly will while we remain here.
But what happens when we do? How are we battling against all that is in the world? The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. That is the current we once followed. It is a raging current that if we are not rooted in Christ, we are no match for it. In our own strength, we will be swept along. But now positively, Paul says we are to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. Our response should not be to retreat from the world or to cower from it. But as we sojourn in this present dark age, we move through it, governed by a different way of thinking. As the spirit takes the word and presses it into our thinking, our conduct begins to change.
Instead of asking, what do I want? Or what will people think of me? We begin to ask, what is the will of God? and God’s truths begin to correct our half-truths. His promises start to push back our fears. His commands start to recalibrate what we call reasonable. And that renewal shows up in the choices we make. When someone wrongs us, the renewed mind remembers the mercy we received. And instead of replaying that offense again and again, we ask, what would please the Lord here? And it takes steps toward forgiving and praying for that individual.
Think about how we speak. The worldling delights in gossip or speaks mainly to impress and to secure some personal gain. The renewed mind senses a restraint as those words rise to the tongue and asks himself, will this edify? Will this honor Christ? And often chooses either silence or a gentle word instead.
Paul ends verse two by saying that we may prove what is the will of God, what is good, acceptable, and perfect. The verb prove or test is one Paul repeatedly uses to describe the work of testing and approving what is genuine. A renewed mind is like that, like a Berean who examines everything under the light of scripture and then embraces what aligns to God’s will. And the first place, brothers and sisters, that we ought to do this testing is to ourselves, because a day is coming when God himself will test us. And his verdict will reveal the true quality of our lives.
In all these ways, the fruit of transformation should be evident in us and bring us greater clarity. That moves us to our third point, relational clarity. Paul goes on to say in verse three, for by the grace given to me, I say to everyone among you, not to think himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment. Let’s stop there for a moment. The apostle shows that given the grace that has changed his way of thinking and your way of thinking, there is a realization that no one ought to think too highly of themselves. With renewed minds, we are able to see what the gospel has revealed to us, that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
Romans 3.23. And as far as our relation to sin, we still, even now, struggle and wrestle with the remnant of sin that remains within us. Romans chapter seven. The believer’s mind has been opened to sin’s corruption and perniciousness. And that should be sobering. However, this sober judgment about our sin does not leave us in despair. because the same grace that humbles us also assures us.
As far as our relationship to one another, we read in verse four and five that, as in one body, we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function. So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Picture how the human body has many parts, all connected. And Paul essentially says, that’s you, beloved. You are fearfully and wonderfully made, unique. Some of you sharing similar gifts and some different, but we belong to one body in Christ.
And as you look back to the end of verse three, we are reminded that God has dealt to each one of us a measure of faith. That is to say that even the way you serve Christ in this body is something God himself has apportioned. He has placed each one of us in this local body, in his providence. Not all of us have the same exact function because God has wisely given to each of us the part and measure he has assigned.
So brethren, tonight be encouraged not to try and live this life of spiritual service on your own. Look to the saints that have gathered here today to your left and to your right, and consider also the brethren scattered all over the world. Christians all around the world have joined in worship of our triune God, and they are lifting up prayers for each one of us. Perhaps you’ve heard it said time and again that there are no lone ranger believers.
And just as there are no maverick molecules in the universe, God has created you to be in communion with him and with one another. When we recognize that we are members together, offering our worship to God, we begin to see this is not an excessive demand, but the most fitting response to his grace. For this reason, Paul describes God’s true people in Philippians chapter three, verse three, as those who worship by the spirit of God and glory in Christ Jesus and put no confidence in the flesh. If this is the worship that truly fits God’s mercy, we must continually discern so as not to slip back into the world’s values and habits. And let me stress the previous point, brothers and sisters.
In Christ, the apostle declares there is now no condemnation for anyone who is in Christ, Romans 8.1.
Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. Do you believe that tonight? Do you believe God’s word? Then may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. What a consolation that through His Spirit and by His love, He can join together the weakest and even the vilest. Just as our Savior said to the thief on the cross in His final hour, truly, truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.
When all is said and done, it is not about me, me, me. It’s not even ultimately about us. It’s about him. So take comfort that our God is in control and he is able to save to the uttermost. He can save our unsaved loved ones. And may the Lord allow each one of us in humility to imitate those words of Paul in first Timothy chapter one. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life.
And so lastly, we consider our fourth and final point in verse six to eight, regulated conduct. In these verses, there are two common ways scholars view according to the proportion of faith in verse six. Some understand faith here to mean a person’s inward sense of confidence or level of giftedness. Others take faith to mean the content of our Christian faith, that body of truth we believe. At first glance, that first view seems reasonable.
God has given each of us certain gifts and capabilities, and we should not squander them or try to be something we’re not. But when we look across the New Testament, there is some pushback on the idea that our inner confidence or strength of feeling is the measure of how we should use our gifts.
Paul often warns about false faith and false teachers. There are pastors who exude great confidence and churchgoers who are very active in ministry, and yet in their hearts remain unchanged. An individual with a scrupulous attention to doctrine and law can also miss the mark where genuine love is absent. The simple reality is that we all continue to fall short every day. And that is humbling.
So let us not mistake outward piety for inward purity or equate loud confidence with true faith. The other view that faith here means the faith, the message, the rule of truth God has given to us in his word, Paul says that Our gifts must be exercised in line with the true faith, according to the standard of the gospel and the teaching given through the apostles and prophets. In other words, our conduct is regulated, not by our feelings or self-assessment, but by the truth God has revealed in scripture, such that if we speak, we speak in line with the truth, if we give, or lead or show mercy. But this also doesn’t completely fit Paul’s language in his letters, especially the inner giftedness in first Corinthians.
Not only church leaders, but this is also directed to the entire body of Christ. Paul would not separate the inner prompting from truth. So there is this element of both, and we must strike the balance. An important aspect that is to be considered here is that this is directed to the entire body of Christ, not only the church leaders, but also all of us, all of its members. And so we all contribute in a manner that fits the faith we profess.
If our lives are truly ordered by God’s truth, it does not stop at sound doctrine and sober evaluation. It means then that love does not stop at the borders of our comforts. It reaches even to our enemies. It blesses those who curse us, prays for those who oppose us, forgives those who have wronged us, and refuses to be overcome by evil, but to overcome evil with good. A renewed mind always moves toward God in love and toward others in costly Christ-like love.
Ultimately, it is why we should take the posture of checking ourselves first. and not by how much we’re spending in the word or how much time we’re praying. It’s not by our own imaginations of what we think makes a good disciple of Christ, but as regulated by the scripture. This is exactly in line with our reformed heritage. We speak of the regulated principle of worship. We come to God not in ways that seem helpful or impressive to us, but in ways He has revealed in His Word. Those who are equipped to lead will lead, and those who are equipped to exhort will exhort. And we have the presence of mind not to overstep the qualifications that the apostle laid out in 1 Timothy 3.
In corporate worship and in ordinary life, it is God who sets the pattern for honoring him and loving others. We are not free to invent our own service, but to present ourselves in a manner that delights him. Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Sermon on the Mount, laid out the kind of life and ethics that characterizes those citizens of God’s kingdom.
In it, Jesus also unmasks those who have been hypocritical in two manners. They do it to be seen by people and because they are blinded to self. We are called to walk in a manner worthy of the gospel, and so our exercise of faith must always be bound to the truth.
God has showered us a tremendous amount of mercy. What then is our response to God’s mercy, brothers and sisters? The Lord Jesus Christ gave himself up for us as a pleasing and perfect sacrifice on the cross such that his perfect righteousness is credited to each of us who believe. So let us in turn adorn the reputable doctrine of God our Savior in every respect. As Paul writes in Titus chapter two, verses nine to 10, slaves are to be submissive to their own master and in everything well-pleasing, not argumentative, not pilfering, but showing all good faith. Let us aim to be acceptable to God and not to men. Let us, as we present our renewed bodies together, present ourselves a living and holy sacrifice in his service. And I pray that each one of us will continue to walk in humility because God opposes the proud. May we in our relation to God and one another, not think too highly of ourselves. For God is not going to be a God that is…
Allow me to continue. with another word from Paul that comes beside this, 1 Corinthians 12 and 13. There he uses the same picture we have heard tonight, one body with many members, all different, all joined together in Christ by his spirit. It is a tender reminder that your place in the body is not accidental. Beloved of Westminster Orthodox Presbyterian Church, And friends. You have been placed where the Lord has placed you, so love the Lord your God and love one another.
The way the world of the way the word of God compels us to. For even the most impressive gifts and the most costly acts of service are empty if they are not shaped by loving in spirit and in truth. That’s the life that truly answers God’s mercy. It’s a life that is patient, kind, not envious or boastful, not insisting on its own way, rejoicing in the truth, bearing and enduring all things together.
Let’s pray. Father in heaven, Thank you for your love you have shown in a manner that is beyond comprehension. We know that we could not do this apart from the new birth that has occurred by your spirit. We thank you that in Christ you’ve shown your rich mercy through this great love. We pray, Father, that our Christian fellowship and love will continue from this day through eternity, that as we join together, we would be a living and holy sacrifice that you find well-pleasing. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.