About Jesus

About Jesus Steve Sweetman

Chapter 12

Paul had just ended chapter eleven with his doxology. His defense of the faith is now complete. He now makes a slight change in direction. The remaining part of Romans deals with how we should live once we have come to faith in Jesus. Our lives should show that we have the faith we speak of, and so Paul now speaks to this issue.

Many Bible teachers over the years have said that Paul and James differ on the topic of faith and works. I see no problem between the two men. I see that they say the same thing but from a different angle. James says, "show me that you have real faith by what you do. Your works should prove your faith." Paul would agree and would say, "the foundation of your works must be faith and nothing else. Real faith will produce good works"

Chapter twelve verse one begins with the word “therefore”, meaning, “as a result of all that I have just said”. So in light of what Paul has taught in earlier chapters and also in light of God’s mercy, he urges the Romans “to present themselves as living sacrifices to God”. The Old Testament is very familiar with sacrifices, but they are all dead sacrifices. Paul is saying that we should be a living sacrifice. Simply put, Paul is saying that we need to come to Jesus in faith, lay ourselves at His feet to be and to do as He wishes. As he says in chapter six verse eighteen; “we are to be slaves of righteousness”. Just as Jesus presented Himself as the ultimate in living sacrifices, so should we. That being said, our sacrifice is to give ourselves to Jesus and His will. We don't sacrifice our bodies through mutilating it as some of the monks in the first few centuries AD did.

Some of these monks cut off their penis' thinking that would drive sexual thoughts away from them. Some monks slept in darkened rat infested dungeons to punish themselves for sin. Some walked on hot coals. Many monks thought of many harmful things to do in order to beat themselves into submission to God. The New Testament does not suggest any such things.

A sacrifice is something that is presented to the Lord. Therefore in like fashion we present ourselves to Jesus and say, “here I am, to be as you wish”. In the Old Testament, the giving of sacrifices was a form of worship. Paul says that when we offer ourselves to God in this way, this is also worship. This is spiritual worship. To me, this is the first definition of the word worship. Yes, singing and raising our hands to the Lord on a Sunday morning can be called worship as well, yet what makes this expression true worship is that we have first offered ourselves to Jesus as a living sacrifice.

The words "living sacrifice" to me also suggests that we are to be a living example of Jesus to the world. Our example cannot be in word only. Our lives must show that we do in fact represent Jesus on earth to the world. Such an example is "holy and pleasing" to God. So, if you want to please God, then this is what you do.

In verse 2 Paul says “not to be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” What does this mean? Paul makes two points here. He first says that we need to not follow after the ways of the world. The old time Evangelicals used to call this “worldliness”. We are not to be worldly in our thinking or in our actions. We don’t want to leave it here as I think some Evangelicals have in the past. There is a part two to Paul’s point here. He says, “but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”. He does not say, “be transformed by the renewing of your heart”. Back in chapter ten verse ten Paul says that we are save when we believe from the heart. Here he says that we are transformed by the renewing of your mind. We are not transformed by merely not being worldly. We are transformed when our minds are changed.

The word “transformed” here is the Greek word “metamorphoo” which means to “change into another form, like a caterpillar changes into a butterfly. The same Greek word is used in Mark nine when Jesus is “transfigured” before the disciples and speaks with Moses and Elijah. Jesus most likely looked the same but in my thinking had some kind of spiritual body, as did Moses and Elijah. Here Paul says that we will be transformed, changed into something different than what we are, even though we are still recognizable for who we are.

How are we transformed? Paul says by the renewing of the mind. The Greek word “anakainoo” is translated as renew. This word simply means to “make new” Paul is therefore saying that our minds need to be renewed, needs to be made new. The way we think needs to come in line with God’s thinking. Once again, with our hearts we believe and are saved, but with the renewing of the mind we are made into something new and different. In this new framework we can know, test and approve of God’s will for our lives.

The NIV uses the word “approve” in verse 2 while the KJV uses the word “prove”. What is meant here is that once we are transformed, then we can test God’s will and then approve it. It is not as if God’s will needs to pass by our desk for our stamp of approval. It is more like, once we test God’s will, we will respond by saying, “yes!, that’s it, that’s right for me”. We approve or affirm that we want God’s will in our lives. Our lives will prove that doing God's will is the only way to live.

Paul goes on to say in verse 3, “by the grace given to me, don’t think of yourself more highly than you ought …” Paul was “given grace” to say such things to people. We may or may not have such grace to say such things to others. One thing we can do is to repeat what Paul says to others. We know that he had the grace to say these things.

Paul says that we need to think of ourselves soberly, meaning seriously, according to the “measure of faith God has given to us”. Now this is interesting. All along Paul is telling us that Salvation is by faith, by trusting Jesus. Now he is saying that this faith or trust is actually given to us by God. Some may try to reword this, or reinterpret these words, but Paul is pretty clear. God gives us this faith. It is like this. In our frailty we look up to Jesus, we cry or call out as we saw in chapter ten. Jesus responds to us and gives us faith, or He gives us the ability to trust Him. I do not believe that faith is a commodity that you can get more of. I don't think Paul is saying that God drops faith down from heaven into our lives. What he is saying is that God helps us trust Him because we are so depraved that we can't trust him on our own. Sometimes Christians ask God for more faith, when in reality, we should be asking Him to help us trust Him more than we presently do.

Some people differentiate between “saving faith” from “faith to live by”. They say that there is more than one aspect to faith. They say that man has the ability to believe and therefore they can have faith to be saved. Yet beyond this “saving faith” God can give us more faith, or add to that which we already have to help us live as we should. There may be a truth to this. We can at least say that man has the ability to cry out to God in order for Him to give us faith. Others who believe strongly in the Depravity Of Man believe man is so far lost that he does not have the ability to even believe, that is why God needs to give faith to us. There may be a truth to this as well. So we have two camps. One camp believes man can believe, the other believes he can’t and therefore God needs to give him faith.

I do think we have some ability to trust. Remember trust is faith. We trust the bank with our money. We trust in lots of situations. So inherent within man is some ability to trust, but this trust as it concerns God, needs some supernatural help.

One thing to note here is that the faith talked about is in relation to doing tasks within the body of Christ as seen in verses 4 and 5. This faith is God giving us the ability to do what He wants us to do. That is why He needs to help us in the process of trust. What He calls us to do, He also gives us the ability to do it.

So why is Paul encouraging us not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought? It is because, even though we are individual people, we as Christians are part of a group of people. Paul compares this to our physical body. Our body consists of many parts. All parts have their own roll to play in keeping the body healthy. Paul says that God has given each of us grace and faith to be and to do our part. You may think one part is more important than the other, yet Paul tells us to think soberly in respect to this. All parts are important. The important thing is to do your part and not to make a big deal about it. Some may prophesy, some may teach, some may encourage. The list can go on. The important thing to note is that we all have a part to play. We perform our tasks by the measure of faith and trust Jesus has given us. We must do what we do in this context. All we do must be done as a result of our trust in Jesus. If not it is sin, as seen in Romans 14:23. And, as Paul says here, we can't think of ourselves more highly than we should. This is humility. The Body of Christ only works when each person is doing his or her part in humility. If pride sets in, the Body of Christ is weakened.

In verse 6 Paul says that we have different gifts according to the grace that God has given us. Once again, grace here means God given ability. It is clear that not all have the same measure of grace, the same measure of God given ability. We need to recognize that. Many preachers try to make people in their congregation do more than what his people have grace to do. It is like the parable of the sower spoken of by Jesus. Some people who plant the seed get a harvest of 30 fold, some of 60 fold, and others of 100 fold. The reason for the difference is that the God given ability to do His will varies from person to person, and also from one stage in a life to another stage in a life.

In verses 7 and 8 Paul states the motivation for what we do in the Body of Christ, what we have been called to by God. We should view ourselves as "servants". I always say, the mark of a mature Christian is his ability to serve others. We often think a mark of a good Christian is if he is famous, knows, a lot, preaches a lot, and so on, but it's not. Serving shows maturity. Serving is giving of one's self, just as Jesus gave Himself, so should we give ourselves.

Love (ch. 12:9 – 21)

For those who are familiar with Paul's first letter to the Corinthians, you will note a similarity between Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 through 14. Here in Romans 12 Paul speaks of the Body of Christ and the individual's part to play in the body. Then Paul goes on to speak of love. He does the same in 1 Corinthians 12 and 13. He speaks of the Body of Christ, our call from the Lord to work in the body, and then he speaks of love. Love has to do with serving, which I noted in the last section. Everything we do in the Body of Christ must be done from love and an attitude of serving. This is why Paul is consistent in his thinking in both letters.

These next few verses are self explanatory. These verses continue in the context of the Body of Christ. Paul says such things as, “live in harmony with one another, don’t be proud, don’t repay evil for evil”. He also tells the Romans to be “zealous, keeping your spiritual fervor, be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer”. All these things are things that a good follower of Jesus will want to do. Being human though, we tend to fall back at times. It seems hard to be consistent in our faith. We need to maintain that which we have in the Lord. There is nothing on earth that will grow and become healthier without being properly maintained. Maintenance is crucial in the Christian life, as it is with anything that is important.

In verse 9 we see the word love and hate in the same sentence. Our love is to be sincere, and while we love, we are to hate evil. Evil is a strong word. I often wonder how much Christians really hate evil. I tend to think that we are so caught up in this world, that is evil, that we accept evil. The evil around us does not affect us as it should. But here, Paul says that we are to hate evil, that is, have a holy anger towards evil. Why does Paul say this? We are to hate evil because God Himself hates evil and some day His wrath will be poured out on the world because of the evil we are to hate.

Paul speaks of "devoting" ourselves to each other in verse 10. Paul is very strong on having a personal relationship with Jesus, and he is certainly right on that point. But he doesn't leave things at that. This love must be expressed in devotion to those Jesus has placed us with. We as the church seem to always struggle with the vertical and horizontal aspects to our lives. The vertical relationship is what we have with Jesus. The horizontal aspect to relationships is what we have with those Jesus has joined us to. It is hard keeping both in proper balance. The simple fact is that we need a strong relationship with Jesus, then that which we gain from Jesus must be given to others in the Body of Christ, as we devote ourselves to them. This devotion means much more than simply sitting beside someone in a Sunday morning meeting.

In verse 11 Paul says that we should never lack in zeal, but we should always be fervent in the things of the Lord. This too is hard for us. Human tendency is to be excited about things for a while, then after we get used to these things, the excitement and zeal dies down. This should not be with the things of our Lord. The way to keep this zeal is through daily prayer and Bible study. It's also kept by continuing to do the things we did when we first came to Jesus. Too often we stop the activity and settle down. It's like when a young couple first meet. They're all excited about each other. Then after they are married a while the excitement goes away. The way to get that excitement back is to do the things they once did when they first met. Jesus Himself says this in Revelation 2:4 and 5.

In verse 12 Paul says to be joyful in hope. We talked about hope earlier in Romans. Some people think hope is poor faith. They suggest hoping for something isn't as good as believing for something. That's not so. Paul tells us over and over to have hope. He also tells us in this verse to be patient in affliction. That is why we are to hope. Many of these Roman Christians were being persecuted because they did not bow their knee to Caesar. These people needed hope of a better life to come, even if that meant death. Being patient through affliction is somewhat foreign to western Christians because we haven't really suffered a lot, but we will.

In verse 13 Paul tells these Christian readers to share with those in need. This should speak volumes to hyper-faith people who believe we should not have any need. It is clear that many Christians in Paul's day had need, and those who did not have need were to share with them, and be hospitable. The same applies today. There are needy Christians, and both the church and the individual are responsible to share with them. The sad fact of the matter is that many churches are burdened down with large budgets that prohibit them from helping the needy in their own congregation.

In verse 14 Paul said that we should bless those who persecute us. Jesus said the same. This may be hard to do, but what we need to remember is why we are to bless our persecutors. It is God who will avenge these people on our behalf, and He can do a much better job than us. He might well avenge our persecutors in this life, but if He doesn't, He will at the end of this age. I believe this can be taken as a general word for anyone who does any evil towards us, but I think specifically that Paul might well be speaking of the Romans who were persecuting Christians back then.

In verse 15 Paul says to rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn. The whole idea here is to associate yourself with the feelings of others. We tend to be stand-offish when it comes to things like this. We don't want to get involved in other people's emotions and feelings. It gets pretty personal at the point, and such personalness can be uncomfortable for some.

In verse 16 Paul says to live in harmony with others. I will add at this point that keeping peace and harmony is important. We do the best we can, but at the same time, we do not compromise the truth of the gospel in order to keep harmony and peace.

Paul also says in verse 16 to associate with those of a lower status than you. There should be no division based on economic or social status. I have been greatly blessed over the years because of this. People of much higher economic and social status have been my friends and brothers in the Lord. This is due simply to the working of the Holy Spirit in the lives of people.

In verse 17 Paul says not to repay evil for evil. I've already commented on this. God is the one who will avenge those who do evil to us. We do not have to concern ourselves with that.

Also in verse 17 Paul tells us to do what is right in the eyes of the Lord. Of course you have to know what the Lord views as right. You have to study the Bible to find these things. Many people don't study the Bible so they don't know what really is right, other than what they know of the Ten Commandments, and there is more to being right in the eyes of God than the Ten Commandments.

In verse 18 Paul says that if it is at all possible, live in peace with everyone. He says, "if it be possible", because he knows it is not possible to live in peace with everyone. His life has shown that to be true. Nevertheless, we must try to live in peace with all men. Again, there is one exception to this. We cannot nor must not compromise the truths of Scripture in the process of making peace. There is another point to be made here. If division comes, it should be the truths of Scripture that cause the division, not our behaviour. Way too often our unholy actions cause division. That should not be.

In verse 19 Paul tells the Romans what I've already said a couple times in this section. He says not to take revenge against those who oppose them, but leave revenging to God’s wrath. We may feel like taking revenge, but God’s wrath is far beyond anything that we can do anyway. Let Him take care of those who do evil to you.

In verses 20 Paul states that if you good to those who do evil to you, it is like heaping hot coals on there head. We don't love our enemies for this purpose, but the result of our love is often very frustrating to those who do evil to us. They want us to get angry and retaliate, and when we don't, it makes them madder than ever.

Paul closes this chapter in verse 21 by saying we should overcome evil with being good. We should not let evil overtake us and get involved in evil ourselves by paying back those who do evil to us. Christians do have the ability to overcome evil with good, and Paul, in all he went through, is a very good example of that.

chapter 11

chapter 13

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