The Practice of the Gospel--How
To
Practice What You Believe
Romans 12-14
Romans 12
Romans is a book of theology and doctrine.
Verse 1-2:
Our right standing with God is something God has done for us. View the
rest of the chapter through the glasses of verses 1-2. Verse 1, We're to
sacrifice ourselves as living sacrifices in an act of worship. "Therefore, I
urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living
sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of
worship."
Verse 2, God wants to empower you with His Spirit. "Do
not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's
will is--his good, pleasing perfect will."
The book of Romans
enlivens Christians. Our sacrifices become a privilege when you consider what
God has done for us. This is the essence of revival. Do you live for self or
God? God doesn't want forced sacrifice but a sacrifice in love. Who do you
idolize? Who do you wish you could be like? Are you doing what the world wants
you to do or are you transformed by the renewing of your mind? So much of the
victory is of and in our minds. How are our minds renewed? 1) Fellowship with
Jesus and God the Father, i.e. Prayer, us talking to God. 2) Bible Study, study
of God's Word, i.e. God talking to us. 3) Fellowship with God's people. These
three activities stir God's Holy Spirit within your mind. They feed the man
of the spirit, the spiritual man. Do anything for 21 days and it is said it
becomes a habit. Apply these three things for 21 days and see what happens.
Feed the spiritual man and starve the 'old man of the flesh' and the new man
will defeat the 'old man.' When you do all this you will become living
sacrifices to God.
Verse 3: Understand rightly who you really are, not
being puffed up with vanity. Have a moderate opinion of yourself. "For by
the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more
highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in
accordance with the measure of faith God has given you."
Verse 4-8:
The body of Christ has many different members that perform different functions
and have different gifts--gifts of grace. [When Paul was writing this there was
basically only one body of Christ, one Church, composed of many members.
Now there are many fellowships and denominations many of which make up the body
of Christ. So referring to members of the body of Christ can and does have two
meanings. There are individual members of the body of Christ--referring to
individual people--and individual members of the body of Christ--referring to
individual fellowships or denominations. Whole fellowships and denominations
can and do exhibit spiritual gifts and strengths within the body of Christ just
as individuals can.] We all have separate gifts. Use your gifts. Viewing this
through verses 1-2, use your gifts in sacrifice to God and to his glory. Can
you see how verses 1-2 are expanded and modified by verses 4-8? We are now
given some direction on how to fulfill becoming living sacrifices. "Just as
each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have
the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member
belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace
given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his
faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it
is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of
others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern
diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully."
The
spiritual gifts are described in three places in Paul's writings, I Corinthians
12:12-31 (the manifestations of these gifts); Ephesians 4:11-16 (the use and
purpose for these gifts); and Romans 12:4-8.
Paul now goes on to
another vital aspect of being a living sacrifice--LOVE. Love must be sincere.
Verses 9-21 properly describes what real godly love is and isn't. "Love must
be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another
in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never lacking in zeal,
but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in
affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God's people who are in need.
Practice hospitality." Another important aspect of love is how you deal
with your enemies. "Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
Rejoice with those who rejoice and mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony
with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of
low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be
careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far
as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my
friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to
avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. On the contrary: "If your enemy is
hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink. In doing this, you will
heap burning coals on his head. [Proverbs 25:21-22].' Do not be overcome by
evil, but overcome evil with good."
cf. Matthew 5:9. "Blessed are
the peacemakers, for they will be called the sons of God."
Only 292
years of peace have existed in the over four thousands years of recorded
history. 14500 wars have occurred in which 3.6 billion people have been killed.
History is one battle after another. Weapons and weaponry have evolved from
simple and ineffective to complex and extremely deadly weapons of mass
destruction--threatening the existence of life itself on this planet. Weather
weapons are now in the offing.
What are the weapons we Christians have?
Put on your weapons, armour and fight--the battle is raging, Paul
says.
Romans 13
Romans 13:1-7. "Everyone must submit himself
to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God
has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.
Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God
has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. For
rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do
you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right
and he will commend you. For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do
wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's
servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it
is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible
punishment but also for conscience.
This is also why you pay
taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to
governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if
revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then
honor."
Verses 1-7: How we should deal with this world's governments
and societies? Paul says "Be subject to the authorities of the world's
governments because they are divinely ordained by God. Do you pray for Bill
Clinton? Did Paul pray for the Caesar--perhaps even for the Caesar that signed
his death warrant? It is a safe bet to say he did. Nebuchadnezzar came
to understand who it was who is ultimately in control and authority. It is God.
The leaders ultimately answer or will have to answer to God. Read Daniel 4.
Nebuchadnezzar was a world dictator. Get the big picture. Habakkuk had
to.
Habakkuk 1:2-4. "'How long, O Lord, must I call for help, but you do
not listen? Or cry out to you, 'Violence!' but you do not save? Why do you
tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and
conflict abounds. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails.
The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted." [If you really
know about the Clinton Whitehouse, the President would fit right into
Habakkuk's complaint prayer to God.] What was God's response to Habakkuk? God
said, 'Look at the big picture, Habakkuk. You're missing the point. Habakkuk
1:5-11. "Look at the nations and watch--and be utterly amazed. For I am going
to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.
I am raising up the Babylonians, that ruthless and impetuous people, who sweep
across the whole earth to seize dwelling places not their own. They are a
feared and dreaded people; they are a law to themselves and promote their own
honor. Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves at dusk.
Their cavalry gallops headlong; their horsemen come from afar. They fly like a
vulture swooping to devour; they all come bent on violence. Their hordes
advance like a desert wind and gather prisoners like sand. They deride kings
and scoff at rulers. They laugh at all fortified cities; they build earthen
ramps and capture them. Then they sweep past like the wind and go on--guilty
men, whose own strength is their god."
Habakkuk was written as a
dialogue or conversation between God and the prophet. Habakkuk saw that the
leaders in Judah were oppressing the poor, so he asked the question as to why
God allowed those wicked people to prosper. When God told him that the
Babylonians would come to punish Judah, Habakkuk became more concerned. He did
not understand how God could use the Babylonians, who were actually more wicked
than the wicked Jews, to bring judgment on God's chosen people. God's answer
was that the just would live by faith in God, Habakkuk 2:4, and that they had
assurance that God was doing what was right. God told Habakkuk that in due time
the Babylonians too would be judged and that justice would come about for the
people of God.
Don't forget, Romans 13:1-7 comes right after Romans
12:19-21, which is a part of this very theme. God is in charge. That is what
God told Habakkuk and Nebuchadnezzar. Romans 12:19-21 states, "Do not take
revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is
mine to avenge; I will repay [Deut. 32:35],' says the Lord. On the contrary:
'If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to
drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head. [Prov.
25:21-22].' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with
good."
God says throughout his Word that he will take care of the
wrongdoers, whether people or government leaders and whole governments and
nations--just worship God--pray for the evildoers--and live by faith--God is in
control. This is one of the key reasons for Bible prophecy, to show just how
much God is actually in control. Our job is to be Christians and show love,
both to the good, the bad and the ugly.
If there is a conflict between
man's laws or government and God's, obey God first. Daniel 3:1-30 is an example
of just how far three of God's servants were willing to go in obeying God over
man's governments, while still showing proper respect to the king. Jeremiah
told the captive Jews in Babylon to actually pray for the city they lived
in--Babylon. Jeremiah 29:7. "Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to
which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it
prospers, you too will prosper." The ultimate theme of Romans 12:19 through
Romans 13:1-7 is "Be a Christian and I will take care of the rest of the world,
it's leaders, and it's governments, all in due time--I control history and
where it will end up taking everyone who has ever lived--So in the mean time,
you be a good Christian.
Love is the fulfillment of the law. Our main
weapon in our spiritual combat is love. You are not going to break any of these
commandments (vs. 9-10) if you love others.
Romans 13:8-10. "Let no
debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he
who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, 'Do not
murder,' 'Do not steal,' 'Do not covet,' [Exodus 20:13-15,17] and whatever
commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: 'Love your neighbor
as yourself' [Deut. 5:17-19,21]. Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore
love is the fulfillment of the law."
In the next verses Paul is in
essence saying, 'Christian awake! There is a battle raging all around you! This
is our call to battle. Put on the Armour of Light. The night he is
referring to is this sinful age we live in [i.e. from Adam to the 2nd
coming of Jesus Christ]. Romans 13:11-14. "And do this, understanding the
present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because
our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed [Paul, and many of the
apostles, sincerely believed that the Lord's 2nd coming would be in their
lifetimes; but this could be true for some of us living today! -You all should
be aware of the prophecy in II Thessalonians 2:3-4 which states, "Let no man
deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a
falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; who
opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is
worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself
that he is god…" And Daniel 9:27. "And he shall confirm the covenant with
many for one week: in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and
the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make
it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured
upon the desolate." Read Matthew 24;15. Daniel 12:11. "And from the time that
the daily sacrifice shall be taken away, and the abomination that maketh
desolate set up, there shall be a thousand two hundred and ninety days." What
all this is saying is that the temple service and evening and morning
sacrifices in the temple will yet be set up again by the Jews. Then "the man of
perdition, the abomination of desolation," will cause the sacrifices to cease.
As Matthew 24:15 stays, when you see this happen, if you are in Jerusalem--flee
for your life!!! World War III, the Biblical tribulation has started! "When ye
shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand
in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be
in Judea flee into the mountains…" (Matthew 24:15-16.) We see that when
this event occurs--the tribulation, World War III--is triggered. From there
Jesus Christ's 2nd coming is just three and a half short years away!
Look at what's going on in the Middle East right now. The Jews are being set up
for a major conflict over Jerusalem. The Jews are very close to setting up a
Levitical Order to resume the "evening and morning sacrifices." If you are
genuinely interested in what is taking place in the Middle East and North
Africa right now, send for Chuck Missler's cassette series titled "Sword of
Islam" c/o Koinonia House, P.O. Box D, Coeur d'Alene ID 83816-0347. Or call
1-800-KHOUSE-1, or online at http://thesource.khouse.org This cassette series is an
up to date well researched study of current events in the Middle East from a
Biblical perspective. Now back to Paul and Romans 13.] The night is nearly
over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put
on the armor of light. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in orgies
and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and
jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not
think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature [margin: 'or the
flesh.']."
I John 2:10-11. "Whoever loves his brother lives in the
light, and there is nothing in him to make him stumble. But whoever hates his
brother is in the darkness, and walks around in the darkness; he does not know
where he is going, because the darkness has blinded him."
Ephesians
6:10-19. "Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the
full armour of God so that you can take your stand against the devil's schemes.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers,
against authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against
spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms [i.e. the demonic world of
Satan]. Therefore put on the full armour of God, so that when the day of evil
comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done
everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around
your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet
fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to
all this take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the
flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of
the Spirit, which is the word of God [i.e. the Bible]. And pray in the Spirit
on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be
alert and always keep on praying for all the saints. Pray also for me, that
whenever I open my mouth, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make
known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray
that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should."