“Therefore”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Wednesday, February 9, 2022
Romans 12:1-8 (Forward, p. 11) CEV p. 1184
“I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God…”. So begins this passage in the Authorized Version (KJV). One of my old Bible study teachers used to say that when a Bible passage has the word ‘therefore’, one should ask what it is ‘there for’. What he meant by this was that this word served as a connection between what went previously with what followed. But more than that, it indicates that what has been said or what has been referred to in the preceding section obviously and naturally has some implications in terms of what comes next.
That indeed is what the case is here. Paul here refers to the ‘mercies of God’ or ‘God’s great mercy to us’, which is a shorthand way of referring to what has been said in all the previous chapters of this letter to the Romans. And what has been explained there? None other than God’s love, shown to us on the election and salvation afforded to us in and through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
And so, in light of this, in response to this, there are certain behaviours that should naturally be ours. That is what the rest of today’s passage is about: how we should respond, how we should behave, in light of everything that God has already done for us.
He begins by saying that we should offer ourselves, but specifically our bodies, as a living sacrifice to God, holy, dedicated to His service and therefore pleasing to Him. That is the most sensible way to worship God, the true way to worship God, the most reasonable and acceptable way to do so. And notice: Paul singles out our bodies. For some people it may be relatively easy to surrender our minds or our spirit to God, but our bodies? You know, what we ate, what we wear, where we go, what we read or watch in the social media or on TV or in books, or what we spend our time on. This is much more difficult to accomplish, much more trying. Herein then is a catch. As one of my old colleagues used to say, ‘the problem with living sacrifices is that they keep on crawling off the altar.’
Herein, Paul offers a word of advice: instead of letting the ‘world’ outside of God’s will to shape our lives and cause us to conform to its dictates and standards, we should allow God to transform us, to change us on the inside by renewing our minds, changing the way we think, so we are now attuned to God’s way of thinking. Then we will be able to know the will of God, and better able to follow and adhere to it. Then what we do will be good as well as pleasing to God.
But then Paul moves on from a purely personal level to a corporate, church congregation level. He suggests that we should not fail into either of two extremes: we should not fall into the error of ‘thinking too highly of ourselves’ and then we should not fall into the error either of belittling or despising ourselves. We should look at ourselves with a modest, sober, s and sensible approach and evaluate ourselves, measure ourselves, accordingly. In this regard, when it comes to the church, the Body of Christ, it is composed of many different parts, each of which has its own particular place and function. And so it is with us, he says. And further to that, each of those parts has particular gifts that enable to carry out that essential function. Therefore, we are not to despise anyone, including ourselves, for what function we have or what part we play in the overall work of the church. And likewise, we should not try to compare the various gifts and see some as being more valued or important than others. No, instead, seeing as it is God Himself that assigns all the functions and apportions out the gifts, we should praise all of them.
And whether it pertains to how we occupy our personal space and make use of our private times, or how we interact with our fellow believers, it should all be done to the glory and honour of God—especially considering all that He has done for us in Christ Jesus. It is only right and proper that we should do that. Amen.
Forward notes: “For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another” (verses 4-5).
“I spent too many years comparing myself to other people all the time. No matter the comparison, I always came up wanting. I wish I was charismatic like him. I wish I was beautiful like her. I wish my faith was as strong as theirs. I was so preoccupied with others’ talents that I had no time to appreciate my own.
“Paul’s metaphor of the body with many members was unbelievably liberating for me, because it helped me understand that we’re not all supposed to have the same gifts. It is not my job to excel at everything. Nor do I have to worry about whether people see and praise my talents all the time (no one can see the heart beating, but that doesn’t make it any less important). All I have to do is embrace the gifts God has given me and seek to live out my unique role within the Body of Christ.”
MOVING FORWARD: “What are your gifts? Write them on an index card and post it in a prominent place so that you can be reminded of God’s generosity in bestowing them.”
