Title: A Living Sacrifice
Most of you know when reading the English Bible that the chapter and verse markers were added around the year 1000 A.D., roughly 1000 years after they were written. The chapter and verse markers were added by men as a reference system, they are not infallible.
For this reason, anyone who has spent a fair amount of time in the Bible has had one of those experiences where you find yourself scratching your head over why a perfectly fluent sentence has been broken into three verses, or why a perfectly fluent argument is divided into two or three separate chapters.
But today is a little different. I am in agreement with most scholars who believe that the section of Paul’s letter to the Romans that we now call Chapter 12, verse 1, is a huge turning point in the body of Paul’s letter. Therefore, I tell you this morning that the chapter and verse marker of Romans 12:1 is extremely appropriate and timely.
Essentially, after Paul sets the table of the knowledge of God in Romans 1&2, he then spends chapters 3-11 dialoguing essentially about the doctrine of Grace, and, as we have studied for the last two years, Paul is exhaustive in his work.
But here, in the beginning of Chapter 12, Paul will turn his attention for the remainder of his letter is focused on the application of his teaching. Essentially Paul is answering the question, “Okay, so what do we do now?”
Today we will begin to look at that question as we focus in on one of the most well known and often quoted verses in scripture, Romans 12:1.
With that in mind, I want you all to strap in mentally and spiritually, because we are about to spend a couple weeks in this one verse. I believe this one sentence is so very important and precious that I want to leave ample time, not only for my convictional presentation of this verse, but also for you to savor it slowly and deliberately.
Another way to say it might be, do you want it done fast, or do you want it done right?
(Read/Pray)
I. By What Qualifications Does Paul Make His Appeal?
In order to more fully understand what Paul is asking of his readers, we will break down Romans 12:1 into three sections. The first of these sections is
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God…”
From this opening, we see several things:
1. “I beseech you” It is a personal appeal. Paul, having never most of these people personally, is not afraid to simply appeal to the fact that both parties are professing believers in Jesus the Christ.
Point: All believers have both a right and responsibility to make sure the body of Christ is holy.
2. “therefore..” Paul makes his appeal on the weight of everything he has written in his letter to the Romans up until this point. If you don’t understand what Paul has argued for in chapters 1-11, then the appeal that Paul issues here doesn’t carry as much power as it should.
Point: It is essential that as we study the word of God, we study the word of God in context. That is why we preach through books, that is why we preach expository sermons. We place ourselves at the mercy of scripture, we do not place scripture at the mercy of our desire.
3. “…brethren…” Paul’s appeal is based upon the fact that the people reading the letter are claiming to be Christians. If they are not, then the words Paul speaks here carry no weight.
Point: We are a family, we are a body. When the head of the household speaks, we are obligated to listen. Paging through God’s word and deciding which parts we are going to adhere to, or even which parts we are going to amplify is simply not an option.
4. “…by the mercies of God…” This has a two fold effect. First Paul is saying, “You were saved by only the mercy of God, you did nothing to earn favor with Him” secondly, “Because of that, if you are called to be merciful to others, you are obligated because you yourself were saved only by that same mercy.
Point: I am a reasonable and rational man. If God did nothing for you and then asked you to give your life over to him, I would consider that to be unreasonable. But if God gave everything for you, including the death of his son, and saves your soul from Hell, and then makes requests of the way that you live in order to be his Kingdom’s ambassador, I think that is plenty reasonable and more than rational.
By what qualifications does Paul make his appeal?
He does so personally, based on the weight of his previous arguments, knowing he’s talking to other believers, and Paul wants us to be motivated by the mercy that God has already shown to us.
Pray
Questions and Answers