In his book Jesus
Christ: Disciplemaker, Bill Hull touches on a very important point: “The
problem at its root is that we have accepted a non-discipleship Christianity
that leads to plenty of motion, activity and conferences but no lasting
transformation.” Transformation God’s way is key. We find that notably mentioned in Romans
12. Take a look:
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies
to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy
sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship
him. Don’t
copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a
new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s
will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:1-2 (NLT)
What a great statement.
Based on what God has done for us, His people, we give our bodies as
living and holy sacrifices to God. We
give Him everything as a sacrifice on the altar gives it all. We break from the way the culture around us
operates and thinks and go His way being transformed by God into a new
person. Yeah, that is good.
How does that stop the HD church? The emphasis on God and His ways and not me
and my ways is a great place to start.
Then in a veritable explosion of wisdom chapter 12 of Romans opens up in
ways that offers healing to the wounded church that was in Rome and received
this letter in the first century. Look
at this to begin with. Big personalities
and opinions exist among most people, right?
Imagine for a moment the challenge of powerful political Romans mixing
with the slaves of the city and trying to overcome the day to day social order
at a church gathering. Not only were
there socio-economic issues, but religious heritage of the Jewish believers who
carried a particular prestige in this new order. How do you deal with pride problems in such
an arrangement? Here we go:
Because of the privilege and authority God has given
me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really
are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the
faith God has given us. Romans 12:3 (NLT)
The standard for evaluation is this wonderful faith God has
given us, and not the standard of Rome or Jerusalem. In our day we have our own reasons for pride,
but whatever they are they fall short of measuring up to God’s level and it
serves us well to go His way.
The brokenness of the HD church leaves a mess of pieces all
over the place. Romans 12 points us to
unity in Christ as one body. Do you know
how we are to get to one body from all the pieces? We are to acknowledge that we are different
(not in ethnicity or material possessions or personal power or religious
heritage). We are different people
blessed to bless others in the church for the good of all. The emphasis is on giving and not
getting. Unity in the body follows the
grace shown. Here is how Romans 12 puts
it.
Just as our bodies have many parts and each part has a special function,
so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of one body, and we all belong
to each other. In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain
things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as
much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others,
serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well. If your gift is to
encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has
given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness
to others, do it gladly. Romans 12:4-8
(NLT)
Instead of focusing on division there is a unity in Christ’s
body based on serving one another with a special function. Serving, giving, sharing whatever one has is
important and not the individual function…do it well as God has given the
ability. This is so good.
God offers such a life for each and all of those who are His
that it is hard to even grasp. It
stretches the imagination. It radiates
in glowing light. It challenges to the
very core. The plan includes the
ekklesia, the people of God gathered as the church. His best for us is often wrapped up in a
group of imperfect people. It is there
in that strange amalgamation of personalities and problems that God works His
transformation in us. The more we lay
our lives on the altar as living and holy sacrifices and stop conforming to the
world but allow Him to work His transforming ways in us our lives will be
enriched, our families will be blessed, our communities will see a newness of
life. The HD church will always struggle trying to fix itself by earthly means, but the King has always been able to put Humpty Dumpty back together again.
