Surrender Then Service Series

SURRENDER THEN SERVICE

ROMANS 12:1-8

I. INTORDUCTION: TALK ABOUT THE SONG I SURRENDER ALL. WE SIGN IT A LOT BUT WE REALLY DON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT MEANS. (EXBOUND).

II. WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT SPIRITUAL GIFTS, LAST WEEK WE DISCUSSED PAUL DEALING WITH THE PROBLEMS OF THE ABUSE OF SPIRITUAL GIFTS IN THE CORINTHIAN CHURCH.

III. TODAY PAUL IS WRITING TO THE MANY HOUSE CHURCHES THAT WERE IN ROME.

IV. THE PURPOSE OF THE BOOK OF ROMANS WAS TO UNIFY THESE MANY HOUSE CHURCHES AND TO GIVE THEM AN UNDERSTANDING OF DOCTRINAL EXPLANATIONS.

V. IN THIS SECTION OF ROMANS WE GO BEYOND JUST UNDERSTANDING DOCTRINE. PAUL IS TELLING US THAT OUR LEARNING MUST TRANSLATE INTO LIVING.

VI. PAUL WAS WRITING TO CHRISTIANS WHO WERE MEMBERS OF LOCAL CHURCHES.

VII. HE DESCRIBED THEIR RELATIONSHIP TO EACH OTHER IN TERMS OF THE MEMBERS OF THE BODY.

VIII. BASIC IDEA IS THAT EACH BELIEVER IS A LIVING PART OF CHRISTS BODY, AND EACH ONE HAS A SPIRITUAL FUNCTION TO PERFORM. THIS IS NOT DIFFERENT TODAY.

IX. EACH BELIEVER HAS A GIFT FOR GIFTS TO BE USED FOR THE BUILDING UP OF THE BODY. IN OTHER WORDS, WE BELONG TO EACH OTHER, WE MINISTER TO EACH OTHER AND WE NEED EACH OTHER.

X. THINGS HAVE NOT CHANGED IN THOUSANDS OF YEARS. THESE WRITINGS OF PAUL IN ROMANS ARE JUST AS IMPORTANT TO US TODAY AS THEY WERE THEN, AND THIS PASSAGE GIVES US AN IDEA OF THE STEPS WE MUST TAKE TO HAVE A RIGHT RELATIONSHIP TO GOD AND TO ONE ANOTHER.

CONNECTION SENTENCE: AS WE TAKE A LOOK AT OUR TEXT THE FIRST THING WE SEE THAT MUST COME FIRST IS THIS:

I. WE MUST SURRENDER TO GOD. VERSE 1.

A. KEY: PRESENT YOUR BODIES AS A LIVING SACRIFICE.

B. BEFORE WE TRUSTED CHRIST WE USED OUR BODY FOR SINFUL PLEASURES AND PURPOSES.

C. BUT NOW THAT WE BELONG TO HIM, WE WANT TO USE OUR BODY FOR HIS GLORY.

D. THIS MEANS OUR WHOLE BEING, NOT JUST PARTS OF US. ALL THAT WE ARE AND ALL THAT WE HAVE MUST BE GIVEN TO GOD.

E. THERE ARE TWO LIVING SACRIFICES IN THE BIBLE AND THEY HELP US TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THIS REALLY MEANS.

F. THE FIRST IS ISAAC IN GENESIS 22. ISAAC WILLING PUT HIMSELF ON THE ALTAR AND WOULD HAVE DIED IN OBEDIENCE TO GODS WILL, BUT THE LORD SENT A RAM TO TAKE HIS PLACE.

G. ISAAC DIED TO SELF AND WILLINGLY YIELDED HIMSELF TO THE WILL OF GOD.

H. HAVE YOU DONE THAT TODAY? (EXBOUND).

I. IT SAYS HOLY AND ACCEPTABLE TO GOD. THIS TELLS US THAT WE MUST BE CLEAN VESSELS.

J. BEFORE WE CAN SERVE GOD AND UNDERSTAND THE WILL OF GOD FOR OUR LIVES, WE MUST SURRENDER TO HIM. LIVING A LIFE THAT IS HOLY AND PLEASING TO GOD.

K. ARE YOU LIVING A LIFE THAT IS HOLY AND PLEASING TO GOD? GOD WON’T USE A DIRTY VESSEL. GOD WILL NOT HONOR A LIFE OF SIN AND A LIFE THAT IS NOT SURRENDERED TO HIM.

CONNECTION SENTENCE: NOW THAT WE HAVE SEEN THAT WE MUST SURRENDER THE NEXT THING WE SEE IS:

II. HOW DO WE SURRENDER. VERSE 2.

A. YOU GIVE HIM YOUR MIND.

B. THE WORLD WANTS TO CONTROL YOUR MIND, BUT GOD WANTS TO TRANSFORM YOUR MIND.

C. THE WORD TRANSFORM MEANS METAMORPHIS. IT MEANS A CHANGE FROM WITHIN.

D. THE WORLD WANTS TO CHANGE YOUR MIND, SO IT PUTS PRESSURE ON US FROM WITHOUT.

E. BUT THE HOLY SPIRIT CHANGES YOUR MIND BY RELEASING POWER FROM WITHIN.

F. WITHOUT SALVATION, YOU DON’T HAVE THE HOLY SPIRIT INDWELLING IN YOU.

G. THE WORD CONFORMED MEANS TO BE CONTROLLED BY THE WORLDS THINKING.

H. IF THE WORLD CONTROLS YOUR THINKING YOU ARE A CONFORMER, IF GOD CONTROLS YOUR THINKING, YOU ARE A TRANSFORMER.

I. WHICH ONE ARE YOU TODAY, A CONFORMER OR A TRANSFORMER?

J. WE ALSO SURRENDER BY GIVING HIM YOUR WILL.

K. WE SURRENDER OUR WILLS TO GOD THROUGH DISCIPLINED PRAYER.

L. WE MUST PRAY ABOUT EVERYTHING AND LET GOD HAVE HIS WAY IN EVERYTHING.

M. WE UNDERESTIMATE THE POWER OF PRAYER.

N. DO YOU HAVE AN ACTIVE PRAYER LIFE? WITHOUT THIS YOU CAN’T BE TOTALLY SURRENDERED TO GOD.

CONNECTION SENTENCE: NOW THAT WE HAVE ESTABLISHED THE FACT THAT WE MUST BE SURRENDERED TO GOD BEFORE WE CAN SERVE WE SEE THIS:

III. HOW WE SERVE. VERSE 3.

A. PAUL IS MOVING ON INTO A DISCUSSION ABOUT SPIRITUAL GIFTS.

B. WE MUST NOT SERVE WITH PRIDE OR ARROGANTLY.

C. PAUL WAS FULLY AWARE FO THE DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES OF PRIDE IN ANY GROUP OF BELIEVERS.

D. HE CAUTIONED THE CHRISTIANS AT ROME AND TO US TODAY NOT TO THINK OF THEMSELVES TOO HIGHLY.

E. KEY: SOBER JUDGMENT. THIS IS A METHAPHOR THAT PAUL USES. IT SUGGESTS INTOXICATION. PAUL WAS SAYING THEY WERE IN DANGER OF BECOMING EGOHOLICS.