Keys To A Wonderful Church Life - Part 1: Eliminate Stinking Thinking Series

Keys to a Wonderful Church Life - Part 1: Eliminate Stinking Thinking

The Book of Romans

Romans 12:3-5 (Reading vs. 1-5)

Sermon by Rick Crandall

Grayson Baptist Church - October 23, 2016

(Revised August 6, 2021)

BACKGROUND:

*Remember that Romans 12 marks a big shift in Paul's letter to the Christians in Rome. Pastor Steve Weaver explained that "the first 11 chapters of the book of Romans mine the depths of God’s gracious purpose and plan for the redemption of sinful humans." (1)

*There, Paul spelled out the truth about our terrible sinfulness and our desperate need for God's salvation. Paul made it clear that salvation can only come by grace through faith in our crucified and risen Savior Jesus Christ.

*This is the heart of the good news about Jesus. He died on the cross for all of our sins. But three days later, Jesus rose again from the dead, and now He will give eternal life to everyone who receives Him as their Lord and Savior.

*In chapters 9-11, the Holy Spirit led Paul to discuss the future of the Jewish people, and the bottom line is that they too can only be saved by God's grace through faith in Jesus Christ. He is the one and only Messiah promised in the Old Testament Scriptures, so the only way to be just in God's sight is to live by faith in Jesus Christ. But how are we supposed to live this new life we have as Christians? That's what Paul began to discuss in Romans 12, and this is his theme for the rest of the letter. (2)

*Tonight in vs. 3-5, Paul began to talk about how all Christians fit into God's Church, and in these verses, God gives us some keys to a wonderful church life. Let's begin by reading vs. 1-5.

INTRODUCTION:

*I always admired Zig Ziglar. He was one of the best-known motivational speakers in the country. Zig said that he was the kind of optimist who would go after Moby Dick in a rowboat, and take a bottle of tartar sauce with him. (3)

*One thing I remember Zig saying years ago is that from time to time "we need a check-up from the neck up. And we need to eliminate stinking thinking." That is exactly what Paul is trying to do in these verses: Eliminate our stinking thinking. How can we do it?

1. FIRST: WE HAVE TO GROW IN THE GRACE OF GOD.

*We must grow in the grace of Almighty God, and we know this is true because of something we see in vs. 3. There Paul wrote, "For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith."

*Notice at the beginning of that verse Paul said he was speaking to them "through the grace" that God had given to him. Paul was saved by God's grace, and then he grew in God's grace. That's why Paul could be led by the Holy Spirit to write this letter. The Apostle's life had been transformed by the grace of God. So, think about how God's grace changes our thinking.

[1] THE BIGGEST CHANGE OF ALL COMES WHEN WE ARE SAVED BY GOD'S GRACE.

*As Paul tells Christians in Ephesians 2:8-9, "By grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast."

*Think about how much God's grace worked in our lives in order for us to be saved. We didn't choose to be born in a country where the Bible is so freely accessible. There was nothing we did to earn the blessings of living in America. This is nothing less than the amazing grace of God!

*It was total grace to be born in the United States, and even more grace to be born in the Bible Belt. Far fewer believers live in the western states. In 2008, Gallup reported that only 59% of people living out West believed in God, compared to 86% in the South. I would think this gap is even wider today.

*On top of that, most of us had the grace to grow up in Christian families. Like one man said, "My Mama believed in drugs. She drug us to Sunday school and church every Sunday!" Why did you get to grow up in a family like that? The amazing grace of God! There was nothing you ever did or ever could do to deserve it. (4)

*The greatest act of God's grace was sending His only begotten Son to die on the cross for our sins. And when we received Jesus Christ as our living Lord and Savior, we were saved by God's grace. Nothing could ever change our thinking more than that!