Romans 12:9-21 – A Community of Grace
The Soap Maker
• A minister and a soap maker went for a walk together. The soap maker said, "what good is Christianity? Look at all the trouble and misery of the world! Still there, even after years--thousands of years--of teaching about goodness and truth and peace. Still there, after all the prayers and sermons and teachings. If religion is good and true, why should this be?"
The minister said nothing. They continued walking until he noticed a child playing in the gutter.
Then the minister said, "Look at that child. You say that soap makes people clean, but see the dirt on that youngster. Of what good is soap? With all the soap in the world, over all these years, the child is still filthy. I wonder how effective soap is, after all!"
The soap maker protested. "But, Pastor, soap cannot do any good unless it is used!"
"Exactly!" replied the minister.
Christianity is like soap, its no good unless it is put to us
• Last week we looked at the first part of Rom 12
• Paul after taking 11 chapters to explain about God’s love and mercy to us, now moves to what a Christian’s response should be to the Good news of Jesus Christ
• Rom 12:1 - “Therefore, I urge you brothers, In view of God’s mercy (Grace) to offer your bodies as living sacrifices
• Because God has been “graceful and loving” to us, we now need to be “graceful and loving” to others
• Otherwise we are like that unused soap
• Christianity is meant to be put to use
• And that use is governed by the administration we live under, Do we live under the administration of Law or the administration of Grace
• What does Paul tell us we are under?
• Romans 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
• We no longer live under the control and dominion of sin because God’s grace has set us free
• John 1:16-17 And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace.17 For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
• Jesus introduced the administration of grace and we are expected to live that reality
• Paul in Eph 3:2 speaks about the “administration of God’s grace that was given to me…..”
• We have a responsibility to administer or dispense God’s grace
• Grace is not limited to the gift of salvation. The gift also comes as a task
• Paul viewed himself as a manager of “God’s grace” and so should we
• 1 Peter 4:10 commands us saying, “each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”
• God has enlisted you and I into his work of administrating “grace” to a dying world
• 1 Corinthians 3:9 calls us, ‘God’s fellow-laborers.”
• We are to be his spiritual ambulances administering his grace in a spiritually sick world
• God has enlisted us into his service to be vehicles of his grace
• We should regard ministry as a privilege because we are helping God do his work
Pick up the story in v.9
• So far Paul has told us to change our thinking about the use of our bodies v.1
• the renewing or transformation of our minds, v.2
• we need a humble and submissive heart in order to serve, v.3
• and we are to use the gifts and talents God has given us to serve the church v.4-8
Now he moves on to instruct us on how the Christian community is to treat one another
• Let me say a few words about community before we go into this section
• Too often we regard our calling as an individual thing – “Jesus died for me”, rather than viewing it within the community context of covenant
• Jesus didn’t just die for me, did He? He died for the whole world
• It’s impossible to separate ourselves from the rest of the Christian community
• When the NT talks about reconciliation, it does so in the context of entering into the community of God, of entering into a new order – a new creation
2 Corinthians 5:17-19 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away( Not just the old man) all things have become new.18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the ministry of reconciliation.
• We should not just view this new creation as purely an individual thing, but rather we are entering into a new social order , a new realm – a community of grace
Colossians 1:12-14 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.13 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love,14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.
• From God’s point of view, reconciliation is not viewed exclusively as an act of removing our guilt, but also the reestablishment of relationship
• This is the challenge given to the church – to develop within the various individuals within the church a community of grace
• We want to introduce more opportunities for us to develop more of a community spirit in our church
• How’s this for an idea
• How about a baked potato dinner after church once a month to draw us closer together, but also we want to invite the community along
• Ask for volunteers to commit to bring potatoes and topping each time
How is this community of grace supposed to operate?
• As we go through this list of virtues, bear in mind it is a list to strive for, not something to beat us over the head with
• This is what a community of grace should strive to achieve
9. Love must be sincere.
• The Greek word Paul uses here for love is the word “agape”
• So far the word agape has been used four times in Romans, and up to this point its only been used to describe God’s love for us (Rom 5:5, 8; 8:35, 39)
• Yet here agape is used to describe how we’re to love God and other people
• Essentially agape is an unselfish love that gives regardless of worth or expectation of something in return
• It’s a self-forgetting kind of love that gives without thought to what one will get out of it
• It’s a kind of love that transcends romance, friendship, patriotism, and even family
• It’s the kind of love that regulates all other loves from turning destructive.
• Agape is the kind of love that’s seen most clearly in Jesus Christ’s death for the sins of the human race. This is authentic Godly love
• In fact the Greek text here simply says, "sincere love," with no verb, almost as if "sincere love" is a heading for everything else in this chapter
• The rest of the chapter is a commentary on what authentic love in action looks like
• The English word "sincere" comes from two Latin words, "sine cere"
• They mean literally, "without wax."
• In the ancient world pottery was a necessity of life. It was not unusual for pottery to break when it was being fired, and, of course, a broken pot was hard to sell, unless you had some wax.
• A skillful, but dishonest potter, could use wax as glue and put a pot back together, paint it, and sell it as new.
• That was fine until a person poured hot soup into the pot.
• So honest potters began to advertise their wares as "sine cere," “without wax”
• they would encourage their buyers to hold the pot up to the sun or subject it to heat to try to detect any wax
• So Paul is saying, under the administration of grace, love has to be sincere, no hidden agendas, no ulterior motives
• no waxed over exterior hiding what is really inside
• How does our love hold up when subjected to the heat of trials and conflict?
Hate what is evil;
• Not convinced we hate evil as we should
• 2 Peter 1:3-4 3 His divine power has given to us everything we need for life and godliness, through our knowledge of Him who called us by his own glory and goodness,4 through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, and escape the corruption that is in the world caused by evil desires
• rather than unleash this divine power on our problems, I think the reason we still live with sin is because we enjoy the benefits
• cling to what is good.
• There will be pressure to compromise with the world’s standards, but Paul says to cling to what is good like a man hanging on to a rock in the middle of flood waters
• We need to hang onto “The Rock” otherwise the world will sweep us away in its culture
10Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.
• One of the big problems facing the church at the moment is this phenomenon of Church transfer
• If we were as devoted to one another as we should be, church transfer would stop tomorrow
Honor one another above yourselves.
• that little sentence would take care of all the selfishness in the world
11Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.
• What place do spiritual disciplines take in our lives? Is church attendance a priority for you, what about prayer, study of God’s Word?
How you doing so far? How graceful a community are we? Well, there’s more to come!
12Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13Share with God’s people who are in need.
• Word “Share” is a form of the word “koinonia” which means “fellowship, togetherness, common bond, family”
• This word was introduced by the early church
• Author Robert Shannon (1000 Windows) says, “Christian fellowship is so unique, the first believers searched for a word to describe it. They found the solution in an old word no longer in use. They dusted off that word and used it: koinonia. They knew no ordinary word could describe the relationship that existed among believers. (Standard Publishing Company, 1997).
• Like the early church, we need to regard the relationships that exists between us as something very special
• We can’t settle for patching up appearances by using wax to paper over the cracks
• Our relationships have to be genuine
• If they are genuine, we will share what we have with those in need
• I John 3:16-18 This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth.
Practice hospitality.
• A church newsletter mentioned a man who visited eighteen different churches on successive Sundays, trying to find out what the churches were really like. In every church, he was neatly dressed and followed the same routine of giving ample opportunity for fellowship. Then he used a scale to rate the reception he received. These are the points he awarded
o 10 for a smile from a worshiper
o 10 for a greeting from someone sitting nearby
o 100 for an exchange of names
o 200 for an invitation to have coffee
o 200 for an invitation to return
o 1000 for an introduction to another worshiper
o 2000 for an invitation to meet the pastor
• On this scale, eleven of the eighteen churches earned fewer than 100 points. Five actually received less than 20. The conclusion: The doctrine may be biblical, the singing inspirational, the sermon uplifting, but when a visitor finds nobody who cares whether he’s here, he is not likely to come back." James S. Hewett, Illustrations Unlimited (Wheaton: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc, 1988) pp. 94-95
14Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.
• The word “damn” seems to be making a comeback even in the Christian community
• It’s a abbreviated form of “God damn you!”
• So not only is it taking God’s name in vain, it is cursing someone to damnation
15Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16Live in harmony with one another.
• “The German philosopher Schopenhauer compared the human race to a bunch of porcupines huddling together on a cold winter’s night. He said, "The colder it gets outside, the more we huddle together for warmth; but the closer we get to one another, the more we hurt one another with our sharp quills. And in the lonely night of earth’s winter eventually we begin to drift apart and wander out on our own and freeze to death in our loneliness."
• Christianity has given us an alternative: to forgive one another for the pokes we receive. That allows us to stay together and stay warm.”
Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.[3] Do not be conceited.
17Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.
• Again a warning about compromise. We don’t change our behavior according to the company we happen to be with at the time
Verse 18 onwards challenges us with some of the most difficult aspects of Christianity
18If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
• Now there a challenge! Is anyone at peace with everyone?
• a bumber sticker said, "Know Jesus, Know Peace - No Jesus, No Peace."
• That really says it all! If we want to know peace, we have to know the Prince of Peace.
• If we don’t know Jesus, we cannot have peace.
What we see here are concepts that are totally contradictory to this world point of view
• They are other worldly, they are the concepts of the community of grace
• 2 Corinthians 5:16 so from now on, we regard no one from a worldy point of view
• The way we think about others, including our enemies has to change
• One of the keys of how a community of grace thinks is to see past the individuals behavior and regard every human being in terms of their needs
• Its interesting Jesus went around fulfilling peoples needs
• That’s the point of view grace inspires – to look at every human being in terms of their need
• Grace will ultimately fulfill every human need
• The spirit of grace gives us the capacity to
o See the tears behind the cool shades.
o Spot the pain under the angry outburst.
o Sense the fear inside the proud body language.
o Find the lonely soul within the rude remarks.
o Uncover the deep longing beneath the cutting wit.
o Pick out the years of disappointment behind the awkward
gesture
• Something amazing happens when we look past peoples’ behavior to their needs
• Listen to this story and think past the individual to his need
• Depression time -1930’s on northern Canadian prairie
Jansen family was share-cropping and lost their farm. They searched for a new one and a friend told them of one across from Jud Brewster. Few lasted there because Jud was so mean. Mr. Jansen said, "I’ll just kill him."
They moved to the new farm. One week later, Brewster appeared at their door in a rage. Their chickens were bothering him, and he threatened to kill them. The family locked them up in the henhouse.
Peace for a time, then he showed up again. "Jansen, your pigs have been in my garden. They’ll never get in my garden again!" There, in Brewster’s wagon, was their herd of young pigs, all dead. He had shot each of them. Without saying a word, Mr. Jansen buried the pigs. A few weeks later one of the Jansen boys came rushing into the house. "Daddy, go get a gun quick. Jud Brewster’s pigs are in our garden!" The kids could already taste revenge. The father replied, "We won’t need a gun. Round up the pigs." After a lot of trouble getting them in the wagon, dead ones are easier to load than live ones, and they headed over to Brewster’s farm.
"Good evening, Mr. Brewster. Your pigs have been in my garden. I’ve brought them back." The color drained from Brewster’s face. "My pigs, my pigs in your garden?" "That’s right. Where do you want us to put them?" Brewster’s body sagged against the door and he said, "Just dump them over behind the barn." Jansen replied with a slight grin, "OK, but they’ll just get out again." When it had sunk in the Jansens had not killed the pigs, Brewster clutched his hand like a dying man. They talked for a long time. Brewster gave him half the pigs to keep, and on Sunday he came to church. From that point on, he was a changed man.
Later one of his boys asked him what he meant when he said he would kill Brewster when they moved by him.
He replied, "Not with a gun. I planned to do it another way - by heaping coals on his head.
"That old neighbor is as dead as a doornail, just like I’d said he’d be.”
• What was this man’s need? How much love do you think this man had experienced in his lifetime in order to act like this?
• Seeing past the behavior to a persons needs is a powerful perspective that can disarm the most difficult people in our lives
• Praying for your enemy forces us to focus on the fact he is a real live flesh and blood human being with unmet needs
• While we regard him as an enemy, it’s impossible for us to see him as someone who has needs
• Think of it this way. All the evidence point to the suspect being the murderer
• But then someone shows up with a water tight genuine alibis
• Suddenly he no longer has the label “suspect”
• We do the same thing with our enemies. We think an enemy can’t have needs any more than suspect can have an alibis.
• But as soon as the alibis or the needs appear, the label we’ve given them also disappears
• Jansen saw past the behavior, past the label and saw a flesh and blood human being with the need for grace
• We’ve got to do the same thing
19Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay,"[4] says the Lord. 20On the contrary:
"If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head."[5] 21Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
• Another thing we notice about grace is its going to cost you something
• Time, money, inconvenience, dignity
• Finish with another wonderful story of grace
• Raisin in the Sun is a famous and powerful play that demonstrates the grace of forgiveness. In the play an African-American family inherits $10,000 from their father’s life insurance policy. The mother of the household sees in this legacy the chance to escape the ghetto life of Harlem and move into a nice home in the countryside. The brilliant daughter sees in the money the chance to go to medical school. The older brother, however, has a plea that is difficult to ignore. He wants the money so that he and his “friend” can go into business. He promises that if he can just have the money he will make more money and help everyone fulfill their dreams. Against her better judgment, the mother gives in to the pleas of her son. The so called ‘friend” skips town with the money and the son has to return home with the bad news. His sister lashes out at him with a barrage of ugly words. Her contempt and hatred for her brother has no limits. When she takes a breath in the midst of her tirade, the mother interrupts her and says, “I thought I taught you to love him.” The daughter answers, “Love him? There’s nothing left to love.” Then with powerful and moving words, the mother responds. “There’s always something left to love.
Have you cried for him today? I don’t mean for yourself and our family because we lost all that money. I mean for him: for what he’s been through and for what it has done to him. When do you think is the time to love somebody the most: when they have done good and made things easy for everybody? It’s when he’s at his lowest and can’t believe in himself because the world has whipped him. When you start measuring someone, make sure you take into account what hills and valleys he’s been through.”
• Who have you cried for lately? Who have you forgiven lately? What enemy have you prayed for lately? Who’s needs have you met lately?
• These are the day to day activities of a community of grace
• To go back to our question we asked before the sermon, What would we like our church to look like in five years, this is my dream – to develop a genuine Community of Grace
