How To Love, Live, And Labor
Romans 12:9-18
Introduction:
Paul begins chapter 12 with an appeal to the believers at Rome to be a living sacrifice ! I heard a pastor several years ago make this statement or something similar to it.......Jesus Christ died for you ! Want you live for him ? Jesus wants us to be a living sacrifice ! He wants us to lay ourselves upon the altar and live a life that is holy, and acceptable unto God. Paul goes on further to say that believers are not to be conformed(fashioned) to the world, but we are to be transformed(changed). How ? Check this out ! Our minds have to be renewed ! The word renewed is defined as "renovated." Our understanding has to be changed ! Only the word of God can do this ! Paul continues by talking about the oneness of the body of Christ, and the gifts which are given to the members of the body, and how they are to be used ! Paul concludes chapter 12 with some principles that I believe need to be put to work in the life of every believer so that the body of Christ might function as the Lord intends.
I. Our Love Should Be Sincere ! 12:9
Paul says...."Let love be without dissimulation...." What is dissimulation ? It is hypocrisy ! Don’t be a hypocrite in the way you love people ! Are you being a hypocrite in your relationships ? Acting as though you love folks to their face, and yet talking about them, cutting them to shreds behind their back ! You put on a smiley face, and shake their hands, yet in your heart you’re holding a grudge as big as Stone Mtn. Folks, that is hypocrisy, and Paul says that we should love people sincerely....without hypocrisy !
If there is one thing sorely missing in the house of God, it is love for one another. Let us be reminded of the words of the Apostle John in
1John 3:10 In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother.
Notice also V14 We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
What do these words say about our relationship with the Lord ? Can we really have the right relationship with God, and have hatred in our hearts for believers ? We better do a check-up on ourselves !
a. Notice how we are to cherish one another !
"Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love;......"
b. Notice how we are to consider one another !
"...in honor preferring one another;
c. Notice how we are to contribute to one another ! 12:13
We are to consider our brothers and sisters in the Lord before we do ourselves ! We are to consider them more worthy than we are !
A high school girl wrote the following letter to a friend:
I attended your church yesterday. Although you had invited me, you were not there. I looked for you, hoping to sit with you. I sat alone. A stranger, I wanted to sit near the back of the church but those rows were all packed with regular attenders. An usher took me to the front. I felt as though I was on parade. During the singing of the hymns I was surprised to note that some of the church people weren’t singing. Between their sighs and yawns, they just stared into space. Three of the kids that I had respected on campus were whispering to one another throughout the whole service. Another girl was giggling. I really didn’t expect that in your church. The pastor’s sermon was very interesting, although some members of the choir didn’t seem to think so. They looked bored and restless. One kept smiling at someone in the conngregation. There were several people who left and then came back during the sermon. I thought, "How rude!" I could hear the constant shuffling of feet and doors opening and closing.
The pastor spoke about the reality of faith. The message got to me and I made up my mind to speak to someone about it after the service. But utter chaos reigned after the benediction. I said good morning to one couple, but their response was less than cordial. I looked for some teens with whom I could discuss the sermon, but they were all huddled in a corner talking about the newest music group.
My parents don’t go to church. I came alone yesterday hoping to find a place to truly worship and feel some love. I’m sorry, but I didn’t find it in your church. I won’t be back.
Source: Author unknown.
If our love is not sincere, it will be obvious to the unbelievers ! We will never be able to reach them with the gospel of Christ unless we first reach out to each other in love !
II. Our Lives Should Be Separated ! 12:9
a. We should abandon that which is evil.
The word "abhor" is one we don’t use alot today.....it’s also a principle that we don’t practice much either ! It means to "despise or detest". Sin, evil should be detestable to the believer ! It should not be tolerated in our lives at all. Paul wrote in 1 Thess 5:22 "Abstain from all appearance of evil. "
Illust. Paul Bailey recalls a "Leave it to Beaver" rerun in which Wally, Eddie and the Beaver are going to a movie. Mrs. Cleaver said they were to go to "Pinocchio," not to the other movie in town, "Voodoo Curse." As they approached the theater, Eddie suggested a way around the problem: "Your Mom told you not to take the Beaver to ’Voodoo Curse’ - but what if the Beaver took you?" With that rationalization in hand, they were convinced they had done nothing wrong. How often we do the same thing with God’s law - looking for ways to rationalize our disobedience. -
I’m convinced that one of the reasons that our society is in the shape it’s in morally is because of the shape that the church is in ! The church doesn’t hate sin the way it used to ! Some folks don’t preach against sin the way they once did because their afraid of offending folks, and afraid of losing their paycheck ! If a preacher want preach against sin, and want preach against the need for believers to be separate from the world.....he’s not a real preacher at all. A real preacher loves his flock enough that he wants to protect them, and warn them of the dangers and pitfalls of sin ! The believer is in the world, but is not to be OF the world......"come out from among them, and be ye separate". The very word "church" itself speaks of this fact. The church is a "called out assembly".
b. We should adhere to that which is good.
We are to despise the evil, but cleave to that which is good ! The word "cleave" in this verse means "to stick, to glue, join or keep company ! The child of God is to adhere to those things we are good ! We are to cleave to them, and should keep company with those who follow after good things !
c. We should abstain from profane words. 12:14
How do you react when people say negative things toward you or about you ? What comes out of your mouth when you are cursed or when you are persecuted ! This may seem like ludicrous to some.....but the believer is to reward good for evil ! We are not to curse, but we are bless ! We are to pray for them ! It is often times our reactions that people notice more than our actions !
Illust.
Two cars are waiting at a stoplight. The light turns green, but the man in front doesn’t notice it. A woman in the car behind him is watching traffic pass around them. The
woman begins pounding on her steering wheel and yelling
at the man to move. The man doesn’t move. The woman is going ballistic inside her car, ranting and raving at the man, pounding on her steering wheel and dash.
The light turns yellow. The woman begins to blow the car horn, flips him off, and screams curses at the man.
The man, hearing the commotion, looks up, sees the yellow light and accelerates through the intersection just as the light turns red. The woman is beside herself, screaming in frustration as she misses her chance to get through the intersection. As she is still in mid-rant she hears a tap on her window and looks up into the barrel of a gun held by a very serious looking policeman.
The policeman tells her to shut off her car while keeping both hands in sight. She complies, speechless at what is happening. After she shuts off the engine, the policeman orders her to exit her car with her hands up. She gets out of the car and he orders her to turn and place her hands on
her car. She turns, places her hands on the car roof and quickly is cuffed and hustled into the patrol car.
She is too bewildered by the chain of events to ask any questions and is driven to the police station where she is fingerprinted, photographed, searched, booked and placed in a cell. After a couple of hours, a policeman approaches the cell and opens the door for her. She is escorted back to the booking desk where the original officer is waiting with her personal effects. He hands her the bag containing her things, and says, "I’m really sorry for this mistake, but you see, I pulled up behind your car while you were
blowing your horn, flipping that guy off, and cussing a blue streak at the car in front of you. Then I noticed the "Choose Life" license plate holder, the "What Would Jesus Do" and "Follow Me to Sunday School" bumper stickers, and the chrome plated Christian fish emblem on the trunk, so naturally I assumed you had stolen the car."
What is our mouth really saying about us ?
III. Our Labor Should Be Spirited ! 12:11
a. With Confidence. V12
Story: Talk-show host Larry King tells this story about baseball great Ty Cobb. When Cobb was 70, a reporter asked him, “What do you think you’d hit if you were playing these days?” Cobb, who was a lifetime .367 hitter, said, “About .290, maybe .300.” The reporter said, “That’s because of the travel, the night games, the artificial turf, and all the new pitches like the slider, right?” “No,” said Cobb, “it’s because I’m 70.”
We can have confidence in our lives, and labor because of our relationship with Christ ! We can maintain a positive attitude in our labor because of the hope that we have in Christ Jesus !
b. With Consistency.
What do we do when tough times comes ? Do we fold our hands, throw in the towel, throw our hands up in the air, and quit ! The child of God is not to be a quitter ! We are to be patient in tribulation ! We can persevere because the Lord is with us to lead us, and to hold us up !
Don’t Quit
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,
When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,
When cares are pressing you down a bit,
Rest if you must, but don’t you quite.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out;
Don’t give up though the pace seems slow --
You might succeed with another blow.
Often the goal is nearer than
It seems to the faint and faltering man,
Often the struggler has given up
When he might have captured the victor’s cup.
And he learned too late, when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems afar;
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit --
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.
Galatians 5:1 Galatians 6:9 2 Thessalonians 3:13 2 Timothy 2:1 2 Timothy 3:14
I remember hearing the late Jack Hyles preach several years back on Don’t Quit ! I recall him saying that every Christian should cut the word "quit" out of their dictionary !
c. With Continuance.
We must labor with prayer ! There may be some times in our work and service that we don’t know exactly which way we should go or what we should do ! One thing that the child of God must be constant in is prayer !
Illust: A U.S. stealth fighter pilot shot down over Yugoslavia says God helped him survive. The pilot, who was not named in a report published by the Air Force, ejected during a night mission March 27 deep in Serbian territory. His F-117A Nighthawk had been hit by a Yugoslav surface-to-air missile or anti-aircraft fire, military sources said. The ejection was violent, the pilot said. "Am I going to know when it’s time to get out? is the question on every fighter pilot’s mind. The one fragment of this whole event I can’t remember is pulling the (ejection seat) handles. God took my hands and pulled." He landed in a field and hid in a culvert for six hours until he was rescued by helicopters from the Air Force’s 16th Special Operations Group. While in hiding, he saw flashing lights and said a search dog came within 30 yards, the Air Force said. The pilot had an American flag folded under his flight suit. "For me, it was representative of all the people who I knew were praying," he said. "It helped me not let go of hope. Hope gives you strength…it gives you endurance." --Religion Today, April 16, 1999 apr99
The difference in the sucess, and failure of our labors may very well depend upon our continuance in prayer. Very little is ever accomplished for the Lord without praying !
Tonight I have shared with you 3 principles which I believe can transform our lives, and our church.
Will you tonight commit yourselves to a love that is sincere........lives that are separated......and labor that is spirited !
The altar is open......will you come, and pray ?
