Romans 12:14-29

Heb. 12:14-29

By Joe Mack Cherry

I. Vss 14-17 – Peace, Holiness, Concern, Respect

A. Peace with Others

1. Mt 5:9 – “Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called sons of God.”

2. Make every effort (NIV)

3. Pursue (NKJV)

a. This indicates action.

b. This commands that we go out of our way to bring peace.

c. In order to do this, we must put aside selfish inclinations and seek the betterment of the individual(s) in the body of Christ.

• I Cor. 13:5 – “love is not self-seeking.”

• Gal. 5:22 – Speaks about the fruits of the Spirit against which there is no law. Peace, Patience, Kindness are included in these.

4. Plain and obvious sin included in Gal. 5:20-21 (Opposite of peace)

a. discord, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions

• strife, constant contention, incessant wrangling, usually expresses itself in backbiting and gossip.

• acting in a way that considers no one but oneself. No room for growth.

• holding on to a self-serving opinion; gives reference to becoming a self-mercenary. Fighting for the sake of being right in regard to matters not pertaining to salvation. This is the opposite of the teachings of Rom. 12. Where we are told consider the weaker brother.

• dissentions arising from a difference in opinion or aims; this happened in the Corinthian church - I Cor. 1:12. Today we might call them church cliques.

b. Look at the sins that are mentioned almost in the same breath:

Sexual immorality, hatred, fits of rage, witchcraft, envy.

B. Peace and Holiness

1. We are not to seek peace to the point of giving up holiness.

2. Holiness – some versions use “sanctification” (set apart to be like Christ)

a. Def. – consecrated to God’s service and strive to conform to all things that are God’s will.

b. Christ would never compromise truth.

c. Being more Christ-like means seeking peace or putting others first.

d. We are a peculiar people. (We are God’s children and we should act accordingly.) I Pet. 2:9

3. These two are partners, if they become separated one of two things happen:

a. We compromise truth to retain peace or

b. We focus only on holiness and sacrifice peace. Legalism is the outcome of this scenario.

• God said don’t try to pull the tares up, wait until harvest time.

• The younger converts may become discouraged at legalistic squabbles.

• Forcing issues can cause problems.

C. See that no one losses the grace of God!

1. Gen. 4:9 – Cain says to God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”

2. Vs. 15 answers this question for us.

a. NIV - See that no man misses the grace of God.

b. NKJV - See that no man falls short of the grace of God.

c. KJ – See that no man fails the grace of God.

3. This passage concerns itself with what we do with God’s grace; not what we incorrectly think we do to deserve it. With grace comes responsibility to God and others.

4. This carries with it a shepherd connotation as in I Pet. 5:2

5. William Barclay says the phrase could also be translated, failing to keep up with the grace of God.

a. God’s grace moves past the pain of atoned sins.

b. II Pet. 3:19 - We are told to grow in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ. Grace is not stagnant! If we do not grow in grace, it can lose its power in our lives and we’ll see in a minute where this leads us.

6. We need to put others first! Souls are important and are lost without grace.

a. Our own desires or thoughts (again on matters not concerning salvation) should not push others away from God.

b. Legalism has sent many converts out the back door with the mindset that they could never be good enough.

7. The rising up of Bitter roots poison many.

a. There are those who constantly complain about everything.

b. There are those who profess Christianity but their heart isn’t in it.

c. There are new converts who fall back into their old way of life. In this passage, it is referring to those who were returning to Judaism.

d. We need to remember that we must be careful not quickly cast one of these out. Remember the Parable of the Wheat and the Tares? Mt. 13:30

• We must try to lead those back who are lagging behind in grace. Here is where it takes love and patience to persevere leading someone back.

• Being aware and in tune with God’s grace helps us to keep the faith.

8. Sometimes we need to think about how we say things. Mt. 18:6 – Read We as mature Christians have a big responsibility to teach the grace of God and peace and strive to keep it foremost in our minds and the minds of others.