Words to Live By

*note: this sermon was preached to our combined service.  Usually we have two services, one at 9 (with a traditional style, with hymns accompanied by piano, organ, and choir) and one at 11 (with a more casual style, with contemporary worship songs accompanied by a guitar-driven praise band), but for the combined service, we had some of everything.

Romans 12 is one of the most powerful chapters of instructions for Christian living.  Today as we celebrate our combined service, I want to start with this statement from Romans 12:5: we are many parts of one body, and we belong together.  Yes, it is right and good for us to worship in two services, at 9 and at 11, with two distinct styles.  But we are part of one body, and we belong together.  Part of the difficulty in coming together is that our worship styles and preferences are often so different.  But Paul reminds us that we are not the end of worship.  In other words, worship isn’t about us as individuals.  It’s not about that good feeling we get when we sing a song that takes us to a special time and place.  It’s not about the tingling we get when we feel the Holy Spirit’s presence with us.  It’s not about those things.  In fact, we ourselves are a part of the offering.  Paul tells us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices, the kind he will find acceptable.  In fact, our (so called) “worship wars” in which we state that one style is somehow better than another, that one style is holy and another isn’t, that one style is outdated and another is current – when we do that, we are simply copying the behavior and customs of the world.  This isn’t Christian living! 

I memorized Romans 12:2 this way: Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  What this means is that we who are the Church should look different than the world!  If someone outside the Church looks at a Christian, there should be something that makes them say, “wait a minute!” If someone who doesn’t know Christ doesn’t bat an eye at the way you choose to use your time and money, then you might be doing something wrong.

Paul goes on to say: “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.” (Romans 12:3).

It can be easy to think more highly of yourself than deserved.  Think of it this way: you’re planning for a potluck meal. And imagine that you make the best lasagna ever, anywhere.  It’s obvious whenever there is a potluck, your lasagna is the favorite.  People fight to be first in line at the buffet to ensure that they’ll get some.  You’ve taken to pinning a blue ribbon on your chest to remind everyone how great your lasagna is.  It’s so great that nobody really wants anything else to eat.  Or to be reminded again what a superior cook you are.  So people stop bringing dishes to the potluck dinners.  And because you are such a good cook, you just take over.  Except it’s too much for one person to do, and after a while, you start resenting “those people” who aren’t participating. 

Paul reminds us that Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

In other words, God has given you gifts, and He calls us to use all of those gifts to build up the body.  A potluck just isn’t a potluck without certain foods – every congregation has something you can count on, but some are always there: someone usually brings chicken, and there have to be deviled eggs, and meatballs and green bean casserole, and fruit salad, and need I mention Methodist beans?  And how can I forget, desserts?  I never leave a church potluck without sampling all of the varieties of pies (that’s my favorite), but there are always cakes, cupcakes, and all manner of cookies. When we came to Ohio, we discovered that shredded chicken is a staple here.  For a good potluck to be a good potluck, there needs to be a variety. 

Likewise with the Church. God has given us each gifts, and Paul exhorts us to use those gifts!  I love the way the NLT puts it:   In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. So if God has given you the ability to prophesy, speak out with as much faith as God has given you. If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well.  If your gift is to encourage others, be encouraging. If it is giving, give generously. If God has given you leadership ability, take the responsibility seriously. And if you have a gift for showing kindness to others, do it gladly.  What is your gift?  Are you using it?  Are you giving your best?

As one body, we work best when all the parts are working together.  Have you ever had a sore toe?  Toes are so little and insignificant – I often shake my head when a multi-million dollar football player is sidelined due to a toe injury.  But when your toe hurts, it hurts to walk, so you begin to limp, and then your knees and hips begin to hurt, then your back, and any of you who have ever had back pain know that you can’t function when your back hurts (and some of you have been trying to function through back pain for a long time, and my hat is off to you).

Elsewhere, Paul pushes the body analogy a little deeper: (1 Corinthians 12:12-27)  The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.

Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 

The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.

What would happen if we behaved like this?  What would happen if contemporary and traditional worship said, “We can’t stand on our own without each other!” What would happen if the young people in our church would look to the older members for guidance, leadership, and mentoring?  What would happen if the more seasoned members of the church looked to the younger members for the same things?  If we would regularly come together to listen to one another, to recognize that the gifts that God gave each of us are not complete until we use them together?

We are one Body.  And let me take this a step further: we’re all in this together. Millersport Covenant Church… they’re part of the body, too.  As is the Gathering.  Lighthouse Memorial Church.  Fairfield Beach UMC. Maple Grove United Brethren. Fletcher Chapel UMC. Grace Lutheran Church. Southshore Ministries. Thurston UMC. First Congregational Church. Our Lady of Mount Carmel. And let us not forget Soul’s Harbor.  We’re all together in this.

If we can remember how many parts there are in this Body, we need to learn how to live together. Thankfully, Paul includes instructions for life in this chapter of Romans.

·         Love must be sincere. You can’t fake real love.  As we went through our Life Together series, we realized that loving one another is the cornerstone to living life together.  The world will know we are Christians, not as we pretend to like one another, not as we put up with one another, but as they see our love for one another.  Sometimes we forget that this is our goal, that the greatest commandment is to love God with everything we are and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

·         Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.  This seems straightforward and easy at first.  Of course we can do this.  But Satan comes masquerading as an angel of light; he makes evil seem attractive.  Hating what is evil and clinging to what is good takes a good deal of evaluation and discernment.  Maybe your prayer should be that you could tell the difference.

·         Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Don’t just love one another; be devoted to doing it.  Don’t just serve people when they ask for help; actively look for ways to serve!  Pray that God will give you encouraging words all the time! 

·          Honor one another above yourselves. What would we look like if this was our attitude? Really, this is hard.  We’re hard-wired to honor ourselves above others.

·         Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.  As I was working on this sermon, I was listening to Johnny Cash singing, “You’re so heavenly minded, you’re no earthly good.” Honestly I think that’s a lie. There are people who are self-righteous, but honestly, I think we could all stand to be a little more “heavenly-minded”. Some of us have forgotten that Jesus Christ is one to be shared, not hidden.  We’re not called to beat people over the head, but to love them into the Kingdom.

·          Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. While you’re waiting for deliverance, be joyful.  Hope for God’s provision.  Stay patient.  I’m still learning these.  But one thing I’ve found out in my short years is faithfulness in prayer doesn’t just change my circumstances; it changes me.  It draws me nearer to Jesus Christ.

·          Share with God's people who are in need. It’s often the ones who have the least who share the most.  This isn’t an optional commandment; it’s for all of us.  Share with God’s people who are in need.  Do you know anyone who is in need?  They are in our congregation.  They are around you.  Some are in financial need.  Others are in need of spiritual and emotional help.  Maybe someone might be bold enough to raise a hand and let others know that you’re in need?

·         Practice hospitality. When was the last time you invited someone over to your house just for a meal together?  I have enjoyed the hospitality of many of you who have given my family food and some who have babysat our children.  It means the world to us.  One of the loneliest experiences I have ever had is the experience of only being known as “the pastor” and never invited anywhere for any other reason than “it’s time we had ‘the pastor’ over.”

·         Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. This is extremely appropriate to our church, and an appropriate word for our combined gathering.  There are some among us – or not among us these days, as the case may be – who have left one service or another because of the way we’ve talked about one another.  Some of “those who persecute you” are church people.  And that hurts more than anything.  I know; I’ve been hurt by church people.  But Jesus displayed the ultimate example by laying down his life for us while we were still sinners, still in open rebellion against him.

·          Rejoice with those who rejoice; This should be a no-brainer, but sometimes we can be real downers.  In May every year, I read accounts of people who basically protest against Mothers’ Day celebrations in churches because they are unable to have children.  I understand their sorrow, and I’ll get to that, but here’s the thing: sometimes we can be so selfish that we won’t rejoice unless it’s our personal triumph.  People end up walking on eggshells when they are around you because they don’t want to upset you. Or, worse yet, they stop associating with you altogether.  Remember that bit about honoring others above yourself?  This is a great moment to do just this.  Rejoice with others, even when it reminds you of your own pain.  Pray for a rejoicing Spirit that (as Paul tells us to do) rejoices in the Lord always.

·         Mourn with those who mourn. Now that I’ve told you to rejoice with those who rejoice; that doesn’t mean you just have to put on a fake smile and pretend you’re happy when you’re not.  The Bible calls the rest of us to mourn with you.  It’s not a call to just be mopey all the time, and remember that clinical depression is a disease, not just a “phase” or  something like that, and it needs treated by a trained professional.  How do you mourn with those who mourn?  Put yourself in their place.  I did a funeral on Friday for all strangers.  I hadn’t met any of them, and except for talking on the phone to the widow and the cousin of the deceased, I hadn’t even spoken to anyone there.  Yet I found myself tearing up as I read scriptures and preached a funeral sermon.  Mourning with those who mourn means we have to stop long enough to listen to them. 

·          Live in harmony with one another. I preached on this for five weeks; you can go on our website and listen to the Life Together sermons if you need to.

·         Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. I’ve gone over this: remember that if you’re designating people as “low position” you’re being conceited and proud.  We’re really all the same.  It doesn’t matter what our last name is. Whether you’re a Millersport old-timer or from Fairfield Beach or somewhere else or even if you’re just a weekender.  Your net worth doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter if you’re a CEO or unemployed.  You are a beloved child of God and an important part of His Body, the Church.

·         Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. This isn’t done just by crying out, “Why can’t we all just get along?”  It’s not done by working harder to get along or by “tolerating” others; it’s only done by being filled by the Holy Spirit, who is reconciling all things to Himself. 

·          Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord. On 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." ²¹Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

What would happen if our church looked like this?  There’s only one way we’re going to look like this: if each and every one of us begin to look more and more like this.  I challenge you to make a list of everything Paul commanded in Romans 12:2 and evaluate yourself – where you need God’s transformation in your life.  Do not be conformed any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Start thinking differently; your thoughts have power.  Speak words of truth, even when you’re alone.  Put your name in these commandments and speak them aloud.  And pray in the Spirit, that He may transform you.