Sunday Sermon Notes: May 23, 2021

Posted on May 23, 2021 by Don Merritt

Put Love into Action

Romans 12:9-16

Paul continues in these verses with his discussion of our response to grace. Here, he sets the tone with verse 9: Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Our response to God’s grace must be one of love, both love for God and love for others, and this love must be sincere. It is interesting that Paul should modify this sincere love statement with the concept of hating what is evil and clinging to what is good; it would appear that in our sincere love, we are to maintain the highest of ethical standards, not allowing ourselves to misuse our new freedom.

So then, what does love in action look like in practice?

Paul begins shedding light on this question in the verses that follow, first of all with an emphasis on what we should do to put love into action:

Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves (12:10). Because our response to grace is that we love others, we should be devoted to one another, and we should put others ahead of ourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord (12:11). Because our response to grace is that we love God, we should serve Him with enthusiasm always. Because our response to grace is one of love, our attitudes should reflect that love for God and other people: Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer (12:12). Since we have a whole new attitude because of the grace we have received, our love should result in generosity toward other people: Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality (12:13).

Many commentators refer to this section as the “Law of Christ” but at least for me, it doesn’t really read that way; I highly doubt that Paul is intending to give us a list of rules that we check off as we go. Instead, I think he is simply pointing out some no-brainers as if to say that since we love God and love others, these are the natural kinds of things that should follow. In the next three verses, his emphasis shifts slightly, but he is still speaking of sincere love:

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.

Romans 12:14-16

As we read these verses, notice that they are not things that are common in this world. I’ve never met someone who blessed their oppressors, for instance; have you? I don’t always see people rejoicing with their friends who are rejoicing, for all too often a person sees their friend rejoicing while harboring resentment because their friend was fortunate in an area where they hadn’t been as fortunate. Harmony is surely lacking in our world, while pride and conceit are commonplace; and so many decline to associate with the less fortunate. Real sincere love is a very rare thing in our world, but within the church, it is supposed to be a given.

In fact, the apparent lack of love in some church bodies is a sore subject for many people. Some of them complain loudly and criticize bitterly about the lack of love in this or that church, some even leave church entirely because of it. While on the one hand I might be inclined to feel for such people, on the other hand, after going through these verses, I can’t help thinking that they aren’t exhibiting love either. Thus, I’ll add a response to grace that Paul alluded to in verse 14, but hasn’t mentioned yet by name: Sincere love requires quite a lot of forgiveness, for all of us are works in progress.

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Merciful

Posted on May 22, 2021 by Don Merritt

Mercy is the most fundamental aspect of our relationship with God. We only have a relationship with God because of His tremendous mercy, for without it, we are permanently estranged from Him. Thus, Jesus teaches mercy on our parts as a foundational requirement of being His disciple.

We have received His mercy- we are to show mercy to others when the occasion arises. We have received His love- we are to show love to others. How can we show mercy without love, and love without mercy? Yes, this is fundamental.

The person who has received God’s mercy and who shares it with others, both through the Gospel and through our own attitudes and actions, will in the end, receive mercy when those who have refused it receive God’s judgment; this is also a fundamental truth.

Now we come to the reversal of this: What kind of person does not show mercy to others?

The ruthless, the cruel, the inhumane, the purely evil…

Will they receive mercy: of course not, they will be judged. Will they be blessed in this life by relationship with God? No, for they live in open rebellion against Him. Will they receive mercy in the end? No, they will receive justice instead.

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The Value of Others

Posted on May 21, 2021 by Don Merritt

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.

Philippians 2:1-4

You will notice that this passage begins with the word “therefore” and as we know, this word is used when one is drawing a conclusion from what had come just before. In this case, you’ll recall that Paul has been exhorting the Philippians to behave in a manner that is “worthy of the Gospel”. If we are going to behave in this way, the way Jesus Himself behaved, then we need to do certain things, to make some adjustments, and in this passage, Paul tells us what they are.

Paul sets out an “if – then” statement here as a manner of encouragement for the readers. Here’s the “if”:

Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, (v. 1)

It is as if he was saying, “Look people, if you’ve gotten anything from your relationship with Christ…”  If we’ve received any encouragement, comfort, common sharing, tenderness and compassion… Then:

then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. (v. 2)

So, if you’ve received any of those blessings, then here’s what Paul wants you to do.  You’ll notice that these are all things associated with unity as believers.   He could have simply told them to quit fooling around, arguing and disputing amongst themselves and be like Jesus!

Verses 3 and 4 carry on his thought: We are not to do things out of selfish interests, self-centeredness or conceit.  We should be humble, and put others ahead of ourselves. We should not be concerned with our own interests, but with the interests of others.  Can you think of a shorter way of saying this?

Good, I thought you’d see it: Love one another. Yep, that’s the key!

OK, remember in the last section where I said that being imitators of Christ was the sign of the New Covenant?

Guess what?

That means that we should love our neighbor as ourselves.  It doesn’t mean follow the rules, for rules are way too shallow; it means love your neighbor as yourself. If we do that, we won’t need to worry about any rules, we’ll be in no danger, for the whole Law is fulfilled if we love God and love our neighbor.

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Standing Firm in Unity

Posted on May 20, 2021 by Don Merritt

Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel  without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe in him, but also to suffer for him, since you are going through the same struggle you saw I had, and now hear that I still have.

Philippians 1:27-30

Paul winds up the first chapter of this letter with an exhortation to stand firm in unity, come what may.  You might notice that this is a common New Testament theme, important as it is, for all of us to heed.   He urges the people to conduct themselves in a way that is “worthy of the gospel”, an interesting way to approach the subject.  The rest of the letter will show what this “worthiness” looks like.

The reason that Paul gives for this is also quite interesting, for it might not be what we would have expected.  Notice that his concern doesn’t revolve around any legal concept, as so many teach, but rather one of testimony.  Paul tells them that if they behave in this way, he will know that they are standing firm; he states this as though their manner of living were a sign of some sort.  The Philippians should stand firm fearlessly, in the face of any opposition… but who would oppose good behavior?

Then, in the latter part of verse 28, Paul comes right out and tells them that the way they conduct themselves, particularly in the face of opposition, is a sign to the world that they will be destroyed, while the followers of Christ will be saved by God.  Have you ever thought of behaving yourself as a sign before?  Have you ever thought of it as a sign that those who don’t behave well will be destroyed?

When God made His covenant with Abraham, there was a sign of the covenant, which was circumcision.  Everyone would know that a man who had been circumcised was a covenant partner with God.  When God made His covenant with Moses, there was a sign of the covenant; keeping the Sabbath.  Everyone would know that the Israelites were God’s covenant people because they kept the Sabbath.  The New Covenant established by Christ has a sign also, and that is that we are imitators of Jesus Christ, and this is what Paul is referring to here.  Everyone who sees a person living as Christ would live knows they are seeing Christ’s covenant partner. This imitation of Christ has little to do with following a written code of rules and regulations, it has everything to do with loving others and putting others first. It also has to do with putting such a high priority on His love that we will be willing to endure hardship at the hands of those who oppose Christ.

The last part of this passage refers to suffering and enduring a struggle.  Our struggle isn’t really with any person or persons, for those who oppose the gospel really don’t have a clue what is at stake. Our struggle is with the spiritual forces that are in opposition to Christ, just as Paul’s struggle was.  Recall that Paul didn’t seem to hate his captors, far from it in fact, for he was there in jail, sharing Christ’s love with them, and this is exactly the kind of thing he is calling upon each of us to do.

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Photo of the Week: May 20, 2021

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Don Merritt
Near Grand Rapids, Michigan
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Weekly Bible Study Notes: May 19, 2021

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Don Merritt

John 13:1-17

This is the beginning of the second section of John’s Gospel; there are no more scenes of Jesus teaching the crowds.  The pattern of chapters 2-12 where there is a miracle or sign followed by Jesus giving an explanation are replaced by Jesus explaining the greatest sign of all, His death, burial and resurrection before it happens.  These are called the “Farewell” or “Upper Room Discourses”. The scene opens just before the Passover meal on the night that Jesus would be betrayed.  Jesus demonstrates an act of humility that would normally be done by a slave; the washing of the feet of the dinner guests.

John uses these verses to set the scene by placing the time at the very beginning of the meal.  They had not yet begun to eat, Judas had already been prompted to go astray, and yet Jesus was confident in His destiny and had received all power from God.  It is particularly pointed that John mentions this fact: Jesus had received all power, had everything placed in his control and was about to return to God… when all of the sudden what did He do?

Jesus gets up from the table, takes off his clothes, grabs a towel and begins washing the feet of the disciples.  It is important to note that even though the NIV adds the word “outer” to garments, there is no such indication in the Greek.  Commentators rise to this and many describe Jesus as in his “undergarments”.  Undergarments for men were invented around the time of George Washington and were not widely worn until the late 19th century; they did not exist as such in ancient times.  If Jesus had indeed removed an outer garment, then it would have been a cloak, comparable to a modern-day coat, and obviously this is not likely.  I do not join the NIV in protecting modern-day sensibilities here because it is vital that we get an accurate picture of exactly what was going on in order to get the full value of what Jesus is demonstrating in this act of humility, for it is in total and complete contradiction to what was stated in verse 3, and it actually becomes the whole point of this incident.  Jesus was not only washing the feet of men who weren’t qualified to carry his briefcase (so to speak) but he had utterly and totally humbled himself in the process!  (Can you imagine yourself doing this? Remember, He had taken off His clothes.) The NIV also states that He had a towel wrapped around him, while the KJV says he “girded” himself with the towel.  Was the towel providing a modesty covering, and at the same time being used to dry their feet after washing?

HOMEWORK:  Do an experiment at home.  Wrap a towel around yourself, as to cover up, get down on the floor and try to dry something also on the floor in front of you.  You will discover the answer.

Once you have the answer, then remember that Jesus also washed the feet of the one whom he knew was about to betray him: Now you will understand what this scene means; you will also have some real insight into the metaphor of being naked before God.

Peter seems to have understood that he was not worthy to be treated in this way by Jesus who was so much greater than he.  Jesus’ reply to him is also understood… sort of.  Well, in that case, how about washing my hands and head too.  Peter believed Jesus when he told him that he must be “cleaned” by Him, but he still didn’t quite grasp the metaphor that was playing out in that room.

Jesus’ comments in verses 10-11 refer to the fact that a person attending a dinner would bathe before leaving their house, so that when they arrived at the dinner, only their feet would have gotten dirty on the walk to the dinner venue; thus, the custom of having your feet washed by a slave prior to reclining at table.  Remember that dinner tables were not like the ones we use today, and the “reclining” was literal.  The comment that not all were clean gives us a hint that Jesus is not really concerned about hygiene, for He knew what was afoot with Judas; His concern was that they be spiritually clean.

Jesus gets dressed and resumes His seat; then He explains what He has done.  He has set for them an example, a twofold example.  First, we as His servants must be willing to humble ourselves in His service.  Do we dare humble ourselves as He has done?  Second, our service must be to clean the filth of sin from one another, to help one another to obey all that He has commanded us, and to be willing to dirty our hands in the process.  We can never do this by glorifying ourselves; we can only accomplish this mission by humbling ourselves:  We are to follow His example.

John 13:18-38

Jesus has just said that if they follow the example that He set when He washed their feet, they would be blessed.  Now he modifies that by saying that one of them would not be blessed; He will send Judas on his way shortly…

Jesus is concerned that His coming betrayal and death not be understood as His mission being thwarted.  Instead, He attempts to convey that everything is proceeding according to God’s amazing, if counter-intuitive plan.  In short, creating the community of believers, the church, was the whole point of Jesus’ ministry and not an accident or a “fall back” position.

The time for Jesus to leave subtle hints and illusions has passed; He tells them plainly that one of them will betray Him; they are shocked.  It would appear that Peter asked John to find out from Jesus who the traitor was and John’s question and Jesus’ answer was in a whisper.  He indicated Judas who was next to Him on the other side from John… (vv. 21-26)

Jesus gives the bread to Judas, who accepts it.  It is hard to imagine that Judas has not heard what has passed between John and Jesus… and he accepts the bread when he could have repented.  So completely did Satan win out in Judas’ life that John refers to it as satanic possession.  Judas leaves the room immediately; it would seem that nobody other than John understands what has happened, and John keeps quiet. John ends this with a chilling sentence: “And it was night.”  This has much more meaning than simply noting the time of day, for Jesus has spoken of the coming night before.  It was literally the beginning of the most beastly occurrence in human history, when Satan had stolen away a disciple of the Son of God to bring about the murder of the Son of God to silence the truth and darken the light once and for all.  Paul noted in 1 Cor. 2:8 that if the rulers of that time and place had understood what was going on, they would never have put Jesus on that cross!

Verses 31-32 are a little confusing for their use of “glorify” so many times in quick succession together with the indefinite pronoun “him” and it requires a little sorting out.  Here’s a paraphrase:  The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified (recall that Jesus has been using this term to describe his crucifixion all through John). So then, we would say, starting over: “The time has come for the Son to be crucified and God will be glorified in him (By completing His plan for redemption). If God is glorified in the Son by what He accomplished on the cross, then God will glorify the Son by the Son’s resurrection and ascension to glory as King of kings and Lord of lords.  What comes next is inconvenient for certain end of the world enthusiasts: “and will glorify him (the Son) at once”. That is to say not at a time which has still not come.

Jesus repeats here what He has previously told the Jews, that they cannot come where He is going, referring to the right hand of the Father in heaven.  This is a statement that establishes His authority, and is followed by a new commandment: Love one another.  As you might expect, the Greek word used here is agape which is a godly, unselfish love.  It is a commitment to serve and value one another with no expectation whatsoever of anything in return.  It is just what the unbelieving world will notice, for it is seldom if ever found amongst them.  By this sign all will recognize the difference between the Christian and everyone else. This is the most important lesson from today’s text: We must love one another.  Imagine what the reaction of the rest of the world would be if they saw this kind of powerful love at work in the lives of millions of Christians: Would you like to ‘change the world’?  Love one another!

Peter doesn’t seem to soak up the new commandment and wants to go with Jesus.  The exchange leads directly to Jesus’ prediction of Peter’s denial of Him. I guess there’s a little bit of Peter in all of us.

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Big Time Faith

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Don Merritt

Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and God’s provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body. Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith, so that through my being with you again your boasting in Christ Jesus will abound on account of me.

Philippians 1:18b-26

Have you ever wanted to see what real faith looks like? Read this passage!

As he waits for his trial, knowing fully that the likely verdict will be death, he believes that his situation will result in his deliverance; either way.  He believes that even should he die, that he will not be “ashamed” and that he will have the courage to exalt Christ in his body.  You can see the connection he makes between “ashamed” on the one hand and “courage” on the other.  If he is sentenced to die, he will walk to the execution with his head held high as one who is looking forward to being with Christ.

Then comes that famous verse, verse 21: For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.

Just look at what troubles him; he is having a hard time deciding which is better; life or death.  If he lives on in the body, he will have much work to do for the cause of Christ, but if he is to die in the body, he will be with Christ.  What a choice!  He would rather be with Christ and away from this life, and yet he seems to think that maybe it would be better for everyone else if he remains alive a while longer so that he may continue to mentor them in the faith.

Let’s think about this, pray about this and reflect.  This was no hypothetical question for Paul; it was very real.  What was his primary concern?  It was to continue the glorious work of Christ here on earth so that many would come to salvation. Paul was 100% motivated by God’s purpose.  How does this strike you?

How does this strike me?  To be honest about it, it’s a little embarrassing.  How often do I think I need a “break”? How often do I hesitate because I don’t want to tick anybody off, or because I don’t want to look foolish…?  Could I look death square in the eye and not blink?

I’ll get back to you on that.

Yes, dear reader, this passage is one for deep reflection and self-examination.  Here’s the question to ask:

“Is God speaking to me in this text?”

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Diverse Motivations- take 2

Posted on May 18, 2021 by Don Merritt

The other day I really messed this up by pasting the wrong post, actually I repasted the prior post, under this title. Let’s see if I can do this correctly today!

It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so out of love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.

Philippians 1:15-18a

Paul has been telling the Philippians that he is rejoicing because as a result of his imprisonment the gospel is being preached in Rome, and now he continues his thoughts on that subject. It would seem that there are people who are preaching the gospel with impure motives, that they would like to stir up trouble for Paul.  He hasn’t told us exactly how this would happen for him, so I will leave the speculation to others, but let’s be honest; there are those today who preach for the wrong motives as well.

I have seen and heard of some who preach out of envy and rivalry, have you?  I have seen some who simply can’t stand the thought of anybody else serving Christ in that way, who are always afraid that someone might supplant them or their ministry.  Maybe they are afraid for their job or their position, or maybe they just have a sense of inferiority. Whatever the reason, they are only good “team players” if everyone else is on their team.  It’s sad really, for it should never be this way in the Body of believers, for all of us are on His Team!  Most that I have seen, however, serve out of goodwill.  As Paul has noted here, they serve out of love for others. As Paul put it, they know that he was put here for the defense of the gospel.  Yes, isn’t that why all of us are “put here”?

“Selfish ambition” may be a reason that many preach, thinking that they can “be somebody” by attracting followers, just as a celebrity might attract fans.  This sort of thing has no place in the church, and yet perhaps it is more common than we might like to admit.

I know about a particular case where there was a minster leading a growing church. He was doing good work, and yet like all of us, wasn’t good at everything. His leadership considered adding an “associate” to staff who was much more experienced and who could handle the areas that the minister had problems in.  When the minister heard about this, he became quite upset; all he could see was that the leaders were thinking he wasn’t doing the job right.  He felt that if they added someone to help him, the people would see him as having been rebuked in some way.  When the other guy heard of this, he removed himself from consideration, not wanting to cause any division.  Was the growth and health of that church damaged by this?  Would it have been even more vibrant had things worked out differently? We will never know; maybe that guy coming on board just wasn’t God’s plan, but I think you get the idea of what can happen… Right about now, we might want to jump on the bandwagon of condemnation and indignation, but before we do, maybe we should see how Paul reacts…

Paul recognized the situation, and while he did not endorse false motives in any way, he saw that good was coming out of it in spite of everything.  What did it matter anyway? For whatever reason, the gospel of Christ was being proclaimed, and that is the most important thing.

Have you noticed how Paul views things?  He isn’t overly concerned with his unfortunate circumstances, he isn’t overly concerned that everything isn’t always ideal, his sole concern is that the gospel of Jesus Christ goes forth so that some will be saved, that their sins may be forgiven, and that they may inherit eternal life.  I wonder, is there a lesson in this for us today?

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Sunday Sermon Notes: May 16, 2021

Posted on May 16, 2021 by Don Merritt

A New Way of Thinking

Romans 12:1-8

For the past several weeks, I’ve been telling you that having been made in God’s image is a complete game-changer, and that the comprehension of this requires a response on our parts. Several times I have also mentioned that our response needs to be in the way we think about things, in our point of view concerning the world around us. This week, we’ll begin our investigation of what the Scriptures have to say on this subject…

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Romans 12:1-2

As all of you know, whenever we see the word “therefore”, we are reading a passage that draws a conclusion from what has preceded it. While that is certainly true here, this one isn’t just referring to the verses just concluded, for this is the beginning of a new unit (12-15) and thus, “therefore” is drawing a conclusion from the preceding unit (1-11), which is a very important distinction. The first unit in Romans discussed grace; the second unit discusses our response to grace. Thus, Paul is telling us that in response to God’s amazing grace, we are to offer ourselves as living sacrifices to God.

Verse 1 is, in a sense, a counterpoint to the Old Testament worship in which animals were sacrificed and rituals were observed. Notice the presence of the words “offer”, “sacrifice” and “worship”, all three of which are terms that pertain to worship in the Old Testament. The old system of worship involved symbols and ceremonies, but worship in the New Testament involves “spirit and truth”. Consequently, the proper and true manner of worship for the Christian is for us to offer ourselves to God as living sacrifices. Please understand: This is no platitude; it is an imperative. A fair question right about now would be, “OK, but just exactly how do I do that?”

You will no doubt be relieved when I tell you that Paul has provided the answer in verse 2: Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. 

My goodness, how we love to quote this, but how many of us actually do it? How many of us actually believe that it is possible? Surely this is nothing more than an abstract ideal, a goal that cannot be realized in this life!

Maybe we should all pause and re-read it; look carefully at the words, the grammar…

Holy heart attack! This is no abstraction; it too is an imperative!

So, here’s another question: Would the Apostle Paul command us to do something if it is impossible? Perhaps we need to think about this some more. Do you recall what Paul told us regarding Israel’s failure to attain righteousness? Yes, that’s right: They never obtained righteousness because their faith was in their ability to conform to the Law, but what God wanted was for them to put their faith in Him… and with God, all things are possible.

Notice that in the imperative of verse 2, there is a contrast, a duality that is set up by the word “but” “Do not be conformed… but be transformed” Thus we have a choice to make: Either we live as the world does with its values, activities and ways of thinking, or we allow the Holy Spirit to transform our minds so that we have an entirely new way of thinking with different values that lead us to a different way of life; this is our choice, and to be quite candid with you, it is very much like the choice that Israel had to make.

Romans 12:3-8

Paul set out his proposition in verses 1-2, that we offer ourselves as living sacrifices and be transformed by the renewing of our minds as a response to grace− in verses 3-8 we have our first lesson on how to go about it: Serve the body of Christ in humility.

For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. (12:3)

So, it would seem that the first step in the transformative process is that we adopt an attitude of humility. Right away, we can see that not being conformed to this world was something Paul was very serious about (v. 2) for in this age of “game”, “swagger” and “bling” humility is very much out of style. Verse 4 uses the metaphor of our bodies in the same way that Paul uses it in 1 Corinthians 12 as he shows that each of us has a unique part to play in the Body of Christ. While this is easy enough to grasp, he takes another shot at the attitudes of this world in verse 5 when he says each member belongs to all the others. I can’t tell you how many times I have seen Christians bristle at that one.

In verses 6-8 Paul refers to spiritual gifts that each of us has received by the Holy Spirit.

I hope you will consider this carefully: In a context of humble service, a context that is not only counter-intuitive but also counter-cultural for most of us, Paul tells us to exercise our spiritual gifts in humble service to the Body of Christ. Think about the magnitude of the implication of this…

Not only are we to adopt an attitude of true and honest humility, not only are we to consider our positions as members of and belonging to the Body of Christ, but we are to serve the Body of Christ. Yet even more striking than that, we are to rely upon our spiritual gift from God in our service, which is to say that we are not to rely on our own strength, ability or talent, but on God’s grace alone.

Now, let’s think about what we’ve already seen in Romans, again let’s consider why Israel did not obtain righteousness by the Law. They relied on their own strength and ability to follow the Law, but they did not rely on God for His righteousness. How are we to live as Christians? We are to rely on God in all things to serve His purpose and not our own abilities.

Paul has several more lessons for us on this subject in Romans, and we’ll continue our investigation next week- see you then!

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Diverse Motivations

Posted on May 13, 2021 by Don Merritt

Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear throughout the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ. And because of my chains, most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.

Philippians 1:12-14

Paul is in prison awaiting trial before Caesar.  He has been taken to Italy and is being guarded by the troops assigned to Caesar’s palace guard, a rather tough bunch to say the least.  Last time, we saw that Paul was there in jail writing letters, and praying, but not for himself. Unlike what you or I might be doing, Paul is in prayer of thanksgiving for those to whom he writes, for they are remaining in their faith and spreading the gospel.  In these verses, Paul reveals that he has been doing more than that.

It has “become clear” that he is in jail for Christ, so we can infer that he has been talking quite a lot as well.  It would seem that he has been speaking boldly about Christ while in jail, and that has emboldened other believers to do the same.  Caesar’s palace guard has heard all about Jesus, and the word has gotten out.  Caesar’s entire palace has heard about Christ and the gospel because Paul is being held in jail! Let’s be careful here not to over indulge in speculation; Paul didn’t say that the whole palace has become Christian, but they have heard, and that is surprising enough under the circumstances.

There has been another result, and that is the effect this has had on the Christians in the larger community. They have become fearless in their determination to spread the good news in the city of Rome.

It may be hard for us to fully comprehend how significant this was, for we live in an age of information.  It’s very easy for us to assume that by this time everyone would have heard about Jesus, but that cannot be true.  The Roman Empire did not have satellite news, 24 hour reporting, radio, internet or even newspapers; the printing press was still almost 1,500 years in the future. The only way news could be spread was by word of mouth; one person to the next.  For the gospel to travel all the way from Judea to Rome was a huge deal and Paul was spending his time in jail spreading the gospel. For those few Christians who were in Italy at this time to hear that Caesar’s palace guard were listening to the gospel meant that anyone in Rome was likely to listen, and they would have understood that this was a huge step forward.

Historical details aside, what does this say to us today?  Put yourself in Paul’s situation; would we be so bold?  Would we be able to stop feeling sorry for ourselves long enough to stay on purpose?  Do we ever stay on purpose when things aren’t going our way?  Has it even occurred to us that we should have a purpose?

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