HABITS OF A TRANSFORMED MIND
God’s Invitation to Grace ❧ Part 54
Romans 12:3-8 ❧ Pastor, Dr. John Denney
This morning we’re going to look at Romans 12:3-8. This is part of a critical passage as we saw a couple of weeks ago. It is a major turning point in the book of Romans. It’s a place of decision. Paul has spent 11 chapters sharing with us the essential beliefs that every follower of Jesus needs to know. Now, he’s going to put everything on the line and say, “If you really believe everything I’ve said, live it!” Paul invites us to translate our learning into living. Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think (Romans 12:2, NLT). Paul didn’t just say this, he really meant it. Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us (Philippians 3:17, NAS).
One of the clearest indicators of someone coming to Christ is their thinking changes. Their whole life perspective changes. The way they see themselves and others is now very different. That’s what Paul is going to show us in Romans 12:3-8. Three Habits of A Transformed Mind: 1) Thinking righty about ourselves, 2) thinking rightly about others, and 3) thinking rightly about our gifts.
- Habit #1: Thinking rightly about ourselves. For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith(Romans 12:3). When we come to Christ, one of the most important places God begins working in our lives is our minds – how we think. No less than four times in this verse Paul refers to our thinking, specifically how we think of ourselves. What’s Paul getting at? Even though we’ve come to Christ, and we are now new creations (2 Cor. 5:17), we have a tendency to forget and slip back into the fallen pride of our old selves. We tend to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. I like the way JB Phillips translates this. Don’t cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself or your importance. Paul’s admonition is we’re to have sound judgement (σωφρονέω – be in your right mind). In other words be realistic about yourself. You haven’t arrived yet.
A young pastor often boasted to his church family that all the time he needed to prepare for Sunday’s message was the few minutes it took him to walk from the parsonage next door to the church. After a few weeks of hearing his sermons, the congregation bought a new parsonage – five miles away!
We have a tendency to go to one to two extremes in evaluating ourselves. We think we are indispensable, or we think we’re worthless. Neither is true. If you think you’re indispensable, try putting your hand in a bucket of water then pulling it out. If a hole in the water remains, then you know you’re indispensable. The fact is, if we don’t do our part, God’s kingdom is still going to go on. It is not dependent upon us. We are not indispensable. Any of us can be replaced. But, on the other hand, all of us are needed. The other danger is to think we’re worthless. Instead, Paul tells us to have sound judgement – see ourselves the way God does. That’s who you truly are! Our problem is we compare our value to our gifts and abilities. Your value, your importance is not based on what you can and cannot do. It is based on who you are in Christ!
It is good for us to remember the person saying this is the Apostle Paul. There is a hint of transparency in his words. There was a time in his life when he was very arrogant. Take it from someone who used to think he was the fourth person in the trinity, don’t think too highly of yourself. God has a way of humbling us if we do! On the other hand, Paul is not saying we should think too little of ourselves either. We all stand on level ground of grace before God (2 Tim. 2:1).
Pau wraps up verse 3 saying God has allotted to each a measure of faith… This is better translated; God has allotted each a standard of faith. The standard of faith by which we are to measure ourselves is Christ. Not our subjective feelings or exalted imaginations. Not our accomplishments or abilities. Nor our failures, weaknesses, or inadequacies. Jesus is our standard by which we measure ourselves and others. If Jesus is truly our standard, we discover the words of Jesus in Matthew 5:3 God blesses those who are poor and realize their need for him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is theirs (Matthew 5:3, NLT). God bless those who realize they have nothing within them to commend themselves to God for theirs is the reward of God. Because of God’s grace, we stand on the same high level ground before God. Habit #1: Thinking rightly about ourselves.
- Habit #2: Thinking rightly about others. For just as we have many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another(Romans 12:4-5). One of Paul’s favorite analogies of God’s family is the human body. He says the church operates just like a human body – it is interdependent, everyone depends on each other. You can’t get around Paul’s statement of belonging to each other and seeing the importance of each when he uses the analogy of the body. There are a number of important implications that he is teaching. When you get a mental grasp of what he is saying, suddenly the dividing lines between clergy and laity, pastor and parishioner, titles and degrees are removed.
Every member is a minister. The human body is made up of different parts but is one. Each member gains its meaning and importance by its relation to the whole. My hand gains its meaning and importance by being connected to my body and serving the needs of my body. If you’ve ever had a broken arm or foot, you know how important that hand or foot is when you suddenly realize how much the rest of your body depends on your hands and feet to survive! In other words, if you’re a member of the body of Christ, that makes you a minister. Because you are part of the body you have some function that only you can do.
Every believer has a different function. Not all of us do the same thing. Not all of us are an ear – the listening part of the church, or an eye – the seeing part of the church, or a mouth – the speaking part of the church. Chaos occurs when we put people in positions that they are not gifted in. That’s when you run into trouble. Not everyone has the same function so we shouldn’t expect everyone to act the same or to like the same things. Every believer has a different function. We’re all not going to fit the same pattern of ministry.
I’m reminded of the story of Hans the tailor. Because of his reputation, an influential entrepreneur visiting the city ordered a tailormade suit. But when he came to pick up his suit, the customer found that one sleeve twisted that way and the other this way; one shoulder bulged out and the caved in. He pulled and managed to make his body fit. As he returned home on the bus, another passenger noticed his odd appearance and asked if Hans the tailor had made the suit. Receiving an affirmative reply, the man remarked, “Amazing! I knew that Hans was a good tailor, but I had no idea he could make a suit fit so perfectly someone as deformed as you.” Often that is just what we do in church. We get some idea of what ministry should look like: then we push and shove people into the most grotesque configurations until they fit wonderfully! Every believer has a different function. We’re all not going to fit the same pattern of ministry. They are all important and must cooperate. So, the second habit is to think rightly about others.
- Habit #3: Thinking rightly about our gifts. Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, each of us is to exercise them accordingly: if prophecy, according to the proportion of his faith; if service, in his serving; or he who teaches, in his teaching; or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who gives, with liberality; he who leads, with diligence; he who shows mercy, with cheerfulness(Romans 12:6-8). Each one of us were born with some physical abilities. When you are born spiritually, when you give your life to Jesus, you are given a spiritual gift, a special ability from God. It may coincide with your natural talent, but it’s more. It is an ability that God has given to you to build up other people (1 Cor. 12:8-10, 28-29; Eph. 4:11-13; 1 Pt.4).
The Bible teaches that everyone of us have at least one gift (1 Pt. 4:10) and there are many different kinds of gifts (1 Cor. 12). In fact, the Bible never lists all there are. For instance, you won’t find the gift of music in the Bible, or the gift of intercession – prayer warriors. But the it does teach that every one of us has been given a gift or some of us more, and it is our responsibility to discover that gift and begin to exercise.
Paul lists seven gifts in v.v. 6-8. He’s not trying to be exhaustive. He is doing something more important. He’s saying two things in this short list: 1) if you have it use it & 2) when you use it use it right. If you have the gift of prophecy (not necessarily foretelling as forthtelling – it both convicts and builds people up). If you have the gift of serving, then serve as to the Lord. We get the word deacon from this – helping with the needs of Christ’s family. Where prophecy focuses on the heart and the will, the third gift – teaching focuses on the mind. The fourth gift is exhortation – the idea is encouraging, coming alongside someone in need and helping them. When a child learns to ride his or her bike without training wheels, mom or dad often jogs beside them helping them stay balanced. That’s encouragement. Giving is the fifth gift. Refers to giving with right motives. When you give, you’re giving to achieve God’s agenda, not our own. Number six is leadership. It carries the idea of thoughtfulness and diligence. Don’t just wing it. Finally, seven – mercy. This gift points someone who has a passion to help the poor, the handicapped, the ill etc. But they do it with cheerfulness.
But here is what I don’t want you to miss. God has given every believer a gift and with that gift the responsibility to use it for God’s people. Jesus told a story of the parable of the talents to illustrate our responsibility for what God has given us. One guy buried his talent in the ground. Jesus says that’s the wrong thing to do. Don’t bury your talents in the ground. Someday each one of us will stand before the Lord and give an account of what we did with our gifts. Not what we think others should have done with theirs, but what we did with ours.
Here are three steps to finding your gift: Examine: Do a study of spiritual gifts. Find what seems to match your heart. Experiment: Then try out different ministries. You won’t know if you have it if you don’t try it out. Don’t be afraid of failure. You’ll know if it clicks and so will others. Evaluate: Have others with the same gift evaluate you. People of like gifts recognize them quicker than others. Then, if you have it – exercise it. The more you use it the better you’ll get at it.
Let me close with this. The Stradivari Society of Chicago performs an important role in the music world. The society entrusts the world’s most expensive and rare violins into the hands of world-class violinist who could never afford them otherwise. These are the premier violins made by 17th & 18th century masters like Antonio Stradivari worth millions of dollars. Investors love them because their value continues to climb year after year. But, if several very important conditions are not met, these priceless violins would be virtually worthless. One, if a violin is not used regularly, it loses its tone. And two, the more it is used the more it goes up in value. And three, these investors require the musician using their violin to perform at least two command performances a year. Like the violins, God has personally selected and entrusted every believer with a spiritual gift of great value. They remain His property and He wants them to be used, otherwise they have no value.
