practice of animal sacrifice. What they often miss is that Paul is calling us to participate in a great reversal of the downward spiral he described in 1:18-32: wrath of God (1:18) .................................................. mercies of God refusal to honour or thank God (1:21)................... (thankful) pleasing sacrifice dishonouring the body (1:26-28) ............................ offering the body in obedience foolish, idolatrous worship (1:21f, 25) ................... spiritual worship debased mind (1:28) ................................................. renewed mind disobeying the decree of God (1:32) ...................... approving the will of God The worship which people failed to offer by refusing to honour God or give thanks (1:21) is now restored through Christ. Paul wants those who have died with Jesus through baptism to join him in offering themselves completely—in effect, after Christ’s example. The giving up of Jesus’ body as a sacrifice for the sake of others (1 Corinthians 11:24) enables this reversal and provides the pattern for Christian selfoffering here. Here Paul speaks of worship not simply as something that happens on one day a week, but as a whole way of life. 5 Responsibility in the Body. Read Romans 12:3-8 Paul now begins to outline some characteristics of the transformed life. From right thinking about one’s relationship to God (12:1-2), he turns to right thinking about self in 12:3-8. We have already seen that Paul was concerned about Gentile Christians’ pride and arrogance towards the Jews (11:17-22), and in chapters 14-15 Paul will address a particular problem dividing Jewish- and Gentile-Christian groups in Rome. Here he wants the Roman believers to view themselves as interdependent parts of a whole, the body of Christ (12:4-5; see also 1 Corinthians 12). All are important, and have a part to play. Members should measure themselves according to their own faithfulness in fulfilling their God-given role by using their gift(s) as they were intended (12:6-8). In other words, a Christian’s sense of achievement is not based on how attractive, brilliant, spiritual, wealthy or gifted he or she is, but on a different standard. The important question is, to what extent am I using my ‘measure of faith’ (12:3; probably a reference to one’s spiritual gifts) for the building up of God’s people? Paul states the sort of gifts he has in mind in 12:6-8, but as in 1 Corinthians 12:8-10; 28-30 and Ephesians 4:11f there is no attempt to be comprehensive. Translating the Greek text behind these verses is difficult because the main verb is missing. The New Revised Standard Version turns 12:6 into a statement followed by a list (‘We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us:…’), but the New International Version and the Authorised Version are probably more accurate in preserving the implied imperative that each gift is to be used in the way expressed. The gift of prophecy (more a forth-telling or a sharing of God’s perspective than a foretelling) should be exercised in proportion to one’s faith. A gift of ‘ministry’ (literally, ‘service’; the root of our English word ‘deacon’) should be exercised in actual service, and so on. The mention of the gifts of giving and of compassion (‘showing mercy’) do not often receive much attention in modern discussions of the gifts of the Spirit, but they are just as vital to the life of God’s people as any other. 6 Love in Action. Read Romans 12:9-21
Romans
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Michael B. Thompson