In Romans 12 Paul begins to describe how God has designed Christian community to be like a single body with many members—body parts—each with a distinct function and purpose, but all belonging to and working together as one body. So today we’ll be talking about stewardship, spiritual gifts, and Christian vocation. Takeaways will include a “time and talents” form for volunteering at Faith, and a larger call to share the gifts of God, to “be” the body of Christ “out there,” beyond the church walls, in the everyday matters of work, home, school, and neighborhood.
We start with a story about how Jesus likes to show up among his followers post-resurrection: on the road, in the Scriptures, with the bread.
Luke 24:13-32
Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing him.
17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”
They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”
19 “What things?” he asked.
“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.”
25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. 29 But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them.
30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
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Many Members, One Body (Romans 12)
Introduction
Hello, welcome to the Will Preach for Food podcast. I’m Doug, a pastor here at Faith Lutheran Church, based out of Shelton, Washington, a congregation of the ELCA. You can learn more about Faith at our website, www.faithshelton.org. This podcast is being recorded for Sunday, April 23, 2023. We’re continuing a series through Paul’s letter to the Romans.
In Romans 12 Paul begins to describe how God has designed Christian community to be like a single body with many members—body parts—each with a distinct function and purpose, but all belonging to and working together as one body. So today we’ll be talking about stewardship, spiritual gifts, and Christian vocation. Takeaways will include a “time and talents” form for volunteering at Faith, and a larger call to share the gifts of God, to “be” the body of Christ “out there,” beyond the church walls, in the everyday matters of work, home, school, and neighborhood.
We start with a story about how Jesus likes to show up among his followers post-resurrection: on the road, in the Scriptures, with the bread.
Luke 24:13-32
Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. 14 They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. 15 As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; 16 but they were kept from recognizing him.
17 He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”
They stood still, their faces downcast. 18 One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you the only one visiting Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?”
19 “What things?” he asked.
“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. 20 The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; 21 but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. 22 In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning 23 but didn’t find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. 24 Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they did not see Jesus.”
25 He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! 26 Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.
28 As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus continued on as if he were going farther. 29 But they urged him strongly, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over.” So he went in to stay with them.
30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. 31 Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight. 32 They asked each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?”
Here ends the reading…
Hearts on Fire
The story of the Road to Emmaus. Mr. and Mrs. Cleopas meet Jesus while they are out on the road, trying to make sense of the world. Then they open up the scriptures—an old fashioned Bible study—and the spark of faith was fanned into flame. Then they gather at the dinner table. The bread is broken, the blessing is spoken, and their eyes were opened to recognize Jesus in their midst.
This is still a model of the life of the follower of Jesus. The newspaper in one hand—well, now it’s the news feed on our favorite apps—and the Bible in the other. We talk together about what it all means. We open our hearts and homes. We break bread together. We bless each other. And in those moments, by the power of the Holy Spirit, we encounter the living Jesus. “Where two or more are gathered in my name, there I will be with them,” was Christ’s promise then and now.
Romans 12:1-2
But this is a sermon series on the book of Romans, so we’d better open our Bibles to Romans 12, beginning with verse 1.
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. 2 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.
Therefore, Paul says, on account a because of God’s mercy…offer your bodies as a living sacrifice. We are save by grace, through faith, apart from works of the law. God’s faithfulness, God’s love, God’s kindness, God’s will is sufficient. There is nothing left for you or I to do to please God, to help God, or earn God’s favor. Therefore, Paul says, do good works! Offer your whole self in service to others. Not because you have to. Not because God needs you to. But because your neighbor needs you. And we were made for good works, created to do good, to be fruitful and multiply, care for and tend God’s creation, to love one another.
Romans 12:3-5
3 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. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
As a preacher, I love Paul’s alliteration. He worked on this section to make it flow off the tongue. Don’t be conformed to the world but be TRANSFORMED by the renewing of your mind. Back in chapter 1 Paul had said that our minds had been given over to depravity. That was done so that no one might boast, that God might show mercy to all. Now the indwelling Holy Spirit can daily raise our minds from the dead. Don’t be conformed to the world, he says, but be transformed…
Specifically, don’t be high-minded, but be sober-minded. Depravity is marked by pride, arrogance, and boasting. Rather, sober-minded. Have the mind of Christ, Paul says elsewhere. These days, we might translate this as “practice mindfulness.”
Don’t think too highly of yourself, because, after all, we’re all in the same boat. The human condition is marked by sin, suffering, mortality, shame, and doubt. The only thing that is boast-worthy is the mercy and kindness of God. We’re all in the same boat, or, as Paul puts it, we’re all in the same BODY. The human body has many members or parts. Each member has a unique place and function. The parts are all different—on purpose. Each member belongs to the body. The parts all belong to each another. When one part does its job well, the whole body benefits. When one part is weak or damaged or cut off, the whole body suffers.
Romans 12:6-8
6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.
Here is one of Paul’s lists of the gifts of the Holy Spirit. He makes similar lists in several of his letters. They are all a bit different, which suggests that these lists or not exhaustive, but examples. Here are seven gifts of the Spirit. Seven expressions of the Holy Spirit, seven ways God has wired you and me to do good works—to build up the body, to bless the world, to glorify God, and to do the thing we were made for!
Prophesying. This isn’t like predicting the future, but rather an ability to see things the way they really are, and to speak a word from God publicly. The rest of these are fairly self-explanatory. Serving. Teaching. Encouraging. Giving. Leading. Showing mercy.
These are gifts we share in church, right. In worship, we have prophets who read the lessons and share a faith moment. Servers who set up microphones, hand out bulletins, and collect empty cups. Greeters welcome. Singers and musicians cheer us on and give us encouragement for the week. Teachers sit on the floor with children or consider Faith and the Arts over the centuries. Givers and Leaders fund ministries and prioritize mission. We show mercy when we pray for one another and visit the sick and hand out Fred Meyer gas cards to persons experiencing houselessness.
These are also the gifts we share the rest of the week. At our day jobs. During class. In line at Starbucks. Around the dinner table. We are the body of Christ in the world. God’s hands and feet. We are manure, right? Spread out in God’s field. Blessed to be a blessing. Enlightened to be light for the world. Gifted to glorify God and serve our neighbors. This is what we’re MADE for.
Romans 12:9-21
What does the body of Christ look like when all its parts are healthy and “exercising” their unique and beautiful gifts? Paul gives us marching orders beginning in verse 9.
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited.
17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
Romans 12:19-21
That’s a pretty good rule of life, I think. Not because we have to. Not because God needs us. But because it was what we were made for, and what we need from each other.
This chapter ends with a warning about righteous anger. This seems especially relevant in these days of social media, book banning, cancel culture, and shooting children who show up at the wrong address.
Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 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.”
21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Evil isn’t overcome by evil, but by the good. Even when we experience something hurtful, the Bible here invites us to step back, and, rather than escalate the conflict through attempts to “get back at them,” and leave the whole settling the score thing to God, who is frankly much better at it than you are or I am.
Now, sometimes things are bigger than that. We need ways to order society, protect the vulnerable, and govern the planet. But the church wasn’t made for that. God made the government to do that. Paul talks about that in the next chapter. For today, let me leave you with a few takeaways.
Takeaways
First, take a look at that pink Time and Talents insert in the bulletin. I’ve included a link to the pdf in the podcast notes as well. Read through the list, the gifts and the tasks, put your name on it, check two or three boxes, and turn it in during the offering later in the service. At home, download it, scan it, or just email me with a couple of tasks you are willing to undertake.
Remember, this is rehearsal, not performance. We are practicing. We are exercising our gifts when we worship together. It’s PT for the soul. There are fewer and fewer places to practice reading in public or leading a meeting. As the body of Christ, we need to allow all the members to exercise their gifts.
Second, God has given us these gifts to use to bless the world, not just each other. As followers of Jesus, we are not called to circle the wagons and create our own little sub-culture—that was the mistake of the Jews in Paul’s day. It’s about grace, not race. We are called to be manure! To spread the word of God “out there,” 24/7. We practice here in order to better exercise God’s gifts out there.
Third, Jesus is alive and on the loose. Don’t be surprised when he meets you as a stranger on the road, or when you are studying the Bible with a small group, or when you welcome someone into your home, or when you share a meal—“breaking bread,” as it were—talking and blessing and doing the dishes together in His name. We’re all on the Emmaus Road.
Conclusion
Thanks for listening today. I hope this podcast series is helping you fall more deeply in love with the God who created you, who loves you, and has a purpose for your life. To learn more about Faith, go to our website, www.faithshelton.org. Please “like” us, subscribe, donate, or sign-up for our newsletter. You can subscribe to this podcast on most podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple, and Google. Chas, thanks for your production work on this podcast every week. All glory…