How often do you feel empty, like you’ve given your last ounce of energy? How often do you feel tired of serving others? Alternatively, are you feeling tired of chasing empty pursuits? Maybe you are even approaching burnout. If you have never experienced any of this, you are probably not old enough to be on the internet without your parents’ permission. (You should go ask them now!). What are the reasons you are experiencing this?

1. Because you do not know your area of gifting, or are not serving in them.
2. Other people are not being obedient to God’s call and/or are unaware of their gifts. This leaves a gap that someone needs to fill and unfortunately you swatted at a fly when they asked for volunteers.
3. Your sense of responsibility stems from self-serving reasons rather than a love for others.
4. You are empty of the Spirit’s life-giving presence and need renewal
5. You are not taking a Sabbath.

While the fourth and fifth are rampant issues, we will leave those for another post. Let’s first look at Romans 12:1-10 to examine the first three of these possibilities.

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. 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. 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. 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.

Most Bibles divide these preceding verse into three subheadings. Remember however that these were not part of the original letter and can lead you astray when trying to understand any passage. Here, for example, you can clearly see that verses 3 and verse 10 act as bookends to one another, but subheadings orphan them from the context of one another. Likewise, chapters and verses were added well after the authorship of the letter so the surrounding chapters often provide helpful or even necessary context just as Romans 11 provides a frame of reference for this passage in chapter 12. (Chapters beginning with transitional terms such as, “therefore,” “so,” “for” and “then” clue you into this.)

We see verse one begins with, “Therefore.” At this point the original reader (and we too) should be feeling greatly humbled by God’s grace and profoundly grateful for God’s mercy discussed in the theologically intricate Chapter 11. At this point, you should inherently know you deserve none of what you have.

Paraphrase and Expansion of Verses 1 & 2:

[1] Therefore give up what you have as a sacrifice back to God! [2] Do not run after the empty pursuits of this world – the latest craze, the hottest gossip, the best entertainment or the newest gadgets – rather, be transformed! How? Only the Holy Spirit and the Word of God can transform your soul and renew your mind. Regularly reading scripture and listening to God (not simply talking, but actually asking Him to talk to you as you listen and converse. If you have difficulty with this or if some personal issues have held you back, I highly recommend Freedom Session.) [verse 2 cont’d] Here is the payoff: you will be able discern what really matters in life and, most importantly, you will be able to live out God’s will in your life. This is not a death sentence nor the beginning of a boring, unfulfilling life. On the contrary, if you feel overwhelmed because your life is unmanageable and your priorities are completely upside down, you can trade that in for an exciting, fulfilling and purpose-filled life.

NOTE: You must understand and live out verses 1 and 2 before verses 3 through 8 will really impact your heart! The Christian life is about life in community. As the late Charles Colson said, “The Christian life must be rooted in community, for the kingdom to which it points is itself the ultimate community.”^[1] This is what 1body.org is all about – connecting the members of Christ’s body together in a functional, uplifting and actively serving community. However, if we are still selfishly putting our own needs before others, we will not experience the community God intended nor can we be used by God in any meaningful way.

Do you ever serve in a ministry and feel drained and exhausted? Do you feel like someone owes you at the end of it? This does happen sometimes, and when it does you should stop to consider: either, you are not serving in the areas you are gifted, or you are not serving selflessly. Unless you have experienced transformation discussed above, you may simply feel bitter and/or guilty when reading verses 3-10.

We’ll start with selflessness. It is the key to serving others:

• v. 3 “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought”
• v. 3 “think of yourself with sober judgment”
• v. 5 “each member belongs to all the others”
• v. 10 “Be devoted to one another in love”
• v. 10 “Honor one another above yourselves.”

(These are paralleled in Philippians 2:3-4)

Notice, verse 5. This is far more extreme than simply thinking of others first. It means what you think is “your life” is not really yours! If you spend time thinking about it, nothing belongs to you permanently except your will. Even Jesus Christ himself, although divine and worthy of glory, led by example as he “humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death.” (Php 2:8, read Phillipians 2:1-11)

Naturally, humility and selflessness of this degree lead to a heart of service without reservation. Do not, however, think of this as droll or mundane service. I am certain you have experienced that. If it was not a matter of the heart then it was a matter of not serving in the area you are gifted. Serving with the gift(s) God has given you allows the Spirit to pour through you. It will be invigorating, not draining, and it will be exciting, not boring.

1.  With that understanding, re-read the passage paying careful attention to how the logic flows together without the subheadings.
2. Then pray and ask God questions pertinent to His calling on your life.
3. Listen & Obey.

Sources:

1. Colson, C. W., & Vaughn, E. S. (2003). Being the Body. Nashville, TN: W Pub. Group.