Whatever God Asks A Christian To Do, He Enables Then to Do It
Romans 12:1-8
Nov 24, 2019 AM
Pastor Craig Ledbetter
Bible Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland
I. Introduction (Romans 12:1-8)
A. Of all the things Jesus taught, the greatest was how to serve others!
B. It used to be a phrase, proudly spoken by most people… “I am here to serve”, “I’m happy to serve”
C. But today, most people are terrified of being pushed out of their comfort zones
1. To have their life interrupted and asked to do something they really don’t want to do
2. To be asked to do something they are afraid to do
3. To be humiliated, and maybe rejected by those they serve
D. Most people see a life of service as something “some other” people do, but not themselves
E. Yet, the greatest purpose of your and my life, is not to enjoy life, or to rule other lives, nor to control empires, and make large sums of money and wealth, but to serve other people, and to serve the God who made us.
F. By the way…
1. “You cannot serve God without serving people”
2. Serving is hard – always has been! It never gets easier
3. But serving Christ Jesus is the most fulfilling and satisfying way for any human to live!
II. Background
A. Human nature does not get excited about serving anybody
1. And for a simple reason – it gets no honour or praise
2. We would always rather to BE served, than TO serve
a. Just leave your coffee in the kitchen and go sit down in the sitting room, and then yell out, “Would someone please bring me my coffee from the kitchen?”
b. And see how many jump up and run and go get it
c. Some will, but not many!
3. I find that so many Christians only do “servile” (lowly) things IF they are paid to do it, but not if they are asked to volunteer.
4. Christians are not PAID to serve people – employees are, but not Christians
B. Yet Christ Expects His People to serve in God’s kingdom
1. Never seeking to BE served, but TO serve!
2. Romans 12:11 Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;
3. Romans 7:6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter.
4. We do NOT serve because we are commanded to, but because we have a new life in us – a new spirit in us – it is the spirit of Christ in us!
5. Galatians 5:13 For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty [FREEDOM]; only use not [YOUR] liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
C. And thankfully, we are GIFTED to serve – Enabled – Empowered!
1. God has given 7 powerful GIFTS to enable the Christian to serve people - to not be a drain on others, but a be part of a living body of believers that live to serve others!
2. Each of these 7 gifts (that we will learn about next week) are ABILITIES that you did not have 1 moment before we repented and believed the Gospel
3. But they were specially given to every believer so that they could do the perfect will of God
D. Who Gets a Spiritual Gift? (Romans 12:3-6; Ephesians 4:7-10)
1. It is only for really smart, really moral, really interested Christians?
2. Notice who Paul includes in God’s gifting:
a. Rom 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.
b. Rom 12:4 For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
c. Rom 12:5 So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.
d. Rom 12:6 Having then gifts…
3. So, Every believer has been given a gift to do something of service (Ephesians 4:7)
a. Eph 4:7 But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
4. God gives us abilities to do the will of God! (Ephesians 4:8)
a. He does not give us Christmas gifts – or presents – or money in our pocket
b. He gives GIFTS (Eph 4:8)
1) Eph 4:8 Wherefore he saith, When he ascended up on high, he led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men.
2) Like if I asked you to go and pick up Mrs So and so, and you look at me and say, “But I don’t have a car today” and I then pull out some keys from my pocket and say, you do now! Use my car!
3) Do you remember Moses? (Exodus 3:7-12)
a) God told him to travel all the way back to mighty Egypt, and face off with Pharaoh, and bring all of the Jewish people OUT of Egypt and bring them to Mt Sinai
b) Exo 3:7 And the LORD said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;
c) Exo 3:8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
d) Exo 3:9 Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: and I have also seen the oppression wherewith the Egyptians oppress them.
e) Exo 3:10 Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt.
4) What did Moses say?
a) “I CAN’T do that! I am a nobody now!”
b) Exo 3:11 And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
c) Moses was EIGHTY YEARS OLD at this point!
d) He had no army. He had lost all his skills
5) And then God said, “of course you COULD NOT do it. But you can NOW. Because I will be with you, and with your mouth.”
a) Exo 3:12 And he [GOD] said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee: When thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, ye shall serve God upon this mountain.
6) And then God GAVE/GIFTED Moses with everything he needed to do the will of God
a) Exo 4:1 And Moses answered and said, But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, The LORD hath not appeared unto thee.
7) God gave him a better rod
a) Exo 4:2 And the LORD said unto him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A rod.
b) Exo 4:3 And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it.
c) Exo 4:4 And the LORD said unto Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail. And he put forth his hand, and caught it, and it became a rod in his hand:
d) Exo 4:5 That they may believe that the LORD God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath appeared unto thee.
8) God gave him the ability to make people leprous, and to heal people of leprosy!
a) Exo 4:6 And the LORD said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was leprous as snow.
b) Exo 4:7 And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. And he put his hand into his bosom again; and plucked it out of his bosom, and, behold, it was turned again as his other flesh.
c) Exo 4:8 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.
9) Then God gave him the ability to change water into blood
a) Exo 4:9 And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe also these two signs, neither hearken unto thy voice, that thou shalt take of the water of the river, and pour it upon the dry land: and the water which thou takest out of the river shall become blood upon the dry land.
10) And then God gave Moses the words to say
a) Exo 4:10 And Moses said unto the LORD, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.
b) Exo 4:11 And the LORD said unto him, Who hath made man's mouth? or who maketh the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? have not I the LORD?
c) Exo 4:12 Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee what thou shalt say.
11) And God even gave Moses Aaron, to speak for him when he was afraid!
a) Exo 4:13 And he said, O my Lord, send, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt send.
b) Exo 4:14 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, Is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well. And also, behold, he cometh forth to meet thee: and when he seeth thee, he will be glad in his heart.
c) Exo 4:15 And thou shalt speak unto him, and put words in his mouth: and I will be with thy mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what ye shall do.
12) God supplied everything Moses needed to do the will of God!
13) Isn’t that so cool?
c. In simpler words, "God never ask of you more than He can handle."
d. The moment the Holy Spirit moves into that person's own spirit at their new birth (Romans 8:16-17), He brings His power and His ability into their lives.
5. Notice some of the gifting that Jesus gave to the world (Eph 4:11)
a. Eph 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
b. Apostles
c. Prophets
d. Evangelists – church starters, missionaries
e. Pastors
f. Teachers
g. All five of these people are gifts to a church
6. And notice WHY Jesus gave those gifted men (Ephesians 4:12)
a. Eph 4:12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ
b. To perfect and mature each of you
c. To get you ready to do the work of the ministry yourselves
d. To edify the whole body of Christ – make is stronger, better, more successful in reaching the world with the Gospel!
E. Because SERVING is the normal, natural way of life for absolutely every son and daughter of God in the kingdom of God! Serving.
1. God has given each believer at least one spiritual gift to build up the body of Christ around them, and to minister to undeserving people in our hurting world.
2. It is not a vocation – not something “special” and only for specially called people, specially gifted, and self-confident
3. Serving people is what we were saved to do!
F. This morning, let’s listen as a man named Paul pleads with us and begs us to let go of our lives, and just give our very bodies as a living sacrifice to God, so that we can serve Him acceptably, and find our greatest purpose and fulfilment in His will!
III. Message
A. Paul Pleads with Us (Romans 12:1)
1. I struggle with how to motivate CHRISTIANS to become servants…
a. And I give up
b. I’ll just let God do it through one man’s words…
2. Paul pleads with us this morning, NOT as a religious man, or as a devoted man, or a moral man, or even a very powerful man – as a Pharisee
a. But as a changed man – transformed
b. From angry persecutor, hater, fighter, destroyer of lives that disagreed with him…
c. To that of a servant of all
d. 1Co 9:19 For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more.
3. He PLEADS with us as a changed man, begging, urging us to consider doing something hard
B. Paul Persuades Us (Romans 12:1)
1. Paul ASKS us very emphatically to present our bodies to God
a. To hand over our very lives to Him
b. To gift it to God
c. God deserves the gift of our physical bodies!
d. Hands, feet, eyes, mind, fingers, toes, back, shoulders
e. Our very life
1) It is so wrong that young girls are giving their bodies to pornographers
2) That young men are giving their bodies over to drugs and drink
3) Covering their bodies with tatoos and piercings
4) NEVER giving their precious, inncoent bodies back to the God who created them
2. All because of the mercies (plural) that God has showed us
a. While we were yet ungodly, sinners, God withheld His judgment for a while so that we could learn of Christ Jesus, and cry out to Him to be saved
b. It was God’s mercy that saved wretches like us
1) Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
2) Eph 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
c. Even after salvation, we take so long to grow and become faithful
d. God is constantly being merciful, lenient, compassionate towards us
e. NOT judging us like we deserve!
f. Lam 3:22,23 It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
g. And so, because God is very kind to us all, He deserves all of us!
3. Give yourself as an offering, a sacrifice
a. The Old Testament is filled with sacrifices – of lambs, bulls, doves, rams
b. Jesus Christ was God’s final and perfect Sacrifice for all our sin - the Lamb of God
c. But our very lives now can be a living sacrifice to God’s glory
d. God doesn’t need dead sacrifices – prefers us living for Him!
e. It must be our life that He gets – not a few bob, or a few minutes at church
f. A life lived as a gift to our God
g. Must be holy - clean; without spot or blemish
h. Must be given God’s way - not a DIY situation
i. We don’t get anything out of it, except watching it bring joy to God
j. That’s why so few ever give themselves!
4. God does not seek for our brief visit to church, or a small bit of money from our pockets, or a few poorly spoken words of some repeated prayer… He seeks ALL of us, and He deserves nothing less!
C. Paul Prepares Us for the Task (Romans 12:1)
1. It is NOT Do as you please
2. It has to be our best
a. We cannot give to God our leftovers
1) Our “free time” when we have a minute to spare
2) The money left over after all the other bills are paid
b. Not the unwanted parts of our lives (like our old age, ugliness, ruined health)
c. But the holiness of our life – the best of our time, our lives, our years
d. God deserves a life lived that is acceptable to God
e. Heb 12:28 Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear
f. Imagine you being given a gift from someone… and they gave you an old, torn, smelly, shirt that is too small, and not pretty.
g. Imagine someone only coming home for dinner when it suits them, ignoring all the time put into preparing a meal, and ignoring the needs of the other person to get time with their husband or wife?
h. Now imagine millions of God’s children, giving God only the last few years of their lives when they have no health, and no strength, and no money
i. We CANNOT give God our leftovers!
3. Because it is simply reasonable to do so!
a. It is NOT extreme to give God our BEST, our YOUTHFULNESS, our first monies
b. It is obviously the right thing to give the best of our lives!
c. And it is a Pretty good exchange don’t you think?
d. It seems that we come out with the better deal!
D. Paul Pulls Us (Romans 12:2)
1. Away from the world, the culture, the fashions – everything that is popular
2. To a transformed life – to NOT stay the same!
3. Transforming Our Lives into WHAT?
4. Into Servants
5. And believe me, it will take a transformation to actually make every one of us like Christ!
E. Paul Proves to Us the Will of God (Romans 12:2)
1. The will of God for your and my life is not a career
a. Or a success
b. Or Greatness
c. Or something you already just love doing
2. But a life of service to God and to others you may not yet love!
3. That is the whole point of this chapter!
F. Paul Pauses Us (Romans 12:3)
1. Speaks to every one of us
2. To NOT think of ourselves so highly – as if we are ABOVE servitude
a. Above cleaning toilets
b. Setting up chairs
c. Coming early and just praying over every chair, and praying over this pulpit for God to show up and speak through the preacher, no matter who may be preaching!
d. Is there anything you WON’T do for God or for people?
e. Then THAT will usually be what God starts you doing before He ever takes you further!
3. And definitely do NOT think you do not need God’s gifting and abilities
a. We already have our talents and what we are good at
b. But Paul stops us from resting in those talents, and asks us to look and see what God has given us specially to serve just Him!
c. To do something completely “by FAITH” and not by ability!
4. What talents do you naturally have?
a. Making money?
b. Building things?
c. Teaching school kids?
d. Managing an office?
e. Playing a musical instrument?
5. All are good to use for God’s glory and honour…
6. But… Don’t think so highly of yourself like any of that is needed by God
7. The reality is that the will of God will usually be way beyond your abilities, so that you discover that you will always desperately need GOD’S help to do any of it
8. John 15:5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
G. Paul Draws a Picture for Us (12:3-5)
1. Of One Body, with Many Members, All Serving
2. Starts with describing a physical human body
a. A human body has many members
1) Ten different fingers
2) Ten different toes
3) Two eyes
4) One mouth
5) Two ears
6) Two shoulders
7) Two legs
8) One nose
9) Two lungs
10) One heart
11) All making up ONE body
b. And all the members do not have the same office – function
1) Eyes do not do the same thing as the ears do
2) Neither do fingers do what the nose does
3) Every member of your body is GIFTED with a special ability to do what it is supposed to do in the body
4) Gifted unlike any other part of your body
3. So is the body of Christ
a. A church is the body of Christ, right here, in Ballincollig
b. Its PEOPLE. Not the brick and mortar
c. We have many members
d. And each member has a different GIFTING, a different ability, that was given to them at their new birth
e. Why?
f. So that each one of us can serve the body as we serve Christ!
4. Why do we try and believe otherwise?
a. No physical body operates well with only one lung, one eye, no ears, two fingers, no toes, a bad back, and no voice!
b. No company operates that way – with 100 people, and only 20 actually doing any work!
c. No army functions that way, with only some or only half actually going through training and then getting in line and doing their duties. ALL must be trained, and ALL must be busy doing their assigned duties!
d. No car works that way – with only a few parts of the engine actually working, and two out of the four tyres actually moving. All parts must work together, and move the car!
e. Yet, because of our modern governments, and social welfare system that PAYS people to not be productive, Christians have been moulded and convinced to now just sit on the sidelines and let only a few do all the work in a church.
f. If you come and visit this church, we who are actual, committed members of this church appreciate your presence, but if you are saved, we need you! We need your time, your presence at church every time we assemble together, your talents being used to bless others, your commitment to, and your prayers! All of you!
g. Because we need more than a few parts of a body giving all they have – we need every foot, every eye, every ear, every heart, every finger, every hand, every shoulder, every mouth, all working together, serving and ministering to the body as it servces the Lord!
h. Act 2:47 Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.
IV.Next Week - The Seven Gifts God Gives Us to Serve (Romans 12:6-8)
V. Conclusion
A. What Gift Did God Give YOU?
B. If you are NOT born again…
1. If you only are trying to be religious, or good, or moral
2. And have never humbled yourself, and repented of your sin, and cried out to God to save you from your sin…
C. Then the only gift you need to GET this morning, is the gift of God’s salvation – the gift of forgiveness – the GIFT of eternal life
1. Eph 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.
2. Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
3. God Offers Sinful People Eternal Life (GOSPEL)
4. But you have to WANT it, to accept it as a gift
5. Completely paid for by someone named Jesus, the Son of God!
6. You have to admit to God that you are a sinner, lost, without any hope, no matter how good you may try to be
7. And then cry out from you heart, in a simple prayer, and ask God to forgive you of your sins – all of them in one moment can be washed away
8. If you would just believe that Jesus Christ died for you, and was buried and he rose again three days later, just for you!
9. And from that moment, your life will never be the same – you will be forgiven, pardoned, cleansed, and moved into the kingdom of God!
10. If you want it, believe it, and God will make it so in your life!
D. Now, for the rest of you, If you already ARE saved…
1. Then you need to present your bodies to God as an offering, a living sacrifice, out of deep love for God, all because of the mercies of God, showered on your rebellious, selfish life!
2. Do that right now, and do it often. It is not a once off effort
3. And then you can find out what GIFT God put into your heart and mind that YOU can be used to do God’s will for your life