By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study, we looked
at verses 9-15.
1.1.1. We saw that
for the rest of chapter 12 that Paul will give us various exhortations
regarding how we need to conduct ourselves in the body of Christ so as to
maximize healthy body life.
1.1.2. We noted
that how we treat each other in the body of Christ is a testimony to the world
of the character of our Christian lives and it also has a big impact upon how
the body of Christ itself fares.
1.1.3. We saw that
the various exhortations Paul will give in this chapter emphasize maintaining
your conduct upon the basis of what living out God’s “agape love”
requires of us.
1.1.4. It was
mentioned that how we treat each other in the body of Christ is a direct
reflection of our “vertical relationship” with the Lord. In other words, we will love others to the
same degree and in the same way that we are experiencing the love of God in our
own lives, which is the result of the vitality of our spiritual walk with
Christ. The body of Christ then becomes
a vehicle given to us by God for receiving the love of God as well as
dispensing it.
1.1.5. We Discussed
some of my own experiences with the body of Christ and how that the Lord had
allowed me great preparation for ministry by using these experiences to show me
what the body of Christ is meant to look like and function like.
1.2.
In our study today, we are going to finish out chapter
12 looking at verses 16-23.
1.2.1. As was
mentioned in our last study, the body of Christ can be such a great light to
the people of this world. When the body
of Christ is functioning as it should in love it can be used by God in such a
powerful way. There are so many
testimonies that I could share of God working mightily through the body of
Christ, but here is one I came across :
1.2.1.1. How the hymn
“Blessed Be The Ties That Bind” came to be written :
In 1765 John Fawcett was called to pastor a very small
congregation at
Then Dr. Fawcett received a call from a much larger
church in
Touched by this great outpouring of love, he and his
wife began to weep. Finally Mrs. Fawcett exclaimed, “O John, I just can’t bear
this. They need us so badly here.” “God has spoken to my heart, too!” he said.
“Tell them to unload the wagon! We cannot break these wonderful ties of
fellowship.”
This experience inspired Fawcett to write a hymn.
“Blest be the tie that binds our hearts in Christian love! The fellowship of
kindred mind is like to that above.”
—H. G. Bosch
1.2.2. The
formation of the church as seen in the New Testament includes the following :
1.2.2.1. From the
earliest parts of Jesus’ ministry to the disciples it was evident that He was
planning to create a unique functional organization or organization with His
disciples. Jesus and His inner circle of
disciples lived together and were treated as a family sharing all things
together. Jesus told His disciples directly
that He was going to establish His church in Matthew 16:18, and that this
church would last for eternity, “18 “I
also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church;
and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”
1.2.2.2. Likewise, in
the early church it was the case that the body of Christ initially had such a
great bond amongst themselves that they lived together communally and shared
all things in common, as can be seen from Acts 2:44-46, “44 And
all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; 45 and
they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them
with all, as anyone might have need. 46 Day by day continuing with
one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were
taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart.”
1.2.2.3. As we look
in the New Testament we see that though there is mentioned the universal body
of Christ which is comprised of all of those who have come to faith in Jesus
Christ, that it was also the case that as the Lord led the early church in
their church planting that localized miniature representations of the body of
Christ were formed in city after city: Antioch (Acts 11:25-26), Caesarea (Acts 18:22), Cenchrea
(Rom. 16:1), Corinth (1 Cor. 1:2), Jerusalem (Acts 8:1), Thessalonica (1 Thes. 1:1), Ephesus (Rev. 2:1), Smyrna (Rev. 2:8), Pergamos (Rev. 2:12), Thyatira (Rev. 2:18), Sardis (Rev.
3:1), Philadelphia (Rev. 3:7), Laodicea (Col. 4:16,Rev. 3:14), etc.
1.2.2.4. From Paul’s
writings we see the fact that every single Christian is a part of the body of Christ,
as evidenced from 1 Corinthians 12:27, “27 Now you are Christ’s
body, and individually members of it.”
1.2.2.5. Paul also
teaches the fact that as Christ has been exalted over all things that He has
also been placed as head over the body of Christ :
1.2.2.5.1.
Ephesians 1:22-23, “22 And He put all
things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to
the church, 23 which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all
in all.”
1.2.2.5.2.
Colossians 1:18, “18 He is also head of
the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so
that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.”
1.2.2.5.3.
Colossians 2:19, “19 and not holding
fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied and held together
by the joints and ligaments, grows with a growth which is from God.”
1.2.2.6. We have
talked about how that in the body of Christ we have all been given spiritual
gifts and that there is a diversity of functions which we are to perform :
1.2.2.6.1.
Romans 12:4-5, “4 For just as we have
many members in one body and all the members do not have the same function, 5
so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one
of another.”
1.2.2.7. The fact
that unity is to be maintained in the body of Christ is expressed in several
places, including :
1.2.2.7.1.
Jesus prayed to the Father just before His crucifixion
that there would be unity in the body of Christ in John 17:20-23, “20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also
who believe in Me through their word; 21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in
Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe
that You sent Me. 22 “The glory which
You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are
one; 23 I in them and You in Me, that
they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me,
and loved them, even as You have loved Me.”
1.2.2.7.2.
Paul wrote of the fact of unity in the body of Christ
in Romans 12:5, “5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ,
and individually members one of another.”
1.2.2.7.3.
Paul exhorted us to be of one mind and as much as
possible maintain unity in the body of Christ in 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, “10
Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that
you all agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be made
complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. 11 For I have
been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe’s people, that there
are quarrels among you. 12 Now I mean this, that each one of you is
saying, “I am of Paul,” and “I of Apollos,” and “I of
Cephas,” and “I of Christ.” 13 Has Christ
been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in
the name of Paul?”
1.2.2.8. We are
exhorted throughout the New Testament to minister to one another in the body of
Christ as any has need :
1.2.2.8.1.
The ministry of empathy : Romans 12:15, “15 Rejoice with
those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.”
1.2.2.8.2.
Bearing each other’s weaknesses and edifying one
another: Romans 15:1-2, “1 Now
we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and
not just please ourselves. 2 Each of us is to please his
neighbor for his good, to his edification.”.
1.2.2.8.3.
Helping out each other with material goods : Romans 12:13, “13 contributing
to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.” 2 Corinthians 8:4, “4 begging
us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints.”
1.2.2.8.4.
Exhorting and admonishing each other and performing
the ministry of restoration :
1.2.2.8.4.1.
Ephesians 4:15-16, “15 but speaking the
truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the
head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted
and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working
of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of
itself in love.”
1.2.2.8.4.2.
Galatians 6:1-2, “1Brethren, even if
anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in
a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too
will not be tempted. 2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby
fulfill the law of Christ.”
1.2.2.9. We are
exhorted not to forsake the assembly of the saints when they meet in Hebrews
10:25, “25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the
habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see
the day drawing near.”
1.2.3. In this
study we will see that Paul continues his exhortations of how we are to conduct
ourselves in the body of Christ.
2. VS 12:16 - “16 Be of the same mind toward
one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly. Do not be
wise in your own estimation.” - Paul tells
us to be of the same mind towards one another and to associate with the lowly
2.1.
In this verse, Paul writes that we are to have the
same care and concern for each member of the body. Each is equally loved and important in the
eyes of God, and to each we must communicate and express the same love.
2.2.
We Christians must not think that we are better,
whether in character or material, than anyone else in the body of Christ, so
Paul exhorts here to ‘not be haughty in mind.’
2.3.
There is no one who is too ‘lowly’ in stature,
character, or material in this world that we should not associate and
fellowship with them if they are a brother or a sister in the Lord. What Christians have in common is the Lord,
and since He is the common denominator for all of us, Christians must treat
each other with the same love and associate with each other as members of the
same family. In Christ, every person is
a “blood-brother.”
2.4.
Finally, Paul writes in this verse, ‘Do not be wise
in your own estimation.’ This is a
warning against conceit and false pride.
It is the second warning in this chapter to not think more highly of ourselves
than we ought to think.
2.5.
As I mentioned earlier in my analysis of this chapter,
we as Christians must never fall into the trap of doing what James exhorts
against, namely making distinctions amongst ourselves as to the relative worth
of people within the body of Christ.
Each person is worth the same to God, and so He tells us to treat each
one with the same amount of love, consideration, and preference.
2.6.
Instead of simply obeying God’s commandments
ourselves, we as Christians can sometimes simply sit back and judge others as
to what they ought to or ought not to do.
However, God has not called us to be “judges,” but rather to
serve Him and to be obedient ourselves to all that the Lord wants for us to do
in our lives.
2.7.
One translation renders part of this verse as, “Do
not be wise in your own opinion.”
Opinions can be dangerous when people hold to them and place them above
others. All people have opinions,
however we Christians must realize that our own opinions can be a source of
very destructive pride in our lives if gone unchecked. We should ask ourselves what we think of the
opinions of others?
3. VS
12:17 - “17 Never pay back
evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men.” - Paul tells us to never pay back evil for evil
and to respect those things that are right in the sight of all men
3.1.
We as Christians are told by Paul in this verse that
we must never let our behavior be such that we try to do back to others what
they have done to us, if it be evil.
Because someone has harmed us in any way, we must never do anything
which is calculated to harm them in any way.
Retaliation is always wrong for a Christian.
3.2.
Secondly, Paul writes in this verse that Christians
are to ‘respect what is right in the sight of all men.’
3.3.
If Christians as well as non-Christians tend to have
convictions in a certain area, then we are wise if try not to offend those
convictions. In the fist place, if even
non-believers can see that something is ‘right’ and “good,” then
how could we as Christians be so blind as to not see it? It is a sad thing and a horrible testimony
when Christians offend the consciences of the evil people of this world by
their actions.
3.4.
We Christians can never use evil for our purposes and
be unscathed from evil ourselves. We do
not need to use Satan’s and the world’s methods of operation in order to do the
works that the Lord wants for us to do.
4. VS
12:18 - “18 If possible, so
far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men.” - Paul tells us to try to be at peace with all
men as much as it is possible
4.1.
Paul exhorts the Christians in this verse to try to
live peaceably with ‘all men,’ that is as far as it is possible, or as
long as doing so does not cause you to compromise your own conscience and in
doing so commit sin before the Lord.
4.2.
We Christians must realize that we cannot win people’s
hearts to the Lord if we are at the same time angering them and rubbing them
the wrong way. Rather, it is better, as
long as we do not compromise our consciences too much, for us to try to keep
peace between ourselves and the people of this world. Doing this it will be easier to win them for
Christ.
4.3.
The same principle ought to apply to us as Christians
in our relationships with our brothers and sisters in Christ. It is better if we can live at peace with
them as well, that is, unless it becomes necessary for us to confront them in
love because they are in sin, or, we
have something against them that needs to be discussed.
4.4.
We Christians must realize that though there are
essential truths that all Christians must agree upon in order to have salvation
and be part of the body of Christ, we can agree to disagree upon every thing
else and still have fellowship with each other as brothers and sisters in
Christ. The reality is that we may not
be able to worship in the same church together with some because of our
differences, yet we can still fellowship with brothers and sisters with whom we
disagree about non-essential doctrinal truth outside of our church.
5. VS
12:19 - “19 Never take your
own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written,
“Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says
the Lord.” - Paul tells
us to never take our own vengeance against anyone but to leave that to the Lord
who promises to repay
5.1.
In this verse, Paul writes that it is not for the
Christian to take revenge against his enemies, but rather a Christian is to
leave all revenge-taking to the Lord.
This is because the Lord has promised that He will repay according to
their deeds those who insist upon remaining wicked, and revenge is prerogative
as He alone can administer it justly. In
my life I have never seen revenge administered justly by anyone other than the
Lord.
5.2.
We Christians must do as Jesus taught us by example
and teaching to love our enemies, pray for them, and bless them, and, leave any
punishment of the wicked in this world system to the Lord alone.
6. VS
12:20 - “20 “But if your enemy
is hungry, feed him, and if he is thirsty, give him a drink; for in so doing
you will heap burning coals upon his head.”” -
Paul tells us that if our enemy is hungry or thirsty that we are to feed
him or give him drink and that in doing so we will be heaping burning coals
upon his head
6.1.
Paul tells us as Christians that we are to do kind
things for our enemies. We are even to
give them a friendly offer to help them when they have needs.
6.2.
Paul writes that if a Christian does kind and helpful
things for one who is his enemy, that he will be heaping ‘burning coals upon
his head.’ There has been much speculation
as to what this may mean. Probably the
greatest number of commentators believe that the heaping of burning coals upon
the head of one’s enemy by acts of kindness refers to the guilt and shame that
the Christian’s enemy feels when the Christian does kind things. However, this phrase may refer to the
practice of lending coals from a fire to help a neighbor start their own fire -
and act of kindness to be appreciated.
The people in that day carried coals for a fire in a fire pan on their
heads.
6.3.
We Christians need to take it to heart that the best
way to destroy our enemies is to make them our friends!
7. VS
12:21 - “21 Do not be overcome
by evil, but overcome evil with good.” -
Paul tells us to not be overcome by evil but to rather to overcome it by
doing good
7.1.
There are many in the church who have taught that the
Christian life is primarily about warfare and that the Christian is to overcome
evil by using force. The Moral Majority
has taken this sort of stance and called for a sort of militant approach to
evil in our world via protest and standing up for our rights. Pentecostals have sometimes gone about trying
to rebuke the Devil whom they believe is hiding under every rock. However, there is another approach, one that
is Biblical. Paul tells us to ‘overcome
evil with good.’ This is what Jesus
did upon
7.2.
We Christians are called to be salt and light in this
world, and to overcome the evil that is in the world by our doing of what is
right and good in God’s sight. Jesus
taught us to do this in Matthew 5:16, “16 “Let
your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works,
and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” St. Francis of
8. CONCLUSIONS
:
8.1.
Again, lets again be committed to doing those things
that make for the building up of the body of Christ in love and avoid those
things that tear down the body of Christ.
8.2.
Lets work on being in unity with our brothers and
sisters in Christ as far as much as we can be without committing sin.
8.3.
Lets walk in God’s agape love.