Romans Chapter 12 cont'd
I have "camped out" in Romans 12 for many years and have become convinced that it holds out to us a very relevant message and clear challenge for the expression of our faith here in the western world in 21st century. I believe that there are seed thoughts that can lead us into a needed "rebranding" of what it means and looks like for communities of people to genuinely follow Jesus Christ...a new reformation...if you will. Romans 12 is the beginning of the practical and logical response to who Jesus is and what he has done for the cosmos and all humanity...our part of the deal...which we can, in the end, only do well by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. This kind of divine arrangement is what will save us from self-righteousness and yet allow us to progressively walk in authentic righteousness.
These are the four main reformational points of the chapter that stand out to me as ideals we are called to passionately pursue:
* A More Holistic Spirituality (Holistic simply means well-rounded, fuller kind of spirituality).
* A More Healthy Community. God has called us to belong to a spiritual family that is wise in the matters of relationship building and community building. We need to learn the skills about what makes for healthy relationships and what makes for long-lasting friendships.
* A More Humble Ministry. It seems to me that God has been dealing with the western church for years about pride in our lives and pride in our styles of leadership. We have allowed too much of the celebrity-mentality and arrogant entrepreneurialism to dominate our church cultures.
* A More Heart-felt Set of Values. There are some vital biblical values in this great chapter that have been generally overlooked in the personal and corporate expression of our faith in too many of our faith communities. May God help us to return with our whole hearts to the ancient simple and pure devotion to Christ that the first apostles taught and lived out.
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