Romans 12 turns the gospel from foundation into way of life. In this episode, we look at Paul’s call to present our whole selves to God—not as heroic achievers, but as “defective sacrifices” that He mercifully receives and uses. True worship, we discover, is not a mood we generate but a life lived in response to God’s mercy: a renewed mind, a surrendered body, and a willingness to stop living for self-advancement and start living for God’s purposes and His people.
In this week’s episode, we explore:
- Why Romans 12 must be read in light of the doxology at the end of Romans 11—and how God’s wisdom, greatness, and mercy make “logical worship” the only sensible response
- What it really means to present our bodies as a living sacrifice, and why it is sheer mercy that God accepts “defective” people like us instead of demanding perfection
- How the “pattern of this world” is less about obvious vices and more about the quiet obsession with self-advancement and personal happiness
- The renewing of the mind as a shift from “What’s in it for me?” to “How can I serve God’s will and kingdom?”—and how that changes how we see ourselves, our gifts, and our choices
- Paul’s call to think with “sober judgment”: neither inflating ourselves nor tearing ourselves down, but learning to see who God actually made us to be and where we fit in the body of Christ
- The picture of the church as a body with different members and gifts—speaking and serving—and why no one is optional, redundant, or replaceable
- How to discern the difference between being “called” and being “driven,” and why chronic overcommitment often signals that we’re laboring outside our true calling
- A vision of passionate, generous community life: genuine love, honoring one another, sharing needs, practicing hospitality, rejoicing and weeping together, and reaching for the “check” in relationships rather than keeping score
- Paul’s challenge to respond to enemies with kindness instead of revenge—trusting God with justice and seeking to overcome evil with good rather than being overcome by it
By the end of the episode, listeners will be invited to step off the treadmill of self-improvement and spiritual busyness and instead offer themselves honestly to God as they are. You’ll learn to name your gifts and season of life with sober joy, to embrace both your limits and your calling, and to lean into a way of life where worship is not confined to a service but woven through ordinary acts of service, love, mercy, and courage in the face of evil.
In Romans 9-11 Paul is asking hard questions about the Jewish people. Their history began with the faith of Abraham. They were given a unique calling, unique opportunities, unique responsibility, and unique information.
When the Jews as a nation (or the church as a community imitating them) make the observation that God has chosen them, that they are part of his plan, then pride has its greatest opportunity to express itself.
In part, Romans 9-11 is an explanation of how people can be caught in spiritual pride and how the advantages of knowing about God and His truth can be twisted into something that actually drives us away from God.
Study Questions
- Study the doxology & exhortation in verses 11:33-12:2. What’s the main point? How is it an appropriate
response to chapters 9-11? - What do verses 3-8 teach us about our own abilities? (Note vs 3 particularly)
- Based on this chapter, how would you define spiritual gifts?
- Is 9a “Let Love be without hypocrisy” a fair summary of the rest of the chapter? Why?
- Summarize the “dos” and “do nots” in verses 9-21. What do they teach us about love?
- In light of chapters 1-11, on what basis can you hope to live the way chapter 9 describes?
Next: 19 Romans 13:1-7 Submission, Fearlessness and Conscience
Previous: 17 Romans 11:1-32 Did God Reject His People?
Series: Romans: Justification by Faith
Study: Romans Resources
Season 2, Episode 18
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