Romans
12:1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and
sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be
conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so
that you may discern what is the will of God--what is good and acceptable and
perfect.3
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of
yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment,
each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in
one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function,5 so we, who
are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of
another. 6
We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy,
in proportion to faith; 7 ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in
teaching; 8
the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in
diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness. 9 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold
fast to what is good; 10 love one another with mutual affection; outdo
one another in showing honor. 11 Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit,
serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering,
persevere in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend
hospitality to strangers. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do
not curse them. 15Rejoice with those who
rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be
haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are. 17 Do not
repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of
all. 18
If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
9
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God;
for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord." 20 No,
"if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them
something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their
heads." 21
Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
St
Paul writes to a church that is struggling to understand that becoming a
follower of the way of Jesus requires a fundamental change in attitude. Most of
the Roman Church had grown up Jewish, and so assumed that people needed to be
Jewish in order to follow Jesus. Paul opposes this: Do
not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your
minds. Instead
of following the exclusionary norms, traditions and habits of the Jewish community
– allow the Spirit of God to lead you into new truths. Paul insists that all
people are welcome into the community who follow Jesus: we, who are many, are one body in
Christ.
As we learn from this early Christian church we
who follow Jesus are challenged to be
different from the normal patterns of human behaviour: our gifts and abilities
are to be used to benefit everyone: we live to serve both “the saints” and
those people who are far from sainthood; we respect both the important, and the
lowly; we welcome both our family and the strangers; we love both those who
love us in return and those who persecute us!
For Thought
What shall our greeting be:
Sign of our unity?
‘Jesus is Lord!’
May we no more defend
Barriers he died to end:
Give me your hand, my friend-
One Church, one Lord!
What is our mission here?
He makes his purpose clear:
One world, one Lord!
Spirit of truth, descend;
All our confusions end:
Give me your hand, my friend-
‘Jesus is Lord!’
The Fourth Sunday in Lent
Crucial Choices
The Scripture passage for the day is drawn from Rueben Job and Norman
Shawchuck, A Guide to Prayer for Ministers and other Servants, (Nashville,
The Upper Room 1983), 123.
This reflection is from
my own devotional exercises for the day
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