Live in Harmony with One Another III

Scripture Texts: Romans 12:16-18

We just kicked off the fundraising stage of our Phase III building project, in which you are invited to invest in the building of our church’s future.  But there is a more important building project in front of us.  Romans 12 is an invitation to build our church family spiritually.  And of the two this is far more important.  It doesn’t do any good to build a church building if we are not building the Church of Jesus Christ that meets in the building.

Romans 1-11 laid the foundation of the Gospel and now Romans 12 builds on that foundation.

God’s mercy and forgiveness are meant to leave a lasting impression on us, a life changing impression, a heart transforming impression.

If our Christianity doesn’t impact our relationships with each other and especially those who hurt us or wrong us or let us down, if our Christianity doesn’t work at this basic level of human interaction then it isn’t working.  Christ is real in our lives when it shows in how we deal with rights and wrongs, with injustice and unfairness, with rejoicing and weeping, with the lowly.

Are you struggling with Romans 12?  Are you wrestling between being conformed to the ways of this world and being transformed by the renewing of your mind?  Is the Spirit convicting you?  Are you resisting or are you humbly submitting and surrendering?

All of this is unnatural.  Our natural impulse, our fleshly instinct is to do the opposite of all these things.  This is only possible as we submit ourselves to the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Romans 12:9 sets the standard, let love be genuine, without hypocrisy.  And from there Paul fleshes out in very practical ways what genuine love looks like when it is lived out in the community of believers.  Mostly it looks like humility and genuine care and concern for others; not being conformed to the ways of the world, getting rid of pride.

We must guard against that four-letter word called pride.  This is the focus of verse 16.