BORN CRUCIFIED
(Romans Bible Study Series Tape Thirty-One)
Recommended reading - Romans 12:1-3.
Paul addresses Christian living and ethics in this
section of scripture. We must study this section in the context of the
entire theme of the Book of Romans. To Paul, Christian ethics are the
practical application of righteousness by faith (the fruits of the
gospel). The central theme of Romans is, he who is just by faith shall
live. This theme comes from the Old Testament scripture found in Habakkuk
2:4. The Jews of Paul's time twisted this scripture and turned it from
righteousness by faith, to righteousness by works. Paul was aware of this
twisting of the scripture and addressed this confusion throughout his
letter to the Romans. It is not our faithfulness that saves us; it is
God's faithfulness. Paul proves from every spiritual angle that man cannot
save himself by his own faithfulness; all are under sin. We are justified
by faith apart from the deeds of the Law through God's gift - Jesus
Christ. The background, that we have from the prior scriptures, guides us
to apply the glorious message of righteousness by faith to our daily
Christian lives. We can divide the scripture found in Habakkuk and the
book of Romans into three sections. First, "Behold the proud"
(the self-righteous), "His soul is not upright" (he is not
honest with himself). Second, "The just shall live by his
faith"; the only way we can be righteous is by faith alone, there is
no other way. Third, "Shall live", he who is righteous by faith
shall live; you live righteously because you have become righteous in
Jesus Christ. We must properly understand the time frame in which we
actually begin to live our Christian lives, as well as, how we should live
our Christians lives.
I. Walk in newness of life.
· Paul states
that the just shall live by faith, from the moment of the acceptance of
Jesus Christ. We should walk in newness of life, from the moment we rise
out of the water of baptism.
· Christ said
throughout His life, not My will, but the will of My Father. Christ
learned obedience through what He suffered.
· A true
Christian, in his daily life, will not follow his own will but the will
of God. Christ removed the barrier between God and man. We no longer can
let sin rule our body. We need to start doing what God wants us to do.
· We should no
longer worry about receiving eternal life; we are in Christ. We have to
be careful not to give up, go our own way, and reject God and life; we
must stay in Christ to receive the wonderful gift of life.
· We do not wait
until the second coming of Christ to live the life of a Christian; we
live that life now. The greatest evidence, that we can give to the world
that we are justified by faith, is by our life. Paul states in I
Corinthians 4:20, the Kingdom of God is not in words but in power.
II. Christian Ethics.
· Paul address
Christian ethics, at the end of his letter, because he is opposing
legalism in all of his writings. A Legalist believes that you must first
live a good life, then you will be justified.
· The gospel
states that you will be justified first, then you are expected to live a
Christian life. God gave the Law that we may be directed to Christ; then
when we come to Christ, He turns us to the Law as a standard of
Christian living.
· In I John
5:11-13, we are told that we now have eternal life, if we are
in the Son of God. The believer has life right now; as long as we are
believers we have life.
III. A living sacrifice.
· In Romans
12:1, there are several words that we need to review in detail.
Notice the word "present". We are to make a resolute decision
to be a living sacrifice. We are to be offered before God, to serve the
brethren.
· Why does Paul
use the words, "living sacrifice" in this scripture? When we
accepted Christ, the change that occurred was in our mind and will. Our
nature did not change. We have a mind that wants to follow God, but a
nature that is against God.
· We are to
sacrifice our body and nature to God; we will no longer follow the
control of our nature.
· Christ
continually presented His body as a living sacrifice before His Father.
Christ stated, "Father, not My will but Thine be done". Christ
then presented His body as an ultimate sacrifice upon the cross. God
gave Himself for us, so we in turn should be willing to offer ourselves
for His cause.
· The word,
"reasonable" could be translated worship, so it has a
spiritual connotation. Paul is saying that it is our Spiritual service
to live for Christ. We are not to live for our nature or by our nature,
we are to live for Christ.
IV. Do not conform to this world.
· We are not to
conform ourselves to this world. Paul appeals to us in, Romans 12: 2,
that we are not to fit into the mold of this world.
· We need to make
a distinction between our culture and the Christian lifestyle.
· Unfortunately,
what ever the cultural trend is, the church has followed and called it
Christianity. We must, as a Christian, have died to the world and we
must no longer belong to the world's system.
· The world has
been allowed to go into filthy, abominable practices; it is evident that
in no way is this nation under God.
· Christ prayed
that we not be removed from the world, but that we be kept from the evil
of the world. John tells us in I John 2:15-16, that we are not to
love the world. He is not speaking about people, he is referring to the
things of the world.
V. We have a portfolio.
· We are not an
Ambassador without portfolio; we have a portfolio, we are an Ambassador
of the kingdom of God.
· We have a
responsibility to show that we are a part of the Kingdom of God. Do not
ever deny that fact.
· The driving
forces that control the worldly person are the lust of the flesh, the
lust of the eyes, and the pride of life.
· The mentality
of the Christian is found in Galatians 5:24. We have crucified
the flesh with its' passions and desires.
God wants to see in us a transformation of the mind; the
performance will take care of itself. We read about this transformation in
Romans 12:2-3. We are to have the mind that was in Christ Jesus, as
we read in Philippians 2:1-5. Once we have this mind, God will
reveal the good and acceptable service that He expects from us. We are to
think soberly as God has dealt to each of us a measure of faith. The
foundation of Christian living is the formula, not my will but Christ. A
Christian is justified and now stands perfect before God. We need to daily
renew our minds and draw close to God. The life we now live we live by
faith in the Son of God, who loves us and gave His life for us. |
Born Crucified 