About Jesus - Steve (Stephen) Sweetman Needing
A Metamorphosis As a child I recall my
mother's little promise box. It
contained Scriptural promises printed on cards, many of which were
proverbs, which are words of wisdom and not promises.
Such stand-alone Bible verses cause us to miss their literary
context that may place our faith on an unbiblical premise.
Read Romans 12:1 and 2 as I point out the importance of their
literary context in our lives. "Therefore, I urge
you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as
a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and
proper worship. Do not conform
to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your
mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his
good, pleasing and perfect will."
Just prior to writing
the above Paul expounded on God's historic sovereignty over Paul got personal when
he wrote that we, like God, are to live sacrificially.
We must not conform to our present cultural age but instead be
transformed (metamorphoo in Greek) by the renewing or reprogramming of our
mental processes. As a
caterpillar experiences a life-altering metamorphosis by becoming a
butterfly, so we are to experience a life-altering metamorphosis by
becoming a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
Paul then devoted the rest of his letter (except for chapter 13:1 -
7) to the communal implications of how a transformed life influences our
personal relationships in church. The original recipients
of Paul's letter to the Romans were suffering under the oppressive regime
of Caesar Nero. Nero actually
had Paul and other Christians executed for their association with Jesus.
If the faith and unity of those Christians were ever to survive,
they would need a transformation away from the culture of I find the literary
context of Romans 12:1 and 2 to be noteworthy.
After Paul expounded on God's majestic universal sovereignty, he
came down to earth. He got
real personal. He told us that
our lives needed to be transformed by renewing or reformatting of our mental
processes. We needed daily
downloads from heaven. This
would lead to positive communal implications within church, something you
would miss if you didn't read the rest of his letter.
Yes, Paul left the fate of the nations with God.
He left our fate and the fate of the church with us, both of which
are in desperate need of a metamorphosis.
Romans 12:1 and 2 are
more than two stand-alone Bible verses.
They are sandwiched between God's universal sovereignty and our
earthly responsibility to live transformed lives among our brothers and
sisters in Jesus, which is, as Paul wrote, God's good, pleasing and
perfect will.
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