Dec. 3, 2017 Renewed Minds Think Like This by Pastor Josh Sheldon

Our text this morning is what Ken just read to you Romans chapter 12 beginning at verse 3 and we will go this morning through verse 16

God willing next time we come back to Romans finish off what he read verses 17 through 21 this morning verses 3 through 16.

Now you recall a couple of weeks ago when we opened up chapter 12 of Romans that we did chapter 12 verse 1 and then last week chapter 12 verse 2.

One message for each of those two verses Romans 12 one tells us something and it tells us what is the proper response that we the believer in Christ make to God because of what

God has done for us in Jesus Christ. What do we do? And the answer is you present yourselves your lives as a living sacrifice which is your reasonable service to God that's verse 1 a reasonable well -thought -through act of spiritual worship that embodies the entire being that we are and then the next verse 12 to tells us something else about this it tells us that conformity with the world has to give way to something else to renewal of the mind therefore be transformed by the renewing of your mind worldly ways give way to godly ways worldly ways become smaller and godly scriptural biblical ways become more and more as the mind is transformed and by that process by that process of giving ourselves as a living sacrifice to God that process of being transformed by renewal of the mind we're able to discern something the good and perfect and acceptable will of God as we live out

God's will we prove we are living examples if you will of the goodness and the acceptability and the perfection of all the

God would have of his people that's the first two verses of chapter 12 of Romans and now in the verses that were read to you a moment ago the

Apostle is going to show us how these renewed and transformed transformed minds actually think if he says be transformed by the renewing of your mind the mind is a noun it's this gray matter between the ears the brain be transformed by the renewing of the brain well that results in something the brain thinks and Paul's saying to us you are transformed by the renewing of your mind but that results in something different thinking he's gonna show us what this looks like he's gonna show us what it looks like there verses 3 and 16 those two verses it begins and ends this section here 3 through 16 but it gives us a common idea a bracketing if you will this surrounds the description of the gifts of the church some of them in commands do this some of them a description of what it looks like but between these two or on either side of these two

I should say verse 3 and then verse 16 we have this one idea that we need to look at before we jump into what we are what we are to do everyone wants to roll up their sleeves and get involved and find out which of those gifts is mine and therefore how

I'm going to effectuate it here in the church we need to slow down we need to things in order we need to look at what this scripture say what the

Apostle Paul by the inspiration spirit would have us to understand so we dare not jump too quickly to see what we do or how we exercise our gifts or even what those gifts are without looking carefully at these guideposts you see transformed minds have equality there's something that we need to see in the life of a person whose mind is transformed who's being renewed by this transformative process and it's simply this humility transformed minds are humble they're humble before anyone comes forward in the exercise of their giftedness prior to presuming to serve the church let this be found humility the

Apostle says in another place that all that is not from faith is sin and I want to borrow from that and this this true this stark statement he makes about faith and sin if it's not faith it is sin

I want to borrow from that and I want to say that all that does not flow from humility is therefore pride and pride is of course sin it's that black and white it's that clear the differences are that stark all not from humility is pride and if it's pride it is sin it is from a mind not transformed by renewal and so this morning we want to understand before we get into gifts before we want to jump in and do what we think

God has gifted us to do and we all must do what God has gifted us to do but before we jump in and go into the fray and start serving let us be sure let's check ourselves carefully and see if we have this one overriding most important quality of humility have you been transformed by the renewal of your mind that's question

I put to all of us including myself have you been transformed if you answer affirmative then what you what you've just said is

I am a humble person so I want to look at the first and the last verse in order in this little section verse 3 and then verse 16 and then we

Lord willing we'll get to what lies between verse 3 for by the grace given to me

I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think but to think with sober judgment each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned

I said at the beginning and you're going to hear it several times in this message I think that if verse 2 or excuse me yeah verse 2 be transformed by the renewal of your mind that thing that we have this physical part of us between the ears here is what that mind is to generate what you are to think in that one verse

I read verse 3 think is in there four times just in one verse not to think too highly then he ought to think that's twice but to think three times with sober think four times in one verse if you look now at verse 16 live in harmony with one another do not be haughty but associate with the lowly never be conceded and this idea of humility in verse 3 don't think too much of yourself verse 16 don't be haughty don't be high -minded but associate with the lowly and never be conceded in a word be humble and they're in verse 16 three more things like this you with one another think together is sort of what it says or means that's once not highly of yourself think twice do not think of yourself as wise three times so in just these two verses and this is the reason

I chose these as brackets surrounding the gifts and what they are and how they're employed humility transformed mind to mind not conformed no longer conformed to worldly thinking but biblical godly we must say

Christ like thinking humility sober judgment says think of yourself with sober judgment think of yourself rightly it comes from a word that's elsewhere translated as sound mind we might even say in a homiletic sense to be sane to not be insane if you will because other than this to be other than humble if you know

Jesus Christ that would be almost insanity to not be humble if you truly do know him the word means sound mind mark 515 relates an incident and I want to read this to you that's where Jesus comes to this demoniac it's also in Luke chapter 8 the demoniac who according to mark lived among the tombs and no one could bind him anymore not even with a chain for he had often been bound with shackles and chains but he wrenched the chains apart and he broke the shackles in pieces no one had the strength to subdue him night and day among the tombs and on the mountains he was always crying out and bruising himself with stones now many of you have read this incident you know that Jesus casts out this

Legion this cadre of demons from him and then we read the people came to Jesus and saw the demon -possessed man the one who had had the

Legion sitting there clothed and in his right in his sound it is sober judgment mind in Titus 2 6 it is used of the need for younger men to be self -controlled to have sober judgment to be in their right minds as the same ways used in 2nd

Timothy 1 7 for God has given for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and of self -control of sound mind of right godly biblical

Christ like thinking not fear but power and love not high -minded but sober judgment not conceded but associating with the lowly the demoniac of course is an extraordinary example but the incident makes the same general point is the rest of them the sound minds are those that are given over to Jesus Christ that are controlled by him that are if you are a believer in the

Lord Jesus Christ and you are inhabited by his spirit a sound mind is just that one that is not just dominated but literally inhabited by Christ in his spirit given over to Christ and trying and willing to follow him in all that he requires of us

Romans 12 3 and 16 tell us that this sound sober right thinking mind is what it's a humble mind for many if not most of us true humility is a radical departure from the way we think or the way we want to think or the way we used to think

I think if there there's one thing that we could say that Paul means and for most of us this applies when he says do not be conformed any longer to this world humility is a radical departure

I would suggest to us that if we become truly humble the way the scriptures would have us be humble the way

Christ modeled humility we have radically disconformed ourselves to the world's ways

I mean self -centeredness is a tenacious worldview one that departs from us only with a hard -fought battle by God's grace and the power of his indwelling spirit we are able to excise this worldly demeanor but it is a process as one where we need to do a lot of gut checks if you will and look at ourselves carefully and ask ourselves am

I in this or that instance thinking of myself more highly than I ought to think and how high should we think of ourselves we'll get to that as we go through this

I resist the urge here to simply read off to you examples from the history we have in the scripture narrative examples of humility and then

I could close I could say something like now go and do likewise because none of us do well enough so now do your best to do as David did or as Paul did or whatever the case is and Jesus of course would be the ultimate example wouldn't he not he the

Son of God he said of himself that he was humble and lowly in heart I mean the Son of Man God in the flesh had no inflated view of himself

Philippians 2 8 says that as a man he humbled himself to his father's will which culminated in the cross obedience even to that ignominious death but rather than simply say to you be like him consider the importance that Paul the author of this book by the inspiration of the

Holy Spirit and a man with a spirit like ours puts on this one quality in the

Christian this right -thinking mind this not worldly conformed mind that thinks with humility sober judgment sound judgment not insane judgment we had 11 chapters of almost pure theology in this book of Romans and it all led to chapter 12 where we are now and that began with this called a sacrificial living and transformed minds and the very next verse 12 3 gives us the first description of what that transformed mind looks like how to renewed minds think not more highly than we ought to think sober judgment do not be haughty never be conceited how prevalent is this in humankind

I don't even say in our day because Paul wrote this 2 ,000 years ago to a church not unlike us men and women with feet of clay sinners saved by grace once Paul the ones that Paul calls

Saints consistently in the scripture and yet how hard do we have to work every day every moment to maintain the qualities everything that that title that God gives us because we're in Christ Jesus Saint how hard do we have to work to maintain what that all stands for here

I think is one of the hardest this idea of humility I once heard a famous preacher on the radio say that self -esteem is

God's will for us he said that God doesn't want us dragging our toes in the mud kicking ourselves all the time feeling poorly about ourselves the results that feel good we're supposed to have a high level of self -esteem he said

I was I was rather shocked he's not my favorite preacher I'm not going to name him to you but I was a little shocked because I listened to him on the way home because it's better than talk radio

I thought he couldn't have said that so I turned up the radio and he did he repeated himself and what he said was if you want to have the self -esteem the self view the world view beginning with yourself that God Almighty wants you to have here's what you do just look to the cross and there's kind of a drumroll silence

I said because you were worth dying for that's how valuable you are and I was just shocked

I said well that's pure worldliness that's just straight from the books of psychology feel good about yourself you're valuable you're worthwhile

I think yeah look to the cross look to the cross yes church look to the cross always but don't look there to see how wonderful we are don't look there to see how worthy we are to have received the benefit of Christ's suffering not for that look there to see ourselves in the right perspective look there with a sound with a sober mind with good judgment and see the awful price that the only sinless man suffered for us not because we are worthy of the salvation that we have but because he was worthy to win it not because of our value but because of his because his blood to the father is precious and those for whom he bled will certainly come to him but not because we've done anything not because there's anything in us that's worth coming to him for in his humility the

Son of Man came not to be served but to serve unworthy sinners and in Philippians chapter 2 verse 5

Paul says that this is to be our mindset the humility of Christ is to be our mindset think like Christ he says not to just you and me and that other person sitting next to you he says it to the church all of you together with one mind think with the humility with the determined obedience to Christ or that Christ had to God and his determination by God's will to serve others think like that together church is what he says that's sound and sober judgment that's humility there's no room here for anyone to say well

I'm just an unworthy worm I'm not good enough to to stand before the church I don't have anything of value to give to the church so I'm just going to humbly sit and let others do it and neither is there room here for here

I am to save the day humility is so hard to come by it's not thinking of oneself to be beneath people but neither is it placing ourselves over them need to hear me on this in this environment now

I mean but by this environment I mean this whole hard -charging Silicon Valley where so many accomplished people are drawn because their unique skills and ambitions are appreciated and they're well compensated where education that in most places is stratospheric in this area is commonplace it's very easy for many of us to look at those highly accomplished people and to place ourselves qualitatively beneath them to think well

I can't stand before that one because they went here or they work there they make this much money or they live in that home and I only this and fill in the blank and say therefore

I need to sit quietly and timidly and let those better people do it there's no room for that kind of humility here do you ever think like that do you ever say to yourself that somehow you're less than him or her those who went to that school here or there they now earned this or that much

I don't want to tell you if you ever think that way if that kind of thought process hold you back from serving

Christ's body and we'll get to that in a few moments that this is Christ's body if you ever think like that and you think it's humility

I want to tell you something that's a false humility and if it's false humility it's pride

Paul never ranks Saints that way and we dare not do it either in second

Corinthians 11 and Philippians 2 where Paul puts forth his own sparkling resume remember it wasn't to lift himself up above anyone else it was to bring those who were lifting themselves up down not to lift

Paul up but to bring them down to where they should be you see godly biblical

Christ honoring Christ imitating humility is a great leveler that we're all in this together and there's not a single sinner saved by God's grace who deserved to be saved by God's grace and there's not one in all history that God looks at it says well okay that's number one and your number whatever it is so you were gonna rank them out that way doesn't happen what

Christ did on the cross and God's grace in opening your eyes that giving you faith to believe that levels us all out humility is a product of sober rational assessment in this book of Romans it came after 11 chapters that puts us all in the same boat for all of sin and fall short of the glory of God all have sinned for there is no difference says

Paul Jew and Gentile Jew and Greek alike male female slave free rich poor all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God we're all in the same boat needing

God's grace not one sinner not one sinner in all history is better or worse than another or more or less deserving of God's favor or gained any share in Christ because they earned it or deserved it more than you or less than you know some of us just can't wait to get to the good part here can we just dying for the preacher to get to the gifts the ones described in verses 6 through 8 and you're dying for me to get there because you know that as a good preacher we're gonna turn to 1st

Corinthians 12 because that's where we have more detail and what the gifts are and how they're gonna be used and then

I'll present to you this is why they were like that then and this is what they're like now and this is how many they had them because the scripture wasn't finished but this is what we have today and we'll go into that whole cessation idea you just can't wait for all that but I'm not ready to go there and frankly most of you are not ready either the scripture has more to say in order to prepare us for that remember 1st

Corinthians 12 we get the greatest detail on the gifting that God gives the church is preceded by 11 chapters much of which is a call to unity that's premised on mutual humility remember that that chapter 1st

Corinthians 12 is immediately followed by an entire chapter devoted to the primacy of love and where could his love come from well comes from God it's a gift of God to us that we show to each other of course it also comes from humility it's so important it's the first command we get after 11 chapters in Romans it's so important it precedes the description of Christ's gifts to his church in Romans 12 where the list is very short it comes only after the demand for humility in all of us and most especially in anyone desiring to exercise their giftedness so you who are anxious to roll up your sleeves and do something and you who when you hear the inventory of Christ's gifts you look around at others and you're certain that that's the one who's so endowed and you not being thus equipped you are free from the responsibility of having to come forward for all of us there's even yet another prerequisite the sober thinking humble are by God's decree placed here in a body in a body for as in one body versus four and five we have many members and the members do not all have the same function so we though many are one body in Christ and individually members of one another that word for it connects verse this all this to verse 3 so why is humility crucial while a practical level is crucial because we're all together in a body we're bound together as the body of Christ in Ephesians 2 verses 22 and 23 it's one of many places where the church is likened to this living breathing growing entity there in Ephesians Christ is a cornerstone in whom the whole structure being joined together grows into a temple in the

Lord in him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by his spirit notice the dynamic verbs that he uses that we are being built we are growing it grows we are being joined because we together are a body always growing now do you have this conception of the church do you realize what it means that we're together the body of Christ our

Lord and the dwelling place of the Spirit of God and this is not a social gathering that we're about here today we meet together on Sundays for corporate worship and you there whoever you are you are part of the same body as I and the rest are and you over there what gift has

God apportioned to you our body cannot be without it you know we all know that you can live without an appendix right you're born with an appendix as part of your body but you don't need it and that's why if you have a swollen appendix what do they call that burst

I forget the word my wife had that a few several years ago they just take it out it's very commonplace you don't need it they can just remove it but I think about that and I wanted to say something like you know if you're the appendix don't feel useless because even though the body doesn't really need you we do or something like that but this is not a medical dissertation

Paul's not writing a scientific treatise here for him for Christ for us there are no useless parts one form of false humility says that I am better able to serve others serve than others are the other form of a false humility is that that other one is so much better than me that I'm not worthy to serve there both are not transformed both are not renewed neither of those is sober thinking both of them in their own way are pride and both of them deny that we together are the body there's another detail to attend and then we can do some exploration of the gifts in verse 6 we read having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us in 1st

Corinthians 12 11 Paul says all these are empowered by one in the same Holy Spirit who portions to each one individually as he wills in Ephesians 4 8 4 8 we read that it is

Christ who when he ascended on high he led a host of captives and he gave gifts to men

Christ ascended on high he is back with his father now he sits at his father's right hand and he rules now through the hearts of the

Saints in his church and has he is as he ascended on high he did give gifts to the church that we could serve him and serve each other and he gave us what we need they are gifts from Christ to all of us and that could be you individually we go through the list of the gifts that we have in verses 6 through 8 it's not a comprehensive list it's it's just a representative list understand that if we are together a body we need every one of you because God apportioned you to be here and gave you this or that function within this and without you without you acting within that function that God apportioned you and set you here to be without that humility that comes forward with that service we're incomplete responsibility to contribute is not optional

God in his wisdom has not gifted each one to the same function I mean were that the case we might end up being a body with three arms and no eyes or we might have four mouths to speak but no tongues to form the words it would be ridiculous things be done decently things have to be done orderly but things have to be done and according to what

Paul says here with Ephesians 4 with 1st Corinthians 12 every saint every believer in the

Lord Jesus Christ is joined to a body of believers as a member of that one singular body of Christ in order to do something the parable of the talents would come to bear here

I'm not going to read the whole thing to you but it's familiar to to all of us really and that's that parable where Jesus speaks of a master who's going to go on a long journey you think of Jesus Christ going to go to the cross spent three days in the ground be resurrected and finally ascend to his father he's going to go on a long journey and before he goes he gives talents to his servants one gets ten one gets five one gets one a talent was of course a measure of money it was quite a bit of money back then he gave those gifts those resources to those three servants think there

Ephesians 4 Romans 12 1st Corinthians 12 Christ giving gifts to his church you me so it goes on this long journey and then he comes back and think there of Christ's second coming he comes back and when he comes back he demands an accounting for those talents what did they do with the ten the five and the one think there of the judgment seat we will all stand before Christ when he returns and of course you know how this turns out right the one who had the ten talents he used those to his master's honor and he gets the well done good and faithful servant you have been faithful as a few

I'll give you much the one who had five talents he used them to his master's honor to the good of his master he served his master with them well done good and faithful servant you've been faithful with little

I will trust you now with much and he goes the one had one you all know what he did right he had buried it under a rock he said

I know you're a harsh master that you make make yourself benefit from what you didn't earn so I just want to give you back your one talent and there it is he says you wicked servant and he sent him out of his presence less than pleased you see serving in the body of Christ where God has put you is not an option you don't get to say that I'm better than this person therefore

I'm going to take over what they should be doing because I'm more capable that's false humility that's not humility at all this pride nor do you get to say because this other person over here is so much more accomplished and smarter or whatever than me

I'll let them go that's false humility it's not an option here so with all that before us understanding this is what it means to have a renewed mind to be transformed in our thinking to no longer be conformed to this worldly way of thinking understanding that God has apportioned a gift to each of us in the church for a reason and in his sovereignty placed you here with all humility with that in mind are you ready to hear what these gifts are what these functions are again

I look at this I think this is a representative list in other places Paul gives quite a bit more detail if proper prophecy in proportion to our faith if service in our serving the one who teaches in teaching the one who exhorts in his exhortation the one who contributes in his generosity the one who leads with zeal the one who does acts of mercy with cheerfulness is it too simple for me to say simply do what

God has gifted you to do perform within this body the way

God has set you here to perform to do to serve this doesn't mean that we're gonna yank you out of the pew and make you do something that you're not equipped for that you're uncomfortable with what this says is that each one of you who calls

Providence Bible Church of Sunnyvale your home has to understand that God has set you here and that God set you here for a reason and none of us can be here and simply be passive recipients of the service of this church there's room here for everyone those uncomfortable with being out in front find

God and Christ honoring ways to serve in the background we know who you are and we're usually happy to leave you there in your quiet privacy but rest assured that we know that you and we know you and we know what you're doing and we appreciate it we got bless

God for it we thank God for it I only ask that you be sure that you are there because that is where God has placed you that you don't remain in the background because you think yourself a background kind of person that that's where God has you serving us and with you not there we are incomplete we are not functioning correctly we're stumbling because our leg is too short so thank

God for that don't be worried by this message I'm gonna pull you out of there and make you do something that was gonna terrify you that you don't think you're ready for for others those who are seemingly more prominent because of their roles let us be likewise certain that what we do is what

Christ has gifted us to do and that we rely on the Spirit of God for our abilities let us be sure in our spirits that we know we together are one and the same body so with all this in place

I think Paul's thrust here is first serve serve go out of your way to look for ways to serve this is why

I had Ken read about the incident with David and Mephibosheth that David once his kingdom was secure he went out of his way to do good to Jonathan's son he found a way to show kindness to him he asked about it and he followed up on it the grace given to us is meant for each of us to help all of us serve as God's grace has enabled you the second thing is be sure that what you do is what

God has meant for you you may wish to preach but that may not be God's will you may not be equipped for that you may wish to lead in song but again there's a certain equipping there's a certain talent for it that God gives

Jesus finishes the talents parable by saying for everyone who has more excuse me for everyone who has more will be given and he who will he will have an abundance but from the one who has not even what he has will be taken away use your gifts here

Christ says he'll give you more not more to make you more grand not more so you can think of yourself more highly than you ought more so you can serve the way

Christ served people it's not a free -for -all things have to be done decently and orderly

I mean if you're equipped with the mouthpiece for a trombone you're not going to use it to play a cello come to the leadership we can talk together we can pray together we can see where you think

God would have you fit in I can say with all confidence the leadership in this church has always within reasonable bounds made opportunity available for everyone to exercise their giftedness people who come to me and say pastor

I would like to serve in this or that way I feel like I have a talent for this that God has given me an ambition towards this area whatever it is we talk we pray and I can say

I'm not trying to be boastful here that would negate everything I'm preaching wouldn't it but I put the responsibility to you to understand that this door has always been open and when people come to me and say this is how

I'd like to serve I found ways to make that opportunity available others of you have found me calling you to my office and saying

I think you're ready to serve in this or that way and taken up the call I bless

God for that the responsibility to come is yours the responsibility for the opportunity is mine it works together and that's really all

I have to say about the gifts that Christ has apportioned to the church the list here is not complete there are other things that Paul lists elsewhere and perhaps we'll come back to this when we come back to Romans after a short hiatus for the next three weeks of December and maybe we'll flesh those out in some more detail and you'll understand you'll have a greater inventory to look at and to pray about and say

I think this is where God has me or I never thought of that one and I fear that feel the

Spirit of God telling me this is where I need to stand up and come to the pastor and tell him

I want to serve here or there and even as I say this I hadn't actually planned it but it'd be a good idea to come back and do one message on just that subject and to present this whole thing to you what these are and how they're to be used how to look at it and see if that is how

God has placed you here and we read verses 9 through 16 just as sort of a trailer for all that let love be genuine abhor what is evil hold fast to what is good love one another with brotherly affection outdo one another in showing honor do not be slothful in zeal be fervent in spirit serve the

Lord rejoice and hope be patient in tribulation be constant in prayer contribute to the needs of the

Saints and seek to show hospitality bless those who persecute you bless and do not curse them rejoice with those who rejoice weep with those who reap live in harmony with one another do not be haughty but associate with the lowly never be conceited well this message was titled renewed minds think like this renewed transformed minds think this way they are humble they think of themselves in light of Christ and his intention for how we help and serve each other if you're connected by faith to Christ if you are then you are connected by him to us we are all individually and together part of each other and may it be in this place that Christ receives much honor here in Sunnyvale as we serve one another as he's enabled us and brethren again not an option not something we could say well

I'm gifted to be a listener I'm gifted to come to church on time and to leave promptly

I'm gifted for this or that whatever they whatever thing

Christ has gifted each of us and all of us and so gifted us with you so all of us together grow into the body that gives

Christ the most honor and this begins with what we started with a humble mind and if we don't think too much of ourselves as we ought not and we think properly of ourselves then what does

Paul say we do we serve and in our service to each other

Christ receives all the honor amen Heavenly Father again we are grateful for your word we thank you father for bringing us together and for this instruction from the

Apostle that makes service and humility so key to our Christian lives and I pray father that you by your spirit would grow us together like this as we together in humility and in love for our