Therefore

After Pentecost (Proper 16 ) | Year A | Romans 12:1-8 | TJ Torgerson

This week's New Testament passage is Romans 12:1-8. This passage (specifically 12:1-2) is on the repertoire of youth workers everywhere. Used in lessons multiple times a year. The ultimate passage to , encouraging teenagers to embrace integrity and reserve sexual intimacy for marriage, avoid peer pressure, and be good. Romans 12 has very likely played a roll in many Christians spiritual walk. However, in our eagerness to grasp quick takeaways, we sometimes fail to see the bigger picture. If we jump straight to Romans 12:1-2 for an easy lesson on peer pressure we may forget the longer journey Paul has taken us on in his letter to the Romans.

By the time we get to Romans 12, Paul has meticulously laid out the good news of Christ. He has shown how Jesus changed everything. Paul early in the letter demonstrates the gravity of sin, showing sins effects on all people. Jew and Gentile a like face death and judgment for sin but, by grace God gives the gift of life.

In chapter 6, Paul tells how baptism is a sacred union with Christ's death and resurrection. By sharing in His death, we also partake in His new life. This powerful imagery perfectly demonstrating God’s transforming power.

In chapter 8 Paul speaks about this new life in the spirit, then in chapters 9,10, and 11 Paul deals with some possible questions and concerns and shows how Jesus is the fulfillment of the promises to the Israelite people.

Then all of this culminates into this beautiful hymn at the end of Chapter 11. a fervent exclamation of praise to God's incomprehensible wisdom and knowledge:

Romans 11:33–36 NIV

33 Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! 34 “Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” 35 “Who has ever given to God, that God should repay them?” 36 For from him and through him and for him are all things. To him be the glory forever! Amen.

That’s the type pf passage that needs to be read in a “Shoutin’ Church.” it is a passage that makes even the most reserved among us want to speak out, even if that desire never makes its way out of the mouth.

Or perhaps it is a passage that causes you to quietly pause and ponder the wonder and works of God. Whether these words make you shout or pause, we cannot stay paused for too long because Paul’s pen keeps moving and he writes, “therefore.”

This word is such an important word it beckons us to bridge the glory of Chapter 11 with the instruction in Chapter 12. When we come across this word in the Bible we need to ask ourselves, what is it there for? The “therefores” in scripture link the preceding to the proceeding. The “therefore” is the reason why we are discussing Chapter 11 in a blog post about chapter 12.

In Chapter 11, Paul highlights the breathtaking grandeur of God's nature and caps it off with a “therefore.”

"Who has ever given to God that God would repay them ... To him be all glory. Therefore..."

What we do (Romans 12) is a response to who God is and what He has done.

This "therefore" acts as a bridge, connecting the awe-inspiring attributes of God in chapter 11 with the practical guidance of Chapter 12. Additionally, according to Grant Osborn, the “therefore”, ““shows that this instruction is the natural conclusion to what precedes, probably the whole of 1:18–11:36 rather than just the immediately preceding paragraph.”[1]

“Therefore” provides the lens through which we should view all of Chapter 12:1-8.

Why should we be living sacrifices? Because of who God is and what He has accomplished. Jesus' sacrifice makes us a people of sacrifice. This isn't about repaying God; we can never repay God. Instead, we are offering our entire selves to God as an act of worship.

And why do we live differently than the world? Because God is holy, He has made us his people how can we not be different?

And what about divisions? What about the separation of Jews and Gentiles? Because of this grand narrative (Romans 1-11) that culminates with Christ. We are one body, each different yet still belonging to one another.

Our identity as God's people, our actions, our lives, our worship – all are a reflection of who God is. As God’s beauty, majesty, story, wonder, and work in proclaimed, and pondered and embraced we are transformed. Our being reshaped into Christlikeness.

Romans 12:1-8 is more than a handy verse to help us white knuckle our way through peer pressure. It is an invitation to live out the story of God with our whole being. It is about participating in what God has done and who God is (Romans 1-11) It's not about abiding by rules; it's about embodying the story of a glorious God and His remarkable acts. Therefore.

[1] Grant R. Osborne, Romans, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2004), 318.

Skull with Flower Sticker Life prevails Hope

Buy Now