Grow With Pastor Joe

One of the greatest dangers in the average church today is a double-edged sword that is causing devastation to many congregations. The sword is disunity. One edge is disunity over the essentials of the faith. The other is unity at the cost of doctrine. We would all agree that there should be unity within the church. Many of us have seen much division and discouragement in our time. Unity in the church happens when each of us live by grace through faith with a biblical balance in our beliefs and behaviors. The Bible keeps us rooted and connected with one another and Christ Himself. The fact that unity is so stressed for the life of the believer regarding their sharing of life within the local church reminds us that we are not our own. Our life influences and impacts those around us. We are either helping or hurting the unity of our local body. Our unity is something that we have in Christ. When you are united to Him, you are united to all who are in Him. You can’t separate the Head from the Body or the Groom from the Bride. We don’t create unity, but we are responsible for cultivating it. We don’t make it, but we are called to maintain it (Eph. 4; Rom. 12; 1 Cor. 11-14). Our relationship with Christ demands responsibility to Him. Our relationship with the Church, both universal and local, demands responsibility to one another. Because of our union we should walk in humble, faithful, gospel fueled, grace filled communion with Christ and one another. Your relationship with Jesus reminds you that you aren’t self-sufficient and you can’t live with a sense of self-satisfaction. You aren’t sufficient in and of yourself; nor can you ever be satisfied with anything outside of Jesus. The gospel crushes our self-sufficient self-satisfied way of living. Due to the world, the flesh, and the Devil, we have grown to be overinflated and over infatuated with ourselves. Each of us believes that we are the “good guy” or the “hero” of our story and therefore, we are the same for others. The gospel destroys the notion that you are the hero. The gospel reminds us that we were the villain who was rescued, redeemed, and reconciled to the true hero and only good guy that there was. His name is Jesus. He is the main character, not you or me. The reason why many Christians today can’t get over themselves is because they have gotten over Christ. His gospel, being His person and work for us. His grace, constantly active and available which we must depend upon. His glory, which is the focus of eternity. Your glory is not immense, His is. You are not impressive, He is.

            The gospel, grace, and glory of Jesus Christ keeps us balanced in our beliefs, behavior, and belong to one another. Our selfishness is a cancer to ourselves, our families, and our local church. Our snobbishness (admit it, you can be a snob too) is a deadly disease that has ruined many Christians relationship to their families, church, and community. Both of these issues have caused much division, but God’s desire for us is that we would embrace and enjoy our unity with one another in Christ. In the Roman world of Paul’s day, they had a class system. In his world, there were Jews and Gentiles. There were natural born Roman citizens, those that bought it, and those who could never obtain it because of their status. There were rich and poor, both in the church and in the world. Some were business owners while many were slaves. This caused much selfishness and snobbishness in the church. There were many who had fallen prey to viewing themselves as individuals first as opposed to seeing themselves as one little member of one great big Body. They had gotten above their raising as my parents would say. We have the same issues in churches today. The danger of disunity through disregarding others while distinguishing ourselves above others is still here. The temptation is there when you see someone who looks dirty, poor, or unkempt. It is there when you pull into the church parking lot in your new but still used car. It is human fleshly nature that wants to be more than you are but specifically wants to be more than you are outside of the grace of Jesus.

We must see that the gospel and grace of Jesus unites us together leaving no room for self-centeredness or snobbishness to others who we think aren’t up to snuff. The gospel doesn’t allow for pride or prejudice. Grace crushes self-sufficiency as we learn to depend upon Christ and one another. The glory of Jesus humbles us and demands that we would live in humble unity in awe of Jesus Christ. Today, we will study Rom. 12:16 which says, “¹⁶ Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.” In this verse we will how the grace of God works to give us a harmonious attitude, humble associations, and an honest assessment of ourselves. Before we dive into this, remember that this is all “of Him, through Him, and to Him” as we by faith consecrate ourselves to Him moment by moment so that we may live a transformed life. This is His desire for you. It is His work in and through you as you yield yourself to the indwelling Holy Spirit. If you don’t think rightly vertically then your relationships horizontally are going to suffer. If you aren’t living out the union that you have with Christ, then it will be impossible to help the unity of your local church. The unity of your local body is your job as much as everyone else’s, but it takes each of us being surrendered to the Lord’s sanctifying work to see our local churches become united bodies that glorify Jesus and further the gospel.

First, we need grace to have a harmonious attitude. Before there is ever harmony in a local church, there must first be humility. In many ways, Rom. 12 is showing us that the gospel, grace, and glory of Jesus Christ demands that we live in constant humility in our relationships and responsibilities to Christ and His church. I believe that our attitude determines our actions. If you have an attitude of self-righteousness or self-sufficiency, then it’ll show up in acting snobbish or snooty to those around you. However, if your attitude is resting on the gospel and grace of Jesus, then humility bursts forth and buds the flowers of harmony in the relationships around you. The first phrase of Rom. 12:16 says, “Be of the same mind one toward another.” Remember, the gospel calls us to unity, not uniformity. There are many diverse members with diverse personalities, preferences, and giftings; yet there is one Body that unites us together in spite of all of our differences. To have the same mind with one another is descriptive of who we are and what we have in Christ (our position and possessions). The phrase is also prescriptive in showing what we need to see exercised, experienced, and expressed within the local body. Having an attitude of harmony in your relationship to the church is the prescription that keeps it healthy. Just as someone who has to take a prescription for high blood pressure, we must take the prescription of grace each day to learn to live with a harmonious attitude. To have a mutual mind should be our mutual mission. While we may not all think exactly alike, we should have the same mind in how we think, feel, and decide. The word “mind” is the word “phroneo” meaning to think, set one’s mind or heart on something. It is used twenty-nine times in the New Testament. Like the other commands of the chapter, it is in the present tense meaning it should be our continual habitual lifestyle. It refers to our inner man (soul) that is expressed through our outer man (body). To be of the same mind toward one another means that we all live with a gospel fueled grace filled glory focused attitude. Phil. 1:27 sums it up nicely saying, “Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ: that whether I come and see you, or else be absent, I may hear of your affairs, that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel;” Humility and harmony flow from focusing on the honor of Jesus Christ alone. This verse is exhorting us to regard one another in light of the gospel and grace of Jesus Christ seeing that we live in harmony because we are united together in Christ. The word “one another” is the word “allelon” meaning each other, one another, with a shared mutuality and participation. It is similar in meaning with “koinoneia” as used earlier in Rom. 12. We must never forget or neglect the fact that we are individual members of one another. There is one head and one mind which is Christ. Rom. 12:1-10 has already shown us this reality, but it is further seen in Phil. 2:1-11 where we are called by the grace of God to live in harmony with one another through humility to the honor of the Lord Jesus Christ. The gospel is our message, grace is our means, growth is our mission, and His glory is our motivation. We won’t be helpful to our lost communities until we live with a harmonious attitude in unity in local church. It starts with you. It starts with me. How’s your attitude? Does it need adjusting?

Second, we need grace for humble associations. We have already seen the relationship of harmony and humility, but we see the deeper need for humble associations in the next phrase which says, “Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate.” There is no harmony or unity outside of humility. Personal humility and holiness will help the harmony of your church more than anything. It has been said that humility is not thinking less of yourself but thinking of yourself less. Humility is selfless thinking and living. It is focused on others. The gospel and grace of Jesus is selfless. He has freely given us Himself, therefore, we ought to freely give ourselves to all who are a part of the Body of Christ. There is none too low for us to associate with. The Puritan John Flavel wrote, “They that know God will be humble, and they that know themselves cannot be proud.” When we think lofty thoughts of the gospel, grace, and glory of Jesus then we can’t be lofty in our thoughts of ourselves or be so high that we can’t or won’t reach the lonely, lowly, or lost. Isa. 57:15 says, “¹⁵ For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones.” The very gospel itself is a reminder that Jesus, the “high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy,” who dwells in “the high and holy place” has come near to the “contrite and humble.” That’s what grace has done for you and me. That should humble each of us to be associated with the Lord Jesus Christ who is holy in all that He is and does. It should drive us to humbly associate with everyone around us without ever slipping into thinking that we have arrived or that we are above others. The “high things” are things that are raised up, high, or lofty. Grace expects and empowers us to not think highly of ourselves, but to remember where we came from (1 Cor. 6:11). To “condescend to men of low estate” means that we should be comfortable associating with the lowly, forgotten, or outcast. You should feel more out of place with a prince than with a pauper. Jesus came to this earth to and for sinners. He walked and talked with them. He ate with them. He healed them. He offered the hope of the gospel and help of His grace. The word low estate is the word “tapeinos” meaning to not rise far from the ground and low degree. Don’t ever grow up so much that you can’t play in a mud puddle. There is none in your congregation (or community for that matter) that is too low for you to be comfortable with. The whole-body matters, including the unseen and unwanted parts. 1 Cor. 12:15-27 discusses this issue in greater detail regarding the Body of Christ. You should be at home in your church, not because you love the pews, but because you love the people. Our danger is not becoming too humble, rather it is being too big for our britches. James 2:1-10 gives another fantastic illustration of what it means for grace to fill us to faithfully live with humble associations within the local church. There are none that should impress us or be more important than another. Each member matters and has a purpose. Each member adds life and health to the local church. I like how John Phillips says, “Only green corn stands upright, ripe corn bends low.” You’ll know that you are maturing when you learn to bend low.

Third, we need grace for an honest assessment. The final phrase of the verse says, “Be not wise in your own conceits.” To paraphrase, stop being a know it all because you hardly know anything at all. Some people are not self-aware. They don’t know what they look like, act like, smell like, or seem like to others. Ignorance is bliss I suppose. Unfortunately, because of our flesh, our self-assessment always comes up short. God sees us for who and what we really are. Grace guards us from getting to high or low on ourselves, but it also guides us to assess ourselves in light of the gospel, grace, and glory of Jesus. This exhortation to honestly assess ourselves begins with a negative command. “Be not” demands that there be a total prohibition and abstention from conceited, arrogant, self-assured “wisdom.” Wisdom is important. We are told to live wisely, and it would be wise of us to do so (cheap joke I know). We see this clearly in the opening statements of Proverbs 1:1-7. We get into trouble when our knowledge or wisdom is our own. When we forget that any wisdom in us is “of Him, through Him, and to Him” we get into serious trouble and cause serious hurt. 1 Cor. 8:1-2 warns, “Now as touching things offered unto idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth. ² And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know.” In the Broadway Musical “Hamilton” (based on the life of Alexander Hamilton), Aaron Burr sings to Hamilton “Why do you assume you’re the smartest in the room?” Isn’t that how we often are. I am. This is why we are quick to speak, but slow to listen. This is why we always feel the need to give a response to someone or have the last word. Proverbs 3:7 warns us, “⁷ Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.” Isa. 5:21 pronounces, “²¹ Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!” Then, Proverbs 26:12 says, “¹² Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him.” Here’s how you can spot a fool, he tells you how wise he is or how much he knows. He’ll do it “humbly” as can be, but make no mistake, the one’s who are truly wise are quiet, humble, and dependent upon the Spirit of God to enlighten and enable them to live wisely. Grace enlightens and enables us to have an honest assessment of ourselves so that we would not be puffed up with our own self-worth or importance.

The gospel, grace, and glory of Jesus Christ keep us grounded, balanced, and dependent upon Him to live the Christian life. Your greatest problem in life is not other people, but rather how you think and live in relationship to them and the Lord. You can control you and you have a hard enough time with that. You are not responsible for others, but you are responsible for how you live in relation to others. The grace of Jesus empowers us to seek to cultivate unity within our church by having a harmonious attitude with the good of others in mind while living with the mind of Christ. His grace calls us to a life of humility where we are at home with the humble, but uncomfortable with being or being around the haughty. God’s grace calls us to take an honest assessment of ourselves so that we would live with the reality of the gospel, grace, and glory of Jesus in our life. Grace unites us through the gospel for the glory of Jesus Christ. Understanding this will help us to live in the unity that we have with one another so that our churches would grow in health and usefulness to the glory of Jesus Christ. However, it begins with our personal attitude and actions. What are you doing to help the unity and health of your church? Is your attitude helping or hurting? Is it haughty or humble? Do you depend upon His grace in your relationship to the church? May we put on the Lord Jesus Christ so that by faith, like Jesus, we would seek the good of others first. Isn’t that what the gospel has done for you?