Grace and Faith

Romans 12:3-8

"A passage on spiritual gifts? That's great, Paul! I can't wait for you to tell me about all the ways that I can be used of God to serve others in the body of Christ."

We might approach this passage - Romans 12:3-8 - with the posture above. And while that is not an altogether wrong mindset, the apostle Paul wants to start somewhere else.

He does not want to start with our giftings.
He wants to start with us.

And more specifically, how we think about ourselves.

In other words,
before he addresses our "hands,"
he wants to address our "hearts."
And our humility.

He says in verse 3:

"I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think."

In 12:2, Paul had just spoken of a renewed mind - "... be transformed by the renewal of your mind."

And perhaps the primary way that this "transformed, renewed mind" shows itself is in how the believer thinks about *himself.* That he think humbly. That he NOT think highly of himself.

And furthermore, the very things that Paul emphasizes in these verses will help the believer do that very thing. Not think highly of himself.

Grace and faith.

1. Grace - two times in this passage (12:3, 6), Paul draws our attention to "the grace given to us."

What is grace? That God has been unbelievably kind toward you through Jesus Christ.

We would do well to remember that Paul is 11 chapters deep into this letter to the church in Rome. And "grace" has certainly been one of his themes so far!

     3:24 - "[we] are justified by his *grace* as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus"

     5:15 - "For if many died through one man's trespass, much more have the *grace* of God and the free gift by the grace of that one man Jesus Christ abounded for many."

     8:32 - "He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him *graciously* give us all things?

And many more examples so far in this letter!

And as Paul is beginning to instruct his readers about spiritual gifts - and first, how we think about ourselves - he first wants to say:

Don't get far away from grace.
Don't forget how unbelievably kind God has been to you through Jesus Christ.

2. Faith - Paul finishes out v. 3 - "... think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned."

What is faith? Looking AWAY from ourselves - our righteousness, our worthiness, our ability to save ourselves (of which we have none) - and looking TO Jesus Christ for those things.

So notice what faith is at its very essence. Faith is not thinking of ourselves highly, and thinking of Christ highly!

Even more than that, note that Paul says that our faith has been "measured" and "assigned" by God.

Even our faith - our own ability to look away from ourselves, and to Jesus - even that didn't come from us. It wasn't because we willed ourselves to believe on Christ. It's because God actually measured out and assigned that faith to us!

So whether it's prophecy, serving, teaching, exhortation, generosity, leading, or acts of mercy - don't forget where to start.

We start with the kindness God has shown us in Jesus.
We start with the fact that our faith has been measured out and assigned to us.

And may all that lead us to not think highly of ourselves. And to think highly of Jesus Christ.

- Joe