We Are No Solo Act – Romans 12

A text – Romans 12:1-8

12:1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God–what is good and acceptable and perfect.
12:3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
12:4 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function,
12:5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.
12:6 We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith;
12:7 ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching;
12:8 the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.

A reflection:

This passage of the letter of Paul to the Roman Christians is quite famous. He is working up an argument for being in community as believers, for putting up with the high and sometimes irritating individuality of others for the common good of faith in Jesus, just as the first disciples must have done. If our bodies are to be a living sacrifice, then faith isn’t just something in the head, in the brain. It will involve our entire waking lives.

And it will involve our entire set of human gifts. Now we ourselves might think our particular gifts are the best of all, but Paul urges these Christian not to do that. Instead, he says, think of yourselves as together making up one body – the body of Christ in the world. We each of us don’t have everything it takes to sustain the faith we need. It takes thinkers and feelers, it takes doers and listeners, it takes teachers and welders, it takes young and old, etc.

And what’s more, we belong to one another in Christ, we are members of one another. Even if we don’t always like it that way. I mean, who doesn’t have a relative, whether it is a parent or sibling or cousin or elder relative, whose very family we are a member of, but whom we really would rather not interact with? We’d love to get along without that person. But if we follow Paul’s argument and advice, by grace, we shouldn’t think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think. When we are faced with such a person, in our family or in our community of faith, we are to get off our high horse and take a step back and out, seeing the entire richness of the persons and gifts in our group. We are to find the various and true gifts each has been given, and actually be grateful for the provision of those gifts.

We are part of one another, and for a reason: to live in faith is not a solo gig. We live, we play, we create in response to others. After all, our God is one while also being a trio.

A prayer:

Lord God, Thank you for loving us. Thank you being a God of relationships, of community. Help us to remember that our life is not a solo act, but something more like a combo or an orchestra. Help our symphonies to glorify you.   Amen.