When it comes to our salvation, it’s easy to glory in how God saved us and forget that faith without works is dead. As Christians, we must go from believing to doing—to put our faith into practice. This is Paul’s message in Romans. After explaining the rich doctrine of salvation (chap. 1-11), he then shows believers how to live (chap. 12-16).  

 

And what should our renewed lives look like? Love without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. Be diligent and patient in tribulation. Continue steadfastly in prayer. Give to others in need and be hospitable (Rom. 12:9-13). These are just a few of the fruits of the Gospel, which show overflow its banks, transforming the culture of our lives and our local church life. 

Sermon: https://churchandfamilylife.com/sermons/6899879cd1e0ca448c28064e

Romans 12, a big dividing line in the book of Romans, shows us where the doctrine of salvation blows over its banks and the floodwaters of the gospel rearrange the landscape of our lives. Romans 1 through 11 tells us what God has done to reconcile sinners to himself, how He forgives sinners and breaks the power of sin. And then Romans 12 begins a new section, a section of application. And Romans 12 is telling us, Okay, now take the doctrine to the streets. Take it into the church.

Take it into every relationship in your life. Here's a problem. Particularly in modern evangelicalism, people can get stuck on the indicatives and ignore the imperatives. They glory in justification by faith alone, which we should, and they stay there and they don't move on to the imperatives. So the Apostle is blowing all that up in Romans chapter 12 and saying there's something that you do as a result of the gospel.

And he's really defining what love looks like in a local church. Paul says that it is an aggressive culture. He says, don't lag in diligence, be fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. He is using language that means like overflow with zeal to serve the Lord. He's talking about urgency in doing what God has called you to do.

This is not cruise control Christianity. It's not spiritual sleepwalking. And Paul in this entire chapter is exceedingly practical and it's very simple. And there are things that happen in churches that require biblical responses and the Apostle Paul names them. Like there are circumstances that dampen hope.

Paul tells the church, rejoice in hope. Or when tribulation threatens to make you quit, the Lord says, be patient in tribulation. In other words, don't give up, stay under the weight, The sun is going to come out again. Or when prayer is needed. He says continue steadfastly in prayer.

He talks about when people have real physical needs. He urges the church to share in the needs of the saints, to bear one another's burdens. He says practice hospitality, welcome strangers because God welcomed you. So this obviously is not some kind of earn your salvation checklist. It's simply a picture of a transformed life.

It's a picture of the kind of culture that the gospel builds in a church where people are energized and they're activated to love one another in really practical ways. This is how the gospel overflows the banks like a mighty rushing river And it alters everything in the landscape. It moves everything around and reorders the culture of your life and your local church. The grass withers, the flower fades, but The word of our God stands forever.