June is pride month. There’s lots of pressure to conform, it’s much easier to just go with the flow. But in our reading today God says, “do not be conformed to this world” (Romans 12:2). If you follow Jesus, you’re not to just go with the flow, but to go God’s way.
Sometimes our light and momentary troubles come because we live in a fallen world, other times they come because we are living differently as Christians. That was certainly the case for the apostle Paul as he refused to go with the flow but to live God’s way. Teaching that Jesus is the only way to God got Him in trouble time and again. But He refused to compromise because he loved God and people too much, and because he knew there was a glory ahead that would far outweigh all his troubles.
In Romans 12 Paul gives us another motivation for being different – it’s in view of God’s mercy (v1). Paul has spent 11 chapters explaining the mercy of God. He has shown us the problem, that we have all disobeyed God and deserve His wrath (1:18-3:20), the wonderful solution, that God gave Jesus to die in our place so that we can have peace with God (3:21-8:39). He’s wrestled with God’s promises to Israel (9-11) and now He says, in view of all that God has done, give your lives as a living sacrifice. He calls us to be holy.
Being holy doesn’t mean cutting yourself off from the world, but it does mean that we are to seek to be like God, and to go His way rather than God’s way. We’re to have our minds transformed by Scripture so that we know what is pleasing to God. In chapters 12-16 Paul will teach more of what that looks like. Here in chapter 12 we see it involves serving your brothers and sisters at church, loving them like family. It also involves seeking the good of those who persecute you, overcoming evil with good.
Lord, thank you for your mercy that you have shown to us, thank so much for giving us your Son to die in our place so that we can have peace with you. Please help us today to offer our bodies as living sacrifices, living our lives to please you. Please help us this month especially, not to be conformed to this world, but to have our minds renewed so that we know what is pleasing to you. Help us to help those whose whole identity is tied up in the way of this world to find their true identity in our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen
Light and Momentary Troubles 
Leave a comment