"For I say, through the grace given to me to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God has dealt to every man the measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office: so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and everyone members one of another."
Romans 12v3 - 4
Paul has been speaking of "the renewing of our minds" in verse 2 . Immediately he goes on to say how this renewal process will work out. Firstly, we are not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought, and secondly, we are to think soberly. What does all this mean? In our unconverted state we lived a certain way, we filled our lives with certain practices, which were mainly for self gratification; now that we have been brought into the grace of God, He is going to fill our lives with things that are for the benefit of others. The first observation in verses 3-4 is that we now belong to a group of people described as "the body of Christ." As such, we are to be occupied in divine things in a corporate capacity. We are members one of another. Having saved us, it is God's will that we become part of this new community, and that we actively participate in this new sphere. Our physical bodies are made up of millions of individual cells, each one of them having a particular function to fulfill for the benefit of the whole. Paul uses this analogy to describe our role in the global church of God, which is the body of Christ. We used our members formerly for self gratification, God has saved us so that we can use our members in His service in the body of Christ.
Notice the repetition of "everyone " in these verses. Verse 3 "I say to everyone that is among you." v3b "According as God has dealt to everyone the measure of faith." v4 "We are everyone members one of another." It must be abundantly clear to every reader that God's intention is that His saved people will be actively engaged, each one, in the service of the church. This aspect of the new life, product of the renewing of our minds, is clearly presented in scripture as being the desirable pattern for our lives now. God has given to every one of us "a measure of faith." We will see when we come to verse 6 that we have free gifts from God "according to the grace that is given to us." these gifts, or talents in spiritual matters have been given with a real diversity, each one of us having received from God an ability to do His work. The grace refers to God's gift to us, the faith refers to our ability to respond to. and to operate that gift. Each one of us has a part to play, each gift is different, each measure of faith is different, but the collective result is a world wide unity that is unequalled by any other organization. So God has created unity in diversity in such a way that every member has a real contribution to make. This glorious truth needs to be grasped by all of us and practiced where ever we are. We are all of us ministers of God.
We are not to think too highly of ourselves: in the context of the God of heaven spiritually enabling us for His work, the tendency would always be to become proud, thinking we are someone special. This is a vast subject in itself in scripture, and the main lesson is that "to whom much is given of the same shall much be required." Luke 12v48. The things of God represent the highest occupation on the earth, and so we must maintain a humble approach that God has given such gifts to all of us in a different measure. It would be true to say that our gifts differ as much as our faces, God is not the God of mass production, but of phenomenal diversity. Rather we are to think soberly, in the clear light of day, to discover for ourselves what gift He has given us to do His service, and then to use it for His glory.
This subject is expanded in Ephesians 4v11-16 where the apostle gives the outline of how gifts are to work, and why they are to work. No church should be dependent on one or two people to be running things and the rest left idle. The picture is of the active participation of everyone for "the edifying of the body of Christ." A portion of these verses is quoted here "but speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, which is the head, even Christ; from whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplies, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part." Thus my hands, my feet, my eyes, my time, my talents, my mind, my mouth, my lips, which were formerly used to satisfy sinful lusts, are now used to build up the body of Christ. This will involve a diversity of operations, from evangelism to teaching, to corporate worship, to alms giving, to prayer etc. etc. The thinking therefore must be to live for the benefit of others under the watchful eye of the Lord above, thus fulfilling the royal law "love your neighbor as yourself." We are not left to do this from our own resources; we have been given grace (divine gifts) coupled with the necessary faith to see it through, and this supply will continue for as long as we live.
The question therefore in all of our minds ought to be "LORD WHAT WILL THOU HAVE ME TO DO?"
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