One Foot in Heaven

(Strikethroughs from the original handwriting have been preserved to maintain accuracy.)

Rom 12: 1–5

1st. Sun. after Epiphany

Jan. 7, 1961

"One Foot in Heaven"

A question that is supremely important in our day is the question of loyalty and

citizenship. Every day you can pick up your papers and read of people posing as American citizens, and then it is revealed they are communists. Such people are not good citizens, they are traitors. They are dangerous to our welfare and society.

The question of citizenship was also supremely important to Paul. Here in Romans Paul indicates where our citizenship should be and where our loyalties should be.

Here in Romans 12:2 Paul states, "Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect."

The fact is that Paul felt that we are not citizens of this present world. We are citizens of another world, of another way of life. Paul has stated this another way in Phil 3:20 which reads "Our citizenship is in Heaven." Now when we read these verses we must not get confused and think because our citizenship is in Heaven that we are no longer American and American citizens or that we shouldn't be loyal to our country and give it our best. No, Paul in chapter 13 of Romans tells us we must be loyal to governments. But when Paul tells us about our Heavenly citizenship he is getting at the idea that our moral and spiritual life must be lived according to God's standards. He is getting at the idea that our way of living must be based on what God wants and not what the world wants. To live differently is disloyalty.

Jesus said this differently when he said "Repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand." and then again "the Kingdom of God is within you." Now the Kingdom of God is not a special place but it refers to the rule of God in the hearts of men. And when Jesus tells us to repent for the K. of G. is at hand, he means that if we accept him as Savior we actually belong are God's people and belong to his Kingdom. We are citizens of his people and citizens of the K. of G.

Thus, because as Christians we are God's people and belong to His Kingdom Paul can state here in Romans 12:1 "I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

One of the problems that men have always faced is living a good life. Many try to live a good life because they feel they should, or to set an example for their children or because they think it is good for society. This is all of man's doing it is human effort, and human effort is bound to fail.

We live a good life not because we think we should or any such reason but because of the mercies of God. It is because of Christ coming in the manger and because of God's action on our behalf that we are Christians, that we are God's citizens. When the Jews crossed the Red Sea and then finally succeeded in entering the promised land, the Jews could not boast in themselves. They succeeded in gaining the promised land only because of the leading and power of God and they were only a chosen people because God chose them. In gratitude to God's choosing and helping them the Jews were to follow God. It is the same with us. We are God's people only because of God's choosing and calling us, and we are thus to live our lives out in gratitude to God's mercy to us. It is on this basis that Paul appeals to us to present our bodies a living sacrifice to God.

Now we must notice Paul states we must present our bodies a living sacrifice. In the O.T. sacrifices were given to God that animals were slain and put on the altar.

Paul here states that God doesn't want dead animal sacrifices. He wants living sacrifices. He wants men and women who daily sacrifice their lives for his purposes. He wants you and I to be living sacrifices. Notice also the words here say present your bodies a living sacrifice. It doesn't say present 5% of our time to God, or present your Sunday mornings to God - it says present your bodies, your whole selves to God. This means your everyday life and your everyday work to God. Whether your in the office, frying an egg or pitching hay, you are supposed to be presenting yourself to God.

You know, its fairly easy to go to church on Sunday morn. and be good natured nice people, but its in everyday life that our religion is put to the test. Its when you're behind on your work, or somebody gets in your way when you are in a hurry, or the wind is blowing and the snow is drifting and your swamped with work, its in these conditions that we are to be living sacrifices.

"When your faith reveals itself in everyday godly life, in kindness, in helpfulness, in patience and love, when this happens your faith really shows.

We further notice here that we are to present our bodies a living sacrifice holy and acceptable to God. This word holy means, as I have previously stated – set apart for God's purposes. It means things that are clean and pure and belong to God. Just like the altar and these candlesticks are termed holy things, things set apart for God's use, so we are to be set apart for God's use.

And this presenting of our bodies of our everyday lives in the machine shop, in the kitchen or driving our cars as a living sacrifice holy acceptable to God is "our spiritual worship." In other words, spiritual worship of God isn't just prayers, or Bible reading or church attendance. Our daily living, the presenting of our entire lives to God is to be a spiritual worship, and it can be if we do all things to the glory of God. In other words, as its been Luther said, "a housewife on her knees washing the floor serves God as much as the monk in his cell." This means then milking cows or driving a tractor or mixing doughnuts is spiritual worship if done in Christ's name. Even you children can be serving God if you play your games and do your school work to God's glory.

As citizens of the Kingdom of God this is how we are to live.

In fact, Paul goes on in chapter 12 to tell because Paul believes we are really citizens of heaven and of God's Kingdom, he states there in verse 2 "Do not be conformed to this world." This word conform is an interesting word. In the Greek it has the idea that we should not live according to the changing form of this age.

This world has changing fashions and ideas. As young people you see this because there are always changing fads coming along. Maybe its levis or leather engineer boots or rock and roll or some other fads. Now many fads are all right and don't hurt a thing. But then there are many fads that are not good. Sometimes swearing gets to be a fad, or in our day it seems to be a fad to get ahead in business whatever the cost. If you have to cheat in business, cheat say these worldly wise men. The only standard of behavior seems to be what you can get by with and of course, you must always go along with the crowd because the crowd counts.

Often some young person getting caught stealing or taking dope will say "well, everybody else is doing it."

So says Paul, "Do not be conformed to this world." In other words he means don't base your life on the changing standards of behavior of the other people in society, don't follow the crowd, because you see, you are citizens of the Kingdom of God – your true citizenship is in Heaven.

Heading on Paul states "But be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God. This word be you transformed goes back to a Greek word which has the meaning of our English word metamorphic and means be changed in form – but here Paul does not mean be changed in outward form, in your mind which to Paul meant and mind to Paul and his day meant the inward self, the inward personality. Thus Paul means that the whole core, the whole center of our being must change, our thoughts, our attitude, our actions – our whole inward lives. And Paul states that this is a continuous process. We must try to have our inward selves changed daily. Here in English it reads be transformed by the renewal of your mind but in the original it reads by the renewing of your minds and this word renewing implies that it it a continuous thing.

To illustrate, I think you are aware of the new type batteries you can buy for cars, tractors, trucks and other equipment. The liquid Have all had the experience on a cold winter morning of going out and trying to start your car or truck and all you hear is a rur, rur, and you find your battery is dead. You then need your battery charged and this can be done by a charger or by a push and then your generator will charge the battery.

But the point is, a battery must always be charging re-charging while it is being used or it will become dead in a short time. This is what Paul is trying to say. Our inward selves, our whole lives personality must always be re-charging, must always be strengthened so that we might prove or test or know the will of God. This, of course inward charging of course cannot happen in our own strength, we need this inner charging our spiritual battery charge is prayer, Bible reading, Christian fellowship and church worship. It is through these means God will charge your lives self and transform your inner self. By these means he can change us from self centered, sinful, no fault people to people who present their lives a living sacrifice to God.

Paul goes on in verse 3 and we read: For by the grace given to me I bid every one among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned him.

You know, there are two typesw.

I am sure you have run into two basic personality types. Those who have a superiority complex and those who have an inferiority complex. Those of the superiority complex type are the "I'm better type." They can farm better, they can drive better, they can cook better, they are just better that's all, and they are certain to tell you so. You get tired of this bragging type. But then there's the inferiority complex type. They say they aren't as good as other people. They always feel inferior, they can't speak as well, they can't sew as well, they can't talk as well – so they tell you.

Well Paul certainly would rule out the superiority complex type, there is no room for the braggart in the Christian Church. But in the Church itself I don't think we are bothered too much by the superiority type. Rather it seems to me that the church is often plagued by the inferiority complex type. We talked about this last week. You ask somebody to teach S.S. and they say, "Oh no, I couldn't do that." Or someone is asked to lead in devotions, and they say "Oh, no, I couldn't do that." It seems, in most churches this is the prevalent attitude. Paul says, we must think of ourselves with sober judgment. We mustn't have too high an opinion of ourselves, but neither should we have too low an opinion of ourselves.

You must have a correct opinion of yourself. And I tell you right now, you will be surprised at what you can do if you try. I have seen people do a lot of things they thought they couldn't do and they do an excellent job. This is especially revealed in our women's Bible studies.

You know, its surprising. The real test is to get ahead in a business or a factory. If you work in a factory, or go into some profession like engineering or teaching or law I am sure that you will find there is plenty of competition and you will really have to be on your toes and produce to get ahead. There can be no goofing off. And you know, if a man is offered a higher position, say foreman, very few turn it down. It is quite a contrast to the church where the common reply is I can't do it. It would be nice if we had some of the drive of the business world in our churches.

Finally Paul writes, we read "For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another." What Paul is getting at here is that we must recognize that there are differences in the church. Some are good at teaching, some are good at visiting the sick, some are especially able to make money and give, some are good at cheering others up. But despite the fact we have different gifts – we are to be one. We all belong to the one body of Christ – the Church. The Church is like our human bodies. We have arms, legs, eyes, ears, but all these members work together. The ear doesn't get mad at the arm, the eye doesn't argue with the nose, the hand doesn't look down at or gossip about the foot. All our members are united together and care equally for each other, so this is the way the church should be. We should love each other equally and we should all work together.

"Do not be conformed to this world." You see, we are citizens of another world. Our citizenship is in Heaven. True we walk in this world and live in the world, but yet according to Paul, we in a way also walk with one foot in Heaven. As we walk in this world we will have to pay taxes, obey the government, and work in the world, but yet when we try to decide our standards of behavior, we don't go by what the latest fad or popularity poll, we gaze toward Heaven and see what God demands of us. To do otherwise is disloyalty. It is treason. It is like being a communist and being disloyal to America.

Disloyalty is dangerous and treacherous. Paul calls us from disloyalty to loyalty. In our history we have many acts of loyalty. The Alamo was one such event. Here Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie stood against Santa Anna's thousands. The Alamo has gone down in history as a supreme act of loyalty. The men sacrificed their lives, we are called not to sacrifice only in possible death, but we are called to present our bodies daily living sacrifice to God. Such is our call to loyalty.

(Publisher and Grandson wanting to add a special Happy 65th Birthday to my Mom, Lisa Nance. I love you and am thankful everyday for you.)