Sovereign Grace Chapel, located
at 135 Annabel Lane in Beaver, West Virginia, invites you to
listen to a gospel message concerning Jesus Christ our Lord. All right, if you wish to follow
along, turn to Romans chapter 12. Romans chapter 12. Like Paul this morning, I'm just
going to read one verse. I will deal with more of the
verses in the immediate context, of course, but I just want to
read the one verse because it's, Well, we'll just look at that.
Romans chapter 12 in verse one. I beseech you therefore, brethren,
by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living
sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable
service. We can see from the context of
what we've been through, all the way from chapter one, all
the way up through chapter 11. I'm gonna use a metaphor here. Maybe this'll help us, if God's
pleased to help us. wrap our minds around this because
there's so much error concerning this. We can see from the context
of chapter 12, if you go on and read some of these things, it
begins in chapter 12, chapter 13, of course, 14, 15, and even
16, when he winds the letter down, we can see from this context
that Paul shifts gears. He shifts gears. But let me point
out this, religion doesn't have Paul shifting gears, they have
Paul shifting automobiles. They think God's grace and our
conduct or our actions or our walk is totally different. There
are some, now some believe God's grace is based upon our conduct
and our actions. I'm not talking about those.
Paul shifts gears, but we are still in the same vehicle of
grace. We haven't left grace. You don't go from grace to works.
You dare not even attempt to work for God apart from the grace
and mercy of God. So Paul does shift gears, but
we're still in the vehicle of grace, and we're still on the
same road of mercy, so to speak, if you will. I beseech you, therefore,
because of everything I've already written to you, I beseech you,
therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God. Not in order to get the
mercy of God, but by the mercies of God. Paul was exactly right. There is only one purpose. in
God, but I thank God he has many, many abundant mercies. Don't
you? Don't you? Because I need mercies,
not just mercy. You see, there can be no reasonable
service apart from free grace and sovereign mercy. It just
can't be. There is no reasonable service.
Oh, there's a lot of service out there, but it's not reasonable
service. And I will say this, it is not
a living sacrifice. It is not holy and it is not
acceptable to God apart from the mercies of God in Christ
Jesus our Lord. So again, there can be no reasonable
service apart from free grace and sovereign mercy. First of
all, free grace, look at it. Chapter three, we've already
looked at this, but we often need to be reminded of it. Romans
chapter three, verse 20, therefore by the deeds of the law, there
shall no flesh be justified in his sight, for by the law is
the knowledge of sin. But now the righteousness of
God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and
the prophets, even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of
Jesus Christ, that is his own personal faith. Not our faith
in him, but by his own personal faith. Even the righteousness
of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ, now we see where
we come into picture. unto all, and upon all them that
believe. Do you see it? Salvation's only
for believers. I will go so far to say Christ
Jesus has mercy only to believers. But he doesn't have mercy on
you because you believe. You believe because he's had
mercy on you. And then he continues to bestow
mercies, mercies, mercies for unto all that believe, for there
is no difference for all have sinned and come short of the
glory of God. Jack, if you commit one sin and
I commit a billion, we're both condemned. Before a thrice holy
God. Now maybe not before one another.
I mean, there are things, the laws of our country are set up
like that. And we punish people according to the crime. Sin is
punishable by death before God, no matter what the sin is. And
so, of course, Sovereign Mercy, chapter nine. Chapter nine. Verse 11, for the children be
not yet born, neither having done any good or evil. Do you
see it? So it was before they were born,
and it's before they even done any good or evil, that the purpose
of God, according to election, might stand, not of works, but
of him that calleth. It was said unto her, the elder
shall serve the younger, as it is written, Jacob have I loved,
but Esau have I hated. What shall we say then? Is there
unrighteousness with God, because God loves one and hates another?
this world would say yes. This unbelieving world would
say yes. Scripture says no. Is there unrighteousness
with God? Absolutely not. God forbid. For he, that is God, saith to
Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will
have compassion on whom I will have compassion. So then, it
is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God
that showeth mercy. And then verse 18, therefore
hath he mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will
he hardneth. Somebody says that's tough language.
The scriptural word we read is severe language. The goodness
of God and the severity of God. All equal glorious in the one
same God. One same God. Note, note though,
Paul calls it reasonable service. You see it? You see, there is
no such thing as nominal Christianity. There is reasonable service.
It's just reasonable. This is not above and beyond.
This is not some of us being really spiritual and others of
us just being maybe nominally spiritual. It's reasonable service. All these things Paul begins
to instruct us concerning in this letter after this, it's
just our reasonable service. And maybe the word just shouldn't
be there, but it's reasonable service. And this is amazing. I might not pronounce it correctly.
Logikos, does that sound familiar? It's from which we get our English
word logical. In other words, true, rational,
based upon and motivated by a God-wrought gratitude for God's grace and
mercy. There are people who serve God,
but it's not reasonable, because they're trying to gain God's
favor. That's not reasonable service. That's not logical.
Not if you believe what Paul wrote through the inspiration
of the Spirit of God, is it? That ain't logical, is it? Not
at all. And there are others who say, well, we're saved by
grace, but our works earn us rewards. That's not reasonable
service. That's saying God owes me something.
God ordained the very good works we walked in and he did that
before the foundation of the world. And he's the one that
works in us both the will and the do of his good pleasure.
So since that's true, how does God owe me anything? I owe him
even for my reasonable service. It's in him, all of humanity,
but especially God's people, it's in Christ that we live,
and move and have our being. He gets all the glory. You know
how much we get? I don't even think zero. I think
we need to start going to the negative scale, not even getting
close to zero. God gets all the glory. He gets
all the glory. So, you see, I owe God all because
God owns it all. especially in the person and
work of his dear son, the Lord Jesus Christ. Three things this
morning, I'll spend most of my time on the third one. First
of all, think about it. Christ loved me and gave himself
for me. Look at Galatians chapter two.
Galatians chapter two. Galatians chapter two and verse
20. I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless
I live, yet not I. You see, that's a disclaimer.
I live, I live, I'm crucified with Christ. In other words,
he so joined, not I joined myself to him. When Christ died, Paul
hadn't joined himself to Christ, he was against Christ. He was
against Christ, but Christ had so joined himself to Paul that
when Christ died on the tree, Paul died on the tree. And that's
so of every one of God's blessed elected ones. I am crucified
with Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth
in me. You see that? This is not me
doing something for God. This is God doing something in
me. You see, this is not you doing something for God, this
is God doing something in you. If you're doing something for
God, it's not reasonable service. Not reasonable service. So, before
I move any further, my title's actually By the Mercies of God. But let's add on to that, Paul,
reasonable service. I didn't put that in there, but
this is By the Mercies of God, colon, reasonable service. Look at it. I'm crucified with
Christ, nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ liveth
in me, and the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by
the faith of the Son of God. Do you see it? It's his faith
that keeps me going, not my faith in him that keeps me going. You
see it? His faith keeps my faith in him
going. And then everything else flows
from that. Because apart from faith, anything is sin. Our best
prayers is sin, apart from faith. Our repentance, as one preacher
said, is so corrupt it needs to be repented of. You know?
Apart from the grace of God. Now live in the flesh, I live
by the faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave himself
for me. The Lord Jesus loved us, my brothers
and sisters. And I can't fathom that. My love is so fickle and so weak,
it can change on a dime. And even though I'd love, I could
change so quickly that I look like I don't love at all. But not his love. He loved us
while we were yet ungodly sinners. ungodly sinners shaking our fist
in the face of God's Son, but he loved us, gave himself for
us. If that doesn't bring gratitude
to your heart for God, God's not saved you yet. You're just
not saved yet. If you're trying to serve God
to get something from God, not because of what God Almighty's
bestowed upon you, you're on the wrong road, in the wrong
vehicle, in the wrong gear. Secondly, Turn to 1 Corinthians
6. Go ahead and turn there first,
then I'll make the statement. 1 Corinthians 6. And this'll
probably ring a bell when I make this second statement. Remember,
Christ loved us and gave himself for us. Secondly, Christ bought
my material and immaterial being. He bought everything I am. What you see and can touch and
can handle, And what's down inside here that you can't see and touch
and handle? 1 Corinthians 6 verse 19. What? Know ye not that your
body, you see it? Your body is the temple of the
Holy Ghost, which is in you, which ye have of God. Pardon
me. And ye are not your own. God
owns us, the old phrase. God owns us, his people, those
he died for. He owns every one of us, lock,
stock, and barrel, as they used to say. He owns it all. He owns
it all. For you're bought with a price. Do you see it? Therefore, because
of that, see the gratitude? See, it's always flowing back
to God's mercies and grace. For you're bought with a price,
therefore glorify God in your body, that's the material part,
and in your spirit, that's the immaterial part, which are, that's
mine, my body's my own. Not if Christ died for you, yes
ma'am. Now maybe if Christ didn't die for you, all right, own your
own body. And God'll give you one to suffer the damnation of
hell forever. I'm glad God owns me, lock, stock,
and barrel. Mm-hmm, I'm done. I don't always
manifest that gratitude, believe you me, and neither do you, and
neither do you, but we know it's there. You're not your own, they
are God. So Christ loved us, he gave himself
for us, and Christ bought our material and immaterial being. He owns us. Here's the third
thing. It is not religious service.
It is reasonable service. A lot of people think, well,
when God saves you, then you start doing religious things.
No, this is paying your bill. This is paying your bill to the
electric company. You know, this is making sure your payments
on your car get there on time, like you agreed inside your name
too, right? This is make sure that you got food in your belly
and clothes on your back and a roof over your head. But God
owns all that too. Huh? He owns all that too. That
disability check or that retirement check, God gave that to you.
I worked for that. It's God that worked in you,
both the will and the do of his own pleasure. It's in him that
we live and move and have our being. I realize unbelievers
don't get that. To them, that's not fair. I did
this. I know I can't even breathe to
stay alive apart from the grace and mercy of God Almighty. I
mean, I evidently had some blood pressure troubles several years
ago when I still worked in the laundry. And I didn't even get
up. You know, you get a little dizzy-headed
when you stand up quick or something. I was sitting in my chair behind
my desk in my office, and all of a sudden I got real dizzy.
I thought I was leaving this world. I was just about ready
to hit the floor. God can take us just like that,
and we can be in perfect health. perfect health. We don't die
because we get old and sick. We die because of sin. Adam, even after he sinned, lived
for hundreds of years. Methuselah, almost a thousand. What was his problem? Sin. That was his problem. And just
think of what God made Methuselah go through. Now, do you want
to be here for 969 years? I don't. I don't. So it's not religious service. People think it's about being
religious. No, it's just being a normal human being who believes
God, seeks to do what's right, seeks to honor Christ. It's also
not ritual service. A lot of people think, go through
the rituals. We're going to do what some people would call a
ritual. To them, it may look like a ritual. We're doing this
in remembrance of Christ. We're not doing it so we can,
maybe if a couple of us have been at odds with one another,
we can kind of get back along. It has nothing to do with that.
Even if we're still at odds against one another over something, we're
to take this table because we're to do it in remembrance of him.
If you're at odds with him, you're in trouble. But thank God, aren't
you glad he's not at odds with us? He's not at odds with us. It's not religious service. It's not ritual service. It's
reasonable service. Think of it. Five things here. Sum this up. Always, let us always
consider our personal lowliness. Let me get back to my spot. Always
consider. our personal loneliness. Now
let's start verse one. I beseech you therefore, brethren,
by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies, even your
bodies, bodies, a living sacrifice, holy, that is set apart, distinct,
different, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable
service. And be not conformed to this world, but be you transformed
by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that
good and acceptable and perfect will of God. For I say, through
the grace given unto 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 hath dealt to every man the measure
of faith. If God hadn't given us at least
just a little bit of faith, we'd be goners. We'd be goners. And the only reason he give us
even a measure of faith is by the mercies of God. but Christ paid for it for us.
And Mac, even if he paid for me just a penny's worth of faith,
or a million dollars worth of faith, it's still faith. And it's a faith given by God.
He don't even create, he don't create faith, he gives us a little
portion of his faith. Now that's saying something.
That's saying something. And now consider faith as a grain
of mustard seed. So evidently our measure is pretty
small in it. but it's glorious nonetheless.
It's a glorious gift. The vast majority of people we
probably love and care about and know and work with, they
don't have even that little teeny bit of faith. They have a ritual
faith, they have a religious faith, but they don't have the
faith of God's elect. So always consider our personal
lowliness. In other words, I think it was
Don Fortner, I'm sure others have said it, if you ever grow
above being a sinner, you've grown too far. I think that's
good, that's sound doctrine. If I ever grow above being a
sinner in need of God's mercy, I've grown way too far. Second
thing, always consider our unity in Christ with one another. See it, verse four and five,
four. as ye have many members in one body, and all members
have not the same office. So we, being many, are one body,
how? Only in Christ. It's not in the
Baptist church. It's not in the Pentecostal holiness
church. It's not in the Roman Catholic church. It's only where?
Say it in your mind, in Christ. There's the only place of unity.
The Baptists have split a million different ways, but God's church
ain't split. They're one body. Do you see
it? They're one body. Four, so we, being many, are
one body in Christ, and everyone, what? Uh-oh, look at that, what's
that say? Everyone, what? Members of another. Isn't that true? So remember, always consider
our personal lowliness. Always consider our unity in
Christ. Here's the third thing. Always
consider God's sovereign right in our reasonable service. Verse
six, having then gifts differing according to the grace that is
given to us. I'm not even gonna read it. All
these different gifts, it's only by the grace of God. And God
dispenses grace at his sovereign pleasure to the amount that he's
pleased to give to whoever he's pleased to give. If he gives
you differing gifts or more gifts than me, if I'm truly considering
remembering my own personal lowliness and that I'm nothing, I deserve
nothing but hail, I'll be grateful to God for what he gave me. I'll
be grateful to God for what he gave me. One preacher said one
time, here you got two holy angels, the elect angels. If one was
given the task of flying around the throne of God saying, holy,
holy, holy, and another was given the task of coming to earth and
sweeping the streets in a dusty city, they both give God equal
glory because it's about him getting the glory. Him getting
the glory. But we know Paul doesn't mention
this sovereign thing other than having then gifts differing according
to the grace that is given to us. But we know grace comes sovereign.
He's already taught us that clearly in this, right? But he actually,
look at what he, let me find my spot, 1 Corinthians 12, you
know this. 1 Corinthians chapter 12, just one verse. First Corinthians
12, he's talking about spiritual gifts. You can read it, chapter
12, verse one. And we have different gifts.
All of us do, we have different gifts. But then look at what
it says in verse 11. But all these, that is these
gifts, but all these worketh that one, and the self-same spirit,
dividing to every man severally, that means individually, as he
will. I have caught myself on many
occasions thinking, I try not to say it much, boy, I wish I could preach like
that preacher. You ever thought that way about
anything? Well, I wish I was more like that person. I realize
we're all sinners, but what gifts God did give us, he give it to
us in the measure he's pleased to give it to us in, and he gives
it to whoever he will. Okay, here's what I'm gonna say.
Boasting in or jealousy against a spiritual gift insults God's
sovereign rule. And I'm guilty of it and you
are too. Aren't you glad for the mercies of God? Aren't you
glad for the mercies of God? Number four, our bodies. Our bodies, this, right here. Now I know we're gonna have a
new one one day. I understand that. But our body, this is not
talking about the body we're gonna get up yonder. I beseech
you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God that you present
your bodies now a living sacrifice. It means we need to take care
of what God gave us. As best of our ability, take
care of what God gave us. Because he will eventually, if
we live long enough, he'll eventually start to take it away. Now won't
he? He'll start to take it away.
I'll give you a little story. When we used to live at Kelly's
Tank, and I first bought the place, and many of you actually
helped me move in, and it was a blessing. I used to take a
50-pound box of nails and climb up on the top of the carport,
and it's not that far down to the ground on that one end. I
would jump off that roof with that 50-pound box of nails onto
the ground. Now, that's probably part of
the reason I had to have a hip replacement. But a few years
ago, before we moved out, I had to get up on top of that same
roof and was doing something. I couldn't jump off with nothing
in my hands. I was so scared just to even
think of jumping off that roof. I had to get down on my backside
and slide off real easy. We need to thank God for what
we got, even if we don't have much of it left. even if we don't
have much of it left. Again, boasting in or jealousy
against a spiritual gift insults God's sovereign rule because
our bodies, though vile by the fall, okay? Our body, though
vile by the fall, they are not flawed by design. This body is
a glorious thing. And when God first created us
in our father Adam, he said we were very good. Adam was the
prime specimen of humanity, no sin, no flaw, created upright. And our Lord became a man and
took upon himself flesh and bone and blood. Now, turn to Philippians
3. Philippians 3. Philippians chapter
3. And let me begin in verse 17. Brethren, be followers together
of me, and mark them which walk, so as ye have us for an example.
You see, it's not, somebody say, well, you gotta have a walk.
Everybody's gotta walk of some kind. Some of it may be a moral
walk. Some of it may be a religious
walk. Some of it may be a ritualistic walk. But we wanna have a reasonable
walk, right? We want a reasonable walk. Brethren,
be followers together of me, and mark them which walk, so
as you have us for an example. For many walk, of whom I have
told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are
the enemies of the cross of Christ. They may not deny the cross,
but they deny the effectiveness of the cross.