Longing for Revival | Week 2

(12 minutes)

During this series we are praying that God would wake our desire and spiritual hunger as we prepare ourselves for the Holy Spirit Conference. Only an infilling of God's Spirit can satisfy the hunger in our souls.

All Christians are meant to participate in the Spirit-empowered life of the kingdom. During the sermon series we will explore how to be wise and biblical as we engage spiritual things.

Last week, you were invited to try on one of two practices that where you reflected on Psalm 63.

What came up for you as you reflected on Psalm 63?

(5 minutes)

We are constantly being shaped. As we roll our way through Instagram, auto-play an hour of our evening with YouTube videos, or click through our Substack feed or our news apps, there is a lot of information about how to make our lives better. A lot!

The way our minds work, only a short period of immersion in these digital worlds can impact how we frame out the reality we’re trying to live in. And our actions flow from that frame. And then the outcomes of our lives extend from those actions. In fact, the social and cultural landscapes around us are the result of our collective actions in response to our mental frameworks!

And before we are too quick to fault how this unfolds in our lives, it helps to realize that we are living the way we are designed. The problem isn’t this very human process of mental framework-action-outcome. Our attention needs to be turned to what we input into our mental worlds.

The apostle Paul in Romans 12 challenges us to adopt a different framework—one that honors diversity within unity. In place of being led down our own digital feeds toward self, he points us toward unity and humble, one-another relationship. Paul knew that how we think shapes how we live. Our framework of self and community determine the kind of people we become together.

(3 minutes)

Can someone read Romans 12:3-8 to start us off?

3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.

(30 minutes)

In verse 3, Paul uses a variation of one Greek 4 times. In the NIV, it’s translated as “think” and “sober judgment:” “For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment.” We can see its use more clearly in the NRSV translation: “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think but to think with sober judgment.” The first part of this verse is literally “do not over-think beyond what one should think.” Paul is purposefully using this word repeatedly. When we see repetition like this, we want to ask why it’s there.

As you look at the passage, why might Paul be purposefully repeating this word?

Leader’s Note: Paul spent the first 11 chapters of Romans describing God’s mercies—his  saving righteousness revealed in the gospel. And now in 12:1-2 he calls believers to present their bodies as living sacrifices and to have renewed minds. In verse 3, he’s continuing the same transformation theme. He is issuing a clear call to a renewed way of perceiving ourselves, others, and God. HE mentions the contours of this renewed mindset in Philippians 2:5-11 where he encourages and then details the “mindset of Christ.”

Here's a little more background. The Roman church was likely composed of both Jewish and Gentile believers navigating tensions of superiority and belonging (see 11:17-24; 14:1-15:7). Some believers seem to have felt spiritually elevated, perhaps because of ancestry, knowledge, or particular gifts. Paul begins this section of exhortations by saying: don’t overestimate yourselves. Believers are to locate their identities within grace.

The reason we are striving to not “over-think” who we are is because it is necessary to live in humility as one diverse body of believers. We need right-sized thinking that lets the whole body thrive.

In verses 4 and 5, Paul says, “For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.”

Paul is drawing on a familiar Greco-Roman image. Ancient writers used the “body” to illustrate social order, usually to reinforce hierarchy. The “head” is elite and the “feet” are workers. But Paul is flipping it. In Christ’s body: “each member belongs to all the others.” There is diversity but it is expressed in unity, humility, and love.

Ultimately, what is being mediated through the body is the grace of God, which is for the healing of all creation. When our thinking is off and we are wasting energy in over-defining our value or under-defining it, we are missing the mission of God that we are called to be part of.

Can you recall a time when you had a clear sense or experience of being a unique part of the diverse body of Christ in action together?

Well as we close tonight, we are going to take some time to invite the Holy Spirit to impart gifts to each of us as he desires.

What are the gifts that are listed in in verses 6-8? This isn’t an exhaustive list. It’s one of a few lists like this in the New Testament. Are there any gifts that stand out to you? Why might that be?

(12 minutes)

Paul says we each belong to one another. Let’s practice belonging by praying for one another.

What we are going to do is break into groups of no more than 3 people. And then two of us will pray for a third, taking turns until we have all prayed for each other. This simple act is part of reorienting our mindset, moving from self-focus to one-another-focus in prayer and blessing.

So, start by having the person you are praying for first share what gift stood out to them. And then pray.

When you pray, you are simply going to lay your hand on the person’s shoulder if they are comfortable with that and invite the Holy Spirit to come and impart a spiritual gift to the person. And then you’ll wait. You don’t need to make anything happen. If you feel led to pray more, then do so.

Take no more than two minutes to pray for the person. Then check in with them to see if they experienced anything.

Close your prayer with the person with a short blessing. Perhaps something like, “May you experience his presence more deeply and be empowered to engage in his mission.”

Then repeat this for the other two people in your group.

(5 minutes)

Have one person from each group of 3 briefly share what happened during their time of prayer.

(3 minutes)

List out the names of 3 people in your neighborhood. Spend time praying that God would draw them to himself. In addition, pray that God would give you an opportunity to bless one of your neighbors. Watch for opportunities to engage with them and be open to the possibility of the Spirit using a spiritual gift to bless your neighbor. Don’t worry about forcing interactions. Simply notice where God may already be at work.

We will share our experiences next week!

(1 minute)

May God continue to renew our minds, unite our hearts, and empower our gifts for the good of all.