Paul asked the Christians in Rome to behave in some ways that were strange to their world and different to Rome's social expectations. He asked them to be living sacrifices who did not conform to the lifestyle and values around them. He asked them to use their abilities to serve others committed to Christ. He asked them to establish a genuine sense of community among themselves. He asked them not to take revenge for unjust treatment, but confidently to understand that evil was defeated by doing good. He asked them to respect the authority of a pagan government and show respect for pagan officials. He asked for an extraordinary commitment to the ethical value of love.
The immediate question had to be, "Why should we act in those ways?" Jewish Christians were accustomed to being different from the non-Jewish world. Yet, were they requested to be different from the Jewish community by accepting gentile believers in Christ, gentile believers who were not Jewish proselytes? "Paul, are you sure about your request?" Were they to serve Christians who are not Jews? Were they to create a sense of community with people who are not Jews? "Paul, are you sure about your requests?" Were they to obey the laws of an idolatrous government? Were they to respect idolatrous officials? Were they to love gentiles? "Paul, are you sure about your requests?"
The issue stated simply is found in this question: Why do Christians conduct themselves by values that are strikingly different from their society? What Paul suggested certainly was not easy! For most people, it is difficult to be radically different from the society around them. Christians were not [are not] "anti-social." They just lived [live] by a different set of values. However, the question remains: Why?
Please note Paul's reasons given in today's text. (1) God's purposes are closer to accomplishment than they ever have been. (2) Accept the challenge to live your life in the "light" of nearness to God's purposes instead of the darkness created by the absence of God. (3) The objective of the Christian is to be "Christ-like" rather than "world-like." Christians live for something more important than physical desires.
As you consider that list, note the emphasis is on God's objectives in Jesus Christ, not "my" objectives in "my" physical existence. Obviously, the focus of the text is on the eyes of faith rather than the eyes of the physical. That is an extremely demanding way to look at life, events, and desires! Our present existence is primarily physical. We live in a physical world. We live in a society that stresses the pleasures of the physical. Most of our desires are motivated by physical ambitions. Yet, Paul said to them (1) that is the incorrect focus for the Christian because (2) something more important than the physical exists in human reality.
God's purposes were closer than ever before. Our strong temptation is to look back, make a "then" and "now" comparison, and respond by saying, "Yeah! Sure! Two thousand years have passed and Jesus has not returned." Paul's comparison was not our typical "then" and "now" comparison common in the evaluations of history. His comparison was more "a world without God" to a "world in which God has a kingdom" [a people willingly ruled by God]. The world from the time of failure in Eden to the flood was increasingly a God-less world. The world from Noah to Abraham was a God-less world. The world from Abraham to Christ was a God-less world. It was not God-less in the sense that God was absent. It was God-less in the sense that the world (1) rejected the involvement/activity of God and (2) resisted rather than cooperated with God.
If that idea seems objectionable to you, consider Deuteronomy 7:6, 7 and 9:4, 5. Note Deuteronomy 5:29. Particularly pay attention to (1) Israel's resistance to God, (2) the fact that God did the choosing, and (3) the significant role the wickedness of the peoples in Canaan played in God's actions.
Today's Christian is often so aware of biblical history that they think it represents the majority of history. Ancient Israel frequently struggled with God! They were not the kingdom God hoped for (Exodus 19:5, 6)! Israel was a tiny nation (Deuteronomy 7:7)! If every ancient Israelite [which was never the case] had totally, obediently surrendered to God, only a distinct minority would have followed Him.
The vision of God was of a universal kingdom composed of all people, both Jewish and non-Jewish. Look at Genesis 12:3; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14; Acts 3:25; and Galatians 3:8. Note the intent of God in Genesis was to bring a blessing to all families or nations on earth. Note the statements in Acts and Galatians understand this was God's intent. The concept of the church [the "called out"] in the New Testament is an international group of people who belong to God and accept His leadership by a faith in Jesus Christ that willingly surrenders to God's purposes and leadership.
Accept the challenge to live in the "light." That which God announced to Abraham and intended through Abraham's descendants was, as Paul wrote, becoming reality. God paid the price for universal redemption in Jesus' death. He wanted Christians in Rome to understand, whether they were Jewish or former idol worshippers, God was in them partially achieving His objective. Their existence was a living demonstration of God's concern for the redemption of "all families [nations] of the earth."
Be Christ-like, not world-like. The behavior of the Christians in Rome was to signal that a new day had arrived. The behavior of the darkness was in no way appropriate for God's new day.
For Thought and Discussion
Link to Teacher's Guide
Lesson 8