Romans 12:1 “Urging”

 Here’s my fairly literal translation of these verses:

¹I am urging you, therefore, brothers, because of the sympathies of God, to present your (pl.) bodies [as] a living sacrifice, holy, [and] well-pleasing to God, [which is] your (pl.) logical/reasonable act of worship.

It seems, as I have been studying this verse, that almost every word is an atom bomb of truth. That should actually come as no surprise, following eleven chapters proclaiming the glorious Gospel of grace!

Clearly, Paul here moves to the natural question of, “How shall we then live?” This is especially imperative, having presented that Gospel of grace and, having emphatically stated, “We are not under law, but under grace.” Understanding what this means would be particularly important for Jewish Christians, used to living under the Law, with all its very specific rules. On the other hand, I would maintain it is critical for all of us to ponder, understand, and let God weave these thoughts into our souls.

What do I mean? It is very easy for us today to look at the people of Israel and see their legalism. The Hasidic Jews (modern counterparts to the Pharisees of Jesus’ day) are probably the most visible consequence of people supposedly pursuing a relationship with God, based on OT law. That approach to “religion” expresses the idea that knowing God is a matter of meticulous rule-keeping. Supposedly, if you try really hard to keep all of the rules, you can persuade others that you are a “religious” person and that God likes you.

Turning from the Jews and looking around, is that not what all “religion” is about – keeping some specific set of rules or ceremonies? Each “faith” is distinctive not only for the beliefs that they hold, but visibly for their unique practices. A prime example is “Seventh Day Adventists.” To join their company means you go to church on Saturday, not Sunday. To be any kind of Protestant means you go to church on Sunday, repeat the Lord’s Prayer and perhaps the Apostles’ Creed, maybe teach Sunday School, etc. What distinguishes every “religion” is their unique rituals and practices and standards.

That, I have come to understand, is because we are all obligate legalists. Our natural inclination all day every day is to think life is somehow about “keeping the rules.” Making people happy usually comes down to keeping (their) rules. and certainly, we think making God happy comes down to keeping His rules. Then Jesus comes along and tells us it all comes down simply to “love God/love others.”

We try to come to God with our obligate legalism, only for Him to slap it out of our hands! Actually, even for OT believers, what did He say is the sum of it all? “To do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God” (Mic. 6:8). I know it was true of me and also that it was so with others – that when we really came face to face with grace, it caused a strange nakedness as we stood before God. “But, but, but…if you take away all these things I’m ‘doing,’ what is my relationship with God???” Then one marvels to realize all the Lord ever really wanted was you. “Nothing in my hand I bring…”

If a person has read and truly understood the first eleven chapters of Romans, and if we have truly drunk deeply of the wonder of His grace, then as we come to Romans 12:1, Paul is answering the very question our hearts long to ask: “How shall we then live?” If I’m not under Law, but under grace, what will my life look like? What kind of person will I be?

“Ah,” Paul replies, “I’m so glad you asked!” Actually, the very simple answer to that question is Jesus. God saves us for the specific purpose of “transforming us into His image, from glory to glory” (II Cor. 3:18). As we stand together at this point, I believe we would see any direction the Lord gives us not as a “set of rules to keep,” but as the very heart of Jesus and this God of grace with whom we have fallen deeply in love.

So, then, the wording of Romans 12:1 should come as no surprise at all. Consider how it starts, “I urge you, brothers…” Urge? “But shouldn’t it be, ‘I command you, Christians…’” No, it shouldn’t. Born again hearts do not sit at the foot of Mt. Sinai hoping God will give them Ten Commandments. They don’t grovel peevishly shouting, “All the Lord commands us, we will do.” He doesn’t need to get out His whip for us. “Obedience” isn’t about keeping the rules. It’s about knowing His heart, wanting to please Him, about wanting to be like Him. So how would an Apostle speak to such people? “I urge you, brothers.”

The word translated “urge” means literally something like “to call beside.” It might refer to that kindly grandfather who puts his arm around you and says, “Here’s the way to do this,” or perhaps the kind coach who sits beside the struggling athlete and shows him he’s doing better than he thinks.

May we all be reminded that is the way of grace. Grace does not command. It draws. “Commands” tell us, “Do this and live.” Grace instead steps into our heart and says, “Live, and do this!” All of this brings us back to what we learned from Daniel – “the unassailable citadel of the human heart.” “Commands” are a power word. In this world, if you have enough power, you can basically get anyone to do anything.

Nebuchadnezzar could threaten people with a raging fiery furnace and get them all to bow down and worship his idol. Essentially, the entire Babylonian Empire would bow before his idol – except three young Hebrew fellows. However, think about all those other people. Was their bowing real? Was it not clearly forced upon them? Obviously, it was not real, and, in fact, it proved nothing except that Nebuchadnezzar was a brutal bully.

There again, you may have the power to threaten people into doing almost anything, but have you changed their heart? No. It has always been true of even the most powerful kings who ever lived, there is one thing they cannot do. They cannot change a human heart.

To “call beside,” to urge, to appeal are all words that communicate respect. They are words that woo, words that draw. That is how you can speak to people with “good” hearts, people you are confident want to do right, and that is what is true of every real believer. At this point in the book of Romans, if you have to command people, it only proves they haven’t really understood those first eleven chapters.

Now, I have to insert an excurses on this business of commands. Someone may object, “But what about all the commands in the NT? That word has not disappeared. What about Jesus’ words, ‘A new command I give you…?” First of all, yes, the word “command” is still clearly present in the NT. However, stop and consider that it appears in its various forms about 800x in the OT, but drops to only about 100 in the New. In this Church age and with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, believers simply don’t need to be constantly “commanded.”

However, as we are all too aware, while I am indwelt by the Holy Spirit and sincerely want to do right, my Adamic sin nature is still quite present and ever longing to drag me back down to hell. Paul addressed this soundly in chapter 7. “So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me” (vv. 22,23)

Although we are born-again, we still have that sin nature. Personally I like to think of the “commands” of the NT as like guard-rails on the highway. Although I certainly want to stay in my lane, I am also keenly aware of how easily I can lose concentration or fall asleep at the wheel and plunge myself over a cliff. Those guard-rails are there to keep me on that “straight-and-narrow.” I want there to be guard-rails, and so it is in my Christian life. Precisely because I want to obey God, I actually appreciate the “guard-rails” of God’s commands.

So, yes, they are still there. To me, anyone who has ever been required to supervise people knows it’s true. You can have one very compliant student or worker who actually wants to please you and whom you can give a great deal of freedom, confident they want to do right. Then you can have another person who seems to have been born with what I would call a wanderlust. They take a lot of watching, a lot of commanding, but it is precisely because they don’t want to obey. If you and I are truly born-again, we have become that first person, and so the 800 commands drops to only 100. You and I only need “commands” as guard-rails, while those yet outside of Christ can only be commanded.

End of excursus. What I am saying is all supported by the very next phrase, “because of the mercies of God.” Paul can urge us “because of the mercies of God.” The “mercies of God” is basically those first eleven chapters of Romans -- because of the Gospel, because of grace, because, from the very bottom of our souls we thank God for our salvation, we need only urging, not someone standing over us with a whip.

There is much more to say, but I will stop here. I would suggest, if we should take away anything from these words, it would be to simply re-commit in our hearts to being submissive to our Lord’s will. Though that battle rages within us, and perhaps even because of that battle, we can look up to Jesus in the very deep gratitude of our hearts and say, “Yes, Lord, I do believe,” then add, “help my unbelief!”

I hope as I wander through the rest of the book of Romans, I can constantly keep in mind, every word that is written is written for people who want to obey. Although the Spirit within in me makes me one of those people, I am also keenly aware my sin nature is alive and well. And so I hear the Lord calling to me, “Do not be like the horse or the mule, which must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you,” rather, “Let me guide you by My eye” (Ps. 32:8,9).

Yes, Lord, help me not be a stubborn mule You have to constantly command. Help me to be that person you can guide simply by Your eye. May I only require of You urging.