Connected
and do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. Romans 12:2
And – How many times have you heard this verse? Dozens, I’ll bet, but we often miss the connection in this verse. It is not a stand-alone declaration of spiritual progression. It is tied to something else – the part that comes before the “and”. Without the connection, the rest of Paul’s exhortation isn’t effective.
kai in Greek is such a simple word. Obviously, it’s used thousands of times. Nevertheless, its frequency doesn’t not mean it is not important. In this verse, it’s vital. We will never be transformed unless we take the first step and the first step is not found in this verse.
What’s the first step? “Present your body a living sacrifice.” Ah, now we see why Paul speaks about the renewing of your mind in this verse. He has already covered the sacrifice of your body in the previous verse. The two are tied together. Paul is not endorsing a separation of the mental and the physical (a Greek dichotomy). He is being a good Hebrew. Mind and body are one. If you won’t sacrifice your body, you cannot renew your mind.
Oh, darn (or something stronger)! It would have been so much easier to separate body and mind. It would have been so convenient to take the mental-spiritual route and focus my religious attention on my thoughts instead of my deeds. That’s what I really want (says the yetzer ha’ra). Just let me contemplate the divine, improve my spiritual intuition and revel in the wonder of the words. But don’t ask me to give up my bodily desires. Don’t ask me to put my behavior on the altar. I don’t mind giving God my mind as long as I can hang on to what I do with my body. Being a “carnal” Christian is a pretty good deal. It allows me to have it both ways.
Of course, that little obnoxious word kai ruins everything. If I am going to experience transformation, if I am going to know what it means to renew my mind, then I must sacrifice my body first. Obedience comes before knowledge. Sacrifice before renewal. There is no spiritual development in mind only. If you aren’t experiencing daily delight in the Spirit, look first to the body. You might find something that didn’t get placed on the altar.
Topical Index: body, mind, renewal, sacrifice, Romans 12:2, kai
Well I feel like I’ve just been politely chastised! A lesson that has me performing self examination before I finished reading it. I appreciate today’s message, Skip.
This must have something to do with Paul saying “I die daily…”, when I hear the command I obey and then my mind is transformed. Having returned from a week long meeting in Ohio where I went under the waters of babtism, I decided to fast from television. I got rid of 2 tely’s and spent the next 30 some days spending time with God in worship and seeking Him, that I would usually spend before the tv. This “fast” was instrumental in my learning to die daily, not that I have attained that completely, sometimes the dead wants to rise up. Usually now I recognize what is happening rather quickly and have to tell my body “your dead remeber?” Thanks Skip for your diligence in bringing forth the Word daily. So I can examine myself with it as looking into a mirror.
A fellow traveler of the Way,
Jeffrey
Shalom Jeffrey,
I missed this post … until now!
Very cool. Often times simple removal from things that take away our attention from Him …. ain’t so easy is it.
Praise The Lord
<> -“kai”- a word of connectivity. I like it. Bringing things together. “G-d was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself.” G-d is a G-d of diversity, but He more importantly is a G=d of unity(shalom) and wholeness(shalom). He is Lord of heaven AND Lord of earth. Lord of the Greeks AND the Hebrews. Male AND Female. Thou shalt love the Lord thy G-d with all thy heart (and) with all thy soul, AND with all thy strength AND love your neighbor as yourself. A small word but such a wonderful word!
Hi Carl,
Very elegantly stated! And just about perfect from my point of view.
It certainly makes me feel a lot more comfortable than your references to blood and sacrifice 🙂
But don’t get me wrong; though I’m a bit squeamish about blood, I’m a big fan of Quentin Tarantino movies.
And your style often reminds me of his movies.
By the way Skip … the living sacrifice you speak of …. you are discussing fashioning our lives after that of Yeshua and subsequently fashioning our lives in a way that looks like Torah?
Correct assessment?
Living sacrifice is a concept that only makes sense in the context of the Temple and Torah. To remove it from that context is to misinterpret the meaning of the words. So, yes, if we are going to talk about living sacrifice, then we are talking Torah.
Just checking brother … thought as much … just like to get you on recrod! LOL 🙂