r12 – God’s Greatest Asset
Romans 12:3 (in the context of Romans 12: 3-8)
3 Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us. NLT
3 I’m speaking to you out of deep gratitude for all that God has given me, and especially as I have responsibilities in relation to you. Living then, as every one of you does, in pure grace, it’s important that you not misinterpret yourselves as people who are bringing this goodness to God. No, God brings it all to you. The only accurate way to understand ourselves is by what God is and by what he does for us, not by what we are and what we do for him. The Message
“Many years ago a man conned his way into the orchestra of the emperor of China although he could not play a note. Whenever the group practiced or performed, he would hold his flute against his lips, pretending to play but not making a sound. He received a modest salary and enjoyed a comfortable living Then one day the emperor requested a solo from each musician. The flutist got nervous. There wasn’t enough time to learn the instrument. He pretended to be sick, but the royal physician wasn’t fooled. On the day of his performance, the impostor took poison and killed himself. The explanation of his suicide led to a phrase that found its way into the English language: “He refused to face the music”. -Max Lucado – Just like Jesus
A life that is being transformed isn’t afraid to face the music about themselves:
- We have all fallen short of the glory of God.
- We have all sinned against God.
- All of us have a checkered past.
- All of us have pride issues.
- All of us have insecurities.
We don’t have to respond like Adam and Eve did in the garden and go and run and hide. Not a one of us is exempt. God knows our insecurities. God knows our checkered past. God knows we have pride issues. He needs us to be honest about them. Because that is when he can begin the transformation process.
We spend a lot of time being an impostor trying to cover up our pride and/or our insecurities. We either think to highly of ourselves and allow our pride to rule our life or we think to lowly of ourselves and allow our insecurities to rule our life. We need to face the music about ourselves and be honest in your evaluation of yourself, we are to measure ourselves by the faith God has given you.
Some translations of Romans 12:3 say we are to think soberly of ourselves. In other words don’t get drunk on yourself.
- A life that is being transformed doesn’t think they are better than they really are.
- A life that is being transformed doesn’t think they are worse than they really are.
- A life that has been transformed doesn’t think of themselves at all.
Luke 14:11 puts this in perspective (NLT): 11 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
In other words, if you think to highly of yourself – you will be humbled. If you think to lowly of yourself – you will be humbled.
A transformed life doesn’t think of themselves at all. If you can remember the story of from a couple of weeks ago about the grasshopper and the ant, according to little Marky (the little boy in the story), the ant didn’t think of himself at all. He simply gave it all to the grasshopper. The ant died so that the grasshopper could live. We need to allow the impostor in us to die. In order to really live. This high view of yourself or this low view of yourself needs to die! They only view of yourself that matters is God thinks of you.
Those that have died, look at themselves honestly and realize that their value only comes from God and putting their faith in what God says about them. This allows them not to think about how really good they are or how really bad they are. It doesn’t allow them to think of themselves at all.
A transformed life doesn’t think of themselves at all. A transformed life only cares about what God thinks of them.
His view of you is the only right one.
We have a culture that will define your view. We have friends that will define your view. You have a media culture that will define your view. We have people of influence that will define your view. Their view of you is only going to puff you up or tear you down. No one can give you and accurate view of yourself but God alone.
Look at how God views his own son in Matthew 3:16-17:
16 After his baptism, as Jesus came up out of the water, the heavens were opened[a] and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and settling on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.”
Not only does this apply to Jesus – but this is God’s view of you. You are His dearly beloved son or daughter – who brings him great joy!
YOU BRING HIM GREAT JOY! How can I bring God great joy? I have messed my life up. I have made too many mistakes. I have sinned against him. We have this inaccurate view that there is no way I can bring God great joy. You don’t have to do anything to bring him joy because you are His joy! Your mistakes and all. When he knit you together in your mothers’ womb you became his joy. He has already accepted you – will you step out in faith and accept His view of you?
Think about it. Those of you who have kids or love kids and have been around kids at any time. We watch them mess up. We watch them disobey. And if you didn’t get angry at them when they did, you obviously didn’t care about them at all in the first place. We don’t throw them out of our house if they are disobedient or mess up. Why? Because they are our joy! Despite all the disobedience and the mess ups – they still bring you joy. Don’t they?
God, who is much bigger than us and whose love for us is perfect, finds great joy in you.
My dad gave me a really good picture of this when I was a teenager.
I had just got my license. I got permission to take the car and experience that freedom you get when you are behind the wheel of a car. The whole trip went well until I was just a few miles from home. I rammed into a ladies back left quarter panel – which she just got fixed. I was scared to death – The lady cussed me out in the cop car. I was in tears. I was messed up. After that I had to go home and tell my dad. I was scared to death once again. I told my dad what had happened. I was expected to be grounded, banned from the car for a few months. He simply said to me, “are you OK? Then he laughed at me and said, “The car can be fixed.”
My father gave me a beautiful picture of what was really important to him – His relationship with me. I didn’t do anything to deserve my dad’s kindness. In reality I deserved his wrath. He showed me mercy and compassion.
God’s relationship with you is the most important thing to Him. You are his joy!
- You are more important to Him than the Nation Debt.
- You are more important to Him than the government shutdown.
- You are more important to Him than a catastrophic event.
We deserve wrath – but we get to worship.
We deserve punishment – but we get to pray and ask forgiveness.
The scriptures go on to say:
John 15:15 – I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me.
You are his friend! God has confidence in you! Despite your hang-ups, despite our shortcomings, despite our insecurities, YOU ARE HIS CONFIDANT! He trusts you. He has given you one or more spiritual gifts, he has given you talents and abilities. He has entrusted you with these things.
So whatever He has put in you – you are to go and invest it in others.
If you have the gift of prophesy – then prophesy.
If you have the gift to serve others – then serve.
If you have the gift to teach – then teach.
If you have the gift to encourage – then encourage.
If you have the gift of giving then give well
If you have the gift of leadership – then lead.
If you have the gift of showing kindness to others – then show kindness.
I Peter 4:10 – 10 God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another.
A lot of followers of Christ have a totally inaccurate view of themselves. They see themselves as God’s greatest disappointment instead of God’s greatest asset. They focus on their inadequacies and not their abilities They focus on their sinfulness and not forgiveness. They focus on their shortcomings instead of God’s short memory.
You are his greatest asset
A lot of us feel like J.E.
J.E. was a very angry man. In fact, at age 54 he’d been angry person for many years. In a Bible study one night, many questions had been raised in his mind. Talking with the leader afterward, J.E. said, “I asked Jesus to be my Savior when I was 9 years old. But nobody ever taught me about who I am in Christ, that I am accepted by God or that Christ lives in me.”
“What were you taught?”, the Bible study leader asked. “Where I grew up, we heard all the time about how perfect Christ was and about how we should learn to live like Him – if we didn’t , God would judge us.” JE went on, “It didn’t take me very long, I’d say in my teen years, to figure out that I was never going to cut it. So I gave up trying. I guess I’ve been living in guilt and running from God ever since. Off and on through the years I tried to get back to church, but I just got more guilt piled up on top of me. I’ve sat under so many teachers who made me fearful that I was afraid to turn in any direction because God was going to get me. This is the first Bible study I’ve ever attended that gave me hope.”
No one ever told JE that he was God’s friend. No one ever told JE that he was God’s confidant. No one ever told JE that God trusted him. No one ever told JE that he was God’s greatest asset. He lived with an unhealthy fear of God. He was afraid that God was out to get him. He spent 45 years running away from God.
Why is an accurate view of yourself so important? Because if you don’t understand how important you are to God – then he will never become important to you.
Look at what God says in Luke 12:48b:
When someone has been given much, much will be required in return; and when someone has been entrusted with much, even more will be required.
God has put a lot in you! You are the most important part of his story. He wants to be the most important part of your story.
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