(from pages 153-156, "The Epistle to the Romans, a Gospel for All", Lawrence R. Farley, Conciliar Press, Ben Lomand, CA)

Post Edited (PotOnWheel) : 6/1/2008 2:34:56 PM (GMT-5)

IV. I    Living as a Holy Sacrifice

I exhort you, therefore, brothers, by the com­passions of God, to present your bodies a liv­ing and holy sacrifice, well-pleasing to God, which is your rational worship. And do not be conformed to this age, but be transfigured by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, that which is good and well-pleasing and perfect.

 

St. Paul bases his exhortation to live the new life in Christ on an appeal to the compassions of God, of which he has previously spo­ken. In the previous chapters he dwelt at length upon "the depth of the riches" of the "wisdom and knowledge of God" (11:33). There­fore, because of this great mercy offered to us, we must respond by presenting our bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, one which is well-pleasing and acceptable to Him. This is our true and rational

worship.

 

The apostle is addressing the Roman Christians as a corporate body, and this sacrificial presentation is also a corporate one. It is, in fact, a reference to the weekly Eucharist. It is in the Eucharist that this sacrifice is made.

 

The Eucharist is our corporate and liturgical offering of the one, unique, and unrepeatable Sacrifice of Christ. On the Cross, He of­fered Himself as the Lamb of God, taking away the sins of the world, and He remained in heaven as the Lamb slain (Rev. 5:6), His Pres­ence at God's right hand being our living and effectual intercession before the Father's throne (Heb. 7:25). In the Eucharist, the Church presents afresh that Sacrifice, making an anamnesis (or memorial) of it and knowing its presence and power in our midst. The Eucha­rist is therefore that Sacrifice, eternal in the heavens, present here in time on our altars.

 

But the Eucharist is not merely our offering and thankful presentation of Christ's Sacrifice. It is also, in union with that Sac­rifice, the sacrifice of ourselves. For the Church that presents the sacrificial Body of Christ is also itself that Body. In the words of St. Augustine, "If you are the Body of Christ and His members, your mystery is presented at the Table of the Lord" (Sermon 272). In the Eucharist, Christ gathers us together with Himself, so that "we, who are many, are one Body, for we all partake of the one Bread" (1 Cor. 10:17). The Eucharist therefore constitutes the Church as Christ's Body.

 

It is in this context and against this background that St. Paul exhorts us to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice. Unlike the dead sacrifices of slaughtered animals, it must be a living sacrifice, as we live out our consecration day after day. As sacrifices were required to be unblemished, it must be holy, as we too strive to live unblemished and unstained by the world. Only thus can our self-oblation be well-pleasing to God, meet with His acceptance, and result in His blessing. Formerly, our bodies were used in the service of the devil, but now they are to be used in the service of God. This self-offering is our rational worship.

 

The words translated as rational worship are the Greek logiken latreian. Latreia is of course the usual word used to describe the cultic worship of God (see Heb. 9:1), and St. Paul uses it to describe the worship of the Temple (Rom. 9:4). Our self-oblation in the Eucharist is our latreia in that it is the sacrifice we offer as Chris­tians. The sacrifices of pagans (and Jews) are carnal, consisting of the offering of dead animals. But our sacrifice is not carnal, but logike or rational—the sacrifice of our living selves. The word logike is cognate with the word logos, meaning (among other things) "word, reason, rationality." It was through His Logos (that is, His Son) that God made the world (John 1:1-3)—the Logos is the principle and Wisdom according to which all was made (see Prov. 8:22f; 1 Cor. 1:24). Our liturgical self-offering is logike in that it consists of im­material and spiritual things—the sacrifice of our praise and love, our minds and hearts.

 

In our eucharistic worship, therefore, St. Paul exhorts us to dedi­cate ourselves afresh to God, uniting ourselves to Christ in His Sac­rifice, walking as living members of His Body.

 

If we do that, we will not be conformed to this age. This age is ever calling on us to adapt ourselves to its schema, or form and out­ward appearance. It pressures us to look and act like everyone else in this age, to become worldly, to drop our faith and different ways of behaving. St. Paul encourages us to resist this pressure and in­stead be transfigured (Gr. metamorphoo, the same word used in Matt. 17:2 for the Transfiguration of Christ) by the renewing of your mind. We must not let our minds and mental habits become corrupt, growing old and degenerate like the world. Instead, we must let our minds be renewed (Gr. anakaino), growing fresh and brand-new (Gr. kainos), by dwelling on what God wills (see

Eph. 4:22, 23).

 

Then we will prove what is the will of God, discerning it and doing it. The world around us, growing old and callous in sin, can­not discern such things. But we can. If we will allow our minds to be renewed by God, then we can know and recognize what is truly good and well-pleasing to Him and perfect (Gr. teleios), reaching the goal (Gr. telos) of pleasing the Lord.

 

§IV.2   Living as one member among many

For I say, through the grace given to me, to

everyone among you, not to be high-minded

beyond what you ought to mind, but to mind

so as to be of sound-mind, as God divided-up

to each a measure of faith.

 

For just as we have many members in one

body and all members do not have the same

practice, thus we, who are many, are one Body in Christ

and each one members of another.

And having spiritual-gifts differing according

to the grace given to us, let us use them: if

prophecy, according to the proportion of the

faith;

 

7    if service, in the service; or the one teaching, in the teaching;

8    or the one exhorting, in the exhortation; the one imparting, in simplicity; the one presid­ing, in eagerness; the one showing mercy, in cheerfulness.

 

The apostle continues to exhort his readers. He is emphatic in his exhortation, beginning with For I say and drawing upon his apostolic authority, the grace given to him, and addressing every­one among you. Obviously, St. Paul feels strongly about this!—for he knows the danger of keeping aloof from one's brothers and sis­ters and of living independently of them. He therefore orders us not to be high-minded beyond what you ought to mind, but to mind so as to be of sound-mind. The sentence is difficult to trans­late into English, with the word phroneo and its cognates being used repeatedly. The word phroneo means "to mind, to think, to have a certain attitude or focus." We are not to be high-minded (Gr. uperphroneo) or conceited, thinking ourselves better than our neighbors. We should not think (Gr. phroneo) more highly of our­selves than we ought, but think and mind (Gr. phroneo) so as to be of sound-mind, moderate and reasonable (Gr. sophroneo). That is, any sense of superiority is unreasonable. God divided-up to each a • measure of faith; each must therefore recognize in all humility that he is set in the Body as but one member, and must strive to perform his given task for the common good. God has not given all His gifts to any single person. Each one has his own allotted gift and task.

 

It is the same with the human body. There are many members in a single human body, and all those different members do not have the same practice, task or function (Gr. praxis). So also it is with the Church, the Body of Christ. We who are many and vari­ous, with different tasks, gifts, and functions, are still nonetheless iOne Body in Christ, so that each one is a member of the others. None can consider himself independent of the others, nor legiti­mately stand aloof. As members of the human body are inseparably joined together, so we too are inseparably joined to our brothers and sisters in Christ. And as members of the human body share the same biological life and care for one another, so we too must care for one another and use our gifts for mutual service and common upbuilding.

 

. . .

 

 

Post Edited (PotOnWheel) : 6/1/2008 2:57:10 PM (GMT-5)

Hey, Tom.  Greg actually talked about human beings being MIRRORS of God to Godself in today's sermon!

Heh.

Post Edited (Son) : 6/1/2008 3:15:25 PM (GMT-5)

Farley: The apostle is addressing the Roman Christians as a corporate body, and this sacrificial presentation is also a corporate one. It is, in fact, a reference to the weekly Eucharist. It is in the Eucharist that this sacrifice is made.

Tom: The text says no such thing and there is no such ‘fact’ of the matter. He WANTS it to say that. He’d LIKE it to mean that. But the only ‘fact’ I see is his bringing his theology TO the text. He doesn’t get it FROM the text (and the textual evidence he discusses doesn’t make it even plausible that the text is speaking of the Eucharist).

-----------------

POW: I really think that when a “memorialist” looks at the Big Picture, of _both_ things about the Eucharist, they will get it.

and

D: I hope so, B. The stuff seems pretty much right there to me.

Tom: Come on guys. Is it so difficult for you to accept that memorialists can see the big picture and can really understand your arguments regarding Eucharist and still be unconvinced and find the evidence for the memorial position to be more convincing? It seems a bit condescending to imply (as B does here; not intentionally I’m sure, but the implication is there) that memorialists are only memorialists because the fail to really understand the Orthodox (or whichever) view. Maybe some memorialists really do 'get' your view but just find it unconvincing. What if I said, "Bruce just rejects the memorialist view because he doesn't yet 'grasp' the big picture, doesn't yet REALLY understand or 'get' it. If he DID, he'd be a memorialist"? That's a bit condescending on my part because it presumes that no thinking person who really understood me would disagree with me.

-----------------------

D: Hey, Tom. Greg actually talked about human beings being MIRRORS of God to Godself in today's sermon! Heh.

Tom: What’s problematic about God seeing himself in us like a mirror? No problem for me there. I see myself in my kids without effectually denying their personal distinction from me or the interpersonal nature of our relationship. God should see himself in us. But you want “mirror” to be MORE than just a metaphor that captures as aspect of who and what we are to God. You want it to function on a deeper level, so that a mirror is ALL we are and God is ALL God sees in us. Ask Greg if he’ll agree with THAT.

T

Post Edited (Tom) : 6/2/2008 4:43:43 PM (GMT-5)

Post Edited (Sahid) : 6/2/2008 6:28:16 PM (GMT-5)

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But the Eucharist is not merely our offering and thankful presentation of Christ's Sacrifice. It is also, in union with that Sac­rifice, the sacrifice of ourselves. For the Church that presents the sacrificial Body of Christ is also itself that Body. In the words of St. Augustine, "If you are the Body of Christ and His members, your mystery is presented at the Table of the Lord" (Sermon 272). In the Eucharist, Christ gathers us together with Himself, so that "we, who are many, are one Body, for we all partake of the one Bread" (1 Cor. 10:17). The Eucharist therefore constitutes the Church as Christ's Body.

• ...the Church that presents the sacrificial Body of Christ is also itself that Body...
• ...your mystery is presented at the Table of the Lord"...
• ...Christ gathers us together with Himself, so that "we, who are many, are one Body...
• ...The Eucharist therefore constitutes the Church as Christ's Body...

Post Edited (PotOnWheel) : 6/2/2008 9:26:19 PM (GMT-5)

POW: No[w] do me the honor of thinking about this, and at least notice!

Tom: You’re demanding that I do you the honor of noticing and thinking about what you say? I think that about does it for me.

T

...it is NOT fine with me that you...ignore the main thing that I was saying!

 

Did you ONLY see one idea in the paragraph below? Let me help you with color. It is your "getting" that second part that I expressed hope.

But the Eucharist is not merely our offering and thankful presentation of Christ's Sacrifice. It is also, in union with that Sac­rifice, the sacrifice of ourselves. For the Church that presents the sacrificial Body of Christ is also itself that Body. In the words of St. Augustine, "If you are the Body of Christ and His members, your mystery is presented at the Table of the Lord" (Sermon 272). In the Eucharist, Christ gathers us together with Himself, so that "we, who are many, are one Body, for we all partake of the one Bread" (1 Cor. 10:17). The Eucharist therefore constitutes the Church as Christ's Body.

Tom, I go to a Reformed church, and THEY are very strong on this second part.

 

. . .

 

No do me the honor of thinking about this, and at least notice!

 

B.