As God’s messenger, I give each of you this warning, be honest in your estimate of yourselves, measuring your value by how much faith God has given you.”
Romans 12:3 NLT
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word warning? Danger is the first thing that comes to my mind. Webster’s dictionary says that to warn means “ to make aware of potential danger.” You may find it hard to believe that over estimating yourself can be dangerous but let me give you an example.
Have you ever seen anyone walk on their hands? With practice you may learn also. You may become very good at walking on your hands but your hands are not engineered to hold up under that kind of pressure like your feet. It’s a lot more difficult to keep your balance, to see where you are going, and if you lose balance there is no way to break your fall. When the hands try to take the place of the feet, they endanger themselves and jeopardize the safety of the whole body. No matter how good you get you still can not obtain a level of performance that compares to that of the feet. I’ve never seen anyone run on their hands.. In order for the body to function efficiently, it is crucial for each body part to know it’s limitations and perform within their boundaries. This is not evident in the body of Christ. I see one, two or maybe three trying to do it all. I don’t think that it is a result of a lack of co-operation from the other body parts either. I believe it’s a result of some not being honest in their self-estimation. This may not be true in every situation, but it is true in the majority of them. Maybe once upon a time it was impressive to see someone walk on their hands, but not anymore. I think it’s boring. I feel the same way when I see the body of Christ and only a selected few trying to do it all. BORING!!! To see an accomplished athlete perform, using the majority of his or her body parts is a very exciting thing to witness. I think the same is true concerning the body of Christ.
Paul said you are to measure your value by how much faith God has given you. We are not to measure our value by comparing ourselves with others. We must know our gift’s limitations. I believe there is way too much overshadowing in the body of Christ. In other words, too much showing off and it needs to stop! The King James version reads not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think.
So let’s heed the warning. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to help us obtain a correct estimate of ourselves. Discerning the limitations and boundaries of our gifts, and operate responsibly within them. When we act outside of our gift’s limitations what image does the body of Christ project? How many hands does it have? How many feet? How many heads? Let’s encourage one another to be content with our gifts and not to become jealous of each other’s gifts. When we begin to do this the body of Christ will be something to behold ( to stand in awe and look upon). I believe if we will do as Paul prescribed with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, the body of Christ will project the image like a beautiful bride with movements so graceful that it will astound the world.
Romans 12:3 NLT
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the word warning? Danger is the first thing that comes to my mind. Webster’s dictionary says that to warn means “ to make aware of potential danger.” You may find it hard to believe that over estimating yourself can be dangerous but let me give you an example.
Have you ever seen anyone walk on their hands? With practice you may learn also. You may become very good at walking on your hands but your hands are not engineered to hold up under that kind of pressure like your feet. It’s a lot more difficult to keep your balance, to see where you are going, and if you lose balance there is no way to break your fall. When the hands try to take the place of the feet, they endanger themselves and jeopardize the safety of the whole body. No matter how good you get you still can not obtain a level of performance that compares to that of the feet. I’ve never seen anyone run on their hands.. In order for the body to function efficiently, it is crucial for each body part to know it’s limitations and perform within their boundaries. This is not evident in the body of Christ. I see one, two or maybe three trying to do it all. I don’t think that it is a result of a lack of co-operation from the other body parts either. I believe it’s a result of some not being honest in their self-estimation. This may not be true in every situation, but it is true in the majority of them. Maybe once upon a time it was impressive to see someone walk on their hands, but not anymore. I think it’s boring. I feel the same way when I see the body of Christ and only a selected few trying to do it all. BORING!!! To see an accomplished athlete perform, using the majority of his or her body parts is a very exciting thing to witness. I think the same is true concerning the body of Christ.
Paul said you are to measure your value by how much faith God has given you. We are not to measure our value by comparing ourselves with others. We must know our gift’s limitations. I believe there is way too much overshadowing in the body of Christ. In other words, too much showing off and it needs to stop! The King James version reads not to think more highly of yourself than you ought to think.
So let’s heed the warning. Let’s ask the Holy Spirit to help us obtain a correct estimate of ourselves. Discerning the limitations and boundaries of our gifts, and operate responsibly within them. When we act outside of our gift’s limitations what image does the body of Christ project? How many hands does it have? How many feet? How many heads? Let’s encourage one another to be content with our gifts and not to become jealous of each other’s gifts. When we begin to do this the body of Christ will be something to behold ( to stand in awe and look upon). I believe if we will do as Paul prescribed with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit, the body of Christ will project the image like a beautiful bride with movements so graceful that it will astound the world.
