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This devotion pairs with this weekend’s Lutheran Hour sermon, which can be found at lhm.org.
Romans 12:5-6a – So we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them ….”
Coaches say that the name on the front of the jersey is more important than the name on the back. But when I played football in high school, our jerseys didn’t even have names on the back. Sometimes, I resented that. Usually when I did something I thought was applause-worthy, and I wanted people in the stands to rise up on their feet, and worship me, like a little, golden idol, then I wished that they could see my name on the back. But, when I messed up, when I missed a tackle or got called for a false start or a penalty of some sort, I was all too happy to hide, anonymously, in the huddle. But you can’t hide from your teammates or your coaches. They don’t need any identification on the back of a jersey to call you out. And that’s the beauty of being on a team. A team can nudge us out of a “me-first” mindset.
In the 12th chapter of the letter to the Christians in Rome, the apostle Paul calls them out of that old mindset, out of the pattern of “this age,” this “present evil age” (see Romans 12:2; Galatians 1:4). Paul’s been teaching how Jesus came to save us from this mindset, to provide the antidote to me-first thinking. He sums it up with the phrase, “the mercies of God.” The mercies of God turn the pattern of this present evil age right-side out. God’s mercies don’t erase our names. God’s mercies put us in the right place, the right order. God’s mercies assure us that we are known, included, part of the team, called out and sent out.
Mercy is an others-focused attitude, because God is an others-first God. God isn’t a solo competitor. God is the eternal Team of Three: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Father puts the Son first. The Son puts the Father first. This is the Team Spirit between them.
Teamwork goes to the heart of reality. So, God’s Son He became one of us, joined our team, to give us this mindset. His others-first way of life culminated in His sacrifice for us on the cross. And He rose from the dead to put this Name—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—on front.
How does this team work? A friend of mine shared this observation. She was huddled with her church one Sunday morning and saw Team Jesus in action. She saw His body doing the next loving thing that needed to be done. In her line of vision that day, it included welcoming a homeless person before early service, driving a pair of people home who didn’t have a car, cleaning up after Communion, offering job advice to a new grad, peacemaking in an argument, giving to a beggar, warming up someone’s lunch, coping with someone’s hearing aids, reading the Bible during late service, and laughing at someone’s truly terrible joke. None of it was applause worthy by stadium standards. But Team Jesus has a different way of thinking about such things, don’t we?
WE PRAY: Lord Jesus, thank You for thinking to include me in Your body, on Your Team. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Rev. Dr. Michael Zeigler, Speaker for The Lutheran Hour.
Reflection Questions:
- When have you been “called out” as a member of a team, ensemble, or group?
- How have you seen the pattern of “this age” (see Romans 12:2) creep into the church?
- Do you have a specific memory of seeing the body of Christ (a church in community) working together in love? If you were to tell a story about this, what would the title be?
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