Bible Study - ELCA Assembly 2001
"Transformed From Competition to Commuinity:
Reflections on Romans 12:1-8

Sue M. Setzer, LHD, Diaconal Minister

Greetings

I bring greetings from the 50 consecrated ELCA diaconal ministers from all across the country. Forty-five of us gathered together with other church leaders on Monday through Wednesday earlier this week to worship, share stories, study, pray, and develop as a community of the church. We heard Romans 12 read during the opening Eucharist and these verses grounded our first session. They guided us as we asked this question: What gifts do we have to meet needs in this community, the church, and God's world? In powerful ways, Romans 12 shaped our days and our deeds, transforming us from individual servants into a community, one expression of the body of Christ. Let me tell you how this happened.

Diaconal Ministry

But first, I want to clear up the pronunciation of the relatively unfamiliar term: diaconal ministry. It is spelled D-I-A-C-O-N-A-L and it comes from the Greek work diakonia, which simply means service or ministry. I've heard the word pronounced with a long I and a short I. I've heard emphasis on one syllable and on no syllables. Dictionaries give different pronunciations. When I asked a group of diaconal ministers how to pronounce the term, one of my dear Midwestern colleagues replied, "Sue, with your Southern accent, it doesn't matter which pronunciation you use. It all sounds the same." Bishop Anderson, perhaps you can translate for me since you lived in South Carolina! The pronunciation used most frequently during the Diaconal Ministry Gathering was diaconal.

This morning we will build on yesterday's Bible study and look at another slant to the mission of this Assembly: Making Christ Known: Sharing Faith in a New Century. Here is what I have learned about Romans 12 from the diaconal ministry community:

The triune God transforms us from competition to community and frees us to use our gifts as the body of Christ.

I know this is true because I am one of many living in that transformational process through a small part of Christ's body, the diaconal ministry community. What we are discovering together, and what I trust the Assembly is experiencing as well, is the amazing freedom God gives to as we are transformed from competition to community.

Romans

Let's look at the book of Romans again. We need to see our eight assigned verses in the context of the entire book of Romans, or we'll miss the point. Let me encourage you to read the entire epistle this week, preferably at one sitting. At one point, Martin Luther wrote that the book of Romans is "the most important document in the New Testament, the Gospel in its purest expression. ... It is the soul's daily bread, and can never be read too often, or studied too much." [Quoted in Alexandra R. Brown, The Cross and Human Transformation (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995), 139.]

Paul begins his letter to the church in Rome with painfully vivid details of life apart from God, centered on self and conformed to the world. Conformity to "the world" of the first century does not look much different from "the world" of the twenty-first. That's the bad news.

Fortunately, Paul spends far more time explaining the Good News. Here is the Gospel according to Paul in a sound byte from Romans:

"For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by God's grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith." (Romans 3:22b-25a)

This is good news. God in Christ Jesus has already transformed creation. By the time Paul reaches the end of chapter 11, he runs out of prose and bursts into poetry. Just before launching into our verses for the week, Paul virtually sings:

"O the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are God's judgments and how inscrutable God's ways!.. For from God and through God and to God are all things. To God be the glory forever. Amen." (Romans 11:33, 36)

Amen! Because God has already given the gift of Jesus Christ, therefore we are transformed and are continually being transformed. God has freed us from competition, continuously frees us to use our gifts in community as the body of Christ. "Because God has acted, therefore we are transformed! Let's listen to the words being read to us. This is the way the community of Christians in Rome heard them in the middle of the first century. I've invited a member of the Lutheran Youth Organization to read these verses to us. As you listen, notice clues that lead to our theme for the day: The Triune God transforms us from competition to community and frees us to use our gifts as the body of Christ. Paul writes:

"I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God -- what is good and acceptable and perfect.

"For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us; prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation, the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness."

Thank you. It is very hard to stop here. These eight verses are sandwiched in between two powerful sections that give them meaning. Paul goes on to describe the quality of life in the body of Christ. "Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord." And so much more!

Back to our focus. Did you pick up any clues about how God transforms us from competition to community and frees us to use our gifts as the body of Christ?

Competition

Let's look at something all know about: competition. Wherever two or three people are gathered together, there is competition. Yes, even in the diaconal ministry community. Competition is the way of the world, the way of self-centeredness, the way of life apart from God. Competition sets up winners and losers, putting one person above another, and that always means putting someone down.

There's a long list of competitors in Scripture. Remember Cain and Abel competing over their offerings to God? Or Sarai and Hagar competing to have Abram's baby? Recall Joseph and his brothers competing for Daddy's favor. How about Mary and Martha, competing for Jesus' attention? And then there is the mother of the Zebedee boys who only wanted her precious sons to have the honor they deserved. Any parent can identify with that!

I'll risk a confession. When Bishop Anderson's assistant Myrna Sheie first contacted me about presenting a Bible study to this Assembly, I was honored, scared, and I stalled for while. When I called back to accept, I asked to be scheduled as the second or third presenter. Now, I can say with sober judgment that God has given me gifts in the areas of teaching and counseling, but not in public speaking. I calculated that I would be compared more favorably to the other three Bible study leaders if I were squeezed in the middle. Right now, I'm not so sure that strategy was wise, but here is the point. By knee-jerk reaction, I am competitive. There, I said it. True Confession #1.

Before you shake your finger at me too hard, be honest with yourself. How many times during this assembly have you compared yourself with someone else, to your advantage or theirs? How often have you wished you had the gifts God has given to someone else in this hall – gifts of leadership or teaching or compassion? Think with sober judgment, now. When have you felt a bit smug, even proud about the gifts God has given to you? Remember, "If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us!" We are all chronic competitors, standing in need of transformation.

Thank God, we are not bound to compete. That's why we must read the Good News in Paul first. Only then we can see how the Triune God transforms us from competition to community and frees us to use our gifts as the body of Christ.

Community

Now, let's look at community. Wherever two or three are gathered together, there is community of some sort. The question is, "Into what sort of community is God transforming us right now?" Earlier this week, a motley band of fifty or so diaconal ministers and friends came together to try to figure out what community means and how we can live it out while scattered across the continent. It might be helpful if I take a few minutes at this point to tell you who diaconal ministers are and why we were gathering together this week. Diaconal ministry is the ELCA's new shape of the historic diaconate. To date, 50 have been consecrated as diaconal ministers and some 128 more are officially enrolled as candidates for diaconal ministry.

In 1993, the Churchwide Assembly in sessions just like this discerned that the newly formed ELCA needed a new officially recognized form of ministry. Here is the heart of our identity as defined in the ELCA Constitution. That is 7.51.05 for any parliamentarians in the hall.

"This church shall establish and maintain a lay roster of diaconal ministers who shall be called by this church to positions that exemplify the servant life and that seek to equip and motivate others to live it. Such diaconal ministers shall seek in a great variety of ways to empower, equip, and support all the baptized people of God in the ministry of Jesus Christ and the mission of God in the world."

If you looked in on our gathering a few days ago, you would have seen men and women from their mid-twenties into their late fifties, or so we were willing to admit. Diaconal ministers today are serving by letter of call to social service agencies, parish nursing settings, ecumenical counseling services, synodical and churchwide staff positions, church college faculties, seminary administrative staffs, spiritual formation and direction responsibilities, congregational life and parish ministry leadership, chaplaincy, advocacy positions, and new ministries every month. Diaconal ministers always serve as partners in ministry with all the baptized, including rostered church leaders -- bishops, ordained pastors, associates in ministry and deaconesses. We may look different, but we all share the same specific call to use our God-given gifts in the ministry of Word and service.

Spiritual Gifts

Speaking of gifts, how do we discover what our gifts are? How can we distinguish them from skills we have learned to get along in this world or from experiences we simply enjoy? Enter the Spiritual Gifts Inventory! They are being used everywhere. I must confess (#2) that I have used a couple. Just guess how many Spiritual Gifts Inventory Web sites are listed on Yahoo. Four thousand, nine hundred and eighty! 4,980! The ELCA Education and Evangelism Team's Spiritual Gifts Inventory is listed as number four. I must confess that I have used and even abused some of these inventories. Raise you hand if you have ever used a spiritual gifts inventory.

The dozen or more inventories I have examined all define the use of gifts in very narrow ways. Invariably, "spiritual gifts" are equated with "tasks in the congregation." That is OK as far as it goes, but the approach does not begin to capture the transformation Paul describes as a natural consequence of sacrificing our whole selves in worship.

Spiritual gifts inventories typically begin with a series of questions to help you identify your gifts. Then they offer a check list to help you discover how to put your gifts to use, typically in the congregation. If you discern that leadership is your gift, then the inventory suggests you might serve on the congregation council or as a committee chair person. If you have the gift of service, you might take care of the property or provide transportation for others. No matter how tactfully the inventory is worded, some gifts can appear to be more valuable than others. Then competition kicks in and community deteriorates. I've seen it happen.

Transformation

Here is where we need to examine what transformation means in Romans. Wherever two or three are gathered together in the name of Christ Jesus, our Living Savior promises to be in their midst, to be in our midst. What a difference it makes when we sacrifice our selves, including our gifts, with praise for "the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God!" When we invest the gifts God has given us for the sake of the body of Christ, not as competitors, then God can transform these gifts 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

I want you to know that the ELCA's version is the only Spiritual Gifts Inventory I found that states that spiritual gifts are in fact not limited to church-related activities. Hidden on the last page is a section entitled "For Further Thought." I quote: "Your spiritual gifts do not appear and disappear as you pass through the doors of your church! The special gifts God has given you are with you always. They are meant to also be used in your daily life to bring glory to God and served the needs of others." Amen! Now the next time this inventory is edited, I hope this section will be moved to the first page and put in bold print to illustrate how the Triune God transforms us and frees us use our gifts in community as the Body of Christ all the time.

Body of Christ

Finally, transformation frees us to use our gifts in service as part of the whole body of Christ. Paul compares the community of Christ to a human body. In a healthy human body, there is no distinction or competition among the members. All parts need each other to fulfill their common mission. I love Paul's humor in 1 Corinthians 12. Picture his words: "If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?" I could add, "If every Bible study leader spoke during the second time slot, who could hear any of them?"

One final true confession. I have learned the hard way that transformation from competition to community is both humbling and liberating. Three years ago, I made yet another appointment with my Bishop for pastoral care and counseling. I was very discouraged and disgusted with myself for making a bad situation even worse during my first month as an executive director. After Bishop Bolick listened to me moan about my failures as a leader, he started to smile. He uncrossed his seven foot long legs and leaned forward with a gleam of compassionate in his eyes. I expected him to reassure me that I had done well after all. Instead, my bishop said, "Sue, even you don't have all the gifts." Even you don't have all the gifts! I don't know if my tears came more from wounded pride or from relief. Bishop Bolick spoke the truth in love. I do not have all the gifts. And I don't need to have all the gifts! Nor do you. Our wondrous God has transformed and continues to transform us from competition and frees us to use all of our gifts in community as the body of Christ.

Prayer

I'd like to close with a prayer that is imbedded in a later chapter in Romans.

"May the God of steadfastness and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another, in accordance with Christ Jesus, so that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." Amen. (Romans 15:5-6.)