Romans 12:3

For. say, through the grace that was given me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think as to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to each man. measure of faith.

'For' -'since if we have given ourselves wholly to God, and if all our talents and gifts for service are entrusted to us by him, we may be expected to have. humble opinion of ourselves.' (Erdman p. 146)

'through the grace that was given me' -i.e. to be an apostle (Romans 1:5; Galatians 2:7; Ephesians 4:8; Ephesians 4:11 ff).

'to every man that is among you' -everybody needed this lesson.

'not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think' -Everyone needs this admonition because people tend to see themselves as the most important person in the world. (1 Peter 2:3) 'Not to estimate himself above his real value' (Wms).

'Humility is the immediate effect of self-surrender to God' (Gr. Ex. N.T. p. 688)

'soberly' -'he must take. sane view of himself' (Mof)

'Humility is. SOUND ASSESSMENT of oneself in light of where God has placed him. It isn't this false humility...we aren't vermin crawling around. garbage pail (as. once heard. man say); we're made in the image of God. But we're not spiritual tycoons either.' (McGuiggan p. 360)

'according as God hath dealt to each man. measure of faith' -'allotted to each. measure of faith' (NASV). 'Faith' in this verse isn't one's own personal faith, for that comes by hearing. (Romans 10:17) Rather, 'The measure of faith is the specific expression of faith (office or work) delivered to each Christian.' (McGuiggan p. 360) This measure of faith, is the same as our 'function' (Romans 12:4) or 'gift' (Romans 12:6). Compare with 1 Corinthians 12:11; Ephesians 4:11.

'As saving faith is belief in testimony, it is the product of man's own action, and God does not deal it out, or give it to any one. If he did, how could he consistently condemn men for the lack of it (Mark 16:16), or how could he exhort men to believe (John 20:27)?' (McGarvey p. 491)

'each man' -note: The measure of faith, is something that all have.

The context that follows suggests that Paul stresses the need for humility, because it appears that the Christians in Rome may have or could fall into the same trap that the Corinthians had (i.e. thinking that spiritual gifts equaled moral superiority-Romans 12:6). 'Whatever differences exist must be due to. divine provision..thus, whatever estimates we place upon ourselves, all must be controlled by the humility which is inspired when we remember that we belong to God and that whatever we are and possess comes from him.' (Erdman p. 146)

Points to Note:

1. Every Christian has. talent. (Matthew 25:14; 1 Corinthians 12:18), and every member of the body of Christ has. 'function' (Romans 12:4).

2. But no one has 'earned' or merited their 'place' in the body. Everyone has God-given abilities, everyone is or has the potential to be really good at something. Now. can choose to neglect and waste that ability or, by my trust in God, to use it. But. must always remember, this talent doesn't make me morally superior to other Christians, for they all have talents too!