12th Chapter of Romans
Romans 12:1 (all verses are from the New International Version)
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship.
SPIRITUAL WORSHIP
What must be done with the physical body (the body of sin) to worship God
Paul begins the transition to this practical portion of his epistle to the Romans with a strong urging in view of all the theology discussed in the previous chapters which benefit the Gentiles and Jews alike. Because of this (therefore - NIV); because of the great mercy God has shown to us all, both Jews and Gentile alike; because of God's great patience and unlimited blessings we have in Christ Jesus; because of the ultimate sacrifice God made in giving us His own Son – now we ought to offer our own bodies as living sacrifices.
Romans 2:4 NIV Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?
The word sacrifice here has the same meaning and intent as the sacrifices offered up to God under Mosaic Law. These were usually animal sacrifices offered up to God in worship. They had to be offered up, i.e. – presented to God as a token of worship and as thus they had to be devoid of their own life (killed) and then usually burned. So the idea here is that we need to offer our body up to God, but in doing so it has to be devoid of its own pleasures (sinful nature) to be able to presented as a token of our worship and devotion. We have to kill it, along with its sinful desires, (die to self) and purify it (with the blood of Jesus) so that it can be pleasing to the Lord. How in the world do we do that? Of course the answer is in baptism (Romans 6:3-4). God provides us the only way by which we can offer our bodies as living sacrifices to the Lord. We become the sacrificial offering and at the same time priests making that offering to God. This is why we are called priests (1Pe 2:9; Rev 1:6; 5:20; 20:6), since priests were the only ones authorized to offer sacrifices unto God, Jesus being our high priest (Heb 2:17; 3:1; 4:14-15)!
The body is the chief instrument of the person and is to be presented to God through service to humanity, by preaching, teaching, ministering, and helping people, and not merely for some space of time, but throughout life. -- Coffman
Notice how worship involves both body and soul (mind). The body has to be dead but the souls alive. That is only possible while being in Jesus Christ! By obeying the Gospel we become those living sacrifices as opposed to dead ones. We now offer up to God a living and renewed soul in a dead personal body. For the moment we live in the body of Christ until that day when we receive a new, glorified body in the presence of the lamb! Meanwhile, in this earthly life, we need to continue to die to self for this sacrifice to be pleasing to God – we have to remain dead to the world so that we can be alive in Christ!
Thus, it is evident that, in the Father's wise design, the Lord Jesus Christ is the focus of all true religion, in both the Old Testament and the New Testament alike. Every true Christian is himself a presented sacrifice witnessing to the great facts of the Christian gospel. -- Coffman
The kind of sacrifice acceptable to God is:
1. Holy: under the law, when offering sacrifices up to God, they had to be set apart (holy) for the purpose of sacrifice. This meant they had to be without blemish, perfect; and the firstfruits – the first portion of the fruit of your labor, i.e.; the first fruits of your crop, or the firstborn of the flocks (Exodus 13:12-16). Likewise our body needs to be presented pure before the Lord, free of sexual sins that affect the body itself (1Co 6:18) or any other impurities that may make you a common vessel as opposed to a holy one. What you do with your body tells the world and God what you think of Him.
2. Pleasing: much more than just being holy God favors those who desire to please Him, like Enoch (Hebrews 11:5) and our Lord Jesus (2Pe 1:17) – those who have faith and seek Him out (Hebrews 11:6). Perhaps Cain offered holy fruit unto God, but his attitude was one that did not please God because he was jealous in his heart (Gen 4:3-7). Anytime our heart is not right with God we cannot please Him. Anytime our faith is compromised we cannot please God (Hebrews 11:6).
Some noteworthy passages on pleasing God:
Hebrews 11:6 NIV And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Romans 8:8 NIV Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.
Hebrews 10:38 NIV But my righteous one will live by faith. And if he shrinks back, I will not be pleased with him."
Hebrews 13:16 NIV And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.
2 Corinthians 5:9 NIV So we make it our goal to please him, whether we are at home in the body or away from it.
Colossians 1:10 NIV And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God…
Hebrews 13:20-22 NIV May the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
To do this is our spiritual act of worship!
Offering what we have, what is dearest to us, which would be our own lives and our own body, is what constitutes worship of God. In the Greek this part of this verse would read: this is your reasonable - KJV [spiritual – ESV, ASV, NIV, NAS; appropriate – GW] (logikos: pertaining to reason or logic; of the word: spiritual; pertaining to the soul) service - KJV [worship – ESV, GW; act of worship – NIV, service of worship – NAS] (latreia: sacred ministration; service - worship).
Any worship of God in the Old Testament had to be done according to the Levitical law in order for it to be acceptable. Anything practiced aside from this law given by God was not accepted and was often condemned leaving the offender to suffered retribution (Leviticus 10:1f; Numbers 26:61; 2Sam 6:6-7). This is why worship is described as something relating to logic – mind and the written word (logos). It requires reasoning to be able to worship God. You cannot worship God without understanding and accepting His requirements. There is something that has to be believed and understood, as Hebrews 11:6 teaches. Many think this is not in keeping with the spiritual realm, but here we see that the very word translated as spiritual has to do with the mind and what is written.
In order for our worship of God to be holy and pleasing it must be in keeping with our very faith, since worship and faith are inseparable as we understand from this passage and others that teach about the nature of faith, like Rom 10:17 and Hebrews 11:1.
This depiction of worship presents a very different mindset than the one the Jews had learned from the Law. For them worship was something they did regardless of what they were thinking in their mind. God wants our mind to be right, as Paul himself taught the Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 14:15 NIV So what shall I do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind.
The terminology Paul uses in this verse is also in keeping with the Levitical terms for sacrificing to God:
· Present: as in presenting your offering to God on the altar – a show of loyalty, not reluctance
· Body: (Greek: soma) to come before God a living being (physical body) has to be sacrificed since our God is holy. In the Old Testament priests came into the presence of God with the offerings of rams, bulls and sheep, amongst other animals. Blood had to be shed since we are not holy as our Lord is holy. Sin had to be expiated for our fellowship with God to be renewed. In these later days God’s own Son, our Lord Jesus, sits as a mediator to the right of God in Heaven. It is His body that was given up for us and when we are in His body we are holy and therefore can offer ourselves up as living sacrifices since our physical body, along with all of its sinful desires, was put to death with Jesus in baptism. The point is that you cannot come to God without a sacrifice of death being offered.
· Holy: what we give to God needs to be set apart. It cannot be anything considered common or of common use.
· Pleasing: what is given to God must be in accordance to His will. We don’t give according to what we feel is right but according to what we know is right in the eyes of God as stated in His word.
· Sacrifice: the act of killing and burning an offering as a token of service to God for blessing and thanksgiving. Ours is a living sacrifice, i.e., the continual putting to death of our sinful nature.
· Reasonable: the sacrifice offered had to be in keeping with the law. We approach God with understanding of Who He is: Lord; and what He has done: Savior.
· Service: what we give to God is for the express use of serving His purpose. Ours is a service to perform. We don’t call the shots or contribute to the agenda. We serve His purpose.
Of course many of the mighty men of God knew what God really desired from them:
And what does the Lord require?
Micah 6:6-8 NIV With what shall I come before the LORD and bow down before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? 7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
1Co 6:19-20 NIV Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
2Co 5:10 NIV For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
Worship of God is contingent upon a sacrificial mindset, not a selfish one. If you truly appreciate the salvation you have and have an attitude of thankfulness (gratefulness) you will strive to offer yourself up as a sacrifice saying: “I exist for You”!
Romans 12:2
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is--his good, pleasing and perfect will.
What must be done with the mind (soul) to worship God
Here’s what denotes our spiritual worship as being reasonable (of the mind): the dynamics of our worship involve transformation (metamorphoo: to change into another form, to transform, to transfigure. This is the same word used to describe Jesus’ change in Mat 17:2-3 and Mark 9:2-4) and testing (dokimazo: to discern, examine, prove, try, test and scrutinize to see whether something is genuine or not. To recognize as genuine after examination, to approve, to deem worthy.). This illustrates how worship of God is a dynamic process, not a static one. To be static would be to conform (suschematizo: to be alike, to be fashioned alike) to the world and your surroundings. Transformation of the mind and thoughts leads to the transformation of what you do with your body. True outer change follows internal change.
Israel had failed because they wanted to be like every other nation – having kings and wars and riches and land. They had abandoned God's will for the purpose of conforming to the world. They never recovered from that error, even giving into godless idols and practices similar to their neighboring countries.
James 4:4 NIV You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
How is our conformation to the world shown? By our:
1- Language – what we like to say
2- Dress
3- Morals
4- Interests
5- What we like to watch
6- What we like to hear
1John 2:15-17 NIV Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever.
Transformation is accomplished by God’s word (logos) and Spirit (Heb 4:12; Ephesians 6:17)
1- To be transformed (dynamic) you need to stop conforming (static) to the world
2- Newness of the mind comes by
a. Acquisition of the Spirit (Rom 8:6, 11)
b. Being born again of word, water and spirit (1Pe 1:23, John 3:3-7)
c. Being in Jesus (Col 1:27)
3- Training in righteousness – letting God's word dwell in us richly (Col 3:16) – and being trained for testing! – (2Tim 3:16-17)
4- Just like the body of sin (physical body) was done away with in baptism, so the mind must be purged of the world in order to worship (serve) God
Transformation is necessary to:
1- Test everything
2- Approve the will of God
3- Receive all the promises of the Gospel (2Pe 1:4)
4- Participate in the divine nature (2Pe 1:4)
1 Thessalonians 5:21 NIV Test everything. Hold on to the good.
God's will is:
1- Good – it always yields goodness, friendliness, joy and happiness. It is excellent and honorable and sets your heart at peace.
2- Pleasing (acceptable; fully agreeable – no one can deny its goodness and benefit)
3- Perfect – it is complete and thorough. Fully bringing about maturity and good fruit.
The catalysts of the transformation are:
1- God's word (logos) – Rom 10:17
2- Your faith (reasonable worship) – Rom 12:1-2
3- Conformation to His will (act of worship) – Rom 12:1-2
2 Corinthians 3:6 NIV He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
Both verses 1 and 2 of this chapter have significantly and profoundly concluded and assumed that we are perfectly capable of controlling our body and our mind (thoughts). As a matter of fact, we must in order to worship God! If we conform to the world then we have relinquished control and authority of both our mind and body to Satan – to be used as automatons for sin and destruction. These verses also conclusively prove that only an individuals’ faith can save him. Salvation comes individually when each soul presents his body to die with Christ and so begins transformation of his mind to conform unto Jesus Christ. No one can be saved by his minister’s faith, or by his church’s faith; nor by his parent’s faith or his children’s faith (salvation by association). Each soul needs to stand before God on his own faith, with his own body and in his own right mind:
2Co 5:10 NIV For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad.
Romans 12:3
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you.
Paul does not want to be presumptuous here and clearly states his motives for giving the advice he will be giving for the rest of the epistle: …by the grace given me I say to everyone of you…
1 Corinthians 15:10 NIV But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
The rest of the practical examples given in the epistle illustrate how God's grace helps us continue in the right frame of mind which is: transformation. Anything less than what is taught here is equal to conformation to the world, which is mediocrity – spiritual death.
The grace of God should be the motivating factor in our continuation of the race set before us in Christ Jesus.
· We ought to be motivated by grace, not by merit
· We ought to encourage others because of grace, not anger, envy or pride (arrogance)
· When we are properly motivated we can effectively motivate others
Notice that the first thing Paul wants us to examine is our self-concept, which leads us to our self-worth: what do you think of yourself? What are you motivated by? Achievement? Pride? If your self-worth is low (low self-esteem) it is probably because you are choosing conformation to the world. This will lead you to Lord over others instead of encouraging them properly. If your self-worth is high, based on Jesus’ grace for you, then you will effectively encourage others to imitate the grace that enables you to grow and transform your thinking.
1 – Think of yourself with sober judgment
Sober judgement = sophroneo – to have a sound (right) mind; to exercise self-control; to curb one’s passions; to be sane.
So, to think of yourself highly would mean you are insane! I believe that to be so since this mindset comes from trying to be conformed to the world and to be in a worldly mindset is to be insane! Sanity comes from God's word and a transformed mind. We must think of ourselves as what we are before God's throne in order to be transformed. God's gift to us on the cross, our Lord Jesus Christ, caused us to realize who and what we are. Now God wants us to continue redefined in Jesus – we are but an extension of the body of Christ now – we are not our own.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
Our sobriety comes from the measure (portion) of faith (pistis: persuasion and constancy of dependence on God) God has given each of us. What the Holy Spirit teaches us here is that our conviction of how God relates to us and what we think we are before Him is what will guide the sobriety of our judgment.
Insane judgement: the reasons why Israel fell out of grace…
1- Assumes people are in control of things
2- Assumes people have power
3- Produces a critical spirit
4- Loves lording over people
5- Causes you to think you are better or more privileged
6- Causes you to think you are entitled
7- Causes you to think you deserve God's favor and His salvation
Sober judgment:
1- Knows I am not deserving of God's grace
2- Knows I am the recipient of God's grace anyway
3- Is convinced I am enabled because of Christ
4- Knows Christ is the head of the body
5- Is convinced Jesus is Lord and Savior
6- Is motivated to have God's grace be effective in his person
7- Bears good fruit by the measure of grace (God's gifts) given to him – Romans 12:6
Romans 12:4-5
Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Part of our soberness of thinking comes from acknowledging that each one of us is but a small part of the whole. Each one of us by ourselves doesn’t amount to much, but together we are the body of Christ. Together we can act as one gigantic, unstoppable force – if and only if we are incorporated in Jesus Christ.
Paul uses the analogy of the human body (which he also used in 1Co 12, and to a limited extent in Ephesians 4 & 5 and Colossians 2 & 3) to help us see that since each one of us has been given a different function (praxis: deed, office, work; a mode of acting; a deal, transaction; a thing to be done; business) individually, only collectively are we whole and complete. Individually we are not complete, just like a body cannot be just a foot or an eye: the whole is greater than the sum of its parts – meaning that from an unimpressive assembly of parts (1Co 1:26) God can build something of consequence and beauty whose value, power and majesty is greater than the combined worth of the parts. Only when we each know what to do, and submit to the head to do it then the body works completely. The 10 crowning jewels of worshipping God through transformation comprise some of this work we carry out as members of the body. Some members will carry it out one way and some another, through the diverse talents with which God has blessed each member. Our primary mode of acting (serving), regardless of our talents, is by loving one another deeply, as we will see at the end of this chapter (Romans 12:9-10). Instead of competing for honors and entitlements we serve and honor one another above ourselves – expressing loving concern for every part of the body:
1Co 12:24-26 NIV But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
As members of the body of Christ we each are a part of ONE BODY, belonging to one another just like the parts of your body all belong to you and to each other. We are intimately joined in:
1- Communion
2- Fellowship
3- Prayer
4- God's Word (Acts 2:42)
Our new status as holy priests enables us to be the spiritual house where acceptable sacrifices are offered.
1 Peter 2:5 NIV …you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
The fact that this can only happen through Jesus, (in Christ as Rom 12:5 says) cannot be overstated. Only by incorporation can this happen! Remember what we discussed in Romans 3:24!
Ephesians 2:19-22 NIV Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone. 21 In him the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord. 22 And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.
This is what makes us the church, the body of Christ! Before we were all a bunch of unimpressive assembly parts, trying to build something that always came out incomplete, haphazard and prone to malfunction. In Christ, however, we have become a part of someone larger than the whole universe!
Ephesians 3:10 NIV His intent was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms,
This is why jealousy, envy, arrogance, self-centeredness and selfishness, which are not the fruit of sober thinking, but fruit of the world cannot be sown in the body. These are what tear apart the unity and loving concern that exists in the body of Christ.
We ought to honor each other’s gifts and rejoice in the talents God has given each of us to build up the body. Like the apostle writes to the Corinthians:
1Co 12: 15-21 NIV If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 16 And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. 19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 21 The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"
Romans 12:6
We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith.
2 – Use the gifts God has given you
Gifts (charisma: favor received without merit, God’s economy of grace; spiritual endowment) are what set us apart from each other and enable us to carry out our function in the body of Christ. These spiritual endowments are prescribed according to God's grace given to us. They are gifts of grace – part of the divine economy and for use in that divine economy – not the worldly one. God's grace becomes effective in you when you use these gifts to build up the body of Christ.
1 Corinthians 15:10 NIV But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.
Are the gifts spoken of here miraculous or non-miraculous?
What is said here is non-specific and can apply to both natures of the charisma. Paul makes reference to different gifts, more of a miraculous nature, in 1 Corinthians 12-14. As a matter of fact, the list we see here in this chapter of Romans contains non-miraculous gifts when we understand prophecy to mean the declaration of divine will; to interpret the purposes of God; or to make known in any way the truth of God. Perhaps that is why Paul wanted to impart a spiritual gift (Rom 1:11) of the miraculous nature, since only apostles could give miraculous gifts by the laying on of hands (Acts 8:18). We know today that the miraculous gifts are not active (1Co 13:8). We can make a case, however, that the gifts spoken of here are distributed by the Holy Spirit today and we need to listen to this admonition closely that we may worship God and be blessed in His body with brotherly love!
Gifts mentioned here:
A – Prophesy: propheteia – (to fore tell) a discourse emanating from divine inspiration and declaring the purposes of God; to speak forth the words of God, to foretell (forecast). This can apply to anyone who is inspired to share God's words with zeal, patience and wisdom. There are those who have this gift expressed in their writing and those who have this gift expressed in speaking and preaching.
Use this gift in proportion (analogia: analogous; corresponding) to your faith. This means, don’t go trying to teach about what you don’t know, or try to give an answer to a question you know nothing of. We need to teach what is I the Bible which gave us the faith we have and will mature it as we continue to be in the Word. Those using this gift in proportion to their faith know when to say: “I don’t know the answer to that but I’ll get back to you”. This is why those who teach and preach as leaders need to have tested faith to be able to encourage and edify the body properly.
Romans 12:7
If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach;
B – Serving: diakonia – ministry; attendance, as in preparing and serving food. This could be referring to the work of the deacon, but can be applied generally to any form of service by the brethren.
C – Teaching: didasko – to teach, to instruct, to explain and to instill doctrine. Here teachers are distinguished from those who prophesy. This could be interpreted as teachers not being directly inspired whereas prophets are. If this is being distinguished from the miraculous gift of prophesying, the prophets were able to tell God's words that were not known yet to the church, whereas the teacher would remind the people of the words God revealed through the prophets. Nowadays we can distinguish teachers from prophets (preachers) by the level of responsibility given in the church as well as the maturity of their faith. There are also those who can teach very well, and then there are those whose inspirations from God's word lead us to hear wonderful sermons and exhortations.
Notice how the encouragement to us all is to let them use their gift! Don’t stop anyone from using their gift to bless the body of Christ! Let them express their worship of God!
Romans 12:8
if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
D – Encouraging: parakaleo – to call to one’s side; to admonish, to console, to comfort, to strengthen; to instruct, to teach. These are those who love to build up the brothers with smiles and encouraging words. They always say the right thing at the right time and they always refer you to the appropriate passages in the Bible. These brothers will seek you out. They won't wait until you come to them, hence, to call to one’s side.
E – Contributing: metadidomi – to give over, to share. These are brothers who are always seeking out those in need and always trying to find ways of meeting their needs either by sharing what they have, giving away what they have or being resourceful in other ways. Those who give should give generously (haplotes: with simplicity; sincerely; not self seeking; liberally). This means they don’t look over what they have first before they give; they just give it over without thinking of themselves! These are the ones that truly have this gift. They are utterly sincere in their giving and don’t expect any kind of repayment when they give.
F – Leadership: proistemi – to superintend, to preside over; to stand before; to practice, maintain, rule; to be a protector or guardian; to care for, given attention to. The leaders amongst us are those whose conscience are such that they are thinking of the welfare of the entire church and always look over her in prayer and in the word. They give all their attention to the matters of the church and protect the church, her doctrine and her people. They are the guardians of the church’s business, caring for its reputation and purity. Those who lead should lead diligently (spoude: eagerness, forwardness; with earnest interest), with fervent desire and forwardness. This means they are not rude or indifferent – they are forward with you as a true friend.
G – Mercy: eleeo – help the afflicted, seek aid, bring help; have compassion. These are the brethren that help those who are down and out. They feel their pain and are moved by compassion. They bring help to the afflicted and their hearts are always resonating with those who suffer. They pray arduously for them and become answers to their prayers any which way they can. Those who show mercy should do it cheerfully (hilarotes: readiness of mind; alacrity, enthusiasm, rapidity), without being overwhelmed by sorrow or distracted by their own wants. They show mercy readily and quickly carry out their service enthusiastically, helping the afflicted be encouraged by their word and action.
Romans 12:9
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.
TRUE WORSHIP = LOVING ONE ANOTHER
3 – Love everyone sincerely, don’t be a hypocrite
Sincere love is love that allows you to hang out all your heart in the open without concern for yourself, but out of concern of your brother’s needs. Love is what needs to be the motivation for true worship of God to occur. The love of which he speaks is no mere emotionalism or sentimentality.
The Greek term here translated “love” is agapē and implies an unselfish love, because agapē-love is a love willfully exercised and expressed to those who would not be naturally appealing or would not automatically reciprocate. It has been defined as “loving for love’s sake, loving without expecting anything in return.” -- New Commentary on the Whole Bible
Notice how our worship of God is expressed in the daily love we show one another through the gifts given to us and how we treat one another. God has to be our center and circumference, through prayer and the studying of His word, for our love to be complete and then expressed in this order (Matt 22:36-40):
1- Towards God
2- Towards our neighbors in this order
a. Towards our spouses (for those who are married) – Eph 5:25-33
b. Towards our children (for those who have children) – Eph 6:1-4
c. Towards our immediate family members in our household (for all)
d. Towards our brethren in the Lord – Gal 6:10
e. Towards our neighbors whom we want to reach with the Gospel – Mat 28:18-20
Love needs to be sincere (anupokritos: without dissimulation, unfeigned; genuine, heartfelt, authentic). The kind of love that worships God cannot be shown under obligation but must come from conviction of conscience and sincere devotion. This is the love that bears fruit and comes up from under any worldly attack (thorny soil or rocky soil). It triumphs over evil (Rom 12:21) because it clings (kollao: glues, cement, fastens together; cleaves, joins) to what is good and it hates (apostugeo: abhors, utterly detests; is horrified of) whatever is evil. True love knows not nor accepts any shadiness.
In a world where much that looks real is not real, love in the family must be the real thing expressed in action, not merely in words. – Disciple’s Study Bible
1 Peter 1:22 NIV Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from the heart.
John 13:34-35 ESV A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. 35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
1 John 4:20 NIV If anyone says, "I love God," yet hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen.
Romans 12:10
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.
4 – Be devoted to your brothers and sisters, honoring them above yourself
Now we are particularly getting into the kind of love that must be shown towards those in Christ. It is a devoted (philostorgos: kindly affectionate, tenderness, the kind of love commonly seen between natural relatives) love, honoring (valuing) one another, as opposed to tearing each other down like the world does their “friends”. This love makes you consider your brother’s value to be above your own, giving preference to him/her over yourself. You look to lift them up as opposed to lifting yourself up. You need to leave that up to God!
To honor is to place a value on something. We honor what we know is valuable, unique and rare. In the church we honor our differences, recognizing our strength as one body. We learn to appreciate each other sincerely because we see how God builds up the body. We honor what is special, what has a dear value for us. To honor is to show by deeds how important we think someone is.
Proverbs 3:9-10 NIV Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; 10 then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.
Romans 12:11
Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.
More descriptors of the kind of love that ought to be between brethren in Christ. Our zeal (eagerness, earnestness; speed) for serving one another cannot be slow to be expressed (lazy, slothful; selfish), but hastened – demonstrating our fervor (not coldly or with indifference) of spirit as we serve the Lord.
Ephesians 6:7 NIV Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men…
Colossians 3:23-24 ESV Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.
To do the will of God (to worship God - mine) involves a disciplined application of our will in the matters of life. This begins with a goal of doing good rather than evil to other persons no matter how they treat us. – Disciple’s Study Bible
There can be no such thing as a lazy Christian – it is an oxymoron (a contradiction in terms). In Christ we are empowered to love and serve freely with all of God's resources at our disposal. God will indeed deny no one who serves wholeheartedly in His kingdom! The world serves halfheartedly, lukewarmly and slothfully blaming bureaucracy, red tape and anything else except for their own hypocrisy! The world wants to be served rather than to be serving.
Matthew 6:24 NIV No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.
Revelation 3:15-16 ESV I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! 16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.
Romans 12:12
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.
5 – Show your joy in the hope you have by being patient and faithful in prayer
Joy is the first thing that disappears when love fails to be at the center of what we do and say. The Galatian church experienced that when their concern turned to law-keeping and jealousy (Gal 4:15). Our joy needs to stem from the hope we have in Jesus. It is the anchor of the soul (Heb 6:19). When our hope is to try to perform better we will be let down since we cannot keep the law perfectly. When our hope is in Jesus, in the fact that God has granted us mercy despite our shortcomings (sins), then our doing is because of gratefulness and our joy is real. Whenever we serve one another we will do it with joy, not with the feeling of compulsion or competition.
We will have many afflictions in this life:
Job 5:7 NIV Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.
Job 14:1 NIV Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble.
1 Corinthians 7:28 NIV … those who marry will face many troubles in this life…
If you are alive you will surely meet trouble more than once! This is good though. It shouldn’t be viewed as a bad thing if you are in Christ:
James 1:2-3 NIV Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.
The troubles of this life are what will sharpen and mature our faith in Jesus so that it can be a saving faith, full of fruit that will last. Just like muscle needs resistance to create strength so does our faith require testing (trouble, affliction) for it to bear fruit unto salvation. For this reason someone who has their focus on serving and loving in thankfulness will be patient through affliction. Lack of patience is exhibited in worry, complaining and lack of gratitude.
Colossians 1:24 NIV Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ's afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.
Notice the attitude of Paul – he was glad to suffer for the sake of the church. He knew he had to join Jesus in finishing the affliction He had to finish suffering through the church. Are you willing to take up these afflictions for the sake of the church?
· Are you willing to be patient with your brothers?
· Are you willing to suffer for your brother?
· Are you willing to stand with/for your brother?
· Are you willing to endure shame and reproach for Jesus?
If you won't do it for your brother you’re a hypocrite – you won't do it for Jesus either.
Finally, what do you do when you are in trouble? I hope you pray, as James encourages us (James 5:13). I hope we are praying faithfully, whether there is trouble or there isn’t – even though we know that trouble is always around the corner! I believe the praying we need to be doing in this context is for one another. That is faithful prayer – continually praying for each other. This shows that our love for one another goes beyond the external and that we are really thinking about our loved ones and brethren in our hearts.
Romans 12:13
Share with God's people who are in need. Practice hospitality.
6 – Share everything with your brothers and sisters that are in need and be hospitable with strangers
A loving person, anchored in the hope of Jesus’ grace and mercy gladly shares whatever he has. There are no strangers to this person; he welcomes everyone and anyone into his home for the express purpose of having that person enter into the Heavenly home. The church’s reputation with the world will always depend on how we give and serve one another in this way. There are always ample opportunities to share. Someone in the church is always in need of something.